Page 12 of A Captain So Callous and Cruel

“Hali,” he whispers harshly, demanding for my mouth again.

I open my eyes and accept his kiss, but it’s all tongue and fierce desire. Sucking at it, I feel his cock grow harder inside me. The strings of his tunic are loose, and as he fucks me, I can see his muscled torso strain with the quickness of his movements.

It takes everything to be quiet. I want to cry out. I want to moan and scream his name. Instead, I bury my nails into his shoulders and bite at his skin, sinking my teeth into his shoulder to drown out my sounds.

I explode around him quickly. The orgasm is so sudden, I quake, gushing around his length as he follows after me. His cock stills, pulsating as he comes.

Burying his mouth into my hair, he muffles a long groan.

Not giving me time to come down from my high, he immediately withdraws from me, setting me down on wobbly feet. He’s sweet enough to tidy my hair, but there’s a tormented look in his eyes as he peers down at me.

“It’s okay,” I assure him, heart still beating strong in my chest. “You can go.”

“Hali, we can just leave,” he says, his voice breaking as the words rush out of him. “I can bring down one of the little boats and we can be out of here?—”

I cover his mouth with my hand, silencing him. Staring into his eyes, conviction is strong in my voice when I say, “In two days' time, we’ll be off this bastard ship and Captain Erickson will be dead. He’ll be paying for his sins against our kind in the afterlife, and we’ll be free, Kai.”

He nods, and I see his fight return to him. He looks more centered now, though there’s still a hint of conflict in him as he looks at me one last time.

Kai is hesitant to go—he doesn’t want to. He knows what it means. That I’ll be in this room, my purpose strictly determined by Erickson.

A nearby bang sounds, coming from down the corridor. My eyes widen, and Kai’s face returns to the cool look from before. He doesn’t say a word.

Our time is over.

He leaves immediately, slamming the door shut behind him, and I’m trapped. Alone again.

A captive.

The Captain’s captive.

I ignore the strange current I feel at the thought of him.

Erickson’s going to call for me. Maybe sometime later in the night. Maybe in the morning. And I’ll have to dazzle him. Put on the show and play the part.

I’ll mesmerize him right before I watch him drown in his own blood.

CHAPTER 6

Hali

The water calls to me.

Moisture floats in through the small open porthole, carried in by the light breeze. It rests on my skin, beckoning me and begging for my attention.

I daydream of its cool embrace, swimming deep into the ocean as my fin cascades me further and into its depths. Creatures of the sea join me as we glide through the schools of fish, dipping down to where the coral rests on the ocean floor.

To my dismay, the best I can do is dream of the place I call home and count down the days until I’m reunited with the waves, and the sea salt, and the familiarity. Laying on the bed in the quarters Erickson assigned me to, I wait, staring up at the planked ceiling and studying the woodgrain.

I had anticipated being called upon immediately after leaving my dinner with the captain, but that was almost two full days ago. Hours upon hours have passed since Kai left and locked me in this room, and it’s all I can do—sit and wonder how many hours have passed.

Earlier, shortly after sunup, I heard chains being unwound as we anchored somewhere. But the only view from my porthole shows me the shimmering ocean, and no clue as to where we might be.

Now, the sun sets from a long, restless day stuck in these chambers with nothing to do except think.

Think about how, sometime mere hours from now, I will seek my revenge. When today turns to tomorrow, the shift will transform me to my true form and I will use my magic to end Captain Erickson and finally extinguish the Erickson bloodline. I think about Kai, and what this will mean for us.

We’ve been talking about taking the ultimate commitment—our final union—once we completed our mission.

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