by Robin Hobb
"You are practically naked!" she scolded her. "Malta, how could you!"
There. If Cerwin had been too dense to notice it before, he knew it now. Malta drew herself up with dignity. "I had no choice. I had but one chance to slip out of the house to meet you, and I took it. I don't regret it. Cerwin has been gentleman enough to ignore it and not shame me. It is not as if I chose to come to him this way. Cannot you understand that my father's life is at stake, Delo? This is not an ordinary time, and the ordinary rules do not apply." She set her hands pleadingly over her heart.
She watched Cerwin's reaction from the corner of her eye. He was staring at her with horrified admiration. His eyes traveled her body as if he could see through her cloak. "Delo," he said brusquely, "it is of no importance. You are such a child, to make much of it. Please. Allow me to speak to Malta privately."
"Cerwin!" Delo protested in outrage.
He had made her angry, calling her a child. Malta did not want that. An angry Delo might gossip too much. Malta stretched out a languid hand to her. "I know you are only trying to protect me. I love you for it. Nevertheless, I am sure that your brother would never do me harm." She met Delo's eyes. "You see, I know your heart, and that tells me much of his. You are honorable people. I do not fear to be alone with him."
Eyes shining, Delo stepped back and away from them. "Oh, Malta. You see so much." Obviously moved, she retreated once more to the gazebo. Malta looked back at Cerwin. She gathered her cloak in tightly to cover herself, well aware that doing so accented the smallness of her waist and the fullness of her hips. Then she looked up at him with a shy smile.
"Cerwin." She said his name, then gave a sigh. "It shames me that I must speak so plainly, but my need forces me to it. I do not ask all that you have and all you will ever possess. Whatever you can offer me, discreetly and comfortably, I shall gratefully accept. But more important to me would be for your family to join forces with mine. Tomorrow night there is to be a Traders' Council meeting. I shall be there. Please come. If you can move your father to attend and speak out for us, it would help us greatly. The loss of our ship and my father is not solely my family's loss. It affects all Bingtown Traders. If these cut-throat pirates do not fear to capture a liveship, what will they not take? If they do not fear to hold prisoner a Bingtown Trader and his son, who is safe?" Malta's voice had grown righteously impassioned. Her hands darted out to seize Cerwin's hands. "If your family could unite with mine in this—" she dropped her voice "—perhaps my grandmother would reconsider Reyn's courtship. Perhaps she might see there are… better matches."
She loosened her grip on his hands, her heart racing. Strange warmth flushed her body. Now he would take her in his arms and kiss her, and it would be like the end of a minstrel's song. She waited for the touch of his lips that would bear her up like a leaf on the wind. She half closed her eyes.
Instead, he fell to his knees before her. "I will come to the Traders' Council tomorrow night. I will speak to my father and convince him the Trells should lend their support to your family." He looked up at her adoringly. "You will see. I will prove to you and your family that I am worthy of you."
It took her a moment to find a suitable response. She had been so certain he would kiss her. What had she done wrong? "I have never doubted your worthiness," she faltered at last. She could almost taste her disappointment.
He came back to his feet slowly. He looked down at her, eyes shining. "I will be worthy of your confidence," he promised her.
She waited, thinking he might suddenly embrace her and kiss her ardently. Her skin tingled all over, awaiting his touch. She dared to look straight into his face, her eyes burning with passion. She wet her lips and parted them invitingly as she tilted her chin up toward him.
"Until tomorrow, Malta Haven," he said fervently. "You will see how well I keep my word."
Then, as if he were bidding her farewell at an afternoon tea, he bowed gravely. He turned to his sister. "Come, Delo. I had best be getting you home." He swept his own dark cloak about him and then turned and strode off into the night.
"Farewell, Malta," Delo sighed. Then she waggled her fingers at her friend. "I'll ask my mother if I may come to the Traders' Council also. Maybe we can sit together. I'll see you then." She turned abruptly and hurried away. "Cerwin! Wait for me!"
For some little time, Malta stood in disbelief. What had she done wrong? No gift token of his affection, no passionate kiss… he had not even pleaded to be allowed to escort her part of the way back to her house. She frowned after them. Then in an instant, she realized her error. The fault was not hers, but Cerwin's. She shook her head to herself. He was simply not man enough to live up to her expectations.
She turned and began to pick her way back to the house through the darkness. She knit her brows in thought, then self-consciously smoothed her forehead out. She certainly didn't want to end up with a lined forehead like her mother. Brashen had made her frown. He had been so rude to her at first, but then, when she was offering him coffee and flirting a bit, he had definitely reacted to her. She would wager that if he had been the one meeting her in the gazebo tonight, she would have been thoroughly kissed. A sudden shiver ran up her back at that thought. It was not that she liked him. He looked far too coarse in his pirate's silks and long mustache. He had still stunk of the ship when he came to the door, and his hands were scarred and rough with calluses. No. She felt no attraction to the man. But his sidelong glances at her Aunt Althea had stirred her interest. The sailor had watched her move like a hungry cat stalking a bird. Althea never met his eyes. Even when she spoke to him, she contrived to be looking out the window, or stirring a cup of tea or picking at her fingernails. Her avoidance of his glance had distressed him. Time after time, he had addressed his remarks directly to her. At one point she had even gone over to Selden and sat on the floor beside him, taking his hand as if her nephew could shield her from Brashen's avid eyes.
Malta didn't think her mother or grandmother had noticed, but she had. She firmly intended to find out what was between them. She would discover just what Althea knew that could make a man look at her like that. What would she have to say to make Cerwin look at her so warmly? She shook her head. No. Not Cerwin. Comparing him to his older brother had opened her eyes. He was a boy still, with no heat to his glance or power of his own. He was a poor fish, a catch she should throw back. Even Reyn had had more warmth to his touch. Reyn always brought her gifts. She reached the kitchen door and eased it open. She might, after all, use the dream-box tonight.
Brashen stood up from the table. The beer he had ordered was still untouched. As he turned and left the tavern, he saw the furtive movement of someone else claiming it. He smiled bitterly to himself. Nice place he'd chosen to drink; it was suited perfectly to the man who couldn't hold onto anything.
Outside the tavern, another Bingtown night was unraveling. He was in the roughest part of Bingtown, patronizing one of the waterfront dives that shared a street with warehouses, whorehouses and flophouses. He knew he should go back to the Springeve. Finney would be expecting him. But he had nothing to tell the man, and it suddenly occurred to him that he probably wouldn't go back at all. Ever. It wasn't likely Finney would come into Bingtown looking for him. Time to cut himself loose from that operation. Of course, that meant that the cindin in his pocket was the last he had. He stopped where he stood and groped for it. When he found it, it was shorter than he remembered. Had he already used some of it? Perhaps. Without regret, he tucked the last bit into his lip. He resumed walking down the darkened street. Just over a year ago, he and Althea had walked down a Bingtown street together at night. Forget it. It wasn't likely that would ever happen again. She went strolling with Grag Tenira now.
So. If he wasn't going back to the Springeve, where was he going? His feet had already known the answer to that. They were taking him out of town, away from the lights and up the long empty beach to where the abandoned Paragon rested on the sands. A smile sneered over Brashen's face. Som
e things never changed. He was back in Bingtown, close to penniless, and an abandoned ship was the closest thing he had to a friend. He and the ship had a lot in common. Both were outcasts.
All was peaceful under the summer starlit skies. The waves muttered and shushed one another along the shore. There was just enough of a breeze to keep him from sweating as he strode along on the loose sand. It would have been a lovely evening if he had felt good about anything.
As things stood, the wind blew emptiness through him and the starlight was cold. The cindin had energized him, but purposelessly. All it had done was given him plenty of wakefulness in which to be confused. Malta, for instance. What game, by Sa's beard, had she been playing with him? He did not know whether to feel stalked, mocked or flattered by her attention. He still did not know how to think of her, child or woman. Once her mother had returned, she had become a demure young lady, save for the occasional sharp remark delivered so innocently that it seemed accidental. Despite Malta's apparent decorum once her older relatives arrived, he had caught her eyes on him more than once that evening. He had seen her speculative gaze go from him to Althea, and her look had not been kind.
He tried to pretend that she was the reason Althea had not met his eyes. She had not wanted her young niece to guess what had passed between them. For three strides, he believed it. Then he admitted glumly to himself that she had not given him the least sign of warmth or interest. She had been courteous to him, just as Keffria had been courteous to him. No more than that, and no less. As befitted a daughter of Ephron Vestrit, she had been gracious and welcoming to a guest, even when he brought bad tidings to the family. The only time she had failed in courtesy had been when Ronica had offered him a bedchamber. Keffria had urged him to accept it, citing the lateness of the hour and how weary he looked. Althea, however, had kept silent. That had made his decision. He left.
Althea had been lovely. Oh, not as her sister was attractive, nor as Malta was beguiling. Keffria and Malta were careful and constructed in their beauty. The touch of paint, the brush of powder, the careful arranging of hair and selection of clothing all combined to set off their best features. Althea had come in from the streets, her sandals dusty, her hair tendriled with perspiration at her brow and the back of her neck. The warmth of summer was on her cheeks, and the liveliness of Bingtown's market shone in her eyes. Her skirt and blouse were simple garments, chosen for freedom of movement rather than fineness of weave. Even her struggle with Malta when she first entered the room had impressed him with her vitality. She was no longer the boyish hand she'd been on the Reaper, nor even the captain's daughter from Vivacia. Her stay in Bingtown had been kind to her hair and skin. Her attire was softer and a bit less pragmatic. She looked like a Trader's daughter.
Hence, unattainable.
A hundred might-have-beens passed through his mind. If he were still heir to the Trell fortune and Trader status. If he had listened to Captain Vestrit and saved some money. If Althea had inherited the ship and kept him on as first mate. So many ifs, but he had no more hope of winning her than of being re-inherited by his father. So, throw it away, with his other discarded futures. Walk on into the empty night.
He spat out bitterness with the fibrous remnants of the cindin stick. The dark hulk of the Paragon loomed ahead against the bright canopy of the starry night sky. He caught a faint whiff of wood-smoke from somewhere. As he approached, he began to whistle loudly. He knew Paragon did not like to be surprised. As he drew closer, he called out jovially, "Paragon! Hasn't anyone made you into kindling yet?"
"Who goes there?" A cold voice from the shadows halted him in his tracks.
"Paragon?" Brashen queried in confusion.
"No. I am Paragon. If I'm not mistaken, you're Brashen," the ship jestingly replied. He added in an aside, "He's no danger to me, Amber. Set aside your staff."
Brashen peered through the gloom. A slender silhouette stood between him and the ship, tension in her stance. She moved, and he heard the clatter of hardwood on stone as she leaned her stick on a rock. Amber? The bead-maker? She sat down on something, a bench or stacked stone. He ventured closer. "Hello?"
"Hello." Her voice was cautiously friendly.
"Brashen, I'd like you to meet my friend Amber. Amber, this is Brashen Trell. You know something of him. You cleaned up after him when you moved in." There was breathless excitement in Paragon's boyish voice. He was obviously enjoying this encounter. There was an element of adolescent brag in his voice as he teased Brashen.
"Moved in?" Brashen heard himself query.
"Oh, yes. Amber lives inside me now." A hesitation. "Oh. You were probably coming to me for a place to sleep, weren't you? Well, there is plenty of room, you know. It's only the captain's quarters that she has taken over, and stored a few things in my hold. Amber? You don't mind, do you? Brashen always comes to sleep here when he has no other place to stay, and no more money."
The pause was just a trifle longer than was polite. Brashen heard a touch of uneasiness in Amber's voice as she replied, "You belong to yourself, Paragon. It's not up to me who you welcome aboard."
"I do, do I? Well, if I belong to myself, why are you so intent on buying me?" Now he teased her, hooting like a boy at his own joke.
Brashen found nothing humorous about it. What business had she with the liveship? "No one can buy a liveship, Paragon," he corrected him gently. "A liveship is a part of a Trader's family. You could not sail without a family member aboard you." In a quieter voice, he added, "It isn't even good for you to be out here by yourself so much."
"I'm not by myself, not anymore," the figurehead protested. "Amber comes out almost every night to sleep aboard me. And every ten-day, she takes a holiday and spends the whole afternoon with me. If she buys me, she won't sail me. She's going to just have me leveled up, and she's going to create some cliff-gardens over there, and…"
"Paragon!" Brashen rebuked him almost sternly. "You belong to the Ludlucks. They can't sell you and Amber can't buy you. Nor are you some great flowerpot to be decorated with vines. Only a cruel person would tell you such things." He glared at the slender figure sitting silently in the shadows.
Amber flowed to her feet. She advanced on him, shoulders squared, as if she were a man about to challenge him to a fight. Her voice was tight but even as she said, "If what you claim is true, then the cruelty originates with the Ludlucks. They have left him here to brood and rot, all these years. Now, when times are changing and it seems that all of Bingtown can be bought, they entertain offers from New Traders. They would not make Paragon into a great flowerpot. No. They'd chop him up into bits and sell him off as trinkets and curiosities."
Brashen was struck dumb with horror. Instinctively he reached out a hand to the ship's silvery hull in a calming gesture. "That can't happen," he assured him in a husky voice. "All of the Traders would rise up in arms before they'd let such a thing happen."
Amber shook her head. "You've been gone a long time from Bingtown, Brashen Trell." She turned and kicked at the sand. Sparks flew up from the fading coals of a campfire. She stooped and, a moment later, tiny flames blossomed. Brashen watched in silence as she awakened the fire with twigs and then larger sticks of wood. "Sit down," she invited him in a weary voice. In a conciliatory tone, she added, "This has begun badly. Actually, I have looked forward to your returning to Bingtown. I had hoped that you and Althea might work together to aid me in this. She has grudgingly agreed that my acquiring Paragon might be the best thing for him. If you join your voice to hers, perhaps we could all go to the Ludlucks and make them see reason." She lifted her gaze to his disapproving stare. "Would you care for a cup of tea?"
He sat, lowering himself stiffly to perch on a driftwood log. He tried to keep his voice conversational as he said, "It is hard for me to believe Althea would ever support the sale of a liveship."
"I but pointed out the facts to her and she concurred." In the firelight, she rolled her eyes toward Paragon. The small jerk of her head was a plain indication s
he didn't want to discuss details in front of the ship. Curiosity burned in Brashen, but he recognized the wisdom. Paragon was in a cheery mood tonight. There was no sense in awakening the quarrelsome side of him. For now, the best course was to humor them both and collect what information he could. "So. I know Paragon is happy to see you and will want to know all of your adventures. How long have you been back in Bingtown?" Amber went on in a natural voice.
"We just anchored up today," he replied. A silence fell after his words. The oddness of the situation swept over him. Amber was conducting this as if she were a Bingtown matron hosting a tea.
"And will you be staying long?" she prodded him.
"I don't know. I came back to tell Althea I had seen Vivacia. Pirates have captured her. I don't know if Kyle and Wintrow are alive. I don't know if any of the crew is alive." The words spilled from him before he could consider the wisdom of sharing this information.
There was true concern in Amber's voice as she asked, "Althea knows this? How did she react?"
"She is devastated, of course. Tomorrow she goes to the Bingtown Council to seek their aid in recovering the ship. The damnable part of it is that this Kennit most likely doesn't want a ransom. He wants to keep the ship. If Wintrow and Kyle are still alive, he'll probably have to keep them as well to keep the ship sane—"
"Pirates." Paragon's voice was almost dreamy save for the terror in it. "I know about pirates. They kill and kill and kill on your decks. The blood soaks in, deeper and deeper, until your wood is so full of lives you cannot even find your own. Then they chop off your face and open your seacocks and you go under. The worst part is, they leave you to live." His voice broke into a boyish treble before it tremored into silence.
Brashen's eyes met Amber's. Hers glittered with unspoken horror. She and Brashen rose as one, both reaching out toward the ship. His voice stopped them. "Don't touch me!" His voice was deep and hoarse, a man's frantic command. "Be gone from me, you traitorous vermin! Feckless, dung-crawling rats! You have no souls! No creature with a soul could endure doing what you did to me!" He turned his face from side to side blindly. His huge hands, knotted into fists, swung back and forth before him defensively. "Take your memories away from me. I do not want your lives. You are drowning me! You are trying to make me forget who I am… who I was. I will not!" This last he roared out in defiance. Then his voice dropped low into a wild laugh, followed by a string of mocking obscenities.