A Game Of Changing Tides

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Nikolai flinched, as though wounded by her words. Adelyn could see the shadow they casted over his face. "Stay out of my head, witch."

"It's not me who's in your head," Ri said, shaking her head softly. "It's the pendant."

Adelyn could hardly believe what she was hearing, though the exchange made her step back, far enough away from Ri that her heels touched the wall. She knew whom Ri spoke of, but she hadn't expected Rebecca to be Greywell's daughter. The thought brought a wave of nausea to her body, and though Adelyn was able to force most of it away, remnants remained.

"Well whatever this thing's picking up on," Nik fumed, "It's none of your business."

"Really?" Ri said, her eyebrow raised. "Are you saying you don't want to be able to use it?"

Nikolai blinked. Ri laughed, "You're arrogant, Nikolai Kors. To think you know everything is to be a fool. This pendant is thousands of years old, and you are a meer fraction of that. There are some things, pirate, that limit even you."

"What are you saying? Stop speaking in riddles, wench." Nik said, his teeth gritted. The playfulness of before was gone, and Adelyn had to admit she was a little scared of what was left in it's wake.

Ri tsked, "Don't be crude, Captain. That's no way to talk to a woman."

"Is a witch still a woman? Or is she just a witch?"

"Stop calling me a witch, pirate." Ri said, shaking her head. "I'm not nearly as great. The blood might run in my veins, and I certainly can do more than you, but I am not a witch."

Nikolai's jaw clenched, the muscles tensing on the sides of his face. The scar that ran along the one side ticked. He breathed in, long and hard. "Do you know how the necklace works or not?"

"I do," Ri said, looking over her shoulder at Adelyn. Her smile faltered, just a enough that Adelyn saw it twitch. "You do not?"

"I.." Adelyn stuttered. She felt as though the words were an accusation. Uncomfortable under the weight of Ri's eyes, she shifted her stance. It didn't go unnoticed. "No, I don't."

"Weak," Ri said, the word more of a sigh than anything else. Adelyn blinked, her eyes narrowing.

If she hadn't liked Ri before, the present conversation wasn't helping. From across the desk, Adelyn saw Nikolai scowl just as hard. She guessed his current opinion of Ri was similar to her own.

Suddenly, Ri stood, reaching across the desk and pressing the pendant to Nik's chest with a forceful nudge. Adelyn squinted, just as curious as she was confused.

Nikolai stood still, head tilted down so he could watch Ri's hand. In one swift movement, Ri tossed the chain of the necklace over Nik's head, "Twist."

"Twist what?" Nik asked, frustrated.

Ri leaned back, falling further into her chair. She pointed to the pendant, which dangled from his neck like nothing more than a piece of jewelry. "Twist."

With a frown, Nikolai took hold of the pendants iron encasting, looking down at it with inquisitive eyes. It took him a second, but eventually he reached two fingers towards the purple stone and twisted them, and Adelyn heard the soft click of metal turning as it shifted from behind the iron encasing.

The pulse that followed was something she hadn't expected. It felt like someone had pushed her, nearly taking her off of her feet. After a quick stumble, Adelyn regained her footing only to find Ri looking at her with a sly smile. Adelyn thought she looked like a cat stalking prey, and she didn't like it one bit.

When she turned her eyes back to Nikolai, she gasped. Where his sea blue eyes usually gleamed, two dark violet orbs had taken their place. Adelyn thought it to be unsettling, though she said nothing of it. Nik's mouth was agape, and from the way his head was moving, she imagined he was seeing something that she and Ri could not.

Nikolai breathed hard, "This is amazing."

"What is it?" Adelyn asked, pushing herself away from the wall. One tentative step after the other, she made her way over to him, stopping beside his figure to wave a hand in front of his face. He didn't move. He didn't see. "What do you see?"

"I see everything," his voice was a meer whisper. "The ocean, the land, the... everything."

Adelyn frowned, saying nothing more. Nik's hand began to shake, his knuckles going white from strain. Eventually, he let out a breath that was full of disappointment. As his hand left the pendant, his eyes drifted closed. When they reopened, they were the same blue Adelyn remembered.

He shook his head, frowning. "I couldn't find her. I had the whole world in my palm, Adelyn, and Rebecca wasn't on it."

"So... does that mean she's dead?" Adelyn asked.

"Yeah, I think so." Nik said, shaking his head softly. "It means I killed her."