Page 14 of Rebel in the Deep

“I know.” I pat her shoulder with my free hand. “You’re a very brave vampire, and I’m exceedingly proud of you.”

“Iwillbite you.”

“No, you won’t.” I pull her into my arms. “I won’t let any sea monsters eat you. I’ll even keep you from getting wet. Probably.”

“You motherfu—Godsdamn it.”

I step off the railing, taking her with me. It’s harder to corral air than it is to manipulate water, but I’ve had decades of practice in making myself one not to be fucked with. It helps that Lizzie has gone still and stiff beside me. I gather the air between us, so we only drop about five feet or so before rising back to deck level.

“Iwillkill you. I swear to the gods I’ll do it.” Lizzie is speaking softly enough that she might as well be talking to herself.

It’s just as well. I don’t have any concentration left for words. I float us across the gap in about thirty seconds and drop us onto the deck of theBone Heart. Lizzie is as agile as a cat. I’m ashamed to say my knees buckle a little, but I manage to keep my feet. Barely.

“You’re late.”

I straighten and turn to face Morrigan, the captain of theBone Heart. She’s a woman in her thirties with golden skin, hair just as crimson as the sails above us, and deep inky eyes that remind me of a skull. She’s petite to the point of being delicate.

“Morrigan.” I grit my teeth and bow. I fuckinghatebowing, but if we have even the smallest chance of pulling this off, wehave to get her guard down. And ideally encourage her to give us a tour of the ship right to where they’re holding Bastian.

She approaches with deceptively long strides. One moment she’s halfway across the deck. The next, she’s before me. Her unsettling gaze lands on Lizzie. “A vampire is an unconventional choice.”

I swear I can feel Lizzie tense, but she’s a bloodline vampire, and for all her hissing and dramatics with me, she’s not to be fucked with. When she speaks, her voice is cool and even. “One could argue that a Council member being a captain is an equally unconventional choice.”

Morrigan laughs softly. “So they could.”

I hold myself straight and still. Lying is always a fine line, especially when lying to someone as dangerous as this woman. “We’re here to report in and see what you need from us.”

She studies me for several long beats. “We have a prisoner who threatens the very balance of Threshold. We have reason to believe he’s among a small group of people whisking intruders around Threshold instead of presenting them to the Cwn Annwn for their choice. His allies nearly sank theCrimson Hag.”

I very carefully don’t look at Lizzie. “They sound dangerous.”

“They’re pests, but we have no way of knowing how deep the rot goes.”

It’s eerily similar to what Siobhan and I talked about only a week ago, albeit on the other side of the equation. Morrigan wants to stamp out the resistance and bring the Cwn Annwn into full control of Threshold once and for all. The rebellion wants the corruption within the Cwn Annwn to be purged and the islands to be given back to their people to rule as they see fit,rather than grouped together under one ruling body that doesn’t represent anyone outside of Lyari.

We are not the same.

Morrigan laces her hands behind her back. “We set sail at dawn and take the direct south path to Lyari.”

I raise my brows. “A risky route.” There’s nothing but sea between the sandbar and Lyari. The nearest islands are several days to the east and weeks to the west. There’s no safe harbor in the event of a storm, and this time of year in this portion of Threshold, storms are plentiful.

“A direct route.” She nods at theAudacity, gently bobbing a hundred yards away. “We’ll take the point position in the morning, and I expect you on the starboard flank.”

“Will do,” I say slowly. Damn it, she’s about to send us back. “We’d like to see the prisoner. There’s a chance we may recognize him and be able to give you more information.”

Morrigan smirks. “I hardly need common trash like you to tell me what I already know. The prisoner is Bastian Dacre, second son of the Dacre noble family.”

The insult rolls right off me. The only people who care about bloodlines are nobles, and I couldn’t give a shit what most of the nobles think. Except for Bastian. I raise my brows. “A noble helping…intruders?” Damn it, I almost called them refugees.

“I’m shocked as well.” Morrigan doesn’t move. “I’ve already spoken with the rest of the Council, and while they’re reluctant to prosecute the Dacre family in Lyari, they’re eager to remove this nuisance.” She flicks her hand at me. “Now stop wasting my time and return to your ship. We’ll sail at first light.”

Damn. I guess there’s no chance of getting to Bastian and fighting our way free from there. Oh well. It was worth a shot. I glance at Lizzie. “Now’s as good a time as any.”

To the vampire’s credit, she doesn’t hesitate. She tenses, and the people on either side of Morrigan go down. Morrigan herself doesn’t, because why would anything be easy?

Morrigan’s eyes flash as if reflecting light. “Youdare?”

“Sorry about this, except not really.” I gather my magic with a flick of my wrist and send a massive fireball into the main sail. I don’t expect it to take—the sail will have been treated with magic to ensure it doesn’t burn down at sea—but it should be bright enough to signal to Evelyn and the other teams that it’s time.

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