CHAPTER FIFTEEN
After that wave of terror passed, I got up to pull the cell door shut and locked it, keeping the key. The battle was still raging and I didn t know if we would get more unwelcome visitors. I held my sword in my right hand and waited.
Those men were going to kill us. Quynh whispered the words. I wished more than anything that I could protect her from all of this.
Yes. They must be pirates. For years traders had complained about how prevalent pirate attacks were becoming. I had often wondered if that was how my brother had died.
But if these men were just pirates, how had they known Quynh and I were Locrian? And what ship we d be on? They d made it seem as if they had come here specifically to find us.
This attack wasn t random.
I heard someone yell, Retreat! and there was more shouting and the sounds of feet racing across the deck. I watched as the oars from the pirate ship sank down and cut into the water, propelling their ship forward. The crew of the Nikos roared their victory, congratulating each other, finishing off the men who hadn t made it to their ship in time.
I sat down next to Quynh and wrapped my arms around her. She was trembling and I hoped she couldn t tell that I was shaking, too.
Every time before this encounter had been practice for me. Pretend. When I d lunged at Polymedes or Telamon, I d never made contact. I d never truly stabbed someone before. I d never watched someone die.
It was more unsettling than I d thought it would be.
There was a splash, then another, and another. I realized that they were throwing dead bodies into the ocean. I wondered how many losses had been suffered on each side.
There were multiple sets of feet on the stairs, heading down. Jason came into the room with three other men. Without saying a word, the three men each grabbed one of the pirate bodies and began hefting them back upstairs.
I ll be on watch tonight, Jason said to me after the other men had left, and I wasn t sure why.
But he went up the stairs before I could ask.
He wants to talk to you, Quynh offered. Alone.
Why would he want that? I asked.
Maybe you should go and find out. He might have answers.
I hated not knowing things. Even when I d been a little girl, I had constantly pestered my tutors and parents to fill in the gaps in my learning. I wanted to know everything, to understand exactly how things worked and why, and hated when people couldn t explain it to me.
It was one of the reasons why my brother s death haunted me. No one could give me any details so that I could arrange the pieces together to my satisfaction.
Quynh could be right and Jason might have answers about what had happened tonight. I couldn t miss out on the opportunity to get them, especially since he was probably the only one on the ship who would share what he knew with me.
If I go, I ll lock the door and leave you both of my throwing knives, I said.
All I want to do is sleep. Her voice sounded anxious and stressed, and again I wished that I could take this burden from her. That I could run through the city alone.
Today had been just a small taste of what we d be facing. The worst was still to come.
The splashing had stopped and I heard the men settling into their hammocks in the decks above us. Jason had mentioned that during the day the rowers worked in shifts so that each man was given a chance to recuperate and rest. The rowers sang the same song over and over again in a foreign language. Since I d been forced to listen to it all day, the melody had been seared into my brain. Eventually I was able to phonetically sing along, even though I didn t understand what the words meant.
I knew from my interactions with the traders that nearly everyone on board slept at night, except for the men who kept watch.
And tonight Jason would be one of those men.
Within minutes Quynh was fast asleep. I eased her onto the floor and put the knives far enough away from her that she wouldn t accidentally roll over on them while sleeping but could still easily reach them.
I got up and let myself out of the cell, ensuring that the door latched before I locked it. I had put my xiphos back into my thigh sheath and kept the key in my hand. I didn t want anyone to be able to get into the cell without me there.
I went up the stairs quietly until I reached the top deck, half expecting a guard to jump out or to question me.
When I stepped foot on the planks, there was a granular feel there. As if someone had spread sand all over the deck. It was odd.
There was a lighthouse off to my right. I d never seen one in person before, only drawings. I knew they used mirrors to reflect the sun during the day, and fires to light them at night. It looked as if we had anchored not far from the shoreline.
Over here.
I couldn t see Jason, but I followed his voice. He was sitting in between the two steering paddles at the back of the boat, hidden in shadows. I approached him carefully, keeping an eye out. I didn t see anyone else. I crept over until I stood directly in front of him.
You should try to sleep, he said.
It was an odd thing to say, given that he had essentially invited me to join him. Unless Quynh and I had misunderstood. I m too worked up to sleep.
He nodded. So am I. It s why I volunteered to take this watch. If I d been on watch earlier, maybe I could have prevented all this. Kept everyone safe.
Some part of me liked the idea of Jason watching over me, protecting me. I was also thrilled by the knowledge that he could have torn those three men apart with his bare hands if he d chosen to.
I ve never seen anyone move the way that you do. The words were out before I could recall them. I didn t want him to know that I admired something about him.
You ve seen me move that way before. When I had you in my arms.
His silky, seductive words made the back of my neck prickle and sweat break out along my hairline.
I ve always been handy in a fight, he added, dismissing his skill as if it had been nothing.
Demaratus had trained with the greatest military the world had ever known, and even he did not move as quickly or as lethally as Jason had.
Although I told myself I was only here to find out what had happened, the truth was that I was drawn to him. He was my enemy, had been paid to bring Quynh and me to our deaths, and still I wanted him. The sheer deadliness I d seen from him earlier should have terrified me, but it had only served to make him even more attractive.
My heart quickened as I studied his face. I swallowed hard and all my questions flew out of my head. He was so beautiful, so masculine and strong, and I knew that he kissed as if he d been created solely for that purpose. The air between us became thick, making it hard for me to breathe.
My lips tingled in anticipation, urging me to take what I desperately wanted.
What did you come above deck for? he asked, his voice deep, an invitation. A pang of lust pierced me, making my stomach tighten with need, and it took all of my willpower not to climb into his lap and kiss him with everything I felt for him.
I came here . . .
But then my ability to speak left when he reached out and took my hand in his. He enveloped me with his warmth and strength. After a battle it s not uncommon for a soldier to fall onto the first willing woman he comes across, to remind himself that he s still alive.
That instantly cooled my ardor. I yanked my hand free, disgusted. Was that what this was to him? He saw me as nothing more than a body to be used, to remind him that he had lived?
Or was he implying that it had been my motivation? That I had come up here solely for that reason?
Either one was terrible.
My inclination was to leave and lock myself back up in my cell. But I still didn t have my answers about earlier and my curiosity would not let me exit with my dignity still intact. I came up here to ask you what happened.
He grinned. Well, when a man and a woman desire one another, they often begin by kissing and then-
I immediately interrupted him, ignoring the way his words heated my insides. I don t . . . I found myself incapable of saying I didn t desire him. I did.
Meanwhile he desired every woman that he d ever met.
Clearing my throat I said, I meant what happened with the attack.
He shrugged one shoulder, as if the battle had been routine. Pirates. They re fairly common. It s why we sail during the day and anchor close to the coast at night. It s not usually worth the risk for pirates to come this close to the shore. Not to mention that we aren t carrying any cargo worth stealing. I don t know what they were after.
Me. And Quynh. They were trying to steal us-not silks or spices or salt. I didn t tell him that, though.
I couldn t let myself trust him. To break down another barrier I d erected to keep him out.
Someone approached, and in the moonlight I saw that it was the captain. My fingers twitched, ready to go for my weapon.
Jason. He nodded to his first mate.
Captain.
Why have you released the prisoners? Was he about to order Jason to escort me back to my cell?
If they were going to flee, they would have done it when they had the chance, Jason said.
Nereus nodded, taking in this information. Make sure to wake the next man when your shift has ended.
I will.
The trierarch lingered for a moment, as if he wished to say something more, but instead he just turned on his heel and headed below deck. I wondered if he had a hammock with the other men or if he had his own private quarters.
Then I wondered why Jason hadn t shared all that he had seen and done during the fight near the cell. He hadn t reported to the captain that he d unilaterally decided to let Quynh and me keep the key. What else was he hiding?
Are you going to tell him that I m armed? I asked.
No. Jason s answer was quick, no hesitation.
Why didn t you try to take my weapon from me? I had wondered it ever since he d left after dispatching those pirates. Given how fast and strong he was, it would have been easy for him to do so.
I recognize a Daemonian xiphos when I see one. Which means you killed one and took it from him, or it was given to you from a Daemonian as a gift, and either way it means you are not someone to trifle with.
This pleased me, although it shouldn t have.
I don t envy the men of Troas, he added.
The way he spoke made it sound like he didn t plan on participating. You re not going to hunt me?
He went absolutely still, his intense gaze boring into mine. I would never hurt you.
And again, I believed him. Although why I took the word of and felt safe with a womanizing man who never stayed in one place for very long because he was saddled with substantial gambling debts, I wasn t sure.
At least you ll get a day or two of reprieve, he said as he turned his head to the left, toward the lighthouse. The pirates left a lot of holes in the hull that will need to be repaired before we set sail.
In a way, that s almost worse. I don t like delaying the inevitable.
Neither do I. And that honeyed tone was back, the one that promised all sorts of delights and pleasures if I would just agree.
I remembered my dream, of him kissing me, lying on top of me, while begging me to yield, to surrender.
There is no one here but us, he added. No one to see if you d like to reacquaint yourself with my other set of special skills.
A spike of desire struck me hard, making my legs feel weak. Maybe his suggestion, as repellent as I d found it, that those who survived a battle sought others out in order to remind themselves that they had lived merited some consideration.
Because I d never felt quite as alive as I had when he d kissed me.
It would be so easy to accept. To kiss him again in the shadows, to lose myself in his touch, to let him make me forget all that was coming.
A good memory to carry with me once we landed in Ilion.
Just as in my dream, I didn t want to say no.