A thick black substance oozed from the deck. I dodged a pirate with a scarred face and stepped in it. I grabbed Shadow’s arm to keep from falling as I pulled my foot loose.
“Tar holds the boards together,” Shadow said.
“Aye, nothing more waterproof than tar!” the scarred pirate said. He smiled at me, revealing a mouth full of black, crooked teeth.
“Don’t get it on your clothes,” Estrella said. “It will never come out. Not even with magic.”
I stepped away from the pirate and into another patch of tar. Now both my shoes were stained.
“Elsie and Edsel won’t be happy about this,” I muttered.
“Yer shoes will be stronger than ever!”
A burly man with a graying beard stepped out of the cabin. He held a flickering lantern that emphasized the deep lines etching his face. The pirate greeted Shadow with a smack on the shoulder.
“Shadow, welcome! One outlaw to another, hey?” he roared.
Shadow winced and rubbed his forehead.
“Hello, Captain,” Estrella said.
He examined Estrella and smiled.
“You look better than last time I saw you, Strella.”
“So do you. No more fever?”
He laughed. The sound boomed throughout the ship and shook the boards. Shadow rubbed both his temples.
“Best healer this side of Castana!” Captain bellowed to no one in particular. Approving murmurs floated down from the rigging.
“We hear you’re buying.” Estrella said, ignoring his outburst.
Captain’s eyes glinted.
“That depends on what yer selling.”
“The usual.”
“Strella, you’ve never been robbing the palace again?”
“Of course not, Captain. Do you have the gold on board?”
Captain led us into his cabin and set the lantern on a table. The flame flickered. Estrella shoved a pile of papers off a desk and spread a piece of fabric over it.
“Four baskets. All Lady Alma’s original designs. Magic weaving. Guaranteed to have been worn by the Princess in the past year.”
The pirate whistled.
“You’ve outdone yerselves. I suppose ye have the usual sketches?”
Estrella handed him a packet.
“Everything a tailor needs to recreate the looks from the fabrics. And there’s more. A pair of ballet slippers made by Lady Alma herself and a ballet costume worn in the latest opera.”
She handed a package to the pirate. A piece of red silk stuck out of the wrapping.
“Those are mine!” I protested.
Captain raised an eyebrow at me.
“Who be ye?”
“No one important,” Estrella said. “She escaped from the palace wearing these, but has no further use for them.”
She directed the last few words at me through gritted teeth.
“You’ve come from the palace?” Captain asked.
I nodded.
“I’ll bet you have some stories. Is it true, the immortal kitten? I think they just replace it with a new one every year.”
Estrella put her hands on her hips.
“I’ve already told you about Seda, Captain.”
“And she eats roses for breakfast? The Princess, I mean?”
“What?”
“I peek into the palace when we sail by. Spyglass makes it easy. You can see her at breakfast when the crowds switch. Roses on the table every time.”
Pirates watched me eat breakfast?
“The roses aren’t for eating.”
“Why else do you put something on a table?”
I stared at him. He stared at me.
“We can swap stories later,” Estrella said. “Do you want the goods?”
“We aren’t exactly dress wearing folk around here.”
The ship rumbled with laughter from the unseen crew.
“Don’t try to be clever, Captain. You’ll have them to Castana by the time the new Salara portraits arrive and name your price.”
“And you’ll name yours, no doubt,” Captain said. “What if everyone already has those colors?”
“Please, you know Lady Alma. No one else in the world will have these colors.”
Captain stared at the fabric on his bed.
“Five,” he said.
“Seventy-five,” Estrella said.
“Ten.”
“Seventy-five.”
“Strella, you know how hard it is to transport fabric? On a ship made of tar? With the Dragon on the prowl?”
“If you want to raid the palace, be my guest.”
Captain’s forehead wrinkled.
“Sixty-five.”
“Seventy.”
“Deal.”
Captain put out his hand to shake Estrella’s. A shrill whistle sounded from the crow’s nest. Shadow covered his ears and sank into a chair. Estrella put her hand on his shoulder and glared at Captain.
“Royal Navy, Captain! Approaching fast!” a pirate called.
“By Salara! You three, stay here!”
Captain ran onto the deck. Estrella pried open a trap door in the floor and stuffed her baskets into it. I did the same with the fabric I carried. Shadow stayed in the chair.
Captain burst through the door and tossed a sack to Estrella. It jingled as she caught it.
“Sixty-five as promised.”
“We agreed on seventy!”
“Joe has business on shore. You can ride with him. Where’s the goods?”
I pointed to the trap door.
“Off you go then.”
“Captain, we said seventy!”
“There’s no time, Estrella,” Shadow said.
“And he knows it! Is there even a Navy ship out there?”
“Yes,” I said.
I stood on the deck, watching the pirates scurry. The Navy ship glowed in the darkness thanks to lantern shaped charms on its ropes. It looked small it was so far out to sea, but it grew larger each second.
“Come on,” Shadow said.
“I look forward to our next conversation,” Captain said to me as we boarded a life boat. “I’m still curious about them roses.”
We climbed a rope ladder and boarded a rowboat. It rocked each time someone stepped into it. I gripped the sides, not eager for another swim in salt water. Joe rowed us towards the shore. Captain’s ship eased towards the horizon, sails full of wind.
“Will they be alright?” I asked.
Joe nodded. “We avoid the Navy as a general rule, but Captain knows what he’s doing.”
He stopped rowing and examined me.
“Joe,” Estrella said, “Do you want to fight a Navy vessel from this rowboat?”
He shrugged and continued rowing.
“I didn’t catch your name,” he said.
“I’m Rook.”
“Are all girls in the palace as pretty as you, Rook?”
“I beg your pardon?”
He chuckled.
“Have you ever considered going to sea? I’d be happy to have you on board any time.”
“Joe!” Estrella said. “Less flirting, more rowing!”
“Nothing personal, Strella. Just because you turned me down doesn’t mean every girl will.”
“This has nothing to do with that! We are trying to avoid certain death at the hands of the Salarian Navy!”
“Oh, there’s nothing to worry about. I could take them down with one hand tied behind my back. Pirates make good money, Rook. You can have roses for breakfast every morning if you want.”
He winked at me.
“No thank you,” I said. What was the proper way to turn down a pirate? It seemed like a good idea to be polite.
“Be quiet,” Shadow said. “We’re near land. There might be soldiers on the coast.”
Joe grinned.
“I hope there are! I can take down a whole troop of soldiers with-”
“Hush!” Estrella hissed.
By the time we reached the shoreline, bot
h ships were dots on the horizon. Joe jumped ashore, nearly capsizing us, and helped me out of the boat.
“Until we meet again, Rook. Unless you’d like to come with me?”
I shook my head.
“Thanks for the ride.”
We hiked through a field until we found a road.
“This bag feels light,” Estrella said. “I’ll bet there’s only sixty coins here, at the most. That lousy pirate cheated us twice!”
“Please be quiet,” Shadow said.
She bit her lip.
“I could try a spell,” she whispered.
“It doesn’t help.”
Shadow quickened his steps and walked ahead of us. I tried to keep up, but Estrella pulled me back.
“So how did you meet the Captain?” I asked.
“Just Captain,” Estrella said. “His name is Captain.”
She stared ahead, watching Shadow.
“No really. How does one meet a pirate?”
“He worked with my father.”
“Your father was a pirate?”
She scowled at me. Shadow turned a corner in the road and disappeared from view behind a group of trees. When we reached the corner, he was gone. I glanced around but couldn’t find him.
“What’s wrong with Shadow?” I asked.
“Nothing is wrong with him!”
Tears glistened in her eyes. She wiped them away.
“Nothing is wrong.”
We walked the rest of the way in silence. The mountains were far away now. Captain and Joe had brought us nearly back to Castlemont. The sun rose. I didn’t realize where we were going until we stopped at Elsie and Edsel’s shop.
“Is it safe?” I asked.
“Do you see any soldiers?”
The streets were clear except for peasants bustling to get ready for the morning. My palace shone in the distance like a gem in the morning sun.
Edsel and William rose to greet us when we entered the cobbler shop. The Salara sketches and shoes were gone, and the shop looked strangely empty without them.
“I have the coins,” Estrella said. “Not as many as I should have. That blasted pirate cheated me.”
“Where’s Shadow?” William asked.
“Recovering. He had to rescue our newest bandit from an amorous poet in the tiara ballroom.”
“It wasn’t like that!” I said. “It only delayed us a few minutes!”
Estrella looked furious, but William chuckled.
“You should have seen the poet he rescued her from the night we met.”
He stumbled towards me in his best imitation of a drunken poet.
“Roses are red, I’m a poet. So you should dance with me.”
He grabbed my hand and spun me around. I giggled.
“This is serious, William,” Estrella said.
“You shouldn’t mock royal artists,” Edsel said.
“I’m always serious about poetry, but we have bigger problems. The salt patch in Gerta’s farm spread to Roslynn’s. Half their fields are gone.”
“But that is several miles!”
“And the town well has gone salty again.”
“At least I know how to fix that. Come help me.”
They left. I turned to Edsel.
“Where’s Elsie?”
“Um, not here.”
“Obviously. She would have noticed my ruined shoes right away.”
“You ruined your shoes?”
His eyes darted down to my feet, then back to my face.
“I’ll make you another pair,” he said. “Something to better suit you. I’ll have enough money soon to make you something really grand.”
“You must have sold a lot of things at the masquerade.”
“We did, but that’s not what I mean.”
He stared at me with the intensity of a poet. I tried to ignore his gaze.
“Um, when will Elsie be back?”
“Rook, was there really someone in the palace with dishonorable intentions towards you?”
“What?”
“I’ve been wondering why you left the palace. Poets are sometimes overwhelmed by beauty, and you’re beautiful. So maybe, if there was someone there being, um, rude to you, that’s why you had to run away?”
His eyes did not leave my face. The poets weren’t the only ones overwhelmed. I had seen looks like this before.
“Edsel, are you alright?”
“I was just- I’m trying to understand why you left. Then I'll know if you want to go back.”
His eyes were wide, almost panicked.
“I’ve thought about going back. I’ve thought about it a lot.”
At least, I had at first.
“If you had someone to protect you. If you felt safe. Would that make a difference?”
Sir Gilbert’s face flashed through my mind. I shook it aside. He was halfway to the colonies by now.
“Maybe.”
“You’re not meant to be a bandit, Rook. I’m going to the palace today, and I want you to come with me.”
“What?”
His face turned red.
“Oh, I know I’m making a mess of this. I love you, Sara.”
“What?”
“I can’t call you Rook anymore. It is just a reminder that I failed you. That you had to sell your hair because I wasn’t there for you.”
“Edsel, that’s ridiculous.”
I ran my fingers through my short hair.
“I’m asking you to marry me, Sara. You’re the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen. I can’t imagine spending my life with anyone else. Elsie and I were offered a place in the palace. She’s already there, but I had to see you again. I had to ask.”
“I don’t understand.”
“It was because of you, really. A noblewoman at the party liked the hood on your dress so much that she hired us to design for her. You’re good luck for us.”
“What about the shop? What about the bandits?”
“Sara, marry me. Let me take you away from all this. Back to the palace where you belong.”
I twisted my skirt in my hands, torn between laughing and throwing up. My face must have looked very strange.
“It is a good position, Sara. We’ll have standing in society. You could be another lady’s companion once your hair grows out. Or stay home and help us sew if you want.”
“No, Edsel.”
“You deserve better than this!”
He grabbed my hands and shook them.
“Please tell Elsie goodbye for me.”
He blinked and released my hands. Then he took a few steps back.
“You don’t know what you’re involved in, Sara. These bandits are dangerous. Shadow served prison time for crimes against Princess Salara as a child. Estrella was dismissed from the palace in disgrace. They’re not good people, and they’ll take you down with them. I can bring you back where you belong.”
I shook my head. Edsel’s mouth tightened.
“I see. I wish you luck then. We’re renting this shop to Madame Delilah, and I can’t have bandits disturbing her. Tell Shadow you’re no longer welcome here.”
He crossed his arms.
“Edsel-”
“You should leave, Rook. I won’t hesitate to turn any of you in if you interfere with us. Our loyalty is to Princess Salara, and it always has been.”
I stared at him, trying to process this. Elsie and Edsel had been my first friends outside the palace. I was supposed to move in with them. And now Edsel was turning me out, and Elsie hadn’t even bothered to say goodbye. I blinked back tears, feeling betrayed.
The door flew open. Edsel and I squinted in the bright light. William came in, carrying Estrella.
“She fainted trying to fix the well. Do you have any healing potions?”
“No,” Edsel said.
William raised an eyebrow and looked at me.
“We should go, William,” I said, putting my hand on his shoulder. “We’re no longer welcome here.”
“D
on’t be ridiculous! She’s hurt!”
He stepped towards Edsel, ready for a fight. Estrella stirred slightly, and Edsel crossed his arms.
“If you do not leave, I will call the town guard.” He turned to me. “Unless you’ve changed your mind.”
“You’re threatening me?”
I stared at him. He stared back, determined.
“Estrella just fainted trying to fix your well! You think they would arrest us?”
“If they knew the truth about you, yes.”
“And what if they knew the truth about you?”
William and Edsel glared at each other. I pulled William towards the door. He flinched.
“Let’s go, William.”
“Oh, one more thing, William,” Edsel said. “Elsie asked me to tell you that the flirtation between you two will not continue.”
William snorted.
“To show you she is serious, she returns the hair ribbons you bought for her last fall.”
Edsel pulled two tattered green ribbons from his pocket.
“Burn them,” William said.
We left the shop.
Chapter 18
“What happened?” I asked.
“Well, Madame Delilah was in town, and Elsie was admiring those ribbons-”
“Not that! What happened to Estrella?”
“Oh. Castanian style magic goes wrong sometimes.”
“Lady Alma uses Castanian magic. She never faints.”
“Neither has Estrella while she was making clothes. But the well had gone really salty, and that takes a lot of energy to fix.”
“So she fixed it?”
He nodded.
“We’ll go to Gerta’s farm,” he said. “Shadow will look for us there once he realizes we’re not at Edsel’s. That little traitor.”
“He asked me to marry him.”
“I’m surprised it took him this long.”
He looked at me out of the corner of his eye.
“You weren’t interested?”
I laughed.
“Just making sure. Love can be strange. Sometimes it takes you by surprise. In fact, there is something I’ve been meaning to say.”
“Don’t you dare, William!”
He winked at me.
“Well, I am apparently free now. Elsie’s gone, and Roslynn is avoiding me like the plague. If you want to-”
Rook and Shadow (Salarian Chronicles Book 1) Page 14