Page 29 of Loved to Death

“Evil remains to be seen,” Captain Martinez added. “Personally, I can see quite a few benefits to having a vampire on board, andsomeof my men agree, assuming you can control yourself.”

A few of the men nodded.

“And just to lay all our cards on the table.” The captain paused and nodded to one of the younger crew members. “Show him what we’re carrying in our crates.”

The young man pulled his gun out of his belt and held it out for Thomas to see.

“Guns?” Thomas asked. “You said you were picking up cargo in Mexico.”

Captain Martinez raised an eyebrow. “And you said you were running from a forced wedding.” He shrugged. “Lies were told to get us both here, but it’s time to be honest. There are certain people in Manzanillo that aren’t happy with the current president. They’ll pay me double the going price for these.”

“You’re revolutionaries?”

The captain shook his head. “I’d be just as happy to take money from the other side, but they don’t pay as well. The only cause my crew fights for is getting rich.”

Thomas’ nose wrinkled in distaste. “You’re smugglers.”

Captain Martinez guffawed and pointed at Thomas. “Thevampireis offended by smugglers!”

A few of the men joined in the laughter while others glared and grumbled.

“Come now!” the captain said to his men. “He can’t beevilif he’s looking down his nose atus!”

Thomas glanced around the circle to see how many men were agreeing and reconsidered his initial panic.

The captain held a hand up to silence his crew and then looked directly at Thomas without smiling. “Speak up, Mr. Clarke. Are you evil or not? Convince me not to toss you overboard with a bucket of pig guts, or tie you to the mast to see what sunlight does to you.”

Thomas cleared his throat. “I’m not evil, and I’m fully in control of myself. No crew member has anything to fear from me.”

“And you’re a…” Captain Martinez prompted.

Swallowing hard, Thomas nodded. “I am undead. A vampire. But I’m not a threat to anyone.”

Several crewmen gasped while others scoffed.

“Now that would be a real shame,” the captain said, his smile returning. “Because if you’re not a threat toanyone, I’d have no use for you.”

Thomas’ eyebrows furrowed.

“If you want to live,” the captain said, “you’re going to become a part of our crew.”

“You want me to become part of your crew?” Thomas repeated. “I’m not sure how much help I can be. I know nothing of sailing.”

“I’ve heard many different stories from many different lands about vampires. I’m not sure which parts are fact and which are fiction, but most stories agree that your kind can see better in the dark than the rest of us. That could come in very handy when we’re delivering our goods in the middle of the night. I’ve also heard that your kind is difficult to kill. If we get attacked, I can sendyouto fight the enemy. Then my men stay safe, and you can eat your fill of the enemy’s blood.”

Killing even more people was the opposite of what Thomas wanted, but this wasn’t the moment to disagree. Living with Polly for five years had taught him how to be pragmatic in situations where he disagreed. Escape was much more likely during the chaos of battle than it was with the entire crew focused on him, so he nodded. “That sounds like a mutually beneficial arrangement.”

Captain Martinez barked out more loud laughter. “‘Mutually beneficial arrangement’? We’ve got ourselves a toff!”

Some of the men laughed while others didn’t. Thomas just shrugged it off. He didn’t know what a toff was, but he was certain he’d been called worse by the men who used to work for his father.

The captain held his hand up. “One more thing, and then we vote on your fate.”

“Vote?” Thomas scanned the faces of the crowd. “I thought a captain’s word was law.”

“You’re thinking of military ships, not cargo ships. Especially for something as…unusual as this”—he gestured to the assembled group—“my crew gets a vote. I’d like to use you as a secret weapon, but not enough to deal with a mutiny over it.” He looked at his men. “Who drew the short straw?”

One of the older crew members stepped forward.

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