10. Adrian
Adrian
Ihad no idea if Maralda could get it off.
But I wasn’t going to tell her that.
I also wasn’t sure if the blasted thing was cursed. It certainly generated a… strange aura, but I held no magic power and couldn’t be sure.
I easily navigated the halls of my ship, ones I could move through with my eyes closed.
“We need to prepare to set sail,” I said to Connie.
She looked at me with wide eyes and a scrunched brow, the way she’d been looking at me ever since I came back with a princess slung over my shoulder.
“And we’re just leaving with our… guest?” she asked.
“We are,” I said, not feeling like clarifying.
The way I convinced her didn’t sit well with me. I lied. I was a pirate, for moons sake. I did what I had to do. But there was a weight in my chest when I thought about lying to her.
Especially when I thought about the kiss we shared last night.
“You think that’s wise?” she asked. “People will ask questions.”
“She’s not meant home for a month, and had no prior obligations.”
The door opened and Bramwell walked inside. “It doesn’t seem like anyone has noticed anything.” He still had his formal wear on, looking so unlike himself. “How are we sneaking her back in?”
“We aren’t,” Connie said, contempt clear in her tone. “We’re taking her with us.”
Bramwell’s eyes blew wide. “We’re what? We can’t kidnap a princess. It’s too risky.”
“We’re not kidnapping her,” I said, my patience wearing thin. “She’s agreeing to come.”
His eyebrow shot up. “She did?”
I nodded. “You can ask her yourself. Her door’s unlocked.”
“Whether she agrees or not, we can’t just go gallivanting around with a princess. It’s not safe, for her or the crew.”
My tongue pressed to the top of my mouth hard, a technique Tungesten had taught me to stay calm when my instant reaction was to lash out.
A real captain listens to his crew. They also want for your success.
I was careful with my next words, my old mentor’s voice clear in my head. “It’s the best chance we have. This mission is important. And she needs our help too.”
That fear in her eyes was unmistakable. Her panic was almost palpable on my tongue.
Did she ever… feel anything from the necklace?
Though my client told me a bit about the necklace, it wasn’t nearly enough, and there was no information otherwise.
The kingdom was set on burying almost all information on the matter.
It made sense. Whatever it did had people of the highest bidding vying for it, especially if they were sending the likes of me after it.
The thing was strong enough to completely shatter a magestone.
Whatever magic was inside was ancient and powerful.
And most likely dangerous. Sweeping it all under the rug and acting like nothing had happened was for the best.
But I could see the way Sage worried the moment I said it was cursed. It seemed everyone started to ignore it, even her.
“I don’t like it,” Connie said. “Whatever this rich bloke is offering you, it’s not worth it.”
I set my jaw. Normally, I told the crew everything, especially these two.
When the offer was made to potentially find Tungesten’s killer, I couldn’t turn it down, but I couldn’t be honest about it either.
I could live with the false hope it gave me, but I couldn’t put that burden on them.
His death was a shock to us all, and… though these two people were the closest I’d ever known, deep down, I wasn’t even sure I trusted them with this.
His disappearance was too… specific. Too targeted for my liking. Almost feeling like an inside job. And even though Coltar, my right hand at the time, and I spent meticulous amounts of time combing through the crew and any evidence we might have had, we kept coming up blank.
And then once Coltar was dead, it felt like I was on an island by myself. No one to truly help me. Even if I was sure they had nothing to do with it, they cared about him too, and this false hope didn’t need to weigh on them too.
“We’re doing this,” I said, with a finality I reserved for only the most important moments.
She sighed, knowing I had no plans to budge, and she still had to do her job. “I’ll prepare the crew.”
Connie got up, irritation obvious as she left the room, slamming the door behind her.
Bramwell and I sat in a tense silence. I could feel his gaze boring a hole into the side of my face. “Is there something you’d like to say?” I asked, feeling sick of the arguments.
He shrugged casually, as he did often. Though he was quick witted, he was a soft-spoken man. Something I quite enjoyed about him normally. Only spoke when he knew it was necessary, making people actually listen when he chose to.
“She’s upset,” was all he said.
“I’m aware,” I said. “There’s not much I can do about it for now. She’ll come to her senses soon.”
“Is she the one meant to do that?”
I turned my body to meet him fully. “Please speak plainly.” This conversation was starting to weigh on me, and there was already so much at stake.
“Whatever this odd man offered you must be important. You’ve never shared with us, and you’re going to great lengths to complete a job we would otherwise always pass up.”
His words weren’t wrong, though they prickled irritation up my neck.
A real captain listens to his crew. They also want for your success.
Sometimes I wished to shoo away that steadying voice in my mind that spoke nothing but reason.
“I’ve always trusted your judgement,” Bramwell continued on. “And will continue to do so. You are our captain, after all. Just… understand the belief you’re asking us all to have.”
Suddenly, the fight left in me sunk from my shoulders. Continuing to listen was again the right thing to do. “I understand,” I said. “And your trust always means everything to me. Just know I would never put us at this much risk, if not for an important reason.”
Bramwell nodded. “Very well. I’ll chart us ahead. Where are we going?”
“The Tyrell forest,” I said. “Before we go, though, I need you to do me one last favor.”