16. Retreat

Casper stalked through the dark streets towards the harbor, doing everything in his power to ignore what felt like a gaping hole in his chest. It hurt to think. Hurt to breathe. Hurt to be.

This is why I kept telling Jem this was a bad idea. It gave the crew false hope, and then just ripped it away.But at least I've done my part. Jem can leave me alone now for the next seven years.

He was a fool. He had known from the beginning that the curse would be impossible to break. Why would anyone promise to be faithful for the rest of their lives to a ghost? Sienna's face had gone from red and flushed to the color of snow the moment that blasted elf had leaked his secret She was obviously afraid of him, just like the rest of Faerie.

Before, he had gladly embraced the fear for how much easier it made his task.

Now, he hated it.

He turned a corner and the harbor opened up before him. The Petrel was the lone center of activity, as his crew busied themselves with getting both her and themselves ready for sailing. There had always been the chance that the curse would return at dawn, and he intended to be far away from Nivem when it did. The sudden appearance of a ghost ship where a friendly vessel had once sat would likely send the little harbor town into a shocked, terrorized frenzy.

"Casp!" Jem hailed him from the other end of the street. He and Short John jogged over. Questions were written all over his first mate's face. "Where's Sienna? We heard you both ran out of the party."

He shrugged coldly, forcing his emotions down and out of reach. "She's not here."

"Obviously. But where did you leave her? And why? There's someone out there who wants her dead."

The reminder was like a bucket of cold water over his head.

Daland is home now. He'll keep her safe until her wizard friend can get to the bottom of things. Besides, the best way I can help her now is to keep trying to stop the smugglers before they even get to land.

"I'm sure she'll be fine."

Perhaps saying it out loud would help him convince himself it was true.

Jem's hand came down heavily on his shoulder, forcing him to look the taller man in the eyes. "Casper, what happened?"

Casper laughed bitterly. "Exactly what I said would happen. She's not going to break the curse."

Short John and Jem exchanged concerned glances. "I'm sure it's just a misunderstanding," Jem offered. "Maybe if you explained the situation—"

"I don't need to explain it!" he interrupted angrily, having reached the end of his patience on the topic. "She already knows, Jem. She knows, and the look on her face made it very clear that she wants nothing to do with us. Or me."

"Did she actually say those words? Or are you just making assumptions?"

Casper threw Jem's hand off his shoulder and stomped towards his ship. "I guess we'll find out at midnight."

"Casp, wait! I really think you're making a mistake. If you would just go talk to her—"

He whirled around. "It's Captain to you, Jem. And the only mistake I made was going along with your scheme and believing that this time would be any different." His heart throbbed painfully in his chest.

Jem's jaw hardened. "Loving someone is never a mistake."

Perhaps, but it certainly feels that way when it is so one-sided,

His first mate continued, "I'm sure the two of you can work things out."

"There's nothing to work out. I might have fallen for her." Hard and fast, despite all of his efforts to remain detached. "But she obviously doesn't feel the same. I'm not going to subject myself to that kind of rejection and failure again. And besides," his voice broke. "She deserves better than me. She deserves someone who can actually be there for her."

"But Captain—"

Casper held up a hand to silence him. "This conversation is over. Our holiday is over. We have work to do."