6. Fealty
T he camp, if you could even call it that, was situated in a glade of ancient oaks. There was nothing more than a few thatched lean-tos camouflaged with foliage around a central fire pit. The wayward boys had shown us their best attempt at hospitality. A few meager rations rounded out their idea of a feast. It gave a new meaning to the idea of living rough, and I wondered how long they’d called this place home.
Smee situated himself on a stump while the others settled in for the night. They obviously hadn’t entertained any guests since they’d been relegated to the forest. They looked starved for news of the outside world. And the idea of a group of strangers with a vendetta against Pan was a truly exciting story. There hadn’t been a private moment to speak to my men, but a few pointed looks were all they needed to keep up their guard. I would wager these boys had all been enamored with Pan at one time. Even I hadn’t seen past his charm. And I wouldn’t be truly at ease until I determined if any of that loyalty remained.
I kept Katherine close to my side. The warmth of the evening had left her skin dewy, and the way my white linen shirt clung to her body drew more than a few interested glances from the young men. Not to mention the comments from that bastard, Brix. She was temptation wrapped in a beautiful package. One I’d succumbed to myself. I may have been a fucking hypocrite, but I’d be damned if I let any of them touch what’s mine.
The other boys hadn’t so much as spoken a word to me since we reached camp. A husky fellow covered in tattoos approached me. Wary eyes peered out from under a mop of dark curls as he handed me a clay jug. Aside from Smee, he was the oldest of the younger men, and I found myself instantly curious. What stories did these boys have to tell? Were they similar to my own?
Nothing had changed. Pan was still the only player in his sick and twisted game. The one rule still held firm over his band of boys—never, ever grow up.
“It’s only mead,” he said when I was too slow to bring the drink to my lips.
His words pulled me from my thoughts, and I brought the bottle to my nose. The tang of alcohol and honey wafted up. “One can never be too sure,” I countered. “You’re Jukes, right?”
“Yes, sir,” he mumbled.
“Made that mead myself,” Smee announced, cutting off Jukes. It was all he needed to fade back into the shadows of the firelight.
I took a hearty pull from the jug. The harsh liquid warmed my gut instantly. That would be the only time I indulged tonight. I needed my wits about me.
“I appreciate the hospitality, Smee. But to be honest, I am here for more than pleasantries and polite conversation,” I said quickly. I needed answers before I showed my cards. “Tell me, how is it that a mortal man finds himself in Neverland without the aid of Peter Pan?”
“And what makes you think he didn’t help?”
“Peter has no interest in grown men.”
“I wasn’t always this way. I’ve been on the island a long time.”
“Do you take me for a simple man, Smee?” I asked as I pulled my knife from my belt and began cleaning my nails. “Might I remind you that allies don’t lie to one another, and I expect you need this alliance more desperately than I do. Maybe you’d like to try again?”
Tension spread over the group, thick and suffocating. Their eyes flicked around the campfire, lingering mostly on Cecco, who looked strangely feral in the firelight.
Smee grunted, “You’re an intriguing man, Mr. James. Why do I get the feeling that you’re more entrenched in this than even I can fathom?”
“Then I’d say you’re more astute than I gave you credit for. Give me your story, and if I find you to be valuable, I’ll give you mine.”
“He took my son.”
His words brought me up short. That was a scenario I’d never considered. I masked my shock as quickly as it graced my face.
“Your son?”
“Aye. My boy was only eleven when Pan darkened our window and stole him from me.”
“How did you manage to find your way across the veil?” I asked, smothering the swell of jealousy that tried to bubble up from my dark soul. This seemingly ordinary man found a way to Neverland in a much shorter order than I had.
“Sold my soul to the devil. Well, at least he may as well have been. At the time, I was na?ve to the worlds beyond our own. But stories of the fae run deep in the borough. I tracked one down and wagered a price for my passage across the veil.”
“And your son, where is he now?”
Smee held my gaze, his jaw working as he wrangled the emotion that showed clearly on his face. “I ain’t found him as of yet.”
“All these years you’ve been on the island, and you still haven’t found him. Are you sure he’s even still here?”
Smee broke my stare. His jaw worked as he digested my words. I hadn’t meant to be harsh, but I was in no mood to entertain sob stories. “If your son isn’t on the island, why haven’t you returned home?” I pressed.
“Home to what? My son was my home. Without him, I have nothing. Besides, when I arrived, I realized it was more than just my son who needed help. And I’ve been doing my best to save these boys from the same fate as…” He couldn’t finish the sentence. Couldn’t admit openly that his son was likely long dead. “Maybe I was waiting for you? Because I believe you’re about to change all that for me.”
The rest of the evening was full of stories that poured out of them just as freely as the mead. Each one with a slightly different version from the previous, but they all ended the same. Neverland had begun to rob the older boys of their memories, but they still retained enough to paint a clear picture. Peter had been busy, and the sheer number of boys he discarded over the years had my demon flexing in my chest.
I listened in rapt interest to every word they said. The alcohol freed their minds and loosened their tongues. While I made mental notes of their stories, my old memories began to resurface. I wondered idly how long it would take for Neverland to dull them, which only ignited my sense of urgency. If I was doomed to forget my past, I needed to be sure I killed Pan with a clear conscience. While my hatred for him remained intact.
“I am knackered,” Smee yawned. “About time to get some shuteye, boys. We’ll continue this in the morning. Mr. James,” he bade me goodnight and ambled off into a darkened corner of the camp.
It was late, but my mind was racing. And there was no way I’d let my guard down here. Katherine had long since fallen asleep. I’d tucked her into one of the lean-tos and excused myself. Finding a dark spot just far enough to keep an eye on Kat but not disturb her with my fidgeting.
I was lost in thought as the night shifted into the early morning hours. That’s when the shadows caught my attention. I almost ignored it. The fire had been casting eerie shadows over the camp all night. I rubbed my tired eyes, but this was no trick of light. A shadow was coming for my girl. I watched carefully, clutching my dagger so tightly the hilt dug painfully into my palm. I moved silently, cloaked in darkness, until I was close enough that the dying embers of the fire illuminated the threat.
I stopped in my tracks. Apparently, my warnings had fallen on deaf ears. That little fucker, Brix, was kneeling by Kat, pulling her blanket down with one hand while the other was moving obscenely inside his pants.
My vision turned red, and my self-control evaporated into the ether. I pulled a cigar from my pouch, and before he could lay his filthy hands on my girl, I struck a match. The scrape and splutter of the fire sounded unusually loud in the quiet of the camp. Brix jumped at the sound, his eyes going wide as the flame illuminated my face in the darkness.
“You’ve been quite a naughty boy, haven’t you, Brix?” I drolled, my voice deadly calm.
“I—I can explain,” he stammered.
“James?” Katherine sat up; her voice clouded with sleep as she tried to figure out what was happening.
“Nothing to worry about, love. Apparently, Pan never taught him any manners. Did he, Brix? He never told you not to put your hands on things that don’t belong to you? That’s precisely why you needed a mother.” I pulled a deep drag off the cigar, the cherry red ember flaring in the darkness.
“You don’t know what you’re talking about. You didn’t see a thing.”
“What’s the story here?” Smee’s deep voice cut in.
As much as I respected the man, I’d sworn to protect Katherine. That, mixed with my own jealous rage, had already decided the boy’s fate. The commotion had awakened the entire camp, and they gathered to watch the spectacle.
“Brix here wagered that I wasn’t a man of my word. What’s worse, he thought so low of me that he didn’t expect I would always be ready to protect what’s mine.”
“No, it wasn’t like that. I never touched her!”
“What do you think, Katherine?” I started as I stalked toward my prey. “Should I skin him alive or sacrifice him to the bone faerie? I’ll let you choose.”
“James, I don’t think this?—”
“Peter taught me to take what I wanted,” Brix interrupted. “No reason a girl like her should be stuck with an old man when she can have a Lost Boy like me.”
“So, you admit it, you’re still a Lost Boy? Because if you think Pan will ever take you back, you truly are lost.”
“He will take me back. Once a Lost Boy, always a Lost Boy,” he said pridefully before letting out a raucous crow.
I shook my head, a chuckle coming out of me at his na?vety. “Crow all you want. He won’t be coming for you.” Brix would always be an immature boy at heart. And that heart belonged to Pan. “You’re a sorry excuse for a man. Still pandering to a boy who would prefer you were dead. The only thing you’ve learned is to treat people as though they’re nothing more than toys to be played with. But you can give your apologies to the Divine when you meet them.”
“You’re no better! Even as a boy, Peter Pan is more of a man than you’ll ever be!” he seethed.
Something inside me snapped, and the young man before me transformed into Peter. A lifetime of tragic memories breached the floodgates of my mind, drowning me in their darkness. His auburn hair was a mess around his head, falling into mischievous umber eyes that taunted me. But it was his cocky smile that broke my fragile hold on reality. Before I could contemplate my actions, my dagger was in motion. I slit his throat in one swift flick of my wrist. A sneer pulled at my lips as his cocky smile fell away.
The hot splatter of blood across my face pulled me from my downward spiral. Brix slumped to his knees, a river of crimson ruining his shirt. His last gurgled breaths filled the silence of the forest.
My gaze instantly turned to Kat. Her eyes were wide, and the color had drained from her cheeks. I could just make out the tremble in her lip, the quiver betraying her struggle to maintain composure. Was I no better than Peter fucking Pan? Had I proven that to her at this very moment? She thought I was a monster. I could see that clearly. But I was only a monster of Pan’s making. And the only way to tame the beast within me was to kill its maker.
“Let me make myself very clear,” I started, breaking the hushed silence that settled over the group. I stooped low enough to clean my blade off on Brix’s sleeve, driving home the threat without a single word. “Peter Pan, and anyone who follows him, is as good as dead. I will cleanse the island of that infernal boy and wipe his memory from Neverland’s history.
If you want to join me, pledge fealty to me as your captain. I can offer you a home on my ship, the Jolly Roger. Ensuring your safety, security, and full bellies. I will give you the sense of family that Pan robbed from you. Not to mention the chance to get the vengeance you so justly deserve.”
The men shifted on their feet. Their eyes darted to one another and, ultimately, to Brix’s lifeless body before Jukes finally spoke up.
“Does that mean I get to kill Lost Boys, too?”
I nodded solemnly. The idea of killing young boys wasn’t something that sat well with me, but I wouldn’t let anything, or anyone, get in my way. And if the Lost Boys were a casualty of war, then so be it.
“I’m in,” Jukes said, clamping a hand over his heart.
“Me too!” Mullins chimed in.
“And me,” Cookson added.
“Smee?” I asked. The older man had kept silent, allowing the group to make their own decisions. I’d just slaughtered one of the boys he’d worked so hard to save. I couldn’t be sure I hadn’t ruined any chance of an alliance between us. “I can’t make any promises. But if you follow me, I will find you answers about your son.”
“Honored to be at your service, Captain.”