Page 148 of The Sky Pirate's Stowaway
Torres scoffed, pushing the pouch back toward me. “We’ll sort all that later. I’d be delighted to help get them settled.” She glanced at Kaspar with a mischievous smile. “Is your sister single, by chance?”
I felt Kaspar tense beside me, his fingers tightening around his mug. Kaspar had once mentioned that Kayla’s partner was in Sunada’s prison system. There was a story there that I hadn’t heard yet.
Kaspar’s tension broke with a laugh. “Trust me, you wouldn’t stand a chance with Kayla. She’s a force to be reckoned with—not many can keep up with her.” His eyes crinkled at the corners. “And Cody? That kid has so much energy, I swear he never sleeps!”
I noticed the undercurrent of longing in his voice as he spoke about them. Behind his humor lay a raw ache that couldn’t beconcealed. He’d left them behind to save himself, carrying that weight every day since.
“You’ll see them soon,” I said softly, squeezing his hand under the table.
Torres nodded, raising her mug. “To family reunions, then. I’ll get everything ready on this end. Housing in the eastern district, near the workshops. Plenty of work for skilled hands there.”
We spent another hour finalizing details before parting ways with Torres in the busy street outside.
“Send word from Sunada once you’re on your way back with them,” she said. “I’ll have everything prepared.”
After goodbyes, I turned to leave, but she caught my arm. “I stand by what I always say, Max. If you ever get enough evidence to clear your name, just say the word. I’ll be there, at the trial, ready to fight for you.”
I gave her the same response as I always did: a sad smile.
Down the street, Kaspar tugged me toward a small stationery shop. Inside, he purchased paper, ink, and envelopes. I watched as he hunched over a bench, scribbling in fierce, determined strokes.
“Will she understand all this?” I asked, peering over his shoulder at what appeared to be innocuous talk about weather and fabric prices.
Kaspar nodded without looking up. “We developed this when we were kids. The authorities were always reading workers’ mail.” His pen never stopped moving. “She’ll know exactly what I’m saying.”
Next, he wrote Cody his letter, posing as a school friend who missed him. The letter promised tales of his adventures when they next met, complete with a tiny doodle of a dragon.
When he finished, he carefully folded the letters and sealed each of them in an envelope, addressing it not to Kayla but to someone named Bethan.
“Her friend from the factory,” he explained, catching my questioning look. “An extra layer of security.”
We found a postbox near the docks, and I watched as Kaspar hesitated for just a moment before slipping the letters inside, his fingers lingering on the edge as if reluctant to let go.
“It’s going to be okay,” I whispered into his ear, wrapping an arm around his waist. “Let’s go get them.”
I leaned against the crow’s nest railing, watching the horizon as the first hints of dawn painted the sky in pale gold. Beside me, Kaspar fidgeted with anticipation, his eyes fixed on the distant silhouette slowly materializing through the morning mist. Sunada, at last.
“There it is,” I murmured, feeling Kas tense beside me.
Five weeks of relentless travel had brought us here faster than any journey I’d ever made. Ariella had nearly killed herself manipulating the winds, pushing us forward at speeds that strained the ship’s frame. I’d had to order her to her quarters multiple times when her skin had gone paper-white and her eyes had rolled back from exhaustion. Little Willy had paced outside her room, never quite mustering the courage to knock, and instead, leaving water and snacks at her door.
“I can see the mining towers,” Kas whispered, pointing to the dark spires rising from Embergate’s industrial district.
The journey had been remarkably smooth. I’d distributed the money we’d made from Viper’s considerable hoard of trophies, which temporarily satisfied their greed, but I knew the peace wouldn’t last, so I’d decided to find a ship we could rob that would assuage my conscience. In Viper’s logs, I’d seen a shipname I recognized, one I knew dealt in shady business for the Sunada elite. So I’d led our crew to that ship, and we’d robbed them blind, walking away with little damage to our ship and a lot of damage to theirs. Although, I’d made sure to enforce my rule about knocking our enemy out or tying them up, so there were no lives lost. Luckily, the haul was big enough to appease the crew for at least several weeks. Which should give us plenty of time to get Kayla and Cody’s affairs in order before we whisked them away from Embergate City. Pirates lived for the thrill of the hunt and the promise of coin, so I made sure they knew more would be coming in the future.
I hadn’t been able to bring myself to order an attack on any of the other passing ships. Under Viper, the deaths had been his responsibility. Now, every innocent life taken would be blood on my hands alone. The thought twisted my gut into knots.
Kas must have sensed my darkening mood. His hand found mine, fingers intertwining with mine.
“You’re thinking too hard again,” he said softly.
I pushed the negative thoughts aside, focusing instead on the pure joy radiating from Kaspar’s face. It wasn’t Sunada itself that excited him—it was knowing that in mere hours, he would finally see Kayla and Cody again.
“Do you think she’ll like me?” I asked suddenly, the question escaping before I could stop it.
Kas turned to me, brow furrowed. “Who? Kayla?”
“Yes.” I shifted uncomfortably. “I mean, what will she think? Her brother in love with a pirate captain, of all things?”
