The Black Moon's Curse (The Stellara Trilogy Book 1)

by Alicia Restucci

  “Don’t hurt them, Nikolas. Please,” She pleaded.

  With a glance over to her friend, she knew Cassius had recognized Nikolas as the pirate who’d interrupted their dance earlier tonight. Did he blame himself for letting him go when she knew he wanted to go after him? She had asked him and Asher not to go. Was there a part of him that blamed her for all of this chaos? Malia’s death, the arrows currently embedded in his body, Asher being held at gun point, this was all her fault. She wasn’t sure how he couldn’t be blaming her for how tonight had turned out.

  “So, this is the job you were talking about before? Taking my home? You’ve got it. No one else needs to get hurt.” Cassius, ever the negotiator, said as he let his worried gaze flicker between his brother and the pirate standing behind him.

  The pirate holding the sword against Cassius’ throat adjusted their hold on his hair, snarling at him to be quiet. The voice was pitched, making it hard to make any assumptions about his captor. The scarf over their face only revealed the person’s eyes, and with the bad lighting, it didn’t even give Ember a good look at that feature.

  Cassius tried to struggle, but all it

  accomplished was a thin line of blood dripping down his skin from the blade digging into his neck.

  “Sorry to disappoint you, Prince, but I never said my job was conquering a place.” Nikolas said over, his eye shifting to Ember.

  Cassius had caught the shift in his gaze and Ember could see how his face paled upon realizing what Nikolas was truly after. “I suppose your promise of not stealing my bride was a lie then. So much for being good to your word.”

  That got a chuckle out of the pirate. "I believe my phasing was without you knowing, which as you can now see, you do know. No promises are being broken. I assure you I fully intend on stealing your bride right before your eyes with your full knowledge.” He said, a smug grin on his face as he kept his gun aimed to the back of Asher’s head.

  Cassius’ jaw twitched with anger, but he didn’t lose his head. If he was going to get them out of this, he had to keep his temper in check. Ember could see it was taking every ounce of self-control he had though.

  Nikolas’ gaze returned to her, his smugness disappearing as he took in the sight of her standing there in her red gown. “It’s lovely to see you again, Princess. Though, I do wish it was under better circumstances. You’ll be coming with me now. Unless you want to see the bastard’s brains all over this fine boat and the Prince’s neck split open.” He called over, pressing the barrel of his gun into the back of Asher’s head as if to prove his point.

  “Just let my brother go. Nikolas, was it? I’m sure we can figure this out like men. No one has to get hurt here tonight, and I assure you it’ll be you if someone does.” Cassius warned, acting as if the sword pressed to his neck wasn’t an issue.

  “And I assure you, Princeling, it’ll be you who’s face is down in the sand if you keep giving orders. Darling, if you’ll be too kind to come aboard and we’ll be off.” He said, his attention bouncing from Cassius to her before returning to the Prince.

  “Just please don’t hurt them.” She said as she let her own captor guide her towards the dockside.

  With a glance over her shoulder, she could see Cassius’ beautiful eyes pleading with her not to give herself over. She ignored the look on her friend’s face as she continued down the dockside towards what was once Asher’s sailing boat.

  “Don’t leave with him, Ember. You can’t trust him. He’ll kill us both and take off with you. Don’t-ah!” Asher was suddenly cut off with a cry of pain as Nikolas hit him hard enough to send him to his knees.

  “That’s enough from you. Let’s go, darling. Before I stop being so kind and end your friend’s life here and now.” Nikolas called over. The teasing was gone from his tone as he clicked the safety off.

  Ember didn’t hesitate as her captor yanked her to the side of the boat. She only paused long enough to glance back at Cassius once more before climbing up the rope ladder aboard the sailing ship.

  As she got high enough, Nikolas held out his free hand to help her come aboard. With a glare, she kept her gaze locked on his. She chose to spit into his outstretched hand instead of accepting the help. “I don’t need help from a pirate.” She hissed, saying the word as if it was a curse, as she pulled herself over the side and onto the deck of the boat.

  If he was at all upset that she’d spit on him; he didn’t look it. He merely wiped his hand against his pants before grabbing hold of her arm. His grip was not as gentle as before on the beach or how he’d held her when they danced earlier.

  Pulling her to his side, she cringed as he leaned in too closely. A shiver went down her spine as he whispered into her ear. “Welcome aboard, pretty girl. I’ll be taking this. Safe keeping and all that.” He said as he snatched the tiara off her head along with a few strands of hair that had gotten tangled.

  “Don’t touch her.” Asher snarled as he held the back of his head in pain.

  Ember tried not to notice the blood staining Asher’s hand. He was hurt more than he would admit. She just didn’t want Nikolas to hurt him worse. A concussion she could work with, but a bullet wound? She wasn’t so sure. Maybe there was a chance of them knocking Nikolas off the ship and somehow getting Cassius on the ship in his place. They’d need Asher in one piece and conscious to steer the boat while she took care of his brother though.

  “I’m fine, Asher. He won’t hurt me. He clearly needs me for something.” She snarled, her glare shifting up to the pirate holding her hostage.

  With a growl, Nikolas suddenly tossed her to the side without warning. A gasp left her lips as she crashed to the hard wood of the boat, a cry of pain following as she felt her skin tear with cuts. “Don’t make assumptions about things you know nothing about.” He snarled as he shot her a cold glare.

  Nikolas had made the mistake of lowering the gun from Asher. The Prince didn’t waste any time lunging toward him. Nikolas easily caught him and the two struggled over the gun. Ember watched with fear, hoping to whatever god was out there to keep Asher safe. She could hear Cassius call for his brother before a cry of pain followed. Her eyes darted back to shore to see him hit the sand. His captor had hit him unconscious with the handle of their sword.

  Her attention quickly returned to the two men struggling just as the gun went off with a loud crack of thunder.

  “Asher!” Ember screamed.

  Her jaw dropped, tears swimming in her eyes as pure fear trapped her from moving to see if her friend was hurt. Both men had stilled, panic on each of their faces. She couldn’t tell who was hit. Recovering from the shock first, Nikolas took advantage of the pause and shoved Asher overboard into the water.

  “No!” Ember screamed.

  Ignoring the pain in her hands, she pulled herself to her feet as she stumbled over to the edge of the boat. Nikolas said nothing as he motioned for the other pirate to get moving and get the boat into the open ocean.

  “Make sure the Prince does not follow and get back to the ship with the others.” He called to the pirate who was still ashore with Cassius.

  Ember fell to her knees as sobs broke through her throat. Her eyes searched the shallow water for the boy she cared greatly for. There was no sign of him anywhere because of how dark the water was, but she could see red clouds filling the water where she knew blood was spilled. He’d been hit by the shot and disappeared from sight.

  She wasn’t sure how, but Nikolas and his lackey had gotten the ship out of the cavern and into the open ocean with no help from her. She wasn’t sure if Cassius was still alive or if the pirate who'd stayed behind with him had finished the Prince off.

  “If you’re done blubbering over those idiots, we could use a hand,” Nikolas said from the wheel as he stirred them in the right direction.

  Anger flashed through her broken-hearted body.“Go to hell!”

  Her stomach rolled and she couldn’t hold back the bile coming up her throat. Leaning over the ship, she emptie
d her lunch from earlier into the sea below.

  “Don’t tell me you get seasick.” He groaned as if he hadn’t just sent a good man to his watery grave. “Please, at the very least tell me you’ve been on a boat before.”

  The desire to strangle someone with her bare hands never seemed so appealing to her before. This man was pushing limits she never knew she had before, but she knew his fellow pirate would run her through with his sword before she got too close. “You’re despicable. You killed him and it doesn't even bother you, does it? He was a good man.” She cried, finally tearing her eyes away from the water below them to glare at the monster behind her.

  “I’m a pirate, pretty girl. What do you expect? I never pretended to be a good man. They don’t make stories about good men.” He said, his eyes never leaving the horizon.

  Gripping the side of the boat, she pulled herself up onto her feet. Her knees shook, but she ignored it. “What do you want with me? Why did you kidnap me?” She asked as she searched the top deck of Asher’s sailing boat. She was wondering if he had any other tricks up his sleeve waiting to be revealed.

  “I have my reasons. That’s all you need to know right now.” He said as his eyes searched for something in the darkness around them.

  She wasn’t sure what he was looking for, or even how he expected to find it in the pitch blackness of the night. The question of what he was looking for worried her more. The last thing she wanted was to be more surprised. She wasn’t sure how much more she could handle tonight.

  “What are you looking for?” She asked, her eyes squinting to try and search the water around them for any sign of trouble.

  Her question went ignored, though she should have expected it. He didn’t seem to want to give her any answers easily.

  A light flashing by the cliffs caught her attention. Curious, she moved toward the bow of the boat to get a better look. “What is that?”

  “That would be my ship, pretty girl. Bring what supplies you can find, Tomas. It’ll be a few days before we get to the next port.” He said, motioning for his lackey to go below to collect the supplies Asher had stolen for them.

  “Feel free to find what clothing you can for yourself, darling. I doubt you’ll enjoy staying in your gown, no matter how beautiful it is, for days on end. You do also have the other option of going nude. Although, I have a feeling you won’t enjoy that option either.” He said, his eyes flashing to her with a wicked grin.

  Scoffing, she ignored his comment as she refused to engage in his taunting. She was reluctant to do as he ordered, but she really didn’t have a choice in the matter now. Especially given the choices he had presented her with. Unless Cassius somehow survived the night and was able to catch up to them with the royal guard, she had no way to escape and safely make it back to shore without drowning.

  Without a word, she went below deck to see what she could pack before they made it to Nikolas’ ship. There wasn’t much space below deck to have stored enough supplies to last more than a few days, so she knew the pirate wouldn’t have any problems with finding whatever Asher had managed to take.

  Silent tears fell down her face as she gathered what she could. Her packing took a pause when she realized he’d taken the time to pack comfortable clothes for her. There were mostly dresses, but some pants and his smaller shirts he’d outgrown were also included.

  Wiping her eyes, she wished she could stop weeping like a baby. She needed to be strong and get through this mess. She needed to find a way to get free from this pirate and get somewhere safe. Then she’d find a way to send word home to her father.

  She could ask about the brothers and if they had survived the night. With any luck, Asher was able to pull himself out and get Cassius and himself back to the palace. She just hoped they didn’t get into too much trouble when they had to explain how they’d gotten there and how Asher’s boat found itself stocked and docked waiting for them.

  The sudden jolt of the boat startled her, but she knew it meant they’d made it to Nikolas’ ship. She couldn’t stall any longer. With a heavy sigh, she packed the last of her things and brought them back up onto the top deck.

  As her head poked through the opening, she paused when she realized more of Nikolas’ men had boarded the ship. They were tossing up what bags his goon had already brought up while she was packing her clothing.

  They paid no attention to her as they hurried to load the supplies. She hesitated before going up the last few steps. Her eyes quickly searched for Nikolas and found herself relieved when she noticed him directing men around. So, this was him in his natural element, she wondered. He’d never clarified if he was a captain or just part of a crew, but she could see these men listened to him just like the ones in the cavern did as well. Which meant he had authority to some degree.

  She gasped as she was suddenly grabbed. “You didn’t mention she was pretty, Captain.”

  She cringed at the smell that came from this man when he talked. He clearly didn’t clean his mouth often enough. Though, she doubted many of the crew did after getting a good look at them. “Let me go.” She snarled, yanking on the grip he had on her arm.

  “Careful with the precious cargo, Patch. Don’t want to damage the goods, do we? No, I didn’t think so. Let her be and take the rest of the stuff onto theship.” Nikolas ordered, motioning for him to get on with it.

  Patch, she noted, did not appreciate being ordered, but still did as he was told. His grimy hand released her and he took the bags from her before leaving.

  Scoffing, she dusted off his grime from her sleeve before turning her glare on the pirate approaching her. “I don’t appreciate being grabbed and tossed around like bags of wheat by pirates.” She snarled, her tongue sharp with a hiss.

  His chuckle told her he didn’t, for one second, take her seriously. “My apologies, pretty girl. Don’t release the Kraken on us now.”

  “Would you stop calling me that? My name is Lady Emberlyn Lethorne, and you will treat me with some respect. That can’t be too hard for you pirates to understand.” She snarled as she crossed her arms with a huff.

  His deep chuckle was getting on her last nerve. “You hear that, boys? We have a lady in our presence. I want all you to be on your best behavior for Lady Emberlyn, you hear me? Captain’s orders.”

  “Bastard,” She cursed under her breath.

  Nikolas leaned over, his hand pushing back a fallen strand of hair. “You seem to prefer bastards, my lady. Perhaps there’s hope for me yet.”

  A blush burned across her face in

  embarrassment. The nerves of this pirate!

  Her hand swung before she could control her temper, the loud smack that echoed as her palm met his face stopping the pirates where they stood. Her eyes widened when she realized what she’d done and how it could end badly for her.

  Nikolas rubbed his cheek as he held up his other hand to stop his crew where they all stood tensely, ready to strike if he gave the order. “Easy, boys. That one was deserved. Though that was your one free shot, Lady Emberlyn. Next time, I won’t be so forgiving.” He warned, his eyes narrowing as his threat sunk in.

  “Noted,” She said softly, her glare just as deadly as his.

  “Good, now that that’s settled. Patch, Barrow, bring her aboard and put her down into the cells.” He said, motioning to two members of his crew.

  Before she could register what it was that he’d said, her arms were being grabbed and she was being hauled closer to the plank of wood that would bring her up onto his ship.

  “What are you doing? Let me go.” She demanded.

  She had half a mind to struggle but knew it was useless. Her thought was confirmed by the laughter of the pirates closest to her. There was nowhere to go if she was to get free besides the water and at this time at night, she knew if the creatures below didn’t kill her than the temperature of the water surely would.

  Nikolas crossed his arms, leaning against the side of the ship. “I’m sorry, pretty girl, but I can’t risk you
figuring out how to signal your friends back home. Spending some time in the cells will keep that from happening.”

  As they dragged her over, she heard him laugh.

  “Oh, I nearly forgot. Welcome to the Obsidian, Lady Emberlyn Lethorne.”

  Chapter 8

  The cells reeked something foul and the bottom level of the boat where she was being kept looked even worse. Water, or what she assumed and hoped was just water, sloshed around the ground. Dark green moss covered the ship’s walls as seaweed floated over the slimy floor. Grime covered just about everything else, and Ember suddenly wished she’d had her gloves on so she didn’t have to touch anything.

  Ember wasn’t sure how long she’d been locked down here, but she knew at least a few days had gone by. Her once beautiful dress was in ruins from the water and the moisture in the air. It was no longer the stunning burgundy color it had been, but instead, it was now almost black. Her hair, now absent her ruby tiara thanks to the good Captain, must look like a crow’s nest after not brushing it these past few days, but that was the least of her worries.

  Her bigger worries seemed to revolve around the said pirate captain on the deck above her and what his plan concerning her was. He had yet to grace her with his presence since taking her tiara and ordering his goons to lock her down here. It was no doubt part of his plan to test her sanity.

  Only one person had come down here since she’d been locked up. The pirate, no not just a pirate, she thought to herself, the boy said not one word to her as he either collected her empty food dishes, or at least was here to drop off new ones with scraps of food on them.

  Ember tried to get him to talk to her the first few times she saw him, but he never said anything back. She had so many questions for him, especially in wondering if he was being held here against his will like she was. He was just a boy, not much older than a young teenager. She couldn’t imagine how a boy his age ended up on a pirate’s ship.