Dark Shores by Danielle L. Jensen

Author:Danielle L. Jensen
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Publisher: Tom Doherty Associates

26

MARCUS

The lesser evil … Teriana’s words sat heavy in Marcus’s mind as his men rowed around the point and into the impossibly blue cove containing their initial target.

Evil. Evil. There was something about the word and its meaning. Not just doing foul deeds, but delighting in their doing. And the way she’d said it. Not as an insult, but as a statement of fact.

And yet she’d risked her life to save his. Staring at the clear waters, he remembered the drag of the ship pulling him down and down, the futility of his struggle. The pressure growing in his chest, the desperate need to breathe that had haunted him his entire life. And then the feel of her hand closing around his wrist, pulling him toward salvation.

What did it say about her that she would save evil’s life?

Marcus forced the thoughts from his mind. Turning, he examined the motionless village. The wooden homes were unlike anything he’d seen before. Elaborate two-story structures built up off the ground with stone pilings, they had bridges made of carved wood running between them, both design choices indicating they frequently experienced storm surge or flooding. The windows of the homes were made of colored glass with shutters to protect them from the elements, the roofs meticulously shingled with rectangles of what looked like tree bark, the overhang wide and clearly intended to protect the narrow balconies that encircled the homes at bridge level.

Small, well-made fishing boats littered the beach, with a few larger tied up to a floating dock that could be pulled ashore during storms. Behind the village, the jungle reared green and dark, teeming with life.

Acid burned in his belly as a wave swept them onto the beach. This strategy was tried and true, but it had failed him before. With disastrous consequences.

Chersome is a world away, he reminded himself. This place will be different.

The boat hit the beach, and Marcus jumped out, feeling the need to have solid ground beneath his feet. His sandals sank into the cold, wet sand, and for a second he stood still. A whole continent to explore, and they were the first Cel to step foot upon its shores. If he’d had his choice, Marcus would’ve dropped his weapons and started walking. Up one coast and down the other; walking until he’d seen all there was to see and finally found a place where he wanted to sit still. But that wasn’t the reason the Senate had sent him, and his men were relying upon him to keep them alive in this new world.

“Sir?” One of his men spoke softly from behind, and Marcus turned to find Teriana still sitting in the boat, head lowered and hands resting on her knees. He waited and when she did not move said her name once.

She looked up, and he nearly recoiled at the dark pools that were her eyes. He’d seen them this color before, but they’d always been stormy, turbulent seas of anger, not the still reflections they were now.

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