Chapter 10 Lily
LILY
I got a late start that morning and ended up at the nearby pub across from the inn.
I felt ridiculous wearing my armor everywhere I went, knowing people wouldn’t receive me very warmly if I appeared guarded all the time, so I went in just my pants, shirt, and boots.
I ordered a pint of beer and whatever they were serving in the kitchen that day.
Zehemoth’s voice came into my mind. Hawk is looking for you.
He is? I blurted, expecting not to hear from him unless it was against his will. I’m at the Wooden Leg pub house.
I’ll let him know.
The pub was mostly empty because most people were busy earning a living, not sitting on their asses drinking ale in the middle of the day. My stomach had growled after I ordered, but when the waitress brought my lunch, I lost my appetite, unsure what to expect from Hawk when he showed up.
The double doors opened, and sunlight came through for just an instant. He was fully dressed in his armor with his sword across his back, choosing caution over sense. I was easy to spot, so he headed over and dropped into the chair across from me.
All my muscles were tense in preparation for whatever he had to say, but I kept a straight face like I could handle another argument.
But he waved the waitress over and ordered an ale like he intended to stay around for a while. He rested both of his arms on the table as he looked at me. “What’s the plan?”
My eyes shifted back and forth between us, utterly dumbfounded by what he said. “Sorry, what?”
“Are we going to fight for the Brigandine Empire to secure their alliance, or are we going to move on elsewhere?” When the waitress came over with his tankard, he immediately took a drink like he was parched.
We seemed to have skipped a conversation somewhere along the way. “Aren’t you mad at me right now?”
“I was, but I got over it.”
“Got over it?” I asked. “You never get over anything.”
He took another drink of his tankard before he wiped the corner of his mouth with his thumb.
He didn’t have sleeves or exposed skin because he was covered from head to toe in armor that seemed completely unnecessary.
“You’re right. Dad picked you to succeed him, and I continue to push back like it’s up for debate. I need to let it go.”
I continued to regard him with a blank stare, unable to believe my brother had matured so deeply in just a single night of rest.
“I trust Dad’s judgment more than anyone else’s, and I know how much he loves our kingdom and the free dragons that roam the skies. He would only give it to someone he fullheartedly believed could protect it. It’s time that I believe in you the way he does.”
Hawk didn’t say a lot of things that left me speechless, but I was truly at a loss for words.
“Doesn’t matter if you bested me because of the power granted to you by a god. What matters is the fact that a god thought you were worthy of that power. Perhaps that’s the very reason why we’re going to prevail in this war.”
I still couldn’t believe these words came from Hawk, my younger brother, the man who’d resented the shadow I cast over him every day of our lives.
“You’ve appointed me as your general, and my job is to serve you faithfully.
Not question why you deserve the crown and I don’t.
My position is to serve, not lead. The entire reason the Southern Isles were lost in the first place was because a disgruntled family member challenged the rule of succession—and I don’t want that to be me. ”
“You’re nothing like them, Hawk.” I’d seen them in Wrath’s memories, Barron and his two sons, the last stand they took in the courtyard against my father. They were the ones who burned my father’s first wife…and my half sister and namesake.
“I don’t know about nothing.”
“I do,” I said confidently. “It’s okay to want more. It’s unfortunate that only one person can rule…and not two.”
He gave a slight shake of his head. “In that scenario, nothing would get done. We’d butt heads on every matter.” He grabbed his tankard and took another drink before he eyed the soup ladled into a bread bowl in front of me. “Gonna eat that?”
I smiled before I pushed it across the table toward him. “All yours, big guy.”
He immediately ripped off a piece of bread from the side of the bowl and dunked it into the soup before he ate the entire piece in one bite. “So, what’s the plan?”
I hadn’t thought much of it. My thoughts had either been occupied with Wrath, wondering why he refused to explore any chance we had to be together, or if my brother would ever speak to me again.
“We need all hands on deck. I’ll help them defeat their enemies if they help me defeat mine. It’s a fair trade.”
He nodded as he continued to eat. “But do we have time for that? The kingdom has no one to lead it while we’re away.”
“Mom is back by now.”
“And distraught over Dad.”
“But I know she can lead if she must. We need the Brigandine Empire.”
“Then perhaps I should return to the Southern Isles to command the army while you’re gone.”
“No, I want you with me,” I said. “I need someone I can trust to watch my back.”
“And your front,” he said before he grabbed my spoon and scooped it into the soup. “But will Zehemoth and Movack agree to this?”
“I don’t need their help.”
He was about to slide his spoon through the soup again, but my words seemed to capture his attention more. “What do you mean?”
“I can help the pirates win their war without dragons. I know how to sail, I know how to fight, and I know how to raise the dead. I want the Brigandine Empire to be loyal to me—not my dragons.”
He lost all interest in the soup, letting the stream rise past his face as he focused on me.
This was where he would relay his disagreement, remind me we were pressed for time, but he kept his rebuttals to himself.
“We can tell Movack to tell her father to have dragons on patrol around the kingdom and the Great Sea. That way, if the enemy approaches, we’ll have time to return and defend our home. ”
“That sounds like a good plan.”
He nodded like it was finalized. “If we succeed, what next?”
“Then we return to the Northern Isles and speak with Aunt Eldinar,” I said. “By then, hopefully they’ll have had enough time to restore Riviana Star and bury their dead. They have to heal from the first battle before they can fight the next.”
“Alright,” he said. “Let’s get it done.”
I spotted Jack when he stepped inside the pub, wearing a trench coat despite the warm night air. He still wore his bandanna, but now he had a three-cornered hat on top of it. Dressed like a classy pirate when it seemed like he never set foot on a ship.
He found my table and took a seat across from me, slowly crossing his arms over his chest before he cocked his head sideways. “You called, Your Majesty?”
Hawk was across the room at his own table, smoking a cigar as he leaned his back against the wall and crossed his ankles in front of him. It was too warm for the armor, so he’d finally taken it off.
I cut right to the chase. “I’ll cut down your enemies if you cut down mine. Deal?”
His eyes narrowed. “Like I said before, I’m not a king. I can’t order anyone to do anything.”
“Except if they violate the code, you march them off a plank and leave them to die at sea…or be eaten by sharks.”
“Then let me rephrase that,” he said. “I can only order around anyone who violates the code—which is a very small fraction of people. We don’t have prisons on the island. Too much money and time to care for someone who’s a menace to our society. Therefore, there is no one alive that I can command.”
“What are you saying? I win you this battle and may still get nothing in return?”
“Yes,” he said bluntly. “That could happen. But you might also win the hearts and loyalties of pirates, and that goes a long way. Despite our reputation, we’re not really eye-for-an-eye kind of people.
“Hmm, could’ve fooled me.”
“So you’re serious about this, Lily Rothschild?”
“I am.”
“Your dragons will sink their fleet?”
“I don’t need dragons to win your battle.”
“Oh.” He cocked an eyebrow. “Is that so?”
“If I have to earn the loyalty of your men, then I will,” I said. “I will sail as one of you and defeat your enemies like my own—with my sword and my strength.”
“With all due respect, Your Highness—”
“Trust me, Jack.”
“We want your dragons—”
“I will not risk my dragons for anything. They’re not servants or soldiers, but my own flesh and blood covered in beautiful scales. And I don’t need them to bring those ships to a watery grave. Let me show you.”
He continued to stare at me, arms crossed over his chest, clearly at a crossroads.
“Have you heard the legends about my father?”
His eyes sharpened slightly.
“That he marched with an army of the dead.”
“Yes—the Death King.”
“Well, it’s something he and I share.”
Now his eyes narrowed even further when he understood my meaning.
“Prepare your fleet for departure tomorrow. I will sail as one of you and deliver what you seek.”
Even though the sun had set and plunged the world into darkness hours ago, the view of the lights around the island and the humid warmth against my skin brought back memories of a different island…that might be nearby.
I felt the breeze move through my hair, felt alone and suffocated at the same time.
Hawk came to my side, dressed in a t-shirt and his brown trousers.
“No more armor?” I teased.
He moved to the wooden railing and rested his arms there. “If I keep sweating like that, I’ll become dehydrated.”
“You’ll become dehydrated from all that ale you drink.”
“It’s the only comfort I have right now.”
“That bar maiden wasn’t enough?”
He turned to look at me, his eyebrow arched. “How did you know about that?”
“I didn’t,” I said with a smirk. “Not until now anyway.”
He chuckled quietly then looked ahead again.
We fell into a comfortable silence, staring at the view, hearing the ocean waves in the distance.
“What about you?” he suddenly asked.
“What about me what?”