The darkness masked the sunset, but it was nearly time to collect his order of blood. Drew knew the Plantation would continue without Grayson Briggs. People died on that island and reemerged somewhere else, fires were started and were put out.

The Plantation was a business—a successful one. Whoever inherited the business was bound to make money simply by continuing it. And Drew’s large order of blood would cost him a decent amount of coin that the new owner certainly wouldn’t pass over.

Part of him was concerned that if two of his crew so easily defected, there was potential for it to happen with everyone else, and he couldn’t risk that. However, he needed his crew. He could not make it to Sangre without them simply because this size ship and the journey was long and arduous. Even three witches, a human, and a recovering Infant would not be able to assist. He needed seamen—men with strength and speed who also had experience on the ocean.

Keep your friends close and your enemies closer. Drew curled his hand into a fist, resolving to stay alert, but to act with strategy.

Right now, his main concern was Kelia’s safety.

He headed toward the helm, his fingers itching to grab onto something. Movement on the horizon caught his eye, and he turned.

When he saw the small boat cut against the turbulent ocean, trying to get to the Wraith, his heart lurched in his throat. He wanted to leap from his ship and land in the small boat despite the grand distance so he could pull Kelia in his arms himself, ensuring the she was real, that she was all right.

He couldn’t stop his lips from twitching up into a relieved smile. He shook his head, muttering nonsense to himself. She was all right. She was safe.

Waiting for the boat to finally hit the side of the Wraith was agony, but when it did, Drew leaned down and grabbed hold of the boat himself.

Emma held the boat to the Wraith while Kelia climbed the ladder first, followed by Daniella. Emma made her way up last. One of his crew hoisted the boat back on deck and went to place it where it belonged, leaving the deck empty save for Drew and the three women.

"What took so long?" Drew demanded of Emma.

"We checked everywhere,” she said. “We didn’t find her until we reached the west docks.”

From the corner of his eye, he saw Kelia’s knees give way. Before she could hit the deck, he darted to her and wrapped his arms around her waist to break her fall. He kept her upright by pulling her close to him so she could lean on his body. His eyes, however, never left Emma's.

"What. Happened. To her?" he demanded, grinding out each word behind a snarl. His grip on her tightened, as though he worried that losing her once more could happen at any moment.

"Robert and Casey had her tied to the mast of a boat for who knows how long," Emma said.

"The whole time," Kelia said. Her voice came out like a croak, and Drew's entire body stiffened. "They didn’t want to risk me escaping while they slept."

"They didn’t take shifts?" Drew asked, tilting his head to the side. "They were not the smartest of the bunch, aye?"

"Casey came across smart enough," Daniella muttered, but Drew paid her no mind. When it came to Daniella, it was still difficult to forgive her for what she had done to Kelia even though Emma had told her to do whatever necessary in order to find Wendy.

"I cannot begin to understand the mechanisms of a Shadow's mind," Kelia murmured. She was leaning the majority of her weight on Drew's body without shame. This was unlike her, and it caused Drew to growl at the thought of her being completely inhibited, unable to eat, sleep, or even move for hours.

"Did they say why they had her?" Drew asked Emma.

"You know," Kelia cut in, lifting her head and raising an eyebrow. "I am standing right here. Since this happened to me, you could ask me questions as well."

"I..." Drew tilted his head back so he could look down at Kelia. The rain misted on her skin, the storm finally calming from earlier. He wanted nothing more than to carry her off to his bed and let her sleep. He wanted to keep her with him always, so he would never have to worry about losing her again. "Quite right, princess. Do you know why they had you?"

She placed her head back onto Drew's chest. It felt as though it fit right there, just underneath his chin. He caught a whiff of something delectably feminine, the scent a subtle floral entwined with something solely Kelia. His mouth salivated just inhaling her; he wanted to be closer to her, to bury his face in the crook of her neck so her scent would stain his own skin and he would be reminded of her always.

"Apparently,” she said, “they wanted to use me as some sort of bargaining chip. The Queen wanted me so she could lure you to her and force you to bond with her once again."

Drew's grip on Kelia tightened. He placed his chin on her head, tucking her underneath him.

Emma cleared her throat. "You are forgetting something, Kelia."

Drew snapped his gaze over at her. He could feel Kelia lean even farther into him, and he knew, soon, he would have to get her to bed.

"What?" Drew asked in a low voice. "What is she forgetting?"

"It doesn’t matter," Kelia said. "Why even say it when it won't happen?"

"Because Drew needs to know everything," Emma said, her voice firm. Her dark eyes never left Drew's. He had been with Emma long enough to know those eyes, and he gathered whatever else needed to be said, he would not like it. "The Queen wants to lure you back and reform the Bond, yes, but she also plans to torture Kelia to the brink of death beforehand, as some kind of punishment. I don’t know, then, if the Queen will change her and continue to torture her for the rest of her long life, or if the Queen will simply kill her once your Bond with her is reinstated. But I thought it best you were aware of her plan."

Drew clenched his teeth so hard, his jaw popped.

"It’s not something to concern yourself with," Kelia murmured. Her face was still pressed into his chest, and he thought perhaps it was because she could not look into his eyes as she so easily dismissed herself.

"I forbid you to speak like that," Drew said. His voice came out strained, tight. He didn’t wish to snap at her after what she had endured, but he did not like that she could regard herself so carelessly, as though she did not matter in the grand scheme of things. "Do you not understand your value?"

"Oh, I know my worth," Kelia said, finally pulling away from him so she could stand on her own.

His arms fell limply to his sides, and he pressed his lips together, ignoring the sense of loss that struck him the moment he no longer had her close to him.

"But let's not stand here and pretend that I have the same abilities as you all,” she continued. “Drew, you are a Shadow that can leap and run and kill like some kind of animal, but cleverer, stronger, and faster than anything God-made on this planet. Emma, Wendy, and Daniella are witches, with magic over the elements and abilities to heal and who knows what else."

She took a moment to catch her breath. "I know what I am good at. I know I can use my blade in a way no one else can—when I have my blade. But this is the second time I've had to be saved in the last day. And I must admit, I do not like having to rely so thoroughly on others because I am inadequate when compared to everyone else on this ship. I am the weak link, and I don’t like being the weak link."

"The weak link?" Drew's voice was low but still. His focus was solely on Kelia, but he did catch sight of Emma gently taking Daniella's wrist in her hand and tugging her toward the staircase in order to leave he and Kelia alone. "Why would you say such a thing?”

Kelia pursed her lips. "Do you remember when you gave me a lesson on my greatest asset—what I was born with? When you tried to tell me deception could be constructed simply by using my face a certain way or by using my body as a weapon?"

Drew nodded. He could still feel Kelia—so stubborn, so keen on besting him—struggle against him as she tried and failed to get the upper hand during their tete-a-tete. "Of course I remember."

"How can that work if I am facing supernatural entities that could break my skull with their bare hands?" she asked. Her shoulders slumped forward, and she turned to look at the horizon.

Drew stared at her, trying to find the right words to say. But she was right. He couldn’t answer that. Her insecurities were his own, in a way.

"Perhaps,” he suggested tentatively, “we should go inside my quarters and discuss this out of the rain.”

Kelia opened her mouth, and Drew knew, in that instant, she was going to tell him no. For some strange reason, he did not want her away from him. At least, not yet. Not so soon after he got her back.

"I just…" he felt himself say, his words moving without his permission. He couldn’t find it in himself to stop them from coming out. It was as though he were trying to plug a hole in a ship on the water. Water was going to get in no matter what. These words were tumbling out of him, whether he wanted them to or not. "I just want to make sure you're alright. You can change your clothes, get into something dry and comfortable." He matched eyes with her, and he added, so softly he was not sure if she could hear him, even though the rain fell lighter than whispers, "Please."

She crumbled around the word, as though that was her greatest weakness, rather than her lack of supernatural abilities.

Without thinking, without doing anything to stop himself, he gathered her in his arms and placed his lips on hers. The kiss was tentative at first. But then, her hands came up to clutch his face, and his tongue slid out of his mouth and across her bottom lip. The rain coated them in a refreshing stillness.

She opened her mouth for him, and he took full advantage of it. He explored every crevice, every part of her. It was as though this was their first kiss, as though they had not kissed months ago, with arrows raining down on them through a turbulent storm. As though nothing else in this world meant anything to either of them save for each other.

He wondered if everytime would be like the first time. And he also wondered, each time, if it would be the last.

His hand found the back of her head, tilting it back so he could explore her even deeper than he had before. His body molded to her hers. He felt her heart pound against her chest and echo through his own as though it beat in his body just as it beat in hers. As though it kept him alive, just as it kept her alive.

She let out a small whimper through the kiss, and his pelvis tightened, his cock stirred. He was suddenly struck with the urge to elicit more sounds similar in nature from her. He needed to hear her moan his name. He needed to bury himself so deeply inside of her that he forgot what it was like to be without her.

She finally pulled away, but it seemed it was only to catch her breath—something Drew never really thought of anymore himself. He rested his forehead on hers and continued to hold her tightly, one hand behind her head, one hand on the small of her back, pressing her into him, as close as he could get her.

"Do not ever doubt your worth, Kelia Starling," he said, his lips so close to her skin, he could almost taste the dried tears that still stained her cheeks. He was not there for her. A growl stirred in his chest, but he pushed it down. She was with him now. That was the most important thing. That and never letting her be taken from him again. "You are a strong, capable woman. You are my best friend, my closest companion. I do not know what I would do if anything happened to you and I could not be there to stop it."

New tears sprung into her eyes and ran down her face. Not even a deluge could wipe them away. Drew released his hold on her hand and her back so he could cup her face and wipe her tears away.

"I want to be able to stand on my own," Kelia insisted. "I don’t want to rely on anyone for assistance when I cannot provide the same in return."

"You provide more than you will ever know," Drew said seriously. However, his words came out tinged with an urgency he didn’t mean to share. Fear coiled its bony fingers around his neck. He suddenly felt as though his time was running out, and he needed to tell Kelia everything he could get out before it was too late. "Why stand alone when I am here, when I long to stand beside you and would have no one else save you to stand beside me. We are partners, you and I. You are my equal. You’re everything I need to make me a better person. You cannot know what you mean to me, and words will never be able to tell you, but trust me at my word, Slayer, you are everything good in me. And without you, I am lost. I do, very much, rely on you."

Kelia bit her bottom lip but nodded. Her eyes were unable to meet his. She tilted her head forward, and for a moment, he thought she would kiss him once more.

But instead, she stepped away and headed belowdeck without looking back.