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Fuck! I must have really been losing it if Pan’s voice had replaced the others. I balled my fists at my temples, pulling at my hair until pain tore through my scalp. Willing the voices to leave me be before I descended into complete madness.
The sound of boots landing on the floorboards behind me brought me back to reality. I whirled at the sound, so distracted that I didn’t even pull my sword. My nemesis stood solidly on the deck, for once facing me head-on.
Relief washed over me when I realized Peter was here in the flesh and not a delusion taking up residence in my mind.
“You’re not telling me anything I don’t already know,” I grumbled.
“I saw the things you did to her. Now I know I made the right decision to cut you out.” He spat at me; his face scrunched up in righteous indignation.
“So, it was you who was watching,” I said, putting the pieces together.
“You’re not a Lost Boy. You’re an animal.”
“No more than you. You lure boys to paradise with your false promises, and when they no longer serve your purpose, you dispose of them.”
“You’ve been away from Neverland for too long, Jas. You don’t know me anymore.”
“Oh, I know you. You’ve been cutting boys from your ranks for years now.”
“You don’t know anything.”
“I’ve seen them. Heard their stories. Do you remember Eli? He had people who loved him. A father. And you ended all of it.”
“He’s still here. If his father wants him, I bet he can find his bones moldering in the Viridianwood.”
My jaw clenched as his callous admission sunk in. He’d confirmed what I knew all along. Smee’s son was dead. “You’re a heartless little fuck, aren’t you? Do you have any virtue at all?”
“I don’t have time for those that break the rules!”
“Haven’t you noticed that they all break the rules?” I shouted at him. The thought of all those dead boys, knowing how easily it could have been me, whittled away the fragile hold I had on my temper. Peter’s lips set in a hard line; his brows drawn in a scowl. My words obviously penetrated the veiled memories that Neverland kept hidden from him. His jaw worked for a moment, but instead of responding to the accusations I laid at his feet, he attacked at my only weakness.
“Now I see why she came for me.”
“She came to finish you off, Peter. She did it for me. Because she loves me. And that’s something you’ve never known.”
“No, you have it all wrong, Jas. She is looking for a way out. And after what I just saw, I can’t leave her here with you. The Lost Boys and I can give her a better home.”
“You’ve truly lost your mind, Peter,” I said, the demon beginning to swell in my chest. My archenemy threatening to make off with my girl; now, that was a dangerous cocktail.
“She wants to be a mother. I saw it in her eyes.”
The idea of Katherine as a mother gutted me. Every man should want to bury his seed in the woman he loves and watch that love grow into a child. But I was broken. I could never be a father. I could never give her that. In a split second, the vision I had of my future with Kat felt like it might crumble in my hands.
“You don’t know anything about her,” I shot back at him, trying to sound confident, but the weight of my emotions stuck thick in my throat.
“I think I do, and I’m prepared to fight for her honor. A duel—winner gets the girl.”
I laughed at the notion. At first, it sounded absurd, but the laughter quickly shifted into a sinister chuckle. I reached into my pocket, palming the ruby, ready to set my intentions. “It’s about time, Peter.” The night was instantly charged with possibilities. “But I wish for this to be a fair fight. No flying, no backstabbing.”
“Winner gets the girl,” he reiterated and spit in his hand, ready to shake on the terms. What he didn’t know was that the power of the ruby had already sealed the deal. I’d never agree to give Katherine up, but I didn’t plan on losing. I got over myself enough to shake his hand in agreement. A split second later, all manner of niceties were off. I pulled my cutlass from its scabbard and secured the ruby back into my pocket.
I stepped left, and he mirrored me. His short sword glinting in the full moonlight. A distant rumble of thunder rolled across the sea. An ominous tolling as we marched toward our destiny.
He made the first move, coming at me with a direct swing of his blade. His arrogance showed as he thought he could dispatch me with rudimentary swordplay. The clink of steel kissing steel took on a rhythmic sound as we fought. Each of us gained and lost ground as we danced around the deck.
Peter was nimble, even when he wasn’t flying. His slight frame darted behind the masts and hurdled over barrels.
“Running from me, Pan?”
