Chapter 11
11
T he captain had not moved, spoken, or made any other sound since her last words. She saw the pain in his eyes, but couldn't believe it. Her body and her heart urged her to hug him, to reassure him that the memories of him would soon return. But reason forbade her from taking even one step toward him. Both Anton and Margerite had warned her about this man. Besides, hadn't it been one of his own people, Freddy, who had helped her escape so that she wouldn't fall into his arms again?
The captain swallowed and closed his eyes. A shadow crossed his face and once again, he seemed so menacing that Anna recoiled from him. He noticed it, but nothing in his expression gave any indication of what it meant to him.
"What is the last thing you remember?"
Helplessly, Anna shrugged. "Nothing of this world. Although, that's not entirely true. I remembered Toni, but only one image, a moment came back. The rest is lost."
"Of course, the giant." He ran a hand through his dark hair.
He knew him too? At least she hadn't mentioned that Toni was a giant. Her heart skipped a beat as a small piece of the puzzle fell into place. "You know him? Was he my friend back then?"
"Aye, the most annoying chaperone imaginable."
Anna laughed. If both the captain and the fairies said Anton was her friend, then at least that was true. She relaxed a little at the thought. At least she now had someone she could trust. And wasn't that what her heart had been whispering all along? However, didn't that mean she could also trust the captain?
The pirate leaned casually with his forearm against the rock wall. His expression didn't reveal what he was thinking, what he was feeling, or what was going on inside him. "Where have you been all these years? Where have you been hiding?"
He didn't know? Was it possible that he wasn't the one who had brought her there?
"I was in another world. One without magic. With only normal people and no pirates who abduct young women from their homes in a flying ship."
"We'll get to the traitors in a moment. How did you get there? What happened prior to that?"
Anna shook her head. She thought she would get answers from him, but again she was going in circles. "I don't know. Until a few hours ago, I thought I was born there, a normal woman who worked in the garden department at a home improvement store."
He pushed away from the wall abruptly. "You worked? Were you enslaved? I will make your tormentors atone for every lash!"
Anna chuckled briefly. "There were neither whips nor tormentors. I did it voluntarily. It was fun and my colleagues were nice and…"
"You didn't do it voluntarily!" He angrily punched the air with his fist. "If you forgot yourself, someone banished you to that world and convinced you that you were happy. You left… everything behind!"
He said it with such fervor that she wondered if he was referring specifically to what had been between the two of them. Why had the others warned her about him? There had to be a reason. "Why did my friends try to convince me it was you?"
Anger glowed in his dark eyes. "Because they wanted to prevent us from continuing what we started."
Anna frowned. "Which was…? Spreading fairy dust on your pirate ship?"
He snorted. "No, madam. Finding the person responsible for the disappearance of the fairies."
Anna lowered her arms in disbelief. "Us? The two of us? Together?"
"Aye." The glow came back into his eyes again, but it immediately disappeared and the captain punched the cold stone wall with his fist. "You must have gotten in the way because you figured out who was responsible. Then that person put a spell on you, banished you, and made you work as a slave.
Anna no longer understood what was going on. If what the pirate said was true, she wasn't the one to blame. It was tempting to let go of this burden, but how did she know if she could trust him? Was she falling into the very trap that this scoundrel had laid out for her?
She felt her reaction to him in her body and her heart beat faster as she was filled with longing. There probably had been something between them at one time, but that didn't mean the rest of his story was true. But what if it was? If the fairies had begun disappearing before…
She had an idea. "What's the last thing you remember? I mean when was the last time we saw each other?"
He closed his eyes then opened them again and a noise that almost sounded like a sigh left his mouth. "We were at sea for a few days. We were…" An eyebrow danced up and down lasciviously and Anna could barely suppress a grin. "…conferring. You left to meet Iris and Jasmin."
"I had already brought you the fairy dust?"
"Aye, we had met in our bay before." Seeing her perplexed look, he added, "It's remote, on the border between the Kingdom of Flowers and the Rocks. You brought me a rum barrel full of fairy dust and we hid it below deck. Then we sailed off to confer."
"Okay, and we were traveling for how long?"
The look in his eyes grew angry. "Why does it matter?"
"I have to reconstruct the events in as much detail as possible, Cap… Um, what did I call you?"
He grinned suggestively at her. "Captain?"
Anna shook her head resolutely. "I don't believe you."
He chuckled softly. "Chris. You called me Chris."
"Okay, Chris, how many days were we at sea?"
"Two, madam."
"Okay. I brought you a rum barrel full of fairy dust to this bay, we stored it on your ship, and then we set off. We were at sea for two days conferring," she said, emphasizing the last word so that there was no doubt that she didn't mean it in an ambiguous way. "Was it just the two of us on the ship or was your crew there?"
"Obviously my crew was there."
Anna tapped the tip of her nose thoughtfully. "Then I set off to meet up with Iris and…who did you say?"
"Iris and Jasmin.”
"Jasmin… I haven't met her yet. Probably a fairy too, right? Hopefully, she's still… around." She glanced up, embarrassed.
The captain shrugged his broad shoulders. "I haven't seen a single fairy since you disappeared."
"Then how did you know I was… gone?"
His gaze glowed with a fire that reached out towards her. "Because you always came back to me."
Anna snorted, but she wasn't about to engage in a discussion about their supposed relationship. "Where did we part ways?"
"At the Kingdom of Flower's port. There's so much hustle and bustle in the harbor city that no one is noticed."
"Okay, and then I left to meet with Iris and Jasmin."
"You flew."
"M'hm?"
"You flew away."
Was he starting with that now too? "So, you are also trying to tell me I'm actually a fairy?"
"Aye, of course. What else would you be?"
"A human?"
The captain laughed. It sounded rough and dark, and she was overcome with goosebumps again. "You have been a fairy for hundreds of years, believe me. A few years as a human slave doesn't change that."
Anna shook her head in disbelief.
He grinned broadly. "What?"
She peered down at herself, examining her hands and legs. "Anton, Iris, and Margerite have told me, but… I can't imagine it. I just don't believe it." She turned and glanced over her shoulder. "Wings? On my back?"
"Aye, and their sparkle competed with the gold of the seas."
Anna had to smile, but the captain's eyes darkened.
"Whoever did this to you will pay dearly, I swear!"
Hearing his words, her heart danced, but she couldn't let herself be distracted. She ignored his threat and paced thoughtfully. She twisted a strand of hair around her finger. "Iris, Margerite, and Toni knew I gave you fairy dust. They claimed that was why so many fairies had disappeared. They say you did something to me that erased my memory and then banished me. It sounds like I met with the fairies after our meeting. I told them about our plan, or at least that I gave you fairy dust, and they apparently thought I was crazy. Shortly afterward, I must have gone back to you because they all agree that you are the culprit. Probably because I was on my way to see you. But…" She looked up wistfully and saw regret in his eyes.
"You never came back to me."
"Someone must have stopped me along the way."
"Or lured you into a trap — you were always very curious."
Anna let the strand slip from her finger. "Did we have any idea who was behind it?"
"No, damn it."
"What happened? How did we… meet? I mean, when did we join forces? When did the fairies start disappearing?"
He took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and ran his fingers over his forehead. Her eyes fell on his large hands. Damn, why did he look so handsome? How could she keep up her guard? But, if what he said was true, there was someone out there who didn't want her to believe him…
His voice brought her back to the here and now. "It took you longer every day to take care of all the flowers with your fairy sisters. At some point, you confided in me that you thought fewer fairies were helping."
Finally, they were getting somewhere. "Did I notice someone was missing or was it merely conjecture?"
"You mentioned Calla and Kamille, but you weren't sure about the others."
That did sound suspicious, even if was only two.
"Also, you had the impression that someone was taking the fairy dust."
That caught her attention. Could it be true that the trouble had begun before she'd made her mistake? "Had the spring dried up?"
"No, it only did that after your disappearance. However, the inventory was shrinking even though the source flowed normally."
Interesting. So there had been some shenanigans going on. Why hadn't any of the other fairies mentioned it? Not to mention Anton? Hadn't she told them? Why had she confided in the captain instead? Was he speaking the truth?
"That's why you brought me a barrel. So you'd have a stash."
She looked at him skeptically. His eyes were dark, but there was nothing devious in them. Still, she remained wary. "And you used my reserves for flying?"
"Only after you were gone. I had to search for you, damn it. And with my crew and my ship, I'm strongest!"
"Okay, that doesn't sound completely absurd."
"What's that supposed to mean? Are you insinuating that I took advantage of you?"
The outrage in his voice sounded genuine. Was it truly as he said? Had they been… allies in the struggle to stop the fairies from disappearing?
"I'm simply trying to get an overview. Where had we planned to meet? In this cave?"
"No, you wanted to return to my ship and I waited… a long time. I swear to you, Ani, I will never do that again. From now on, I'll take the helm. For now, come with me to the Fortuna and my crew and we'll sail out to sea where we can relax…"
"No! I'm not going with you." She shook her head vehemently.
"Ani, what are you doing? Be reasonable. Whoever did this to you is still out there. As soon as they know you're back, they'll abduct you again."
"Abduct is the operative word here. What about the pirates who abducted me? Aren't they a part of your crew?"
"Not all. A few are bad eggs from a port dive. But five are mine." His jaw stiffened and he took a deep breath. "I have no idea how they knew where you were — or why they didn't tell me long ago, damn it! I wanted to take them to task, but before I could use my… powers of persuasion," his eyes went to the saber on his belt, "they fainted and have yet to regain consciousness." He growled it more than he said it. "As soon as they awaken, they'll be in for a treat!"
"They fainted?"
"Aye. Very suspicious, I tell you."
"But five of them are your crew, right?"
He looked at her grimly. "Aye."
"I would say they brought me back to get more fairy dust. How would they know where I was unless someone told them?"
"I've already thought about that. Those bloodhounds are in for a treat!"
"Who could have known where I was besides the one who banished me?"
"Are you saying they planned to retrieve you?"
Anna shuddered and wrapped her arms around her body. The thought had occurred to her, but now that she herself had drawn the conclusion and the captain had said it aloud, it sounded completely logical. Her voice was merely a whisper. "That's what I'm assuming."
He stepped toward her and spread his arms. "Then you really must come with me. I will protect you, Ani!"
The offer sounded strangely tempting. Even though she didn't fully understand his motives, the idea that someone with enormous power had first banished her and then brought her back, frightened her. And wouldn't it be reassuring to be protected? She wanted to trust him, and her heart screamed to throw herself into his arms. But everything was happening so fast. She had to find out for herself who was behind it all. The temptation to believe him was great. If it truly hadn't been the captain, then who had done this to her and blamed her for the fairies' disappearance? It was time to find the real mastermind and she had to do it on her own.
She shook her head stubbornly. "Thanks, but I have to go it alone."
"Ani, that's crazy! That may be exactly what the culprit wants."
"No, whoever it was wanted your crew to take me to them — at least that's what I assume." And who knew if there were others on the crew who had it in for her.
He seemed to guess her thoughts because he grabbed her arm. "I won't lose you again! No one on my ship will harm you, I promise you that. On my honor as a pirate captain, no one will get by my saber."
Her heart beat faster and a smile played across her lips. His eyes immediately wandered to them. Her pulse quickened and sparks flew between them, but Anna focused on her thoughts.
"If you only want the best for me, you have to let me go."
His grip tightened. "What? What kind of twisted logic is that? If I let you go, you will be unprotected. Apparently, you can't even transform and use your fairy powers anymore."
"But I have to find out for myself what happened back then. I have to find out who is behind all this, who is involved, and…" She looked at him wistfully. "…who I can trust."
"You want me to let you go?"
"Prove to me you are telling the truth. If you… when we… if things between us were as you say, then you'll respect my wishes."
He closed his eyes. There was no sign on his face to reveal the inner battle he was waging, but Anna could still feel him growing tense. Suddenly, his grip tightened again. He didn't hurt her, but he didn't give her a chance to get away.
When he answered, his voice was even darker than before. "Swear to me that you'll take care of yourself."
"I swear."
"And swear to me, you'll come to me if you need help."
Smiling, she looked at him. "Aye aye, Captain."
His expression grew serious. "For you, it's always been Chris, Ani. I was always just Chris to you."
He slowly released her. Relief flooded her and a whisper told her he was speaking the truth. Before she could peer into his deep eyes again and abandon her plan, she turned and hurried out of the cave.