“You all,” he finally said, directing his words to the prisoners. “Do you want to set out on your own? There’s only one longboat available.”
The men exchanged nervous glances and some hushed words before one spoke. “If it's that or dancing the hempen jig, I think we’ll be just fine cramming together.”
“I ask because I could use more crew,” Ethan said.
“You can’t be serious,” Katryna objected. “We all just cut each other to pieces.”
“I am serious,” Ethan said, “and as you so rightly pointed out, we just cut each other to pieces. The last thing any of us wants, I’m sure, is to fight one another again.”
Rumblings came from the prisoners, and sensing he needed to speak more on the matter, Ethan filled them in on the rest of his thoughts. “Your captain is dead and whatever coin is in his strongbox is about to be mine,” Ethan said. “On my honor, if you sail with us, fight with us if need be, I’ll not only grant you your freedom after we’ve won, but I’ll see to it you’re paid a proper earning for fourteen days at sea, plus an additional crown each. If that’s not good enough, I’ll send you on your way right here, right now, in peace, but you won’t have a farthing to your name.”
Despite Ethan’s words, the prisoners still wore looks of skepticism while some traded whispers of disbelief and suspicions of treachery. One man, stout with a handful of scars on his cheeks and just as many rings in his ears, spoke. “What of our wounded?” he asked. “Half of them can barely fit to hold their guts in.”
“I’ll see to it their injuries are cleaned and dressed, and they’ll be fed and given space to rest. But before any of you even think about taking advantage of my generosity, let me be the first to say that our ever-hungry ahuizotl has my blessing to eat anyone who steps out of line.”
“Or wanders near the line,” Maii added.
Ethan glared at the monster. “Quiet. When I’m gone, you can terrorize to your heart’s content. But not a moment sooner.”
“As you wish,” Maii replied with a slight bow.
Ethan tipped his head and turned back to the others. “Now then, what say you all?”
The prisoners conferred one last time, though it didn’t last long. At the end of it, a large, burly man with olive skin and a split forehead took to his feet. “It is with great pleasure and considerable thanks that we accept your offer,” he said, bowing deeply. “Where would you have our service, Captain?”
* * *
With the newest members of his crew being directed by Katryna and under the intense gaze of Maii, Ethan stepped into the Captain’s quarters, cutlass leading the way. His muscles tensed when he crossed the threshold, half expecting some bullheaded, last remaining and loyal crew member to be hiding there and come out swinging. No one did.
A fine purple rug covered the polished oak floor, one that had seen better days for sure, but it was in far better shape than Ethan would’ve thought. Paneled windows, smashed due to recent battle, lined the back wall, and the remains of a desk and foot chest were up against the right side. Though the shot that had ultimately caused all that destruction had long since passed through, the exit hole, a good foot and a half wide, sat plain as day, letting in a small draft. Ethan did spend a hot second searching the bed on the left, but when it came up empty, he joined Zoey in rifling through the contents of said desk and chest.
“Find anything yet?” he asked, kicking away some debris that covered one of the broken drawers. “We don’t have a lot of time.”
Zoey looked up, one hand keeping the chest lid open. “No. Well, some coin, which is always great for boosting morale,” she said. “But nothing of immediate use.”
“I found a quill,” Ethan said, plucking it from the debris. “Oh, and a mostly empty half bottle of ink.”
“Half bottle? Like half-full?”
“No, I mean the other half is scattered over there,” he said, pointing to a corner that was stained black.
“Oh, right.”
The pair continued their search for a little bit longer until Zoey, having tossed all of the folded trousers and coats stored in the chest and coming up empty, stood, coin purse in hand. “I think this is it,” she said. “I suggest we go topside so we can leave ASAP.”
“I suppose a sack full of crowns is better than nothing,” Ethan said with a shrug. He turned, intent on heading out, when an oddity in the desk caught his eye. Or rather, the center drawer, which had broken off its rails and was lying on the floor, caught his eye.
“Now that’s weird.”
Zoey turned and cocked her head. “What is?”
“This,” he said, picking up the drawer. “It’s not long enough for the desk.”
“Looks long enough to me,” she said, shrugging.
Ethan turned it over a few times, and when it didn’t reveal any secrets, he knelt at the desk. It took him only a split second to see the metal box stuck underneath the desk, pushed to the back. Excited at finding a secret (and hoping that maybe there was an achievement for it he didn’t know about), Ethan grabbed it with his hands. After a bit of coaxing, he managed to pop it off whatever mount it had been on.
“Tada,” he said, holding it up proudly.
“Nice,” Zoey said, looking and sounding genuinely impressed.
“What do you suppose is in here?”
Zoey shrugged. “No idea. But why don’t you let me take a look.”
Ethan pulled away and playfully eyed her with suspicion. “Why?”
“Well, you can open it if you like,” she said, stepping back and crossing her arms. “But if it’s trapped, don’t come crying to me when it blows up in your hand.”
Ethan chuckled and handed it over. “Ah, good point. I happen to like my fingers.”
“Eh,” she said with a shrug. “They’re alright.”
“Alright? They’re fantastic, thank you very much. Look how well they bend,” Ethan said, wiggling them for extra effect. “Pretty sure you’d be sad if I didn’t have them.”
“Is that a fact?” she said with a teasing grin. “I bet I could get by.”
“Get by? Sure. But they can do wonderful things for you, too, that you’d be sad about if that were no longer the case.”
“Such as?”
“Such as freeing you from the chains of a lich, for one,” Ethan said, enjoying the game.
“If memory serves, I freed myself by turning into mist.”
“Yeah, well, that’s only because I managed to mix the right reagents and blow up the gem—courtesy of my nimble fingers, thank you very much,” he went on.
“Well, these nimble fingers are going keep yours safe,” she said, turning her attention to the box. For the next several moments, Zoey turned it over in her hand, inspecting every inch before spending twice as much simply staring into the keyhole on one side. When she was done, she sighed heavily. “Well, it’s definitely trapped,” she said with a frown. “And the tumblers make me think it's going to be a complete pain to pick.”
“We do have a key,” Ethan said, holding up the small silver one he’d plucked from Sir Gideon’s body. “Looks like it will fit.”
Zoey took it but didn’t give it a try. “We’re missing something.”
“Like what?” he asked. “We’ve got the key. We found where it was hidden. What else could there be?”
Zoey snorted. “More than you will ever know.”
“Maybe Maii would know.”
“Why would he? He’s an ahuizotl, not a thief.”
“I think you said that wrong.”
Zoey raised an eyebrow. “Say again?”
“It should’ve been, ‘Damn it, Ethan. He’s an ahuizotl, not a thief!’” Though Ethan ended it all with a bright grin and expectation of laughter at the semi-obscure reference, all he got from his vampire lover was a stare and an uncomfortable silence. “Never mind,” he said, huffing. “But we should still get him in here. He’s the master of illusions, right? Sur
ely he can spot them.”
“Assuming there is one.”
“You’re going to feel silly when he marches in here and sees it right away,” Ethan said, grinning. “Unless, of course, you’re feeling threatened? I mean, you are a rogue, right? Can’t have the pet ahuizotl taking your place.”
Zoey narrowed her eyes. “I am not threatened.”
“Then let’s bring him in.”
“Fine. Let’s.”
Zoey stood and marched out of the quarters, and barely a quarter minute later, she re-entered with Maii in tow. The ahuizotl looked perturbed, and the reason for his annoyance was obvious given the blood staining the fur around his mouth. Ethan could only hope that blood hadn’t come from someone alive.
“This better be good,” Maii said. “It’s rude to interrupt a meal.”
“I’ll buy you a fattened calf when we win as compensation,” Ethan said. “I need you to tell me where the magical trap is on this box.”
“If he can even see one,” Zoey tossed in.
Maii glanced at the box. “Two calves, and you’ve got yourself a deal.”
Ethan nodded. “Two it is. Work your magic.”
In the blink of an eye, the ahuizotl flicked his tail at the box. It glowed briefly, and the keyhole in the front disappeared while another popped into view in the back. “Not sure what the trap is, but that’s the right keyhole,” he said. “You’re welcome.”
Zoey’s mouth hung open. “No…but…”
“I’m an ahuizotl, dear,” he said with no small amount of smugness. “A simple illusion like that’s not going to fool me.”
With that, Maii turned around and strutted out the door. Once he was gone, Zoey frowned. “I knew there was an illusion.”
Ethan grinned. “Mm-hm.”
“I said we were missing something,” she said as she stuck the key in and turned the lock.
“I know.”
“Then why are you harping on this?”
“I’m not.”
“I’m a good rogue, thank you very much,” she said.
Ethan felt his brow wrinkle. “I never said you weren’t?”
Zoey huffed but said nothing. She stuck the key into the lock, gave it a turn, and popped the lid to the box. Nestled in the velvet-lined interior sat a small crystal flask with a rubber cork stuck in the top and a red wax seal around the edge. Dark clouds swirled within while miniature streaks of lightning jumped from one to another.
“Holy crap,” Ethan said, drawing near like a moth to a flame. “Tell me that’s what I think it is.”
“Wind in a bottle,” Zoey said. She laughed and shook her head. “Should’ve known he was the one who stole it.”
“How the hell did Sir Gideon get it?” Ethan asked.
Zoey shook her head. “No idea. Guess he had a few thief skills we didn’t know about.”
“I suppose that’s not too surprising, given he was a Golden Templar, and from what I understand, they aren’t exactly the most honorable type.”
“Yeah.”
“I wonder what else the guy could’ve done we didn’t know about,” Ethan said. “Hopefully not come back from the dead.”
Zoey shook her head again. “That would be considered an abomination for them, so I’m going to go out on a limb and say, no, he’s not coming back whatsoever.”
“Good,” Ethan said. His eyes drifted back to the bottle. “I can’t believe we have this thing. Not only do we have it, but that also means Azrael and Sedra don’t.”
Zoey’s face brightened. “This is big for us.”
“I know.”
“I mean, really, really big,” she said.
“I know, Zoey,” Ethan said, laughing. “God, this could be our ticket to an easy first place. Come on. Let’s get out of here and put this to good use.”
Chapter Thirty-Two
The Final Run
Ethan stood at the helm of the Victory as Marcus inspected the bottle. Since he was the one with the most experience in this world when it came to magic, he was the one entrusted with opening the bottle. He’d taken on the task with confidence, but that had been ten minutes ago. And though the Victory’s snapped lines had been fixed, and she gently glided through the strait’s waters on a mild wind, the necromancer remained still, staring at the flask as if one wrong move might take out half the eastern seaboard.
“So,” Ethan said, voice trailing, fingers nervously wrapping on his crossed arms. “You can still open it, right?”
“Yes,” Marcus said.
“You balked,” Ethan replied. When the minotaur glared, Ethan threw up his hands defensively. “I’m only mentioning it because we’re on a time crunch, and as far as I can tell, that stopper is just as seated as it was ten minutes ago.”
“I don’t think any of you appreciate how potent a flask like this could be,” he said, pointing a finger at it. “There have been some that have literally wiped out an entire seaboard with the tsunami they’ve generated.”
Reflexively, Ethan sucked in a breath through clenched teeth. “You’re serious?”
“Quite,” he said. “So perhaps now you can grasp the fact that this is not the time to act rash. Savvy?”
“Savvy.”
“We might still win without it,” Zoey said. “We could play it safe.”
Ethan shook his head without hesitation. “No,” he replied. “We were already behind, and with that battle, we’ve lost even more time. We’re going to use it.” When he saw Marcus shoot him a glance out of the corner of his eyes, he tacked on one last thing. “I trust him. He’ll make it work.”
“I will,” Marcus said, blowing out a huge puff of air through flared nostrils. “And I’ll do it right now.”
The minotaur extended a gigantic hand. In it, Zoey placed a long, hollow silver needle that she’d been holding for him from the start. Marcus eyed the bottle for a few more seconds, said a prayer so soft that Ethan could only understand its intent, and then carefully inserted the needle.
Ethan tensed as he did, and he heard Zoey suck in a breath and hold it. Ethan didn’t know what to expect, but when all that came out was the faintest wisps of smoke, he couldn’t help but feel let down.
“That was…anticlimactic,” he said.
Marcus, still keeping his focus on the bottle, turned it slightly so it was more pointed to the aft sky than it had been before and held up a thick finger. “That’s what happens when one is purposeful as opposed to rash,” he said. He then gently tapped the side of the flask four times in a deliberate, slow rhythm. “Now, give it a moment, and you’ll see.”
It didn’t take but half that. The breeze picked up, snapping the sails taut and sending a wave of excitement through the crew. Even Maii took an eager interest as he stood tall, forelegs on the railings and eyes fixated on the horizon as his ears perked.
The Victory began to accelerate, carving a small wake through the waters.
Ethan turned his attention to the crow’s nest. “Eyes sharp, Katryna. We still need to clear the strait.”
“I’m on it,” she yelled back. “I’ll have us through without a scrape.”
The speed of the Victory continued to build, and within several minutes, she sliced across the ocean with a downwind run that surpassed all of Ethan’s hopes and dreams.
“How fast does she run?” Ethan asked, directing his question portside to one of the men on the deck.
The man, skin a deep sunburnt olive from taking the sun more than it should, tossed a line overboard and began counting the knots as they slipped through his fingers. “Twenty knots and quickening!”
Thrilled, Ethan turned to Zoey. “Seems good.”
“Very,” she said with a nervous chuckle. “Now we see if the sails and lines hold.”
“Think we should reef them?”
“Your call.”
Ethan tensed and drew a breath through clenched teeth. He needed every ounce of speed he could get, but he also
knew there was a point to where the winds would tear everything to shreds, and he really didn’t need that to happen. Still, he had no idea how far behind Azrael he was, and with that thought, he shot her a grin. “Go big or go home, right?”
“Won’t be the first time we’ve risked it all,” she said, throwing him a grin back. “Can’t say you keep a girl bored, that’s for sure.”
The ship lifted a moment later, rising on a giant wave. As the bow dipped, Ethan found his footing twisted in place. The sky grew dark behind the Victory, not even a half league away, and with the wind and waves it brought, so came worries that they’d be tossed into rocks or another ship before they could clear the strait.
“We’ll make it,” Zoey said.
Ethan nodded and forced himself to relax and stay confident. “Katryna,” he called. “Can you see the end of the strait?”
The woman popped over the side of the crow’s nest with unbridled enthusiasm. “Three leagues at the most!”
Ethan then directed his next question to Marcus, who was now at the very aft the ship, bottle still in hand. “How much more is in that flask?”
“Just ran out,” the minotaur said, turning around and showing it off. “It’s a strong storm for sure, but I’m not sure how long it will last.”
The Victory caught another large wave, pitching the bow down and up once more, at which point he returned his attention to seeing the ship through to coastal waters. Minutes stretched seemingly into hours as wave after wave lifted her aft, and more than once, Ethan worried they’d plunge underwater, or the sails would tear.
His crew, however, seemed as determined as ever, keeping to their duties with a skill and resolve that left Ethan wanting nothing. And if they were giving it their all for his sake, he wasn’t going to give them any less.
“We’ve got this, men,” he said once he could see the end of the strait for himself. “I can taste the finish line from here.”
“Never doubted the choice for a second,” Zoey said, giving him another squeeze.
Ethan eased the grip he had on the railing as the storm abated about a minute before they broke free of the strait and hit the coastal waters. Portside, near the horizon, he could make out Fort Darvison, a small stone structure on the coast, which according to the maps, was the last point of interest before the finish line.
The Crew (Captains & Cannons Book 2) Page 30