Page 5 of Virelai's Hoard
Then her brain caught up. Thorian.
Riley tried not to stare in shock as the man crossed his arms and glared at each of them in turn.
Hewas the captain?
Too late to run, Riley froze as his gaze washed over her, paused for a heart-stopping moment, then moved on. She breathed. He knew her as the young hustler named Ryan, with the missing tooth and freckled cheeks, not as Riley, the curious onlooker. If she did nothing to rouse suspicions, he had no reason to link the two of them.
“How nice to seeso manyof you.”
The quiet authority in that voice cut through the morning air like a blade and silenced the last of the shuffling.
The woman who spoke those words graced the mismatched group with an indulgent smile, gone after merely a moment. Her head barely reached Thorian’s shoulder, but that didn’t stop her from exuding confidence strong enough to dwarf his. It was in her posture, proud and tall, the arms linked at her back inviting the crowd to inspect all they wanted. It was in her gaze, hericy blue eyes inspecting them right back–and finding them all lacking.
Riley didn’t even intend to sign into her crew and still felt inadequate, somehow. Maybe shewas. She’d been so startled at seeing Thorian she’d failed to take proper notice of theactualcaptain, after all.
Said captain strode towards them, and the group instinctively split at either side of her. Polished leather boots thudded against the dock planks in a rhythmic sound until she stopped to stand in their midst. The woman wore a fitted, dark navy coat with silver buttons, cinched at the waist. Beneath, a loose white shirt tucked into well-worn trousers. Her hair was thick, long and dark as wet ink, loose strands catching in the morning breeze. It contrasted with her startlingly pale skin, smooth and sprayed with light freckles.
“I am Calla Nymeris, captain of the Moonshadow. I assume you’re all here because you’re hoping to board my ship and become part of my crew. Your numbers suggestsomeone,” a pointed look in Thorian’s direction accompanied the word, “failed to drive home the responsibilities and dangers of the job. So I will rectify this.”
Riley smothered an amused smile. No wonder Nyxen was dismayed at Kit’s lack of discernment yesterday.
The captain waited for the murmurs to quiet down before she continued. “I propose a challenge to put your skills to the test. Should all of you pass, I will gladly stand corrected and welcome you aboard.”
“What’s this challenge gonna be?” asked one of the guys from before. The bulky one. When Calla’s icy gaze settled on him, he added a hasty, “Capt’n,” head bowing in a show of respect.
These people didn’t even know her, and they were falling at her feet already. Though, Riley supposed, they knew her fame, and her ship.
A faint smile anticipated the captain’s next words. “In teams of two, you will try to throw that man over there into the water.” Calla indicated Thorian.
From the corner of her eye, Riley saw a few people around her flinch away. She had to fight harder to keep herself from smiling, her fingers itching with an excited tingle that would surely get her in trouble.
“Whoever succeeds is welcome into my crew.”
Thorian, his face impassive, hadn’t moved from his initial spot. Close enough to the dock’s edge that a well-timed shove could push him into the water. If he were a regular man.
Riley realized the Moonshadow’s crew had indeed been betting, and now she couldn’t stop herself from smirking at the challenge. Couldn’t stop herself from wanting to impress this self-assured captain, who hadn’t even spared her a glance yet. It wasn’t like she’d have to actually board the ship. She’d just have a little fun before taking her leave, that was all.
“You’re Riley, right?” a vaguely familiar voice asked.
“Yeah.” She turned to him.
It was the sitting man from before, with hisrock bottomnonsense. When had he even heard her introduce herself while picking at his fingernails? He offered his hand in greeting, his warm brown eyes settling on her. “Maren. You seem confident about this. Wanna team up?”
Riley considered him more closely. He was stocky and broad-shouldered, a little taller than her, though his slouching made up for it. Messy sandy blond hair lent him a certain roguish charm, but to a more critical eye it looked like he’d just rolled out of bed. His rolled sleeves gave way to a tattoo of a sea serpent curling around his forearm, faded and poorly done. A knotted rope belt held his baggy trousers up. She was surprised he even bothered to show up for recruitment.
But what was it to her? If they succeeded, the Moonshadow’s crew would be stuck with a guy who wore a rope for a belt–which would all be part of Riley’s harmless fun for the morning. She shook his hand. “Sounds good to me.”
He shot her a lopsided grin. “Any ideas on how to deal with him?”
She smiled. “A couple.”
Issuing the challenge thinned out their numbers by almost half. It seemed like even legends faded when put against a living obstacle in the form of a scowling half-blooded giant. The rest of them split into groups.
“I can’t team up withhim,” the bald woman from earlier said indignantly. “He can barely stand on his own feet, look at him. How is he supposed to be of any use to me?”
It was only then that Riley noticed the old man from the tavern, standing alone and to the side, a resigned look on his face. She’d completely forgotten about him.
“In that case, you’re free to leave,” the captain said, her expression inscrutable.
