Page 28 of Scourge of the Shores
Ervin sat up straight as well with narrowed eyes.
“Ye want her for yerself, aye?” Robert asked with a half-sneer, descending into his old-world pirate slang; he had to show Ervin he was serious about Danna. “I seen how ye watch her.”
“Mind yer tongue, Jaymes,” Ervin said. “She ain’t yer plaything.”
“She ain’t yers, either,” Robert said, returning to his reclined position, not wanting to brawl, but he’d not leave it at that. “If ye ain't got a claim, why do ye care? Or is it that if ye can’t have her, no man will?” Robert raised an eyebrow.
Ervin’s jaw twitched as he leaned back. “It ain’t like that.” A warning glinted in his eyes. Robert had crossed a boundary, but he pushed onward anyway.
“Looks exactly like that.” Robert shrugged with a lazy smirk curling on his lips. “Ye soft on her. Ye keep her guarded close, don’t ye? Like a prize ye ain’t willing to claim but won’t let another touch,” Robert argued.
Ervin growled. “Danna ain’t some prize to be won. She’s our leader.” His jaw clenched. “And she don’t need some sea-rovin’ rogue who’d turn tail the moment the tide shifts.”
“Why don’t any of these other landlubbers step up as the leader?” Robert asked. “Why let her shoulder the burdens?”
“She’s a Chadwick.” His voice was iron. “Her blood claims the island. Ain’t no one stays ’less she says so.”
“And if no man’s worthy enough to stand beside her, what happens when she’s gone?” Robert squinted, unable to follow Ervin’s logic. He was also clearly infatuated with her, but was spewing squid oil to keep Robert away.
Ervin went silent. “Look mate, I don’t like ye, but ye saved Danna’s life twice. So, I’ll tell ye this.” He blew a loud, rattled breath through his lips. “An enchanter washed up here when I be ten years old. I found him, and he took a’likin’ to me after Landon Chadwick didn’t kill him. Name’s Hai. He was funny, though, a charmer, a rambler, talked nonsense most of the time . . .” Ervin’s gaze retreated inward.
Robert inclined his head, unsure where the story led.
Ervin tightened his arms across his chest. “Before a passin’ enchanter’s ship from the East took him, said I was gonna be a father to Danna, prepare her for her role on the island,” Ervin chuckled. “Danna hadn’t been born yet. Just thought it be another ramblin’ tale.”
“Did he tell you no man was worthy enough for Danna, too?” Robert asked, looking out to sea, and shook his head at Ervin’s unlikely story.
Ervin seemed to ignore Robert’s disbelief and continued. “Said a man worthy would come on the seas and wed Danna. Danna would bear a child that would die but live forever.”
“Die but live forever?” Robert scoffed. “Perhaps the enchanter did speak nonsense.”
“Thought the same, til I watched his words come true. Said Landon Chadwick would die young, and he did. About five years after Landon and Marian,” Ervin gestured to the interior of the hut, “Ma” before continuing, “had a daughter and named her Danna.”
Ervin stared wide-eyed at the sea in front of him.
Robert chewed on his lip as he wondered if Ervin was speaking the truth. “So ye took her in as yer own?”
Ervin nodded. “Aye. I don’t want her for meself as ye said, but I know ye’re not the worthy man from the seas. And I’ll see to it that the man meant for her ain’t some wayward pirate who don’t belong. So, I’m warning ye—leave her be. Danna Chadwick will never be yers.”
Robert’s body tensed. “I refuse to believe that. The enchanter never said he’d stay on the island.”
“Hai said to prepare Danna for her role on the island. That means she stays.”
Robert chewed on his lip and rested his head on the hut’s exterior. “Depends on how ye read it,” he muttered.
The prophecy planted a seed within Robert. The idea that he could be the man meant for her gnawed deep in his belly. Pirates didn’t believe in fate, but the land of the East was steeped in magic. If the enchanter said it, then it was likely to happen. The question remained: Was he the worthy man from the seas, or had he yet to be revealed?
“Lucas,” Ma’s whisper came from the interior.
Ervin was up fast and walked inside. Robert followed him, but Ervin spun around and pressed a firm hand on Robert’s chest before Robert could cross the threshold.
“Remember me warning, Jaymes.” His harsh whisper cut the serene morning.
Robert forced a polite smile. “Whatever ye say, mate.”
Ervin grabbed his shirt and pulled Robert close to show off his strength.
Robert let him be, for the moment.
