Page 5 of High Seas

I swallowed as he slowly approached. “What’s that?”

He stopped in front of me and reached out, flicking the bag. The coins clinked together inside. “When you find Enoch, I want you to tell him that I rescued you. Lie to him and tell him I was the one who plucked you from the sea and breathed life back into you. Then, I want you to tell him I gave you that coin and told you how to find him.”

“Why?” I asked warily.

“Because I need you to bat your pretty eyes at him and ask him to consider the debt I owe him paid.”

“Your debt must be huge,” I mused.

“Yes, it is.”

Tension thickened the air between us. What did he do to Enoch that was so bad, he’s willing to give me this much silver and gold to erase his debt?

“The island of Brutulo is a very isolated, savage place, which all reputable cartographers refuse to draw on their maps of late. Plenty of unmarked graves have been dug in her sand. It isn’t a place for a young woman such as yourself. You’d be wise to remember that, and to make your way to Enoch as fast as you can.”

Duly noted.

Brutulo Island. Seventeen-seventeen.

“What country do you sail for?” I asked.

He stiffened. “I am no longer beholden to any country or monarch. I am a free man.”

“A pirate?”

He gave an ornery but proud grin. “Exactly that.” I wondered how long he’d been a scourge of the seas. “I think you should head to town,” he suggested, “before things get too wild. The rum flows like rivers here, and after dark, the riverbanks teem with rats.”

I looked out the doors behind him where the sun had already dipped below the landscape, giving way to night.

Edward chuckled. “I can almost read your mind. ‘The moon is full. There’s plenty enough light to guide me to town.’”

“I’m not afraid of the dark,” I grumped.

He glanced toward the stake still clutched in my right hand. “Good. Never fear the dark, Eve. Fear the things that hide within it. And keep that handy.”

Chapter Three

Eve

From the ship’s deck, a dark orange glow to the west was losing its battle against the inky sky. But there was a brighter glow to the east where Brutulo lay beyond the sparse palms, a place of rest for weary sailors… or pirates.

Edward’s ship was anchored alone in a deep, secluded bay. Edward rowed me to shore, the entire time reminding me of his expectations of me regarding Enoch. I didn’t care how much gold he gave me; I wasn’t lying to Enoch for him or anyone else.

“You realize that I can’t promise he’ll release you from your debt.”

“I know,” Edward grunted as he rowed against the cresting waves. The dingy rose and then fell hard as we glided over them, trying to cross the line of breakers. “But it’s worth the chance. I have a ton of treasure. So much, that the coin in that pouch is meaningless to me.”

Must be nice to be filthy rich. And free.

“Where would a young man go if he was new to town?” I asked. Edward stopped rowing. “I’m looking for a friend.”

Edward shrugged before working the oars back and forth. A wave tilted the small boat onto its side and filled the bottom with seawater. I grabbed the sides of the boat and let out a string of curses that made Edward’s calm brows raise.

“What were we talking about before your foul mouth sullied the air?” he smarted, as if he hadn’t heard worse from the men on his ship. “Ah, yes… where to find a young man, new to town and so forth.” Edward pretended to ponder the question. He seemed to enjoy needling my impatience. “He’d have his pick of prostitutes, if he’s lonely. If not, follow the smell of rum. He’ll be in one of the taverns.”

“What if he was wounded?” I hinted.

Edward’s stormy eyes locked onto mine. “What sort of wound?”

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