the counter towards me.
Morbid curiosity had me pulling them out. I expected to be horrified. Drunken people didn’t take good pics. Glazed eyes. Twisted expressions.
But these were actually quite lovely. My expression in the black and white images was intent as I stared at Ian. Our hands were clasped. The tiny veil pinned to my head was adorable. Our smiles held a hint of shyness but were also happy. If I didn’t know better, I’d say we looked in love.
Because in that moment, you were.
More like high as a freaking kite.
My lips pressed tight. Putting the pictures back in the envelope, I tucked it under my arm then wandered listlessly towards the dining room. This was the kind of morning that called for coffee. Preferably delivered via IV.
I could have also used the gentle voice of a friend. Dialing interdimensionally, at a cost I preferred to ignore, I cursed as Aella didn’t answer. Nor did Ysabel. The joys of having non-future-seeing pals. They didn’t know when they were needed.
Along with the coffee, I grabbed a jelly-filled, powdered donut. Breakfast of champions. Sitting down at the captain’s table, I took sips of my coffee and bites of my pastry as I eyed the people around me.
A young woman with frizzy hair and a scowl sat beside a dark-haired hunk who had a grin to rival the Cheshire Cat. I could have told them that there was no point in fighting their attraction. As true mates, they’d have a happy life together. With kids. Lots of them. And a revolutionary hair product that would make them billions.
Across from them sat a sea witch and an old demi-demon. She was doing her best to ignore him because she’d never forgotten him, while he planned to do anything necessary to get her back. It wouldn’t be easy, but in a few of their possible futures, he managed it.
All the captain provided was a chaotic view of boat wrecks. So many of them. More than a few involving the ship I was on. I immediately checked the room for the closest safety options. A Flubber Demon, his body rotund, would provide a decent flotation device in the absence of a life jacket.
Another sip of coffee and I got a flash of my mug’s life. Broken during the next wash. Everything I looked at gave me a peek of the future. The chair beside me would be smashed in a brawl tonight, the leg used as a stake. The tablecloth used to wrap a body. My seeing appeared to be on a roll today. Only one thing didn’t speak to me.
I twisted the ring on my finger. For some reason, I still wore it. Maybe because it stubbornly showed me nothing. Would I keep the trinket? Sell it? Lose it? My power remained stubbornly silent.
On my second cup of coffee, a bride stomped over to our table and spent a moment freaking on the captain—and she really shouldn’t. I saw her wedding going off without a hitch. It was in five years that she’d run into problems. Should I warn her?
Nope. Because her next future could be even uglier.
At times, when people came to me and asked me to look ahead and help them figure shit out, I wondered if I actually did them a favor or a disservice. Did knowing help? Or did it just make shit worse?
For me, I wanted to know what my future held. I strained to see, staring at the ring.
Nothing.
I hesitated to pull it off and couldn’t have said why. I ended up yanking it in an irritated rush of hot breath and flung it on the table. I drummed my fingers. My power activated.
…her ass will line up with the edge, the perfect height…
I slammed that image down fast. No need to see what the table would experience later. The ring remained silent.
Snatching it, I slid it back onto my finger rather than into a pocket. Already, its weight felt familiar. And really, my finger was the best place for it. I’d be less likely to lose it until I could return it.
After I didn’t need a husband anymore, that was.
It occurred to me, now that the initial shock had worn off, that perhaps this would work in my favor. Yes, I’d gotten married, which while not the brightest thing I’d ever done, actually did work in my favor. It meant that if by some off chance Killian Kraken actually managed to track me down and give me the