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I glanced at Ida, wondering if she’d be disappointed by the familiarity, but her eyes were shining just as brightly as before. I cast another look toward the door that led below deck. Where was Nik right now? How was he preparing to disembark?
We made the lightest of contacts with the wooden dock, and several people sprang over the edge of the rail to receive the lengths of rope being thrown to them. Within no time they had the ship secured and the gangplank in place.
I had my personal pack over my shoulder, as we all did, but many people had a second bag as well. Clearly Grey’s plan didn’t include arriving empty-handed.
By the time we were ready to file off the deck and onto dry land, the fruit of the runner’s efforts had arrived. A group of people—all of whom looked like they didn’t usually spend their mornings on the dock—ran into view, coming to a stop just short of our landing place.
I examined the silk of their robes, and the winded expressions on their faces. These were people whose lives didn’t usually require them to dash from place to place. I was surprised they were even awake.
We arranged ourselves loosely, me moving toward the back of the disembarkation line. But as Grey strode down from the helm to take the lead, he brushed past me, indicating for me to follow him. His movement had been subtle, but those around us had picked it up and reluctantly parted to allow me through.
I could have done without the honor, preferring to remain at the back away from the attention, but I had little choice but to obey. Grey ignored his followers, all his attention on what lay before us. He took in the dock and the buildings behind it in a single, comprehensive glance, his attention settling on the people waiting for us.
His usual air of confidence hung about him as he strode down the gangplank and onto the wooden dock. I followed eagerly, only to lurch slightly when I finally reached ground.
Why was the land moving beneath my feet? It felt just like the ship I had been so eager to leave behind.
I looked frantically back at the group gathered on deck, managing to catch Ida’s eye. She appeared to be laughing at me.
Taking pity on the frantic look in my eyes, she waved me forward encouragingly, mouthing something I couldn’t catch. But when I turned back to face forward again, I noticed there was something different about Grey’s gait. He might not show it in his air, but he walked as if he felt lingering effects from being onboard. So perhaps this was normal after all.
I hurried to catch up with him, hoping the unnerving sensation would soon disappear.
A man, taller than the others, stepped forward to put himself at the front of the group. His clothes were the most elaborate, and now that he’d recovered his breath, his arrogant manner made it clear he was the highest-ranking person present.
I couldn’t help immediately disliking him, but I wasn’t sure if that was his manner or the fact he was likely a relative of Grey’s. I hid the emotion, however, keeping myself a couple steps behind Grey. Hopefully all attention would be on him, and there would be none left over for me.
“This is a most unprecedented occasion,” the man said, his tone far more conciliatory than I had expected. “You are the first visitors we have ever welcomed to our fair shores.”
“It is not, however, my first time here,” Grey said smoothly. “I have waited many years to return to my home.”
Shock pierced the man’s mask, the true emotion making it obvious how false his previous pleasant manner had been. His mind clearly worked quickly, however, as the jarring expression smoothed almost instantly into a smile.
“But surely…It cannot be that you are my missing cousin, Grey?”
“Indeed I am.” Grey stepped forward to clasp his long-lost cousin’s arm, the two of them slapping each other on the back in apparent delight at the reconciliation.
I tried to keep my eyes from widening perceptibly as I took in the odd scene before me. Anyone would think these two had been parted mere months ago instead of shortly after Grey’s birth. I had assumed Grey’s claim about being welcomed back with open arms as their leader had been an obvious falsehood—one he had only dared utter because he was mesmerizing me.
But this seemed just the sort of reception he had claimed was waiting for him. These people weren’t just going to hand the island over to him, were they?
But no. A reminder of what these people were capable of was enough to eliminate that thought. They must be masters of manipulation, just as Grey himself was, and I should view all their interactions through that lens.
I examined the man again while he introduced himself as Ignatius Constantine, smiling and inquiring about the voyage as though he was genuinely glad to see us. But I suspected the only real emotions I had seen from him were the arrogance visible on his face in its natural, resting posture, and the momentary shock that had broken through following Grey’s announcement.
“But what of my Aunt Chloe?” Ignatius asked. “She didn’t accompany you?” Something in his expression looked off at this question, as though it carried far more importance than he wanted to reveal.
Grey bowed his head, his face dropping. “I’m afraid to say my mother has been dead for many years. Our crossing to the mainland took a terrible toll.”
“A grave loss, indeed,” Ignatius said in suitably solemn tones. “My father and Uncle Ambrose will be shocked to hear it. As will Grandmother, of course. She always believed her daughter was living happy and well in another place.”
I twitched slightly, but thankfully neither of them noticed. Grey’s mother was the one who’d been a member of this family? What about the story of his murdered father, the one who’d wanted to bring about change? Was that a complete fiction?
“It has always been my dream to return to her family and my first home,” Grey said. “But it took me many years to gather those who also desired a new life and who could help me build a ship and travel here. I hope we will all find a welcome in this place.”
“Of course.” Ignatius raised his voice so that all those gathered behind us could hear. “All are welcome here! You have had a long and difficult journey, but I hope here you will find peace and a new beginning.”
My lips twitched as I tried to make sense of this man who seemed a mass of strange contradictions. Nothing he had said had carried the feel of a lie, and yet I couldn’t shake a profound feeling of distrust.
