The Priestess' Affair [Books 1 &2]

𝐗𝐗𝐈𝐈𝐈. 𝐕𝐢𝐬𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭

-HER-

I appeared on the beach the following day as the sun rose from the horizon. The sound of the sea bashing the rocks in the distance greeted me. The beach was almost deserted, except for a lone, short figure casting a long shadow. The person was waiting for something... someone... me.

Quietly, I edged towards her. As soon as she sensed I was close by her, she turned around and started walking towards a boat by the shore. I followed her without uttering a single word.

Beads of sweat spotted my forehead as the two of us pushed the boat into the waters. It was already starting to get hotter today. The sea breeze brought the humidity that further made me sweat.

As soon as I was on the boat, she handed me the oar and sat back. I glared at her while she ignored me. She busied herself by tailing the horizon with her eyes while I rowed alone.

When we were well into the sea, Vittoria took a small pouch out of the folds of her dress. By the sound it made, I guessed that the bag was filled with stones.

She shook the pouch once and emptied the stones on a wooden plank. Then, she studied the scattered stones like the constellations in the night sky. I stared at the stones, trying to make sense of them, but nothing struck me. I was still a rookie at foreseeing.

After staring at the stones unblinkingly for almost forever, Vittoria leaned back with a big sigh. I thought she sounded and looked disappointed, but then something devilish flickered in her cat-like eyes as they fell on me.

"What is it this time?" I asked, knowing well that I might not get any answer from her.

"Row faster," she retorted.

"Where are we going this time?" I asked.

"Why? To see your brother's doing," Her straightforward answer was nothing less than a miracle.

"You aren't joking, are you?" I asked, unable to believe her. Her silence answered that she wasn't joking. It excited and terrified me simultaneously.

I was relieved that she was finally paying attention to this pressing issue, but at the same time, I was terrified of what we might find out. It had been a few weeks since we visited my brother. I was sure that his troops must have advanced a lot since then.

How would we stop them? But most important of all—did Vittoria know where they were now? I wondered and looked at Vittoria in search of an answer. She was leaning back against the boat's edge with her arms resting back. Her features were poised as if we were going out on an invitation for a feast, but her eyes— they never lied.

Her eyes stared at the horizon with enough vigour to part the sea and coerce it to expel its most profound and darkest secrets. A shiver ran down my spine.

Something was going on in her head. I could see it on her face.

"Do you know where those troops are right now?" I asked.

"Not yet," she replied and fell silent for the rest of our journey to the abandoned harbour. After hiding the boat and tip-toeing our way through the traps, we reached the other end of the pier, where I was surprised to find a merchant's vessel.

My eyes widened, and I stopped to glance at Vittoria, who was headed towards the vessel as if it was there solely for her. I followed her reluctantly to the vessel, where a couple of the ship's crew greeted us before helping us onboard. As soon as we were on board, it left the harbour, turning towards the mainland.

It was one of the giant vessels owned by the merchant's guild. It was so big that it could carry tons of cargo and 500 people simultaneously. It was strong enough to withstand any storm and pirates of the sea. However, something felt odd about the ship. I couldn't quite put my finger on it at first.