Vampirates 6: Immortal War (58 page)
The knocking at her door had grown louder. She jumped down from the bed and opened it. Darcy Flotsam floated into the room, looking more beautiful than ever before.
“Oh, Darcy!” Grace said. “Jet Jetsam is a very lucky man!”
Darcy flushed with pleasure. “I’m the lucky one, Grace. I never thought this night would come. And now, of course, I’m a bundle of nerves!”
“Come here!” Grace said, grateful that she could hug Darcy for real. As she held her close, she thought once more of her brother, making his way on the beginnings of his seven-year odyssey.
“What are you thinking about?” Darcy asked her. “Or rather, who?”
“Connor,” Grace admitted.
“Of course,” Darcy said, her face suddenly grave. “I understand.”
“But look.” Grace wiped away her tear. “This is your night, Darcy. We’ve waited a long time for it, and there’s something I want to do for you.”
“What’s that?” Darcy inquired, intrigued.
Grace reached up her hands and unclasped the chain around her neck. Catching the locket she had been given by Connor many months earlier, she held it out toward her friend. “Something borrowed,” she said. As Darcy glanced at her in surprise and delight, Grace added, “It seems about time I lent you something of mine!”
As Grace was fastening the locket around Darcy’s neck, there was another knock at the door.
“Come in!” cried Grace.
“We’re all ready for you!” Lorcan said, hovering at the cabin door, looking off-the-scale handsome in his tuxedo and Grace’s favorite ice-blue cravat.
“Oh, no!” Darcy cried. “You mustn’t see me! It’s bad luck!”
Lorcan laughed. “Now, now, Darcy. You’re marrying Mr. Jetsam, remember? No more bad luck for you.” He took her in his arms.
“Of course,” she said. “How silly! See what a state I’m in?”
“You look very beautiful, Miss Flotsam,” Lorcan said. “Just think—that’s the last time I shall call you that. From now on, you’ll be known as
Mrs
. Jetsam.”
“Yes.” Darcy smiled. “Yes, I suppose I shall.” She seemed calmer now. Over her shoulder, Lorcan grinned at Grace. “Speaking of beautiful… Grace Tempest, you are a picture to behold!”
Grace rose to her feet. “Why, thank you,” she said as he
stepped forward to kiss her. It began as a brief brushing of their lips but soon developed into something more.
“Come on!” Darcy said. “People, we have a wedding to get to. Mine!”
Lorcan and Grace broke off their kiss, laughing.
“Off you go!” Grace pushed him away playfully. “We’ll see you up on deck.”
Lorcan nodded. “It’s a beautiful night,” he said. “The stars have all come out for you, Darcy.” He turned to go, then had a fresh thought. “Oh, and Tempest, a word to the wise…”
Grace was busily gathering up the edges of Darcy’s train. “Yes?” she said, glancing up at Lorcan. “What is it,
Furey
?”
Lorcan grinned. “Just so you know, I’ve put down good money on you catching the wedding bouquet. I trust you won’t let me down!”
As he winked at her, Grace thought his eyes had never looked so blue. They were eyes you could never tire from looking at—as deep and constant and infinite as the ocean itself. In her head, Grace heard a familiar whisper.
So it ends, so it begins
.
VAMPIRATES: Demons of the Ocean
VAMPIRATES: Tide of Terror
VAMPIRATES: Blood Captain
VAMPIRATES: Black Heart
VAMPIRATES: Empire of Night
PROLOGUE: FIVE HUNDRED YEARS AGO
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is coincidental.
Text copyright © 2011 by Justin Somper
Cover hand lettering by Leah Palmer Preiss
Interior illustrations by Jon Foster
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First e-book edition: January 2012
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ISBN 978-0-316-12613-7
