Privateer (The Five Kingdoms #1)

by Robin Roseau

  I sighed. "Still in the brig."

  "And so I remind you of my question: would you rather spend the entire trip in a brig of your design or one day in the brig you experienced?"

  I climbed from the chair, pacing around.

  "Be honest, Rani," she ordered. "You promised an open mind. I know you don't want to admit I may be right about something."

  "Yours!" I screamed. "All right? Satisfied?"

  She looked at me, her expression soft. "So am I forgiven?"

  "No!" I turned away. "You didn't have to put me there."

  "Didn't I?" she asked. "Let us say, for instance, I had not lost my temper with you and had instead managed to calm you down. Would you have stayed calm? Or would you have ended up in the brig eventually?"

  "Damn it, Sorri!" I said hotly. "I shouldn't be here."

  "No," she said. "You shouldn't. But that's not what we're talking about. We're talking about your stay in my brig."

  I tried to calm down. I walked back to the table and poured the wine down my throat. It was stupid; wine wasn't going to calm me down. I stood in the middle of the cabin, hugging myself.

  Sorri rose and cautiously approached me. When she pulled me into her arms, I let her, laying my head on her shoulder.

  "I hated the brig!" I said.

  "I know. That is the entire point. We keep you safe. It is demeaning, I know. The gag and the bonds are demeaning as well. If you feel helpless, you struggle less. You accept. We can be gentle with you. If you accept, we can treat you like passengers."

  I took several deep breaths. "Your brig brings better results than mine would."

  Accepting that took much of my anger out of my sails, and I learned more heavily against her.

  "I don't ever want to go there again," I said.

  "So we need a new location when we bait you."

  "Oh. That's not what I meant."

  "Am I forgiven for your time in the brig?"

  "I don't know. Maybe."

  She pulled me back to the table and set me in my chair. She offered more wine, but I shook my head and took up my water mug.

  "Rani," she said, "there are no victims here. None. We have hurt none of you. We have taken you, yes. But we did it gently, as gently as we possibly could. And we have treated you as gently as we could since. We could save money and feed you poorly. We could push you all into horrible conditions, and we could take far more of you than we do. We could range up and down the coast, collecting more people. We do not. We take what we can, and we run here. We take only as many as we can take in relative comfort. Not perfect comfort, but relative comfort."

  "You made me share your bed!"

  "Have you complained since? Are you complaining now? I thought you enjoyed sleeping in my arms. Am I wrong?"

  "No."

  "There are no victims. Do you understand? No victims."

  "You do this for money."

  "Yes. For money. And you do what you do for money."

  "No one pays me who doesn't want to."

  "We are back to who pays? Are you going to argue that? You have said the people who pay the money are legitimate targets. Why does it come back to a point you agree I have won?"

  "Fine. But I argue there are victims. No one but me volunteered to be here, and I volunteered for my niece, not for you or for our so-called vacation."

  "So-called? All right. Two years ago, shortly after I captured this ship-"

  "You captured it?"

  "Yes. I stole it, actually."

  "We're on a stolen ship?" I screeched.

  She laughed. "Yes. But it was taken legally."

  "That doesn't make sense."

  "Flarina was at war with Candora. This is a Flarinan ship. Or was. I delivered casks of doctored wine to the ship the night of the ship captain's birthday. There was a large celebration, after which everyone on the ship fell into a deep sleep. I went aboard with ten people, trussed the sleeping seamen, kept the officers for ransom, prepared to exit the harbor, then tossed the sleeping seamen out onto the wharf."

  "A daring raid."

  "Yes. May I go on?"

  I nodded.

  "So, shortly after taking the Fleetwind, although it was called the Falcon then, I captured six women, all married to very powerful men. And I didn't sail very far away. We stayed off the coast and negotiated their ransoms over the course of three days. When I returned them home, they spent an hour berating me for not giving them a proper voyage. When I turned them over to their husbands, they all yelled at their husbands for paying so quickly, that they were looking forward to the voyage. They are the only hostages I have had that have had unkind words for me when we returned them."

  "None of that is true!"

  "Every word."

  "Surely some of them have not appreciated it."

  "A few were unhappy about the interruptions to their lives. A few missed important events. One missed the birth of a grandson, and for that I was very sorry."

  "I don't believe any of this, Captain."

  "Have you seen any hostages from anywhere other than Southgate?"

  "No."

  "Did we raid anywhere else after Southgate?"

  "No."

  "Why not?"

  "We're a fat prize you wouldn't risk."

  "Poppycock. No raid I have led has ever been captured. No ship I have captained or been first mate on has been captured. I have plans against six more towns in Norida, three of them within a day sailing of Southgate. I could easily have popped down to Danger Rock and grabbed the mayor's lovely daughter. It would be her third voyage with us. She loves it and flirts outrageously with Radha."

  "I don't believe you!"

  "She's a special case. She sends us, via our negotiator, her social schedule, and asks us to avoid certain events."

  "You are lying! I know Melissa Roughridge. I know her personally!"

  "Would you recognize her hand?"

  "Yes. I have letters in my satchel from her."

  "Then we shall compare."

  The captain got up from the table and went to the desk. She retrieved my satchel and handed it to me. Then she dug through a drawer, retrieving several letters. I opened my satchel and found the folder for Melissa. She had a habit of losing things. She is a scatterbrain and leaves them places. She pays me a few crowns to come find them for her.

  The captain set the letters on the table. I took one of the letters from Melissa. The letters were in Melissa's hand.

  "May I read them?"

  "Yes."

  Dearest Captain,

  I had such a lovely voyage last year. When will I see you and your lovely crew again?

  I wonder if you could pass along a message to Commander Radha. There is a lovely ball on 17 May, and I do so would love if she could attend with me. I have been looking forward to it for months.

  The rest of May and June look to be dreadfully dreary. Father wants me to visit my grandmother, who I detest. It would be a shame if I couldn't attend to her.

  Yours, as always,

  Melissa.

  The rest were similar.

  "She is asking you to kidnap her!"

  "She is a scatterbrain, but she is very sweet, and I do love watching her play with Radha."

  "Did she get her voyage?"

  "She did. I made Radha attend the event with her, and we took them both on the way home. Melissa was thrilled. As soon as she received confirmation Radha would attend as her date, she picked a fight with her father, and he spent weeks negotiating with us before he paid the price he always pays."

  "I don't understand."

  "He doesn't like his mother-in-law any more than Melissa does."

  "I'm not sure he cares for his mother-in-law's daughter very much, but I agree. Melissa is very sweet."

  "Will you tell me what you do for her?"

  "No, but she is a scatterbrain, as you say, and the next time she is on board, I am sure she will tell you." I paused. "If you capture her again before returning me, I will ask you not
to ask her."

  "We do not hurt you. We do not take the wives or daughters of anyone without influence. Not everyone is a governor or mayor. But wealthy merchants have a great deal of influence. Everyone we take could appeal to the lords to stop having these wars. But they don't."

  "Why not?"

  "I have absolutely no idea. It is the lords that benefit. Your brother is a loser in these wars, unless he has an interest in privateers like mine."

  "He doesn't."

  "Many of the men who pay these ransoms do. For them, it is a gamble, and they love to gamble."

  "Have you ever killed anyone?"

  "Of course. It is war. But we have only killed people who were holding weapons, and never someone like a family retainer. Soldiers and sailors, and our lives were just at risk as theirs."

  "It is still wrong, Captain. I do not believe anyone on board is sending you letters asking you to kidnap her."

  "No. Melissa is one of a kind. But answer this. In spite of her adventure today, is your niece having a fun voyage?"

  "God damn it, Sorri!"

  "Is she?"

  "Yes."

  "Are you?"

  I sighed. "Yes."

  "Do you wish I hadn't kidnapped you?"

  "God damn it, Sorri!"

  "Do you?"

  "No."

  "Beyond the first day, have I scared your nieces and nephew?"

  "No."

  "Given them nightmares?"

  "No."

  "Does Minori like me and the other officers?"

  "Yes."

  "Do you?"

  "Yes."

  "Do you think we are acting?"

  "I don't know, Sorri."

  "Come on, Rani. Yes you do. Do you think I am acting like I enjoy your niece just to get you to spread your legs?"

  "No."

  "Is what we do wrong?"

  "Yes!"

  "You're right."

  I stared at her. "Excuse me?"

  "Do you understand why we don't see you as victims?"

  "Yes."

  "Can you believe we are good people?"

  "I don't know."

  "Are we acting?"

  I sighed. "No."

  "You are right. You and Minori are right. We have no right to kidnap women and children from their beds."

  I stared at her.

  "Two nights ago, I ordered you to serve dinner to the officers and then to spend the evening with Glora and her children."

  "Yes."

  "My officers and I discussed this. Last night, I made you stay with Glora again during the crew meeting. I discussed this with the crew. Tonight, in front of you, I asked my officers what we are going to do."

  I figured out where she was going with this. "I don't believe you!" I screamed. "You just want to get into my pants!"

  "Come on, Rani, that's awfully convoluted just to get into your pants."

  "You are a planner, Captain. You are a great planner. I bet you do this every voyage, pick some woman you want. You force her to share your bed then find ways to make her feel indebted to you."

  "Rani, you are a pain in the ass, and if I were going to take someone the way you suggest, if I were that type of person, it would be someone far more complacent. I wouldn't go to the extremes you suggest."

  "You don't want me!"

  "Oh for crying out loud. I have never wanted someone like I want you, but I have never had a passenger in my bed before for more than a quick tumble. Oh, I have had quick tumbles, but we both knew that's all it was, and I didn't teach her how to run the ship."

  "Why are you doing that?"

  "A different conversation, Rani. Do you understand why we do what we do? Why good people could do something that is wrong? We never thought about the 'take them from their beds' part. We do it because it is safe. It is safe for us, relatively speaking, but mostly because it's safe for the people we are taking. But you are right. It is wrong. And we are going to stop. For a year. Maybe we'll start again. But for now, we are stopping. You saw the meeting."

  "Staged."

  "No. But I understand if that's what you believe. Do you understand?"

  "Yes."

  "Good people can go down the wrong paths. I am not acting. None of us are. I do not tolerate bad people on my crew. We have no one abusive. Everyone in a position of authority is a woman because I like the way women run a ship."

  I stared at her.

  "Don't get me wrong. Melissa is going to get kidnapped as often as she wants and her father will pay us. I love having her on board. She is so funny and sweet, and Radha doesn't know what to do with her."

  "I would think that was obvious."

  "She's not serious. She's straight as they come. Radha kissed her and Melissa decked her, right in front of me."

  "What did you do?"

  "Picked Radha up and suggested she ask permission in the future."

  I laughed.

  "Then helped Melissa with her hand. She broke two bones, but she told me she'll use the other one next time. I taught her other ways of expressing her displeasure. She gave me a ring in thanks. It doesn't fit me, so I don't wear it."

  I shook my head.

  "Rani, most of our guests do not want to be kidnapped. The reaction we got from this group is typical. We get crying. We don't get many letters telling us which social events people wish to avoid, so we can pick when to best kidnap them. But if there is a single person we took on this trip who doesn't have a good time, I will be surprised. You're mad because you are so independent. They aren't."

  "I bet some of your passengers stay mad."

  "You're right. On average, one or two every voyage. Sometimes everyone we take, especially if there are a few stirring the rest up. Sometimes no one; that is also most likely when there is someone making a point of having a grand adventure. This is going to end up as a 'no one' voyage, and you know it."

  "You're quitting?"

  "We're going to change targets. We're going to target shipping more heavily. We'll do a few daring raids on ships in harbor. We'll go after the governors instead of their children. We'll take hostage anyone we find at sea. They are legitimate targets. We may make it less of a vacation for our hostages. We'll probably end up with more in the brig. We may hate it. We may go back to what we're doing. We may go back, but make sure we catch people differently than we currently do. I don't know. But we agreed that you and Minori are right; at least we need to consider you are right. But for the next year, we are only going after targets you consider legitimate. If it goes horribly badly, or if suddenly ten more Melissa's begin sending us letters, our resolve may not last a year. But we are going to try."

  I got up from the table and paced around for a while. I turned back to her. "Are you playing me just to take me to your bed?"

  "No. I have no expectations. After all, I did kidnap your niece. Your brother is paying the negotiated price for her. We're not just giving you all back. But that is a price against a legitimate target, your governor brother. All the stress to Minori happened in the first forty-eight hours, discounting the unintended accident today. You admit she is enjoying the voyage."

  "You could make it more fun just to make it easier on you."

  "Easiest on us would be to toss you into a hold with no doors and only a hole in the ceiling, and toss food down now and then. Yes, having you all enjoy the trip makes it easier for us. More importantly, it makes it fun for all of us. ALL of us, including you, Rani."

  I turned away, pacing around the cabin. I turned back.

  "I understand you do not want me to go on deck. I want to talk to Glora. Will you go get her?"

  "Or if you let me blindfold you, I will take you to her."

  "Then take me to her," I ordered.

  "All right. But I would like to tell you the favor I am requesting first."

  I put a hand on my hip and waited.

  "You owe me for your niece. Do you agree?"

  "Yes."

  "You have partially paid by listening to
this conversation. The other half is this. You must consider a favor with an open mind."

  "I understand."

  "Meet me half way. I am still your kidnapper. I am still taking ransom for all of you. I am not offering to give it back. I want your friendship."

  "Not my body?"

  "I want that too, but that is not what I am asking. I am asking for your friendship. You told me we could not be friends because I kidnap children from their beds. We will no longer do that. We may not have gone as far as you prefer. Will you meet me halfway?"

  "That's the favor you want? Friendship and acceptance of your new career choices?"

  "Yes."

  "And, I guess, forgiveness?"

  "You already forgave me, but yes."

  "Acceptance you are on the wrong side of this conflict?"

  She laughed. "Yes. But next time I may pick Norida's side instead. If offered the opportunity."

  "What will you do between wars?"

  "There is never a between. There is always a conflict. Or if not, then our ships become merchant ships for a voyage or three. It doesn't pay as well, but it pays more than the bills."

  "Please take me to see Glora now. I will give you my answer after I talk to her."

  Sorri rose from her chair and dug through a drawer in her closet, extracting a scarf. She approached me slowly. I didn't pull away, and she wrapped the scarf around my eyes.

  "Tell me honestly. Can you see anything?"

  "A tiny bit of light out of the bottom. I promise not to take advantage of it, and I am now closing my eyes."

  She took my arm and tugged gently. I knew when we were in the passageway, and then the deck, and then we crossed to the forecastle. I felt the wind, but I could not have told you where it was coming from. And then we were inside the forecastle, and Sorri stopped us.

  "Rani?"

  "Yes?"

  "Do you hate me?"

  "No."

  "I would like to hold you."

  "No. Not until I have decided about your offer. If I turn you down, then you will find a new berth for me, even if it is the brig."

  "No. Not the brig."

  "You will find somewhere."

  "All right. If you turn me down, I will find somewhere, but not until tomorrow."

  "Then you will find somewhere else for yourself tonight."

  "All right."

  "Are you lying about anything?"

  "Not one word."

  "Take me to Glora and then return for me in fifteen minutes. That should be enough."