by Frost Kay
Captain Femi waved a hand at him. “Think nothing of it. Soon enough you will be off my ship.” With that parting remark, she sauntered out of the room.
She was a character.
One he wasn’t sure he could trust.
Hayjen closed his eyes just for a moment and sunk into a painless sleep.
***
Sleek black beasts circled him. He was going to die in a watery grave. The pale moonlight above shimmered through the waves like it was saying goodbye. Hayjen wanted to let go. He was tired, his body hurt. Just as he closed his eyes, something slammed into him, causing his eyes to spring open. Smooth, pale, female arms wrapped around his chest as shimmering white hair swirled in the currents cocooning the woman and himself. He smiled at the idea of dying in the arms of a beautiful woman.
What a way to go.
It was only when her hair parted that fear squeezed him. Huge Leviathan circled them, just waiting to attack their prey. If he could have moved, he would have. Now the beautiful woman holding him would die as well. His heart flew to his throat as the largest of the Leviathan swam at them, halting within arm’s reach. Its jagged teeth were so close they could tear into his flesh. Its eyes were the worst. No color—just black soulless orbs. Hayjen wanted to scream when the pale hand clutching him reached out to the immense sea creature. He waited for the Leviathan to tear into her, but to his surprise, it bumped its snout into her palm and hummed before backing away.
His body began to cut quickly through the water. How was he moving? He wasn’t swimming—he couldn’t move his arms. Idly, he gave up trying to figure out the phenomenon and watched the monstrous creature’s tail above them. His head bobbed, giving him a glimpse of the woman carrying him. Fascinated, he stared at her neck. Gills, she had gills. Then everything went black.
***
He jerked awake to find sweat pouring down his face.
What was that? he thought.
He’d had nightmares before, but nothing like that. He shivered, the hair on his arms rising as he recalled the empty black eyes of the Leviathan watching him. It had felt so real, like it had really happened. Hayjen placed his forehead on the coverlet and breathed deeply, trying to center himself and forget the nightmare.
“Are you alright?” The captain’s smoky voice floated through the air.
Hayjen craned his neck to watch her glide into the room. Moonlight caressed her loose, silvery hair, making it seem like it was glowing. She looked ethereal, otherworldly. He blinked. She looked a lot like the woman from his dream. Odd. The mind was a curious thing.
“Hayjen?” she questioned, stopping by the side of the bed.
“Just a nightmare,” he replied, still trying to shake off the dream. Stars above, it had felt real, like a memory.
“Oh.”
He squinted at her, still seeing her in his mind with gills. People didn’t have gills, but still he found himself wishing her hair wasn’t covering her neck. His brow furrowed as he tried to remember that night the dream conjured. He came up blank. “What happened once the Scythian knocked us into the water?” he asked, peering up at the pirate.
Surprise flickered across her face at his question. “We hit the water. Luckily for us, I was able to grab you and pull you into the net.”
That couldn’t be it. The water had been swarming with Leviathan. “And the Leviathan?”
“Too preoccupied with the Scythian.”
He frowned. Leviathan were known to go into a frenzy at the smell of blood. He had been ripped to shreds after his beating, covered in blood. How had he survived? The beasts were wickedly fast—they couldn’t have outswum them.
“You hit your head when we fell.”
That explained the memory loss, but not how he’d survived. Nothing made sense, and her story rang false in his ears. What was she hiding?
The captain shifted on her feet, and brushed her hair over her shoulder. His eyes zeroed in on her neck. No gills. He was an idiot. A person having gills made no sense. It was just a dream, nothing more.
“Well, I’ll let you rest.”
Hayjen stared at the doorway as she swept out of the room, disappearing into her office. He needed more rest. Or he was going crazy. It was probably the latter.
***
He woke up with a smile. His back itched and ached, but he wasn’t in excruciating pain. That was something to be happy about. Gingerly, Hayjen stretched and pushed himself from the bed. His whole body revolted, so it took a couple times to sit up. Dizziness assailed him, and the room blurred. Taking deep breaths, he focused on the flower rug beneath his bare feet. So feminine. The captain was an interesting study in opposites.
Once the room stopped spinning and his lightheadedness had receded, he braced his hands on the bed and stumbled to his feet, nearly braining himself against the doorway as he tried to catch his balance. The bloody ship wasn’t helping as it bobbed through the waves.
Carefully, using the walls and anything he could find, he moved through Captain Femi’s study and opened the door. The hallway was dark, but he could see sunlight at the end. Hayjen moved slowly towards it, hands pressing against the opposite walls, and paused just out of the light, breathless at the view.
The girls were laughing and working together with real smiles on their faces. Hayjen could count on one hand how many times each of them had smiled in their time together on the Scythian slave ship. He eyed the rest of the crew working. They darted glances at the girls but held neither malice nor lust, just curiosity. Many men would take advantage of an abused, weak woman, yet none of the men were. Captain Femi ran a tight ship.
The ship rolled, causing him to stumble and slip into view. Mer saw him first and let out a squeal of delight before sprinting to him. He braced himself for the impact, knowing it would hurt.
A man with a warrior’s build he vaguely remembered snatched Mer around the waist and swung her through the air. “Young one, remember that he’s hurt. You need to be careful or you will injure him more.”
Mer nodded emphatically, her lilac eyes round. “Okay, Blair.”
Blair.
Captain Femi’s first mate.
Blair dropped Mer to her feet and she covered the distance between them in a much more sedate manner. She wrapped her pale arms around his leg and gave him the smile he had come to love. “Missed you.”
He brushed her unruly, white-blonde hair out of her face, soaking in the happiness she wore like a cloak. “The same.” Hayjen lifted his head and met the dark brown eyes of the first mate. He didn’t look like an evil man, but one could never be sure. His gaze dropped to Mer and back to the first mate. The little girl had an uncanny sense of character. If she liked the man, then he was probably okay. He jerked his chin towards Mer. “Thank you.”
Blair studied him, then nodded once before turning and barking at the crew about some mess. A man of very little words apparently. A cough pulled his attention from the first mate. His eyes widened at the group encircling him. His women surrounded him with various smiles—some thankful, others happy and excited, some relieved.
“We’re happy you’ve recovered,” Lera remarked softly from the middle of the group.
Hayjen gaped. He’d never heard Lera speak before. Snapping his mouth closed he asked, “Have you been taken care of?”
“We have.”
He looked over the group of women with a smile. “I knew we would escape.”
“You said we would, and here we are. Thank you, Hayjen. You have made sacrifices for all of us, and we will never forget your kindness. We are all in your debt.”
“Never.” And he meant it. He would do it all over again to protect them from those monsters. No one deserved the life the Scythians had planned for them.
Of course, his stomach had to ruin the moment by growling loudly.
Lera grinned, shocking him again. “The food is incredible.”
His stomach growled again.
Mer tugged on his hand, turning his attention back to her.
“Come eat what I helped Cook make!”
He grinned at the thought of Mer bothering the poor cook to death. “Have you been a bother?”
“Nope, it was my job. Captain Femi says if I want to be like her when I grow up, I must have a job. I like to eat, so I thought making food with Cook was a good idea.”
“Indeed.” Hayjen lifted his head and locked eyes with Captain Femi who was watching their exchange with interest. He wasn’t comfortable with her, but he owed her his life, and the lives of the women. He jerked his chin at her in acknowledgement. She arched a brow with a smirk before returning the gesture, then dismissed him. He watched her speak with her first mate for a moment, absently noting she was wearing leather pants. Surprisingly, they were just as sensual on her as her intriguing knotted dresses. Hayjen scowled and turned to follow the insistent tugging of Mer’s hand.
Best to not be admiring something he didn’t trust.
She screamed danger.
He didn’t need danger, he needed a good meal.
Chapter Four
Lilja
“He doesn’t trust you.”
Lilja turned to Blair with an arched brow. “You don’t say?”
Her first mate rolled his dark brown eyes. “I just mean you should be careful. What he went through ruins a person. He won’t be right in the head for a long time.”
“He’s not broken.”
“No, he’s not, but he won’t be healed for a long time, no matter how many salves you apply to his back.”
She blinked at her friend. He was always very astute when it came to emotions. He could read almost anyone, but he was hard to read himself. Even after spending years together, he still surprised her. “I just wanted to help him.”
Blair slipped his hand into hers and squeezed, then let go. “You want to help everyone, and that’s what I love about you, but you can’t fix a person.”
“That’s where you and I disagree.” Lilja gestured between the two of them. “I believe we’ve helped heal each other.”
He sighed. “Yes, but we’re different. We were both shoved together into a situation that bonded us for life. That man is not your partner, but a project, someone you want to save. He will distract you from what’s important, Lil.”
She didn’t like it, but she trusted her old friend. “I won’t ever forget what’s most important, Blair. I won’t let another woman be experimented on by the Scythians.”
“I know, Lil. I know.”
She touched her first mate’s shoulder. “No one will ever have to experience what we suffered.”
Blair cupped her face. “Never again.”
“Never again,” she echoed.
Blair dropped his hand and stared out at the sea. “So how are we going to return Mer to her family? Hayjen will not let us take her—if we steal her, he will come for her. He loves her like she is his own.”
“As does she,” Lilja grimaced. “It was hard enough to explain to Mer why she couldn’t speak about the sea.”
“It’s only a matter of time before she says something.” Her friend glanced at her. “She’s only five. It will slip.” Blair crossed his arms and cocked his head. “You’ve been too careless since we’ve rescued the slaves. You should have let him die that night, but you exposed yourself by singing to the Leviathan. Then when we pulled you up, your gills were uncovered. You can’t risk yourself like that.”
Her eyes narrowed at his chastising tone. “What did you expect me to do? That Scythian scum knocked me into the ocean, forcing my gills open. Whether or not I saved Hayjen didn’t matter. I was still exposed.”
Blair’s brow furrowed. “I know, I am frustrated that you were put in that position in the first place, and on edge with strangers on our ship that know nothing of the secret our crew hides. It would only take one slip, one mistake, and you would be in danger.”
“I’ve lived this way a long time, Blair. This is nothing new.”
He blew out a breath. “I know, but you would put the girls in danger as well. Your crew chose to take the burden and risk of your secret on themselves, but the girls did not. You need to wear your wrap when you swim.”
“That’s fair.” It would kill her if something happened to the innocents because of what she hid.
A quiet moment passed as they admired the rolling deep blue waves frothing and swirling around the ship. “How long until we reach land?”
“We’ll reach the cove near Sanee in three weeks,” Blair replied.
“When will we meet with Mer’s parents?”
“In two.”
Lilja pursed her lips. “That’s going to be a problem.”
Her first mate laughed. “You don’t say?”
“We’ll have to lock him up.”
“He won’t like that.”
“I’m sure he won’t.”
“He’ll fight.”
“Not if I drug him.”
Blair glanced at her from the corner of his eye and sniggered at her devious expression. “He has no idea what he did when he accepted your help.”
“I don’t know what you mean.” Lilja sniffed. “I am an upstanding individual.”
“You are a fraud, a thief, and a pirate.”
“I only steal from bad people.”
“Still doesn’t make it right.”
“I don’t see you complaining.”
“I made my peace with what I am and what you are a long time ago.”
“You’re not so bad.” She bumped her shoulder against Blair’s.
“I used to be.”
The air around them grew heavy at his statement. “Not anymore,” Lilja said carefully, lowering her voice. “The person you were doesn’t exist anymore. You made the choice to be better.”
“I can’t change how I was created.”
“No, but the warlord’s experiments were out of your control. How you were raised was out of your control. But how you acted once you realized what the warlord was doing was in your control, and you made the right decision.”
“It doesn’t change what I’ve done.”
No, it didn’t, but you couldn’t change the past. “What matters is that you feel remorse for what you’ve done. You now know it was wrong to take women and breed them. You changed the way you think and act. That is what matters. You’ve made amends.”
He gestured to the ship angrily. “This? Pirating Scythian ships?”
“We’re saving lives.”
“Something needs to change, Lil. We aren’t changing a damn thing. Damien is still ruling and experimenting.”
She stabbed a finger towards the galley. “Those girls we just rescued are proof that we are making a change. Each and every one of their lives were saved because of our actions.”
“It’s not enough.”
“It has to be, for now.”
He glanced at her. “We need to know what is going on inside the borders.”
Her throat tightened. She knew where he was leading with this conversation. They had argued about it time after time. “We can’t go back in.”
“No, you can’t go back in.”
“You’ll die if you do.”
“Maybe, maybe not.”
A part of her knew he was right. They wouldn’t overturn a corrupt warlord by pirating his ships. “We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.”
“The bridge is looming in front of us.”
“You need to let the hurt and guilt go, or it will eat you up inside. Entering Scythian lands won’t make that disappear.”
Blair’s smile was bittersweet. “It’s not easy, or simple.”
“No, it’s not,” Lilja stated bluntly. “I should know.”
He met her eyes, a grave expression on his face. “It wasn’t your fault.”
Her breath seized at the reminder, and her eyes dropped to the deck. “I should have been more careful.”
Blair slipped his hand into hers, holding tight. “Look at me.”
Lilja lifted her eyes and me
t Blair’s gaze—his eyes the deep brown of chocolate.
“It was not your fault. You did everything right. You protected her and yourself. Sometimes these things happen.”
“It was an accident,” she whispered, never taking her eyes off him. “I shouldn’t have fought him.”
Blair’s face hardened, looking like he was cut from stone. “No, even if you hadn’t fought that monster, Gem wouldn’t have been safe.”
Soul-wrenching pain stabbed her. Gem. Blair rarely said her name. Lilja blinked back her tears, refusing to cry. “I wish…I wish things were different. I—” she hiccupped.
Blair gave her a sad smile that echoed her own pain. “As do I.”
That simple statement gave Lilja a measure of peace. She wasn’t alone. Gem would never be forgotten; her memory would live on in their hearts.
Her first mate blew out a breath and released her hand, grabbing the rail. “You know, you could meet a man and settle down to have a wonderful family.”
“Nothing could replace Gem,” she barked.
He glanced at her, lips thin. “That’s not what I meant. I know you desire a family, and yet you stay on this ship, crusading.”
She pressed her lips together, moved to Blair’s side, and leaned against the rail. It wasn’t something she was going to discuss today. “I could say the same of you,” she deflected.
“Family life is not for me; the sea is my mistress.”
“I beg to differ—you would make a wonderful father.”
The corner of his mouth tipped upwards. “Are you saying you fancy me, Lil? You want to have my children?”
Lilja studied him, ignoring his teasing tone. She leaned forward and kissed his cheek. “You are the one person I can depend on in the world. I have no intentions of marrying, but if I did, you would be the first person I’d call upon.”
Blair brushed his thumb across the top of her hand. “And I you.” He glanced up, peering through his black lashes at her. “I’ve no plans for that kind of life, but if you asked for marriage and a child, I would give that to you. I love you.”