Slave to Sapphire
Chapter 33

Iris tried to keep her body relaxed so that Julian could more easily tow her through the water. She hated having to rely on someone else for survival. She would make a point of learning how to swim once she was in Volos. There was still no boat in sight and Iris was shivering and beginning to lose feeling in her feet. Julian had swum them out of the surf zone but stayed along the cliffs swimming North. Iris heard Maddox’s shout and she turned her head to see Maddox and another man in a small rowboat coming around a bend in the cliff face. Julian sighed in relief and treaded water in place, waiting for the boat to reach them. Maddox bent over the side of the boat and helped Iris into the boat. Julian heaved himself over the side and flopped onto the floor of the boat breathing heavily.

Maddox pulled her into a warm hug. “You don’t smell nearly as bad as the last time I hugged you,” he drawled, Iris pulled away from him and punched him in the shoulder.

“I hate being hugged, and why is everybody always commenting on how I smell?” she complained. A wide smile spread across Maddox’s face. Maddox squeezed Iris’ shoulder and sat back down picking up the oars. “I am glad you made it.” He turned Julian and nodded. “Thank you.”

Julian shrugged, “I made a promise.” Iris was still reluctant to believe that Julian had risked his life to save Iris based on a promise that he had made to her friends.

“We are lucky to have found you, we have been taking the rowboat out daily to scout for you and Julian, but we had little faith in coming across you. We were beginning to lose hope in Julian bringing you back.” Maddox’s eyes roved over Julian, taking in his blood-soaked shirt. “Are you injured?”

Julian’s eyes met Iris’ before he spoke “Our escape was narrower than I would have liked, an arrow grazed me, the wound was superficial, and the bleeding stopped during our swim.”

Maddox raised a skeptical eyebrow and looked at Iris. Iris gave a slight nod in confirmation. She hadn’t begun to contemplate what she planned to tell her friends about her ability as a conduit.

Iris sat in the rowboat across from Julian while Maddox and another man started rowing. Iris assumed they were headed to the ship. The man that was rowing was tanned and weathered, his arms were muscular, and Iris was shocked at the lack of a cuff on his left wrist. She truly was going to Volos. The thought hit her and seeped in; Lucious had gotten away. The decision to go to Volos had been made for Iris and it left her with a feeling of emptiness.

No one spoke as Maddox and the other man strained against the oars pulling the boat through the choppy ocean water. Julian sat with his hands on his knees and his head hanging low, he had caught his breath but there was a tiredness in the lines of his body. The wind that blew off the water was cold and in her soaking wet clothes Iris felt even colder than she had in the water. Her teeth were chattering by the time the ship came into view. The ship had been obscured by the cliffs to the North and was anchored in place.

Iris’ body was stiff with the cold as she grasped the rope ladder and climbed up onto the ship. She pulled herself onto the deck and Cora crashed into her, wrapping her willowy arms around her.

“Iris,” she sobbed. “I thought you were dead, and then Sabine told me you weren’t but when you didn’t board the ship with Maddox….” The words were tumbling out of her mouth.

Iris looked over Cora’s shoulder to see Sabine standing behind her with a solemn look on her face.

Iris stepped back from Cora and took Cora’s cuff in her hand, she sighed with relief at seeing the blue color. “I am sorry Cora, but there was something I had to do.”

Sabine stepped forward. “Did you get it done?” her voice was harsh.

Iris dropped her gaze, “No, I failed.”

A conflict of emotions warred across Sabine’s face, anger at Iris for choosing to stay behind and relief that she was okay. Sabine turned to Julian, who stood behind Iris. “Thank you for bringing her to us.”

Sabine then took Iris’ arm. “Come on, you need to change, and we have much to catch up on.” Iris let Sabine lead her across the deck, with Cora following closely behind.

Iris was surprised to see that Sabine and Cora had been given private quarters above deck, apart from the crew. The room had two bunks that could sleep four people. Samson was sprawled across the top bunk. He lifted his head and opened his eye, once he saw Iris, he stretched out his legs and closed his eye, falling back to sleep. “Samson! What are you doing here?” Iris croaked.

“Samson has more sense than you and followed me and Cora onto the boat,” Sabine stated.

Iris scanned the rest of the room. There was a desk and chair secured to the floor and a large trunk secured to the wall. The room also had a small circular window that looked out over the water. Sabine walked over to the trunk and pulled out some dry clothes.

Iris stripped off her wet clothes. She took the clothes that Sabine had set out for her and realized that they were some of her own clothes that Sabine must have taken from her room in Scarlet Town. The thoughtfulness caused her tears to well up and she felt a sharp pang of guilt for not telling them of her plans to stay behind. Iris dressed in the dry clothes and sat down on one of the lower bunks. Cora and Sabine were looking at her expectantly. Before asking questions Sabine handed Iris a blanket and Iris wrapped it tightly around her shoulders, the coldness had sunken into her bones. Sabine and Cora sat on either side of her on the bed.

“Iris tell us what happened” Sabine said, her voice gentle.

Iris sighed and explained to them how Ezekiel found her that night in the alleyway and how she had spent several weeks working in the Palace of The Grand Ruler. Iris left out everything that had happened between her and Ezekiel. She told them about Lucious’ betrayal and how Julian worked as a spy for Volos. Cora and Sabine listened, asking questions as she spoke. Finished with her tale, Iris fell silent.

Sabine looked at Iris thoughtfully. “The man who delivered the message for you the night you visited me, was that Ezekiel?”

Iris nodded.

“He is very attractive, which is saying a lot coming from someone who prefers the company of women.”

Cora giggled at Sabine’s observation.

Iris groaned, “After everything I have just told, that is what you decide to comment on!”

Cora laughed again. “Well Iris, I mean he saved your life, took you to the Palace with him and it seems like a pretty big favor to deliver the message to Sabine.”

Iris turned to Cora and narrowed her eyes. Cora looked back at her innocently. “It just seems like maybe you left out some of the details about your time in the Palace.”

Iris looked at Sabine and Sabine held her stare, shrugging her shoulders. Iris knew they weren’t going to let her off without giving some information. “Okay, there may have been some feelings shared between me and Ezekiel.” Cora clapped her hands together. “Don’t get so excited about it Cora, we could never be anything. One, we are currently sailing to Volos and two, he is one of the Grand Rulers’ sons.” Iris struggled to keep the emotion out of her voice as she spoke. She still hadn’t fully processed her feelings towards Ezekiel.

Sabine wrinkled her forehead in concern. “Did you and Ezekiel share the kind of feelings that require contraception?”

Iris choked and cleared her throat. “Not that it is any of your business, but Ezekiel’s sister provided me with the herb.”

Cora gasped “His sister?” she collapsed into giggles. Iris laughed, thinking back on the absurdity of it. Cora and Sabine sat on either side of Iris, huddled together on the bed. Their closeness chased the cold away. Iris let out a breath that she felt she had been holding since the night of the failed azure shipment. The thought reminded her of the constant need that still hadn’t left her. Iris needed to focus on something else.

“Lucious said he planned to have you and Cora killed,” Iris whispered.

Cora and Sabine filled Iris in on all that happened since Iris had moved into the Palace. Iris and Maddox were assumed to be dead. Sabine and Cora had no reason to suspect otherwise until Iris had visited Sabine in Scarlet town, das later was announced that Maddox would stand trial. Lucious had claimed to have gained access to a new shipment of azure and sold a large portion of it to the Crimson Gang and Exodus Gang was distributing the rest of it. There were rumors that Iris had sold a piece of source stone to the Daggers but with Iris presumed dead, Lucious did not waste efforts on investigating it.

A man that worked with Julian informed Sabine of Maddox’s planned escape and where Sabine and Cora were to meet on the docks. Shortly after, one of Sabine’s regulars warned her that he had heard Lucious had plans to kill Sabine and Cora. Lucious did not want any of Iris’ inner circle to survive. That night Sabine and Cora had gone into hiding, staying with a wealthy merchant in Lavender District who had owed Sabine a favor.

Sabine took Iris’ hand in hers, squeezing it. “When Maddox boarded the ship and told us that you wouldn’t be joining us, I was going to go back into the crowd to get you myself. I would have if Julian hadn’t stopped me. There were Palace guards converging on the docks as the ship pushed off. Julian took a boat to shore that night to get you, but it took over two weeks for him to come back with you. Iris, what did Lucious do to you?”

Iris tensed. She didn’t want to tell them, it meant reliving everything. Iris wasn’t sure she was ready to explain to them her abilities as a conduit either. “Someday I will tell you everything, but he forced me to take azure, and now it’s all I think about.” Cora hugged her tightly. Iris appreciated her support, but her touch did nothing to numb the constant craving.

They stayed together on the bed Sabine holding her hand and Cora’s arms around her until the warmth returned Iris’ body and she yawned.

“You should get some rest,” said Cora.

Iris climbed up to the bunk where Samson slept. She pulled his warm body against her, burying her face in his fur and let her exhaustion take over.

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