A Pirate’s Life for Tea (Tomes & Tea #2)

8. Kianthe

Chapter eight

Kianthe

T he next morning, they enjoyed a nice breakfast at a local restaurant: the specialty here was thick, flaky slices of bread, lightly toasted and topped with melting cheese and an egg. It was divine, rich with flavor, and Kianthe was savoring it when Reyna lightly tapped her arm.

“What?” Kianthe’s mouth was stuffed.

“Don’t talk with your mouth full,” Reyna said in amusement. “Look there.” And she took a sip of her tea, gesturing down the street.

Ah. Bobbie and Serina had arrived… and Bobbie did not look good.

To be fair, Serina didn’t seem much better—but that was because she was protesting to the five hells, not because she was injured. The pirate’s ankles had been knotted into Bobbie’s horse’s stirrups, her wrists were tied to a metal ring just below the saddle’s horn, and she’d been gagged with a thick cloth. Despite this, she writhed against her restraints, glowered at Bobbie, and shouted at anyone who passed them, her words muffled and furious.

Bobbie led the horse by the reins like a woman condemned. The bags under her eyes were deep and pronounced now, and it seemed like a struggle to pull her shoulders upright and act like the professional constable she was. Whenever someone moved to help Serina, she tapped the silver badge, and they backed away like she’d lit them on fire.

Reyna and Kianthe were seated at a little shop near the docks, basking in the bright sunlight. Reyna shielded her eyes, raising one eyebrow, and said to Kianthe: “Perhaps it was cruel to leave Bobbie alone with Serina. It looks like she had a rough night.”

“It’s wholly possible we’ve overestimated their relationship.” Kianthe took another messy bite of her thick bread. It somehow managed to be flaky and fluffy at the same time, and the yolk soaked into it beautifully. Messy. Delicious. She chewed, swallowed, and added, “Either that, or this is Bobbie’s idea of roping Serina into something serious.”

“Darling.”

“Come on? Because of the rope?” Kianthe laughed, spewing crumbs. “That’s hilarious, and you know it.”

Reyna rolled her eyes, pushing away from the table. “If I’m being honest, it feels like you’re tying too hard.” And with a sly smile, she strolled across the street to intercept the constable.

Kianthe nearly choked. She stuffed the last of the bread into her mouth, gulped her morning tea—a strong blend of vanilla and cinnamon—and jogged after Reyna. The closer she got, the more obvious it was that Bobbie was about two steps from falling over. She probably hadn’t slept the entire night. Maybe the last two nights.

There’d be a lot of stress crocheting in her future, Kianthe could tell. Suddenly, she felt bad judging the silly orange hat with the two pompoms. Poor constable was trying her best.

Probably, Kianthe should have just taken Serina back to Arlon and saved everyone some time. Of course, last night had been something special—a glimpse into how she and Reyna would travel as a married couple—and it wasn’t something Kianthe would trade for all the magic in the world.

So, yes, she felt bad.

Just not that bad.

“Is the gag necessary?” Reyna asked.

On the horse, Serina thrashed, yanking her wrists against the metal ring. Her left hand had been bandaged at some point. Was she injured there? Kianthe couldn’t remember. Everything from the river rescue felt like a bad dream.

“Gags are optional by our handbook, but recommended for the problematic criminals,” Bobbie intoned, her voice unfeeling.

Serina rolled her eyes in such an exaggerated motion, it seemed like she might fall off the horse. She kicked her leg out, but the stirrup meant she couldn’t quite connect with Bobbie’s backside. The constable stepped away with practiced ease, which spoke volumes about their evening.

Kianthe shouldn’t laugh.

She did anyway.

“She could be a mage, with that kind of fire.”

“Mmmrhph,” Serina replied, which could have been I know, or could have been fuck you.

Reyna was more concerned with Bobbie. “Constable, and this is not a statement on your competence… but you look like you’re about to collapse.”

That got Serina’s attention. She glanced sharply at Bobbie, squinting at the back of her head. But Bobbie wasn’t facing her, and whatever she saw in Bobbie’s tight spirals of black hair did nothing to persuade her of that truth. The pirate huffed, yanking again at her hands. Her wrists were starting to rub raw.

“Insomnia,” Bobbie muttered, massaging her brow. “Normally, I can power through it with a few hours a night. But a certain someone made that difficult.”

Serina rolled her eyes.

“I did try a new stuffed toy.” Bobbie tugged a small yellow circle out of her pocket. It had white yarn wings and one black stripe, but everything was lopsided on it. The stitches were too loose, and there wasn’t enough wool inside to puff it up. It mostly looked like a deflated mess of yarn with black buttons for eyes. Bobbie raised tired eyes, her tone hopeful. “It’s a bee.”

Reyna stifled a laugh, shifting it into a polite cough. Kianthe patted Bobbie’s arm. “I see it. Great job.”

Satisfied, Bobbie tucked the monstrosity back in her pocket.

“So, your grand plan of talking her out of this life didn’t go well, huh?” Kianthe ventured to ask, gaze cutting to the pirate. Serina scowled around the gag.

Bobbie chose her words carefully. “After several discussions, it became apparent that she needs more persuasion than I can offer in a night. With that option discarded, my duty lies with Diarn Arlon.” She tightened her hand on the leather reins. “I merely wanted to inform you both that I’ve secured a ship to take us north. If you’re coming with me, you’ll have to board soon.”

“And then Serina will be jailed,” Reyna said steadily.

“She will answer for her crimes.” Bobbie cast a pointed glance at Serina. “But if she comes willingly, the diarn has promised mercy in her sentencing.”

It seemed extreme, but no one could deny she’d broken the law. It still didn’t sit well with Kianthe, though. She frowned. “Let’s take a day and think about this. Arlon doesn’t know we’ve found her yet. We can discuss—”

But Bobbie was clearly at the end of her rope—heh, rope—because she snapped at the words: “With respect, Arcandor, I’m done discussing.” She glared at Serina, a bit of fire hitting her emerald eyes now. “You could have gone anywhere. Your father runs a successful business—even that would have been better. But you decided to play farmer, and now you’re playing pirate, and I’m fucking tired, Serrie.”

The nickname might as well have shocked Serina. She went ramrod straight, glaring at Bobbie with absolute fury—and then she yanked so hard at her bindings that the horse whinnied, shifting his weight uneasily.

Bobbie grabbed the reins, clenched her eyes shut, and drew a breath through her nose. Against Serina’s new tirade of muffled racket, she said calmly, “Join us or don’t, but the ship is leaving.”

With that, she resolutely turned away from them, leading the horse down the cobblestone hillside.

The silence that rang after them felt louder than the pirate’s shouting.

Kianthe rubbed the back of her neck. “Ah, Rain? I think we may have miscalculated.”

“Hmm.” Reyna’s tone was suspiciously neutral. “We should go. I worry what might happen if we don’t follow them north.” And she started after them, taking a far more leisurely pace.

Her casual air made Kianthe uneasy. She trailed after Reyna as they headed for the port. “Love, I can see you plotting.”

Reyna pressed a hand to her chest. “Key, I never plot—that implies nefarious intentions. I plan. Sometimes, I strategize.”

The mage almost pointed out that Reyna had no qualms murdering people she viewed as a threat, but they’d had that discussion before and it rarely ended well. Instead, Kianthe sighed, tucking her hands inside her cloak to warm them up. “Okay. What’s your plan, then? You wanted me to stay close to Bobbie.”

“Indeed, if you don’t mind. I’m not confident it’ll work out as I imagine, but there’s a small chance—very small—that we’ll be separated sometime soon.” Reyna patted her arm reassuringly. “Only briefly. And in the meantime, please try to mitigate Diarn Arlon’s response.”

“Mitigate—” Kianthe grimaced. “What are you going to do?”

Reyna smiled brightly. “Me? Absolutely nothing.”

And she started whistling, stepping onto the docks with an accomplished bounce to her step.

There were moments—like this one, specifically—where Kianthe felt she should probably intervene. That Reyna was a dangerous person to unleash on the world, and that she should at least warn those involved to give them the best chance.

But then she remembered that controlling Reyna was borderline impossible and sounded like the least fun ever , so she decided to trust her future wife and let everyone operate with independent free will.

The boat Bobbie had secured was small, with the diarn’s emblem—a pine tree framed by a blocky “A” that looked like a mountain—burned onto the hull. A single mast loomed overhead, its sails waiting to be unfurled. It was barely enough to fit a few people, much less a horse, but Bobbie walked the stallion up the boat’s ramp nonetheless.

“Who’s our captain?” Reyna followed them onto the deck.

Bobbie sighed. “Me.”

“I thought you said you didn’t sail?” Kianthe asked.

“I’ll learn.” The constable moved to slice the rope tying Serina’s feet into the stirrups with a serrated knife.

Reyna put a hand on her hip, clearly intrigued. “You’re untying her?”

“Protocol. Can’t have a prisoner tied to a horse on a boat—if it sinks, that’s a death sentence.” Bobbie didn’t sound happy about it. Of course, her dark attitude wasn’t helped when Serina kicked Bobbie’s stomach. She yelped, doubling over, and only narrowly missed Serina’s boot smashing into her nose.

Kianthe grimaced, unsure whether she should intervene.

“Damn it, Serina, enough ,” the constable snapped, backing away, still slightly hunched in pain.

Serina offered a very lewd gesture with her unbandaged hand.

Reyna stepped between them, putting a hand on Bobbie’s arm. The constable tensed, but she offered a reassuring smile. “Sometimes, it’s best to delegate a prisoner transfer to someone who hasn’t already, ah… offended the culprit. Why don’t you let me secure her below deck while you and Kianthe prep the sails? I’m sure between a mage and a constable, we can get this ship moving.”

Bobbie glared at Serina, who glared back. The constable looked like she either wanted to cry or stab someone.

Just as a precaution, Kianthe gently removed the knife from her hand. Bobbie almost gripped it harder, but when she saw it was the Arcandor herself intervening, she loosened her hold. Kianthe clapped her shoulder. “You know that Reyna was a guard in Queen Tilaine’s palace. She can handle this.”

“Don’t kill her,” Bobbie said, a bit too forcefully.

Irritation—and a bit of hurt—dashed across Reyna’s features, gone before anyone else noticed. Kianthe’s brow knitted together, but her fiancée had already moved on: “She will be unharmed when we reach Diarn Arlon. I swear it.”

Bobbie scrubbed her face and mumbled, “Okay. I’ll come check on her soon.” And she stepped towards the mast, fiddling with the ropes there.

As Reyna approached, the pirate lashed out again with her foot. Kianthe almost laughed. That might work on Bobbie—sleep deprived, clearly conflicted—but Reyna sidestepped it as if they were dancing partners. She took the knife Kianthe held and waggled it at Serina. “Listen to me. If you struggle, this will get worse.” And something in her voice made Serina pause.

Their eyes met.

And Reyna quirked a smile.

“You better not fall in love with her,” Kianthe told them, making it purposefully vague which one she was addressing.

“Darling, please.” Reyna rolled her eyes as she stepped to Serina’s other side, slicing the rope at the stirrup with one smooth motion. “Go help the poor constable. I’m questioning if she knows how to get this boat out of port without sinking us.”

Across the boat, Bobbie was muttering under her breath, looking thoroughly confused as she untied various ropes.

Kianthe raised her hands. “Your wish is my command.”

She stepped across the deck, keeping an eye on Reyna as she sliced the final binding on Serina’s wrists, then strong-armed her off the horse. Serina was taller and curvier than Reyna and she put up a pointed struggle, but even Kianthe could tell she wasn’t really fighting. Reyna made it look convincing, though—retying her wrists with a practiced motion, then marching Serina below-deck.

“I’m still confused about how a Queensguard can be here.” Bobbie said after they were gone. “I heard Tilaine kills anyone who tries to leave her service. She isn’t still loyal to the Queendom, is she?”

Tilaine had spies everywhere, so Kianthe had to step carefully here. She highly doubted Bobbie was under Tilaine’s employ, but that would be a stupid, potentially fatal mistake to make. She shrugged, helping Bobbie lower the topsail. “She and Tilaine have struck an agreement. It benefitted Her Excellency more to release Reyna from service.”

“Because of you.”

The heat of irritation rushed along Kianthe’s arms. She wanted to say, no, because Reyna is amazing and she negotiated for her life, but the truth was, it never would have worked without Kianthe’s status as the Arcandor, the Mage of Ages.

So, she begrudgingly said, “Yes. Because of me. But that’s not why we’re together.”

“Sorry,” Bobbie tied a rope to a tether at the base of the mast, then stepped back to survey the sail. Already, the boat was starting to pull against the dock. “Your relationship is none of my business. And while we’re on the subject, I’d appreciate the same courtesy.”

Fair point.

Kianthe mock-saluted, thumping her fist against her chest. “Fine by me.”

Bobbie offered a drained smile and trudged to the side of the boat. A swift slice of her knife had the vessel slipping away from the dock—but it almost immediately edged towards the neighboring ship.

“Shit. Shit. ” Bobbie sprinted for the helm, spinning it. The boom swept across the deck, nearly smashing into Kianthe’s head. She narrowly leapt out of the way, and the boat drifted right back towards the dock instead.

Bobbie yelped and tried to overcorrect, and Kianthe got flashbacks of yesterday—the tiny boat being pulled under, Serina vanishing into murky water, the angry pull of water as the Nacean tried to keep her.

“Enough, Bobbie, hang on ,” Kianthe snapped, and reached into the currents. Unlike the implacable whims of the Nacean River, here the waters were far more amenable to her magic, and she was able to shift them ever-so-slightly to coax the ship free.

At the helm, Bobbie raised her hands and stepped back, giving Kianthe control.

The Arcandor pulled a bit of wind at the sail, then a bit more, and soon they were free from Neolow. Once they were in the open river, Kianthe lowered her hands. “Okay, now go.” Bobbie took hold of the helm again, spinning the massive wheel so the boat angled north.

Kianthe shifted the winds and currents to adjust. Across the river, the sailors of another ship shouted to each other, scrambling to adjust their sails against the sudden change in air. Kianthe winced. “How long until we reach the diarn, again?”

They were sailing past Neolow, out onto the open river now. The stables that housed Lilac were slipping away on the east side of the river, so Reyna’s horse was apparently getting another mini-vacation. Oops.

“A day. Maybe two.” Bobbie leaned heavily against the helm, blinking against the bright sunlight. Below them, the boat rocked in an almost soothing fashion. “Stars, I’m tired.”

“No shit,” Kianthe drawled.

“It didn’t look like a bee, did it?”

“Not really, no.”

Bobbie heaved a sigh.

The breeze was crisp, but the mid-morning sun countered it nicely. Everything was fresh and damp after yesterday’s rainstorm. The scent of wet leaves and rich soil drifted over the river, and the dramatic hills behind Neolow were painted in reds, yellows, and golds. Kianthe was almost sad to be leaving—she wouldn’t have minded a few hikes to see the glacier lakes.

Kianthe realized that Bobbie hadn’t said anything in a few moments. A quick glance showed the constable sagging against the helm, eyelids fluttering. Kianthe snapped her fingers. “Much as I love the idea of our captain falling asleep while we sail, I feel like there’s a better way to do this. Why don’t you go below deck and get some rest?”

It wasn’t like Kianthe couldn’t captain the boat with a gentle nudge of her magic, after all.

Bobbie snapped to attention, scrubbing her face. “Serina is down there. I can’t.”

“So is Reyna, and she’s delightful company.” Kianthe smirked. Bobbie didn’t seem persuaded, so the mage continued, “Take a nap on deck, then. Seriously, Bobbie, you won’t impress anyone if you face Arlon slurring your words.”

But Bobbie squinted at the waterline, then held up a hand. “Hang on.”

“Rude.”

“Does the river look closer to you?”

Kianthe almost replied something snarky about how they were on the river, so this was about as close as it’d get—but immediately swallowed the words. Because Bobbie was right. The water level was rising, inching higher and higher up the boat. Whereas before it was a six stone drop, now there were maybe three, and that gap was closing fast.

She reached out with magic, and sure enough, water was flooding below deck.

“Uh—”

“We’re sinking,” Bobbie exclaimed, abandoning the helm to lunge down the narrow staircase. Kianthe was right on her heels, leaving just the constable’s horse on deck. Below, the small space was flooding fast through a human-sized gap someone had smashed in the hull. How Reyna even managed that was beyond Kianthe.

Stone be damned, her fiancée was incredible.

And speaking of, Reyna and Serina were—of course—gone.

Bobbie gaped at the empty space. “H-How—”

Water was filling fast. Kianthe ordered the wood to patch itself, but yet again, the Nacean had sensed weakness and was feeling greedy. Clearly her pompom hat wasn’t enough for this ridiculous river: water pummeled the weak patch, and it wouldn’t be held back by magic for long.

They had to get off this boat.

“We have to go.” Kianthe grabbed Bobbie’s arm, towing her above deck again. Fear gripped her that Reyna was just… gone. But Rain knew how to swim; she’d escaped with a literal pirate; and she had warned Kianthe multiple times this might happen.

The mage just hadn’t expected this exact scenario.

The stallion was prancing on deck, huffing nervously as the boat began listing sideways. “Hang on,” Kianthe shouted. Bobbie sprinted to her horse, and Kianthe took position at the bow of the boat. They were a fair distance from shore, but the current was mild and they were still afloat—at least for a little while.

Kianthe pulled magic from the Nacean River’s ley line, and with a burst of air and a careful current, shoved the boat towards the shoreline. The entire vessel lurched under her magic, and sweat trickled down her neck as she calculated how fast they were sinking versus how quickly she could aim them to dry land.

The only bonus here was that wood floated, so at least they wouldn’t completely submerge. But that was a small consolation for the horse on board.

Bobbie gripped her mount’s reins, keeping him as stable as she could. “It’s going to be tight!” Panic tinged her voice.

“That’s what she said,” Kianthe shouted back.

“Right now?” The boat listed further, and Bobbie’s horse whinnied as everyone staggered. Kianthe ripped a wave up to level the boat, and despite all that, Bobbie still managed to look indignant. “Really?”

“I make no apologies.” Kianthe grinned wickedly. “Hang on!”

The boat ran aground with a scraping thud, and everyone but the horse fell over. The stallion neighed, stomped his hooves, and leapt off the boat in a smooth motion, tail flicking as he trotted away. Bobbie watched him go, then slid off the boat herself and sank to her knees on the gravely shore.

“I can’t believe I lost her again ,” the constable moaned, burying her head in her hands.

Kianthe leapt overboard, released her magic on the river and wind, and breathed a sigh. “At least we’re safe—” And she stopped short, squinting downriver.

A gorgeous ship, easily triple the size of the one Bobbie had borrowed, had been moored a short distance from the other ships at the docks of Neolow. Reyna had pointed it out last night, almost casually; Kianthe should have known she’d been scheming—oh, sorry, strategizing —even then.

Now, that ship was drifting downstream. For a moment, the motion was so subtle that Kianthe almost missed it… but then one sail unfurled in a decisive manner. Two people scrambled around the deck, tying it tight.

Overhead, two griffons—one large, one itty bitty—circled.

“Um, you may not want this news right now,” Kianthe said carefully, stepping to the constable.

Bobbie lifted her head. “What news?” She sounded utterly defeated.

Kianthe winced, rocking back on her heels. “Never mind.”

“What is it, Arcandor?” Bobbie pushed to her feet, stumbled a bit, caught herself at the last minute.

“Well, there’s… ah, there’s a chance—a slight one, mind—that my fiancée helped your pirate escape. And there’s a better chance—still just a chance, but a better one—that they’ve stolen that ship right there.”

Kianthe pointed at it. It was angling south, away from them, heading downriver.

Bobbie stared, jaw unhinged.

“That’s… that’s Diarn Arlon’s personal vessel. He’d sent it to Neolow for repairs.”

The two of them watched in silence as Serina unfurled more sails, as the wind caught, as they careened away. Overhead, Visk and Ponder broke for the hills. The fact that Visk didn’t retrieve Kianthe told her that she’d been betrayed by both her fiancée and her mount.

If she squinted, she could see Reyna waving cheerfully from the upper deck.

“Damn them to the five hells,” Bobbie groaned.