No matter. She needed to test his security, see what she could hope to get away with and what she most certainly could not.
“Mum,” the man had told her through the pain. “The girl. She’s… She’s there. Just as you said she’d be.”
This caused The Magistrate to pause. Becky, the nurse she assigned to him in order to cauterize the wound so he would not bleed out – put alcohol on his wound, causing him to hiss in pain.
“I do not understand,” The Magistrate said slowly, allowing her mind to connect the pieces together at their own speed. Time was under her control, not the other way around. “How were you able to slip past his guards? Certainly the castle is heavily protected.”
“It was, Magistrate,” he agreed, his voice weak. The man could not even keep his eyes open, but he continued to talk to her, even through the pain. That was the type of respect she needed from every occupant in the realm, not just those under her influence. “But I, I had assistance.” The last word was hissed out as Becky continued to work on him. There was a large metal rod next to her, with an end sticking straight in the air the color bright red.
“Assistance?” This was news to The Magistrate. He had had help? “By whom?”
“A boy.” The man shook his head, as though he, himself, did not quite believe what he had seen. “Couldn’t be no more than fifteen. Sixteen on a good day. He was dock master, and he saw me. Picked me right out from my vantage point in one of Hook’s trees. You know he has tons of trees around that castle of his.”
The Magistrate furrowed her brow so one wrinkle littered her forehead. “I am starting to lose my patience,” she said, an edge to her voice though it was calm. “Who assisted you, and why?”
The man shrugged. How he was able to do that with the amount of pain he surely must be feeling was incomprehensible. Not that The Magistrate particularly cared, but it was an interesting tic she would make note of. This man could handle pain well; he would be useful on the frontlines should a war ever break out.
When the war breaks out, she amended, because it will.
“I did not catch a name, mum,” he told her, and her ears detected honesty in his tone. “But he was a child, mum. And he helped me. He had copper colored hair, mum. Wasn’t familiar with Hook’s castle, but helped me get past it just the same.”
The Magistrate’s dark eyes narrowed. “Copper hair?” she asked. “A boy, you say?”
The man nodded. Becky took hold of a metal rod. She murmured something that sounded like, “Prepare yourself. This is going to hurt” before taking the end of the rod and placing it on his stump. His blood-curdling scream was tragic, to say the least, but The Magistrate paid it no mind. Her focus was on this rescuer. She had a feeling she knew exactly who he was.
Christoph Alvarez was not a big fan of The Magistrate’s. He did not agree with her rule over The Neverland, nor did he agree with how she handled things. She made poor decisions based on her emotions rather than decisions based on thought and logic. However, when she recruited him to be one of her soldiers – men who would fight for her and The Neverland should a war ever break out – he found himself agreeing. Alvarez was born a soldier. He loved to fight in every way imaginable – physical combat, with guns and swords, with bows and arrows. He grew up in Spain before moving to Port Royal, looking for jobs that he was both skilled at and paid a decent salary. Besides an older brother, he did not have family though women have claimed he fathered their children. It turned out to be a lie each time, however; women wanted monogamy, some sort of commitment and stability from him. They wanted to tame the wild beast. He never gave in, was not ready to sacrifice his freedom just yet.
In fact, he died fighting, during a pirate attack on the ship he was working on with a slit throat. But not before killing at least seven blood-thirsty pirates, something he was proud of to this day. Alvarez was not yet ready to transition to his final resting place and continued to look for odd jobs that paid well without requiring a long-term commitment.
He still did not know why The Magistrate’s offer tempted him so. Perhaps it was because he got to continue fighting, even in death. Perhaps it was because the risk was so much greater – die here, and his soul would be lost forever. Whatever the reason, he jumped at the chance. Now he had a steady income and a career he could count on. He worked his way up through the ranks before becoming captain of one of The Magistrate’s fleet. He wasn’t particularly fond of sailing – preferred steady ground to the water – but he learned to love it, given the nature of transportation here.
“Alvarez.”
The Magistrate’s voice caused his insides to jump, but he kept a cool, passive look about him as she stepped around him so they were face to face. The Magistrate had a knack for sneaking up on people, but Alvarez trained himself early on to not let it show. Perhaps that was one of the reasons she was so fond of him; he did not scare easily.
Her lips curled up into a coy smile when her eyes took sight of him. Alvarez felt his breath slip away from him even though he had seen her countless times. He would not say she was beautiful, but the woman was striking. He always did a double-take with her, and he could not help it.
“My, my, you look handsome in your uniform,” she stated. She always tried to rile him up, always tried to throw him off his game. There were times it worked, but most of the time it didn’t. This time, he was proud to say, did not work. “The red and blacks suit you.”
“As you say,” he said.
Her smile widened. “And I adore your Spanish accent,” she continued.
“I do not have an accent,” he said, keeping his eyes focused straight ahead. “How may I assist you, Magistrate?”
“Alvarez, you know you can call me, My Lady,” The Magistrate admonished. She waved her hand dismissively, making it look more graceful than such a simple action should look. “You are no fun. Let’s get to the point then.” She stood in front of him, her shoulders back, her neck long, her chin tilted up. Striking. “I need you to do something for me. However, it requires your discretion. You are the only one whom I can trust to execute this task. It is extremely important, but also extremely dangerous.”
“What is it?” he asked, and then added, “My lady.”
Her lips twitched when she heard it, but said nothing else. Instead, she focused on the task at hand. “I need you to extract a soul from The Other World,” she told him.
“Is that even possible?” Alvarez asked. If a soul was condemned, that soul belonged to whatever realm had possession of it. Another ruler could not simply walk in and snatch that soul for herself.
The Magistrate tsked him. “Of course it is possible,” she chided. She placed her hand on his chest. “You should know better, Alvarez. Anything is possible here. You simply must believe it is.”
“Excuse me, Magistrate,” he said. Without thinking, he corrected himself. “My lady.”
“There’s a good boy,” she said, her lips curling into a smirk. “Listen to me, and I shall reward you will pleasure you cannot even imagine. You want gold, it is yours? You want power, it’s granted. You want pleasure of the flesh, just ask. I’m much like a genie, and I’m here to grant you wishes, after you deliver me Peter Pan.”
“Peter Pan?” Alvarez furrowed his brow. He had never heard of this man. Why was he so important to The Magistrate that she would send him to rescue him? Were they lovers? Business partners? If he had been condemned to The Other World, there was a chance this man was not a good man. Was it likely that he would even go with The Magistrate without putting up some kind of fight?
“He is very important to me and my plans,” The Magistrate told him though he knew she did not have to. The Magistrate did everything to serve her purpose, so he did not believe she did it out of the kindness of her heart, or that she suddenly started trusting him. She did it to further her agenda in some way. What way that was, Alvarez could not guess. Not yet. “I need him.”
“What you are asking of me is incredibly dangerous,” Alvarez s
aid, making sure he locked eyes with her. He knew she was well-aware of this risks, but he wanted to remind her that he would be the one in danger, not her. Maybe if she saw his face, it would at least cause her to pause, to think her plans through. “I shall assemble a team” –
“No.” She did not even shake her head. It was one word, but it came out with such force that Alvarez had to take a step back. Immediately, he hated himself for it, especially since she noticed the gesture of weakness and smirked at it. “No, my sweet, dear, Alvarez, you are to go alone. Should you assemble a team, everyone will be aware of your presence. Your men could die. My men could die. James is a brilliant military man. He’s not familiar with tactics, because, as we know, Vikings just battled and killed, but he knows defense and he would have nothing short of the most brilliant of guards defending his castle.”
“Then how do you expect me to get you Pan?” Alvarez asked. “Especially if I am to do it by myself?”
“Because you are not going to fight, my dear,” she told him. “You are going to go in as quiet as can be, and, if all goes well, no one will even know you are there.”
“How do you intend I pull that off?” Alvarez asked, and he could not stop the doubt if he tried.
“I have faith in your abilities, Alvarez,” The Magistrate said. “Also, it helps that you are not looking for a fight – no matter how badly you might want to.” She walked over to the corner of the room, where the door would hit should someone slam it open. There, she coiled her long fingers around a bow and pulled it to her. Alvarez blinked. How had he not noticed that before? “This will be your weapon of choice. You are to go to The Other World – I will get you a potion you’ll take that will allow you to travel to and from all realms except earth. You will take it. You will head to Hook’s castle. You will look for a young dock master. A boy, no more than fourteen or fifteen years of age. Do you understand?”
Alvarez nodded, taking the weapon in his hand. He had shot a bow and arrow before but not one so fine as this one. It was smooth wood, and seemed to have been made specifically for his hands. He wondered if he would be able to keep it once he was finished with his task.
“Yes, you can keep it,” The Magistrate said with a small grin, as though she could read his mind. And maybe she could. “I’m sure it would look elegant among your collection.”
“It would.” His dark eyes took in the curve, the bow. Looking over at the corner, he realized there was a satchel filled with hand-crafted arrows that went with the bow. He felt his lips twitch up in a small grin. “Why, may I ask, are you bestowing me this weapon for this task?”
“You may,” The Magistrate said, her eyes shining with teasing. “But only you.” She walked toward the satchel. “Because, Alvarez, these arrows are tipped with a special concoction that will render the soul unconscious. You will not kill him by shooting him with this arrow.”
“You expect I’ll have to shoot him?” he asked, surprised.
“I expect you to be prepared, always,” she said. She slid the strap of the satchel through her arm and walked it back over to Alvarez.
“So he’s a dock master,” Alvarez said. “I should find him at the docks?”
The Magistrate nodded once. “You should,” she agreed, “but if you cannot find him, let me give you a piece of advice: look up.”
Fourteen
It had been a few days since Nick had downed the potion, a few days since Magda had belittled him in front of the crew, a few days since she decided to avoid him and pretend what had transpired between them that day never happened. She did not like conflict resolution when they could both let it go and move forward. Why speak when words were not required?
Unfortunately, Nick did not seem to agree. She had just finished breaking her fast and planned to leave the galley so she could help Giselle with inventory when Nick had commanded her to stay behind. Well, technically he had asked, but because he was her captain, she could not deny the request. As such, she took her seat on the hard, wooden bench, and kept her bowl in front of her instead of disposing of it in the makeshift sink.
“Okay Tink,” Nick said, leaning back in the only chair placed in the galley – that of the captain’s. “We need to talk.”
Magda said nothing in response. Instead, she nodded her head once, her eyes wary. Was he going to reprimand her again? At least this time, there were no witnesses. She found she did not particularly like when Nick reprimanded her at all, much less in front of the crew. Even if she did deserve it.
“I still have no idea why you’re here. It’s been a month, and you haven’t said a word. To be honest, I don’t really think you know why you’re here. I think Hook gave you an order and you followed it. I know you might not be willing to confirm or deny that, but let’s pretend you confirmed it for a second, okay?”
Again, Magda kept quiet and nodded. She found people were more willing to give up secrets if she stayed quiet.
“Thank you.” He paused, his eyes turning to the wall behind her, and Magda could tell he was thinking of his next words carefully. After a moment, he looked back at her, square in the eye. “You and I need to get on the same page, Tink. You’re not an idiot, and neither am I. You know I’m after Remy. But you don’t know why.”
“I know why,” Magda interrupted. “You find yourself in love with her.”
“It’s more than just that,” Nick said, and Magda noted he did not deny it. “She took a beating for me. She must have been within an inch of her life because of me. Yeah, I saved her, but she saved me, and she paid for it. I don’t know your captain well. Only through folklore and myth. I know he’ll patch her up, especially if he needs her for whatever plan he has. But she’s still my responsibility unless she chooses otherwise. Are we clear?”
Magda paused, thinking.
“I’m not asking you to agree with my decisions,” Nick told her, “but I need you to understand that these are my decisions to make because I’m captain of this ship. Since you’re now part of my crew, you need to understand and respect that.”
“I… understand.” Magda nodded her head once in order to emphasize her point.
Nick’s lips turned up. “I knew you would,” he said. “You understand what it’s like on a ship.” He crossed his arms over his chest, looking back at the wall. It appeared as though he was looking something that he did not quite see, but a soft smile touched his lips nonetheless. “Remy never did, see? She still thinks she’s back in Port George, in her fancy house. She doesn’t get that not everyone can just snap their fingers and whatever it is they desire just pops up.”
“Nick,” Magda began but caught herself. “Captain. I would appreciate if you did not compare me to Remy, or compare her to me. We are two completely different women.”
“Ah, of course.” He gave her a grin.
Magda stood. “Was there anything else?” she asked. She wanted to head back to her room and wipe the blush off of her face. She was ashamed of her behavior and wanted to sit in the pile of it by herself so no one else could see.
“Actually, yes.” Nick nodded at her seat. “Sit. You’re in such a rush to leave my company.”
“You sound oddly surprised,” she muttered with a quirk of her brow.
“You aren’t charmed by me, are you?” he asked, genuinely curious.
“Is this entire discussion going to be about you and your charm?” Magda asked. “Because if so, I have much work I need to get to.”
He gave her a droll look. “Such as?” he asked. “I don’t remember assigning you a task while aboard my ship, but now that you mention it, I have the perfect position. Considering your spritely heritage” – he gave her another grin, as though she were supposed to be amused by his cleverness – “I think you would be perfect for watchman. Though clearly you are not a man. Watch girl. Woman. It’s a tricky position, one that requires a whole lot of faith in you. A lot of trust. I’m putting that in you. Do you think my decision wise?”
Magda gave him an odd look. “Why wou
ld you ask me a question like that?” she asked. “Surely I’ll tell you things to ensure you trust me whether I’m trustworthy or not.”
“I like to think I know how to read people,” he told her, leaning forward. “I’m not good at a lot of things – it’s why I’m a pirate after all – but I’m good at observation. It was how I picked up on the fact that you’re a” – the look on Magda’s face caused him to stop, mid-sentence – “Okay, I get it. You don’t want anyone to know. Sheesh. I want to make out the type of person you are, Tink. And I think I know. But I’m giving you the opportunity to tell me yourself. Make sense?”
Magdalena took a deep breath. She found she rather liked Nick's response to that and her respect for him start to grow little by little. Her eyes took in the sight of Nick. The look on his face was open, ready to hear her response without judgment. His features looked soft and boyish, but not young. His eyes were dark and pensive, but there was a glimmer in there that seemed to light his entire face up. His arms were crossed over his chest - he seemed to do that a lot, as though it was natural for him - and his hair fell across his face in such a sloppy manner that she wanted to reach out and push the locks from his face. She had been feeling that a lot - ever since meeting Nick - and the close proximity between them the act would require caused Magda's heart to thump a little bit louder. Besides training with James, she had never willingly been that close to a man before, and the desire to be that close was Nick was unexpected. It made her blush.
"To answer your question," she said, rolling her shoulders back. She wanted to sound much more confident than she was because she had never been confronted with such a personal question before. "I find I am one of the most trustworthy people you will meet. I am quiet and perhaps come across as snobbish due to my lack of conversation, but that is because I believe if talking us not required if be, I will not speak. I'm not one to make small talk simply to make small talk. People who force themselves to speak say more than they intend to. Usually, they talk too much and reveal things they wanted to keep secret."
The Neverland Trilogy Box Set Page 35