by Marcy Lynn
“I’m so frightened.” She choked.
His hand started to reach for her but then it tightened into a fist returning to the rail. “It’s almost over. Just do as you’re told and we’ll make it through this without anyone dying.” She nodded, her throat constricted. It really was Derek and he was there with her.
She wasn’t alone.
“Keep yourself right here on the quarter deck.” He instructed. “I promise you, I won’t let anyone hurt you.” Elanor believed that and knew deep inside that with him there, everything would be alright. Her fingers curled around the rail’s smooth wood to keep from throwing herself at him when he turned to leave her side. “Your odd friend of yours said to stay off this deck because of pirates.” She whispered at him. He tossed a grin over his shoulder while taking the steps down by twos.
The sudden milling and shouting of men on the lower deck gave a signal the other ship had to be drawing near.
Captain Richardson busying himself with assuring the pirate he had no idea who the other ship was or why it headed their way. Elanor forced herself to draw near the inner rail to watch the men below.
The pirate’s dark gaze directed towards the ship Derek had said would come.
“I know the bastard who owns it.”
“Now, you said we were best mates!” Derek called down cheerfully as he took the last steps.
“I’ve got a faster ship than either of you. And let’s face it, I’m smart, you’re smart-” He jerked a thumb at Captain Richardson. “Not so smart.” The pirate Captain gave a slow lazy grin. She had to sit down. She sunk down at the top of the stairs. None of this made a bit of sense to her. This pirate business wasn’t anything like what they talked about in stories. There was a lot more talking going on than she’d heard about.
As though to prove her wrong, Derek pulled his sword out and pointed it at the men on the deck one by one. “Now then gentlemen, you will drop your weapons to the deck and step to the railing.” There wasn’t a muscled moved by the dark foreign man. He didn‘t protest but merely watched. There came a sound of metal against sheath as Captain Richardson’s crew dropped their swords, knives and whatever else they carried.
She got up, moving back to stand up on the quarter deck out of the way. Far away from all the weapons glittering on the deck. The pirate Captain’s men hadn’t pulled the weapons out of their sheath‘s. Derek placed a finger to his forehead and then gave the pirate Captain a lazy salute. After carefully looking around, the pirate Captain gave the sign for his crew to start carrying the cargo.
They started pacing like ants back and forth with the crates.
“Don’t look so pleased with yourself, this was my idea.” Derek boasted.
To Elanor, the pirate Captain’s face didn’t look any different than it had. It was expressionless.
“Enough bragging, you are embarrassing yourself. This wasn‘t that hard to do. Greed is a powerful weapon.” The pirate Captain just as arrogantly said.
“You can‘t steal my thunder, mate.” She watched Derek walk over and clapped the pirate on the shoulder, laughing. “Besides, what do you care? You get the ship, the crew, its Captain and five of the crates down there. Just for making a deal with this sell out. You’re going to make a tidy profit on ransom as well.”
She could hear Mrs. Richardson crying becoming hysterical. It turned into a terrified screaming when she was dragged onto the pirate ship with the struggling Captain Richardson. They were planning to do the same thing to her but Elanor couldn’t muster up a feeling of revenge with the terrified cries they were making. Neither of the men on the deck seemed to notice or care. She put her hands together and folded her fingers. A silent prayer to the Goddess to watch over them though they were receiving their karma.
“I do not know. I think I‘ve taken a liking to her myself. I can imagine what I‘d get market for her.” Elanor released her hands to grip wood in front of her. Her belly drop at the pirate’s words.
Derek pointed to the ship now nearly on top of them. “I could sink your ship and have this one stripped faster than you can say, I’m kidding. And you better be kidding, Mate.”
“Fair enough.” The dark haired man seemed unmoved by the prospect of his ship being sunk, shrugging his heavily shrouded shoulders. Elanor tried to take solace from the fact that he wasn’t serious about his statement.
So far everything went a lot smoother than any tale of the high seas she’d heard with pirates. There had been swords drawn, but then they were dropped to the deck.
No cannon fire. No yelling. No fire burning.
Not so much as a fist thrown. A guilty sensation twinged inside her. She should be grateful that none of that had happened. When it all began, she had a much more terrifying vision of it in her head.
Derek turned then to look at Elanor. His hand gesturing for her to come down to where they were. She hesitated at first, but when his hand became less easy and more demanding in a jerking motion, she moved. As she neared he gave her a wink.
Then gave the pirate Captain a grin. “Pleasure doing business with you as always. You have twelve wives now don‘t you? You know thirteen is an unlucky number.” He gave signals for his men to carry two crates off the ship onto the small skiff boat. One of them, hers. He pulled Elanor along towards the boat as well. When they were on the surface of the water, his men took no time to row towards the waiting ship. They all seemed to be paying attention to the two ships behind them as though they expected there might be trouble. Elanor glanced at the ship they were about to get on; the name said “Swift tide”.
Derek helped her out of the small boat after it was levied out of the water. “Steppe will take you to my cabin. Don’t come out. I’ll come and talk to you when I can. Take that dress off. We’re about to sail into some hotter weather.” She felt as though she’d drop soon. Still, he’d said they would be going deeper into the heat not away from it. That wasn’t right.
“We’re not going back to Inglid?”
“Go now. The pirates out number me with men and canons. I don’t like those odds. If he changes his mind-” She knew what he meant though he hadn’t finished. He didn’t need to.
Chapter four
“We must be far enough away now.”
Elanor commented to no one in the room. Even though Derek had said to dress down to her stay and chemise; she’d elected to leave the heavy dress on. Her intention was to explain the need to turn the ship back North. Before they got too south. But hours had passed. It could be already be too late. The volcano might have already erupted. She hadn’t much time to get to Istland. She paced back and forth.
Sweat caused the dress to stick to her, patching in dark unseemly stains.
Elanor pulled at the high collar. Finally losing her patience her hands gripped the door, yanking on the knob.
Locked.
She tried the door again, this time hitting the heel of her palm against the wood- which ended with her collapsing in heat exhaustion in a chair.
Where was he? Why hadn’t he come to explain?
Elanor laid her cheek to the smooth cool surface of the table bolted to the floor. She noted that everything in the room had been secured down. The only things not bolted down were the small items littering the desk and a few pillows on the window seat. She remembered during storms if the ship had been tossed around by the waves, it kept the heavy objects from being deadly. Even the bed had been bolted. There wasn’t a single item that would help her get out of the room.
A small wooden chest caught her eye in the corner by the door. It had gone unnoticed before because of it’s location. Sliding to the floor, she crawled over the short distance kneeling to open it. Inside were various items of clothing. There didn’t seem to be anything of use in there either. Elanor did pondered putting on one of his tunics. Her hand shifted the fabrics around, wondering if pride would be beaten by the weather. A narrowing of her brows created a look of interest as she neared the bottom.
Slowly her fingers wrap
ped around a soft object. A long cord of gold intertwined with mauve, both ends tasseled. It swung gently in her hand. Without realizing it was happening, a tender smile pulled at the corners of her mouth. He’d kept it. The hand-fasting cord she’d given Derek when they‘d promised their oaths to each other under the strawberry full moon. He’d given the ring on her finger, she’d given him the cord to take with him sailing.
The door pushed open nearly hitting her. She got to her feet quickly, weaving even before she stood straight.
“Sorry, I didn’t know you were so close to the door.” Maybe it was relief. Maybe it was the bubble of joy that surface seeing him safe again. She go to her feet and tossed her arms around his shoulders. He returned the hug, squeezing her tightly in a warm welcoming embrace.
“I’m so glad we made it out of that. I was afraid we’d be taken to the slave markets or worse.”
“You’re safe. I’ve got you.” Derek turned his head to press his face close. Her insides tighten realizing what she’d done.
“It’s so hot in here. Do you know when we might be able to head back?”
He frowned as his eyes trailed up and down her form. “I told you to take that off. It’s too hot.”
“I didn’t know it was an order.” She said slowly, her brows starting to narrow with her frown. “I thought you would be back before now.”
“It does take time to manage a ship, Elanor.” He pulled his tunic over his head. The movement swift to reveal a compact muscled chest. He looked confident, powerful with his broad shoulders. This wasn’t the way he looked two years ago and surely not years previous.
A lot had changed and by his manners, it wasn’t just physical appearances.
He glanced at her hand, sinking into a bolted down chair.
“I see you haven’t lost your nosey manners when it comes to my things.”
Confusion clouded her focus for a moment before remembering what was in her hand.
“I was looking for something to put on.”
He looked at her for a long moment. “Modesty isn’t needed. Just take the wool off.” He rolled a hand in the air dismissively, starting to grin. “It’s not as though I haven’t seen your bits before.”
Teasing her? As though nothing had just happened? As though they hadn’t been running from pirates? As though they hadn’t spent two years apart? Her frown only deepen at this.
“I will thank you to be more serious.” This wasn’t exactly how she imagined things would go when he came to the cabin. “This isn’t funny, Derek. I’m still shaking.”
“I just saved you. Show some good spirit.”
“Will they hurt the people on the ship?”
“That particular pirate will be ransoming the Captain and his wife. The rest will be released when they dock.” He answered without looking at her.
“Will you taking me back north now?”
“Already trying to get away from me, sweetheart?” Derek did look at her then. His gray eyes seeming to look through her. “After all this time, that’s all you have to say?”
“I’m sorry. It’s just-” She took a deep breath and let it go. “It’s important for me to arrive on time. I do have a lot of questions about all of this. But I am glad to see you.”
“It’s good to be able to talk to you now.”
“Why didn’t you tell me who you were?” She toyed with the cord, wrapping it around her hand as she spoke with him.
“If I had, would you been able to keep quiet?”
“I don’t know. I’ll admit I was scared.”
“You’re safe now.” He reached out to trace his fingers over the hand holding the cord. She felt her heart flutter.
She hadn’t seen him in two years and the maturity of his face though changed his look didn’t change it entirely. She could still see the man she had cared about. But she couldn’t let the past cloud the situation.
“How did you know this would happen?” She pushed.
He stood walking to the window, his smooth bare back to her.
“I might as well tell you.” He turned around. His gray eyes hard. His lips set. It startled her how quickly his manner changed from good natured humor to this.
“I made the deal with the pirate for you. When I heard about Richardson, he’d been looking for a buyer to take the ship in exchange for retirement money. So, I made my own deals.”
“Why? Why didn’t you just warn my Father?”
She let the cord slide against the wood floor hitting the chair leg.
“We haven’t spoken in years, Elanor. Why would I warn him?”
“Derek how could you do this? Weeks! Weeks we were on that ship and you didn’t say a word. You and that man, Caspin, just kept playing games, toying with me. I knew there was something happening, I just couldn’t…”
He interrupted her scattered assessment of him.
“Because I had no intention of telling you until I knew everything was going to go as I planned. You finally did the one thing I’ve been waiting for you to do since you left.” He said in a strained voice. “Something impulsive and daring like you always do. It took you longer than I expected. But you did, you got on that ship.”
Confused, she had to ask. “What would me being on a ship have to do with anything?”
His eyes sparkled dangerously. “I live by one rule out here now. Take or be taken. There is nothing else. I thought for a long time, if I waited you would come back to me. But a year went by. And then two years went by.” His fist slammed down on the cherry wood of the desk making her jump. “You took our future away when you left. I just took it back.” He picked the cord up, crossing the room to place it back in the chest. “I only had to be patient. When your father’s man Richardson came bragging at Port, that he had one hell of a deal with a pirate, I finally had it. I just joined Richardson’s crew.”
She took a step towards him. “Derek, listen to what you’re saying! I’m not some object that is being passed from owner to owner for goodness sake!”
“You were taking away from me!” Derek shouted. “From what we had? From everything we had planned! We shouldn’t be arguing right now, Elanor. This should be a happy reunion! You should be hugging me and I holding you from long due reconnecting. But instead, I have to explain why I had to wheel and deal with pirates! You never should have left!”
Did he think they could just carry on as though nothing had happened? Elanor never would have been able to live with herself. “Everything was so confusing and I didn’t know what… I’m sorry, so very sorry. I wish I didn’t have to, when we were already…” Elanor closed her eyes and gathered strength from within. No one believed her but she could possibly help find Maegan if she reached Istland in time. “But I had to leave. And I need you to take me back now. I realize this was all terrible mistake. I never should have left the country side.”
Her empathic abilities could feel the anger and betrayal almost physically. But she couldn’t change what had happened. There had been many reasons why she couldn’t stay. The elemental magic would have been a threat to them both. Living in constant fear of the same thing happening to them as it did her Mother and sisters. She couldn’t let him suffer because she had been born a fifth generation elemental caster. She was one of five sisters that had elemental powers, hers being water. She had to hide away because of the fear magic grown so much in the centuries that seekers hunted them. She feared it herself. She’d gone the past two years avoiding anything that felt stronger than a simple spell. Elanor couldn’t even manage a simple spell anymore.
And he just dismissed it all.
There was just too many things that were working against them. It wasn’t safe.
Her face twisted in different emotions, but they were nothing compared to the ones tearing at her heart and soul once again years later. His next words twisted them with a blurring of confusion and anger.
“Now, Elanor, my caged bird. That’s where you’re wrong. The sea has only one rule.” He lifted a hand with his i
ndex singled. “Take, or be taken. Your Father’s ship has been taken by pirates. No one knows you are with me. They will all think you’ve been stolen and sold on the Barbary slave market in Morocco. You were the only one that was taken from the ship, remember? No one will ever know where you went. Like it or not, you are now, mine.” The last word punch in the air between them. “I’m going to show you the life we’ve been missing and we’re never going to look back. Ever.”
Shock seized her. He didn’t sound like the Derek she’d grown up with. Had fallen in love with, and had planned to marry before life had thrown them into a different direction. This man was wild, dangerous and clearly didn’t want to listen to any kind of reason. Dread swept in and carried the rest of her emotions away.
Realization became an icy splintering down her spine. He’d just declared her his prisoner. . .
Chapter five
They’d been staring at each other, neither saying a word.
The silence finally broken by him, his irritation with her oozing from the words.
“I told you to take that dress off.” He saw the instant annoyance on her face and at this point didn’t rightly give a damn. After all he’d gone through to get her back and this is how she acted.
“I’m not taking it off.” Her chin lifted.
“I’m not telling you again.”
“Well, I’m not taking it off.”
He moved on her faster then she’d had time to react. Derek’s hands gripped the front of her dress and jerked down. The hard sailor taking over where the man inside him felt betrayal and hurt. The fabric though thick wasn’t meant to withstand such a force. A rip sounded in the air as her body jerked towards him like a doll.
“Fine, since you can not obey a simple command,” He didn’t stop pulling as he spoke. She struggled, grabbing his wrists and pulling at them. She tried working his fingers away from the fabric after a time and when none of that worked, Derek watched her grow further enraged. It only served to stoke his own anger further as well.