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.She’s giving us a good wind too, right in our backs! Like a big guy blowing on us!” He puffed up his cheeks and blew a puff of air—and a mouthful of spit—right at me.I wiped my cheek.He blushed bright red, and offered a small apologetic giggle.But I was hardly concerned with a little spittle.“What of the other ship? Did the storm catch her?”“Nope, turned before it got to her.We all had a good cheer on deck.”I smiled.“Thanks, Tonnid.That makes me feel a lot better.”“Good, ’cause the Cap’n said if you feel better you should come back up on deck.” He laughed a little.“Never knew you to get seasick, Lucky Lucky.” He turned and walked away.Seasick? Captain Deudermont had told Tonnid I was seasick? I felt my anger at the captain disappear.I vowed never to cross him again.I tugged on my boots—my ordinary leather boots.Waillan had outgrown them, so he’d passed them on to me.I still had Sali Dalib’s boots of course, but I kept them tucked away with the rest of my things in a canvas pack.They were hardly suitable for life aboard a ship.I raced back abovedecks.The storm was just off our port side, due west of us.That is to say, sheets of rain were just a few miles off our side, clearly visible.Where we were, the sky was overcast, and the wind was howling, sweeping up directly from the south.The sails had been reduced to half—the wind was so strong it would’ve ripped our rigging apart if the sails were up.But still we moved at an incredible clip.Up in the rigging, a few of the more agile crew, including Drizzt, held position, waiting for the call to stow the remaining sails.The decision would have to be made fast if the storm turned.Even a slight change would have it atop us in a matter of minutes.Catti-brie was still up in the crow’s nest, and when she saw me emerge from below she waved and beckoned me to join her.“Won’t be long now ’til we reach the Gate,” Cattie-brie said.“Perhaps the captain will give ye leave for a few hours and ye can visit with some o’ yer old friends?”My friends.Though Catti-brie had meant to comfort me, my stomach flipped at the thought.There were two people in Baldur’s Gate whom I could call friends.Alviss, Perrault’s dwarf wizard friend, had used his magic to help me spy on Perrault before.Like the seer in Memnon, he could probably try to peer through that crystal ball of his, to locate the stone, to help me if I asked.And then there was Jaide: the beautiful elf, the priestess of Tymora.She surely could help me, and just as surely would offer her assistance should I ask.But I did not dare to ask.To find Jaide, I would need to speak to Alviss.And to find Alviss, I would have to visit his inn, the Empty Flagon.The Empty Flagon where I had delivered Perrault, just before he died.I shuddered.I never wanted to see that place again.Malchor Harpell, I told myself, was all the help I would need.We’d be in Waterdeep in a tenday, and at his Tower of Twilight before winter made the land impassable.Until then, I would not leave Sea Sprite, where I could pretend to be an ordinary sailor, relieved for just a little while of the burden of the stone.I spent the last few hours of that day watching the curious behavior of the storm from my high vantage point, praying it would push us off course and delay our arrival.But when I rose in the morning, the storm’s steady wind stayed behind us, driving us even faster toward Baldur’s Gate.CHAPTER TWELVEThe storm did eventually turn east and overtake us a day and a half later, just as we sailed up the Chionthar and made port at Baldur’s Gate.Our initial plan had us stopping in the Gate for merely one day to resupply.But the storm had other ideas.It sat over Baldur’s Gate, hardly moving, keeping us locked in.The first day was agony for me.I waited belowdecks, avoiding the sight of the docks.I was afraid of the memories they would bring back, mostly.But I was also certain Asbeel would be there, watching, waiting for me.On the second day, with the ship supplied but the storm not breaking, Captain Deudermont gave shore leave to any of the crew who desired it.Lucky and Tin tried to get me to go to a tavern with them, but I pretended the captain had given me work to do.I fell asleep that night, praying for the storm to end.I tossed and turned, my sleep torn apart with nightmares about Asbeel.The next morning, I crawled abovedecks, certain I would see blue sky.But still the rain poured down in sheets.Through the low clouds, I thought I saw a dark plume lazily rising from the city.I climbed up to the crow’s nest to see where it was coming from.The outer district? My stomach clenched.Without thinking, ignoring all my previous reasoning, I rushed down the gangplank and into Baldur’s Gate, limping along as quickly as I could.I had only been in the city twice, but somehow I had memorized the route.After only a few minutes I rounded a corner to see the familiar sign, the single mug, drained of liquid: The Empty Flagon
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