Page 29 of Pearls of Salt and Sacrifice

The fluttering lace around her elbow-length sleeves itched as she stretched across the table to grab an apple. Polishing it on her shoulder, she had to admit the dress didn’t look as awful after a good night’s sleep. It was definitely frilly and impractical, with the ribbons crisscrossing up the front of the bodice and spitting out bunches of lace just above her bosom. But the skirt wasn’t as voluminous as she’d thought.

Juicy fruit exploded in her mouth as she took a vicious bite of her apple. A dinner knife glittered on the table beside her. How thoughtful of Rency to leave it for her. He’d probably done it on purpose just so he could laugh when she tried to stab him in the back.

She’d surprise him by putting it to good use in other ways.

After breakfast, she used the knife to hack the dress into a more comfortable bit of attire. All the scratchy lace went first, as did the sash trailing down the back of her dress. She used the sash pieces to cinch up the front of the skirt, stabbing holes in the waistline to secure the ties. While her clothes had disappeared, her boots and stockings still sat on the floor where she’d kicked them off.

When no one had appeared by the time she finished altering the dress, she decided she wouldn’t wait for them to come for her. Returning the chair to its place at the table, Reva tested the door handle. It gave easily beneath her touch.

Interesting.

She took one last look around the room to see if she’d missed a better weapon than her table knife. Nothing of note stood out except for the large hat hanging beside the door with a ridiculously long feather sprouting from the brim. Reva snatched up the hat and plopped it on her hair, twirling the plume with her finger and hoping it would annoy Rency to have something of his pilfered without permission.

After taking a stabilizing breath, Reva flung open the door and stormed onto the deck of the Andromeda just in time to hear Isla bellow:

“You black-hearted pig! I challenge you to a duel!”

Isla stood in the center of the deck with a cutlass pointed at Rency’s afore-mentioned black heart. The pirate captain stood motionless, focused on polishing his nails against his shirt rather than the woman threatening him with bodily harm. Reva wondered how Isla had even gotten her hands on a sword.

Reva eased onto the deck and inhaled a stabilizing breath as she tried to take stock of the situation. The sun beat down on the Andromeda, glistening off the white-capped waves beyond the deck railing. Pirates lounged around the deck, ignoring their duties. Even Jareth leaned against the main mast, arms folded as he watched the impending duel with blatant curiosity.

Was he hoping Isla would rid them of the pirate captain?

Rency glanced up from his nails and spotted Reva emerging from the cabin behind Isla. A smile split his face. “Reva, darling, you look marvelous—wait! Is that my hat?”

She twirled the plume again and raked him with a smile. “No. This is my hat,” she said with icy coolness.

To Reva’s left, Jareth coughed quietly, but she couldn’t tell if he was masking amusement or approval.

“Fair enough,” Rency conceded. “I did steal your clothes while you snored. You can keep the hat—” He broke off and his gaze drifted over the altered dress. Color drained from his face.

Reva twirled her plume again.

“What have you done to the dress?” He launched toward her but froze when Isla cut him off with a slash of her cutlass. Rency leaned to the left to see around Isla. “That dress belonged to my mother!”

Reva’s determination to play the role of feral queen wilted beneath this revelation. “I assumed it belonged to someone in your harem.”

“My—I don’t have a harem. I don’t have anyone, thanks to your elf prince and his magical lips.”

At this, Jareth broke into a truly violent fit of coughing. Snickers rippled around the deck.

Rency ignored them all. “You should have asked before hacking my dress to pieces. What did you use anyway? Your teeth?”

The iron returned to her spine, and Reva forced away a stab of genuine remorse. “The table knife,” she said. “It was nice of you to leave it for me.”

“A mistake I won’t repeat, let me tell you.” Rency turned his back on her and braced his hands against the railing as he looked out over the endless sea.

Isla took advantage of the moment and smiled over her shoulder at Reva. “You look fabulous,” she said.

Reva smiled in return before glancing toward Jareth, who had recovered from his embarrassment. Scarlet still stained his cheeks.

It was rather adorable, Reva decided.

Are you all right? his eyes seemed to ask.

She gave a curt nod to the unspoken question.

“Well, Rency,” Isla goaded, twirling her cutlass, “am I going to get my duel, or no?”

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