Shadow Road: Book 1 of the Shadows Rising Trilogy

4. Reason

6th of Uirra, Continued

For several seconds I stared at the inside of the hatch door, half expecting Father to come popping back in to say this was all a great prank, and that I should see the look on my face.

But he didn't, and the Chief Mate cleared his throat. I took a breath, and then I did it. I pretended I was this Miss Larkham and made a tearful confession of taking a silly dare too far. I apologized for all the trouble I had caused, then meekly followed the Chief Mate down to cabin 406.

A woman I had never met before in my life opened the door at the Chief Mate's knock and, to my amazement, exclaimed, "There you are!"

Then she thanked the Chief Mate for bringing me back and promised to punish me appropriately, all while pulling me inside and shutting the door in his face.

She listened at the panel for a moment then looked at me, a droll grin tugging at her brightly painted lips.

"What is going —" I started to ask, when there was another knock at the door, and the woman calmly unlatched it.

Father handed her a small fold of bills. "Thank you ever so much."

I watched them both in disbelief.

She shrugged and gave him a lazy she-cat sort of smile as she tucked the money into her bodice. She stayed there, lurking in her doorway as Father pulled me swiftly out into the hall and down to our own cabin. Or the cabin I thought was ours. Maybe it wasn't.

With nothing else to do, I sat down on the edge of my bed. For several seconds, silence reigned. Finally, when it became clear that he wasn't going to be the one to say anything, I broke the silence, "What is going on?"

My father was standing there, staring at his berth, and at my question his jaw knotted up.

"Why have you been acting so strange?" I tried. My voice quavered, fear and anger tightening my throat.

He didn't answer.

My tenuous hold on my emotions was beginning to break. "I'm not an idiot!" I choked out. "I can read a ship's manifest. We're not supposed to be in this cabin. I'm not even supposed to be on the Galvania. Why?" When he didn't do more than take a shaky breath, I nearly yelled, "Talk to me!"

Slowly, he shook his head. "I can't." Then he turned to look at me. Really look at me, his warm brown eyes meeting mine fully for the first time in weeks. "I've wanted to. Many, many times. But it's too dangerous for too many people. Too much hangs in the balance. Please..." he said softly, crossing the few feet between us to crouch in front of me. "I know I must seem like a madman. But I swear, I'm only trying to protect you."

Peering up at me intently, he looked so much like the man he used to be. Calm, quiet, reasonable. Until that moment I hadn't truly appreciated just how much I missed him. It was like coming home after wandering alone in the rain, only to find that the rosy childhood impressions of your home are gone, and you can see the cracks in the foundation, the buckled walls, the crooked roof. Tears stung my eyes as I nodded, something crumbling apart in my chest as I went through the charade of giving in.

A small, grim smile crossed his face, tugging his mustache awry for a moment. "That's my girl," he whispered. Then he got to his feet. "Now. There's something I have to do. I'll be back late." He paused for a moment, looking down at me. "Please stay inside. And lock the door."

I nodded again and brushed at the tears brimming behind my lashes.

Still he hesitated. Then he sighed, shaking his head as if he was about to do something he would probably regret as he reached into his jacket. "I didn't want it to come to this..."