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This time he can’t hide behind indifference. His eyes flash a dangerous black, and his fists clench slightly. I pretend not to notice.
“Am I to understand, then, that the two of you have an open relationship?”
When I don’t respond, he adds, “He doesn’t care that you spent the better part of a month sleeping in my bed?”
He and I both know that sleeping is all we did in that bed. Well, that and a few kisses.
“I had a job to do, Riden. Getting close to you was part of it.”
“I see. And just how many men have you gotten close to in order to do your job?”
I don’t like his tone one bit. Riden needs to be reminded who he’s speaking to.
“I have your brother locked in the deepest, darkest cell in the pirate king’s keep,” I say. “He’s paying for everything he did—and tried to do—to me. One gesture from me, and I could have his head. It is only by your request that I haven’t killed him yet, but that’s not good enough anymore.”
Riden straightens. I have his attention now.
“What are you saying?”
“Keeping prisoners is expensive. They have to be fed and cleaned up after. My father rarely holds prisoners for an extended amount of time. Either they give him what he wants or they’re killed. We don’t need anything from Draxen. He’s useless to me. You, however, are not.”
“What do you want from me?”
“I’ve just captured Vordan and his map piece—the final piece my father needs before we set sail for the Isla de Canta. When the fleet departs, you will be joining my crew for the journey.”
Riden’s gaze narrows. “Why would you possibly need me? Surely His Royal Blackheartedness has enough pirates in his fleet.”
He most certainly does. More than he could possibly need. And I’ve got some of the most skilled sailors and fighters in all of Maneria aboard theAva-lee. We don’tneedRiden, but I can’t set him free. How would that look to my father? I can’t lock him up at the keep because there’s no reason to keep him alive. Father will kill him and Draxen both. The only reason Draxen isn’t dead yet is because I told my father I need him alive to get Riden to cooperate. So now that Riden is better, I’m down to my last option. He has to come with me. He has to be part of the crew. But how do I possibly explain that to Riden without making it seem like I’ve gone soft on him?
I tell myself I’m doing this because I owe him. He saved me. He took two bullets for me. I may have brought him back from nearly drowning, but that was my fault to begin with. We are not even, not yet. That is the only reason why I’m keeping him alive.
If I think it enough times, maybe it’ll be true.
Finally, I say, “I don’t know what we’ll come up against on the voyage. I might need some extra muscle. With Kearan and Enwen, the men on this ship number four. Enwen is so scrawny that I’m pretty sure Niridia can lift more than he can. And the only lifting Kearan does is when he puts a bottle to his lips. I’mnot about to recruit some random person off the keep, because I need people I can trust.”
“And you trust me?” he asks with one raised brow.
“I don’t need to. I know you’ll do anything to protect your brother. I can count on your full cooperation as long as he’s locked up. And besides, you owe me for saving his pathetic life in the first place.”
He pauses for a moment, probably to think it over. “Will I continue to be kept under lock and key?”
“Only if you do something stupid. You’ll be free to roam the ship as much as any sailor. Any attempt at escape, though, and I’ll send word to the men left guarding the keep that Draxen’s head is to be removed from his body.”
Riden turns his face away from me.
“What?” I ask.
“I’d forgotten how ruthless you can be.”
I take a step toward him and pierce him with my gaze. “You haven’t seen ruthless from me yet.”
“And I pray I never will. I’ll come with you to the island on two conditions.”
“You want to bargain with me? I hold all the cards.”
Riden stands in one fluid motion. “Going with you is pointless if you’re going to kill Draxen as soon as we get back. I want your word he’ll be freed once I help you journey to the island and back.”
“And I suppose the second stipulation is your own freedom?”
