“Do not worry, my friend. Reid has everything arranged. All you will have to do is be beautiful and alluring as all brides are.”
“What was your wedding like, Merielle?”
She grimaced. “Huge. I was so new to town and everything was bigger and louder and more confronting than I had ever imagined. Nikolas was wonderful. He kept me calm. The ceremony was at the castle, of course, and everyone was there. I wore a cream sheath of satin and lace with a train five paces long. I tripped on it so many times that I am sure I was the biggest entertainment.”
“It must have been daunting,” Esta said. “Where did you come from?”
Merielle frowned. “I don’t like to think of where I came from.” Her voice had gone quiet and some of the joy seemed to leach out of her. “It was very different from the world I now inhabit.”
Esta sensed there was a story behind those words and longed to hear what trials could so affect her beautiful friend. “Perhaps one day you’ll feel ready to tell me of it,” she said.
“Perhaps.”
Merielle didn’t sound at all sure that day would come. She fell silent and then appeared to shake off her melancholy. “I shall ring for more tea and we can finalize the menu. You will be far better at that than I. My tastes are a little strange at times.”
Esta had noticed Merielle’s odd palate, preferring sea food on the raw side and shunning meat and vegetables. It didn’t make sense but Esta had become used to her quaint habits. “I have a good idea of what the menu should look like. I think a buffet will be best and we’ll choose a wide range of meats and fish as well as hot dishes and breads.”
They still had their heads together laughing over one of Merielle’s dessert suggestions when the sound of boots came from the hall. Esta glanced up at the door to find the hostile eyes of Nikolas Cosara upon her.
Merielle pushed herself up from the chair and flung herself into his arms. He clasped her tightly and a pang of jealousy gripped Esta. She wanted that love for herself…oh, not Nikolas but the devoted and passionate love of a strong man who would meet her half way.
Merielle wiped her eyes as she stood back to admire her husband. “You have lost weight, darling,” she said. “It is fortunate that you are back early. Imagine what another week at sea would have done to your body.”
His body looked fine to Esta, more than fine. Why, if she looked at Nikolas with eyes half-closed, she could almost imagine… she pulled herself up short. She should not be looking at Merielle’s husband like that, even if she were imagining another, similar man. Goddess, I should look at no other man but Reid!
Reid, Reid! Her face heated under the admiral’s scrutiny.
“Lady Aranati,” Nikolas said. “I didn’t expect you here. To what do we owe the pleasure?”
“Let me tell him, Esta.” Merielle pulled Nikolas to the table and poured him a cup of tea. She ushered him into a seat and heaped a plate with pastries. “Esta is to be married to a fine man. You may know him—Reid Vetta, the Master Goldsmith.”
“I do know him.” Nikolas relaxed into his chair. “When is the happy event?”
“In two weeks, Admiral,” Esta said. “I’m pleased you returned early so that you could be a part of it. Merielle wouldn’t wish to be there alone.”
“No, I did not but now it is no longer a concern.” She frowned. “Unless you are to leave again very soon. Are you?”
“That depends, on several things.” Nikolas stared at Esta as if she was the key.
“You must tell us over lunch,” Merielle said. “If you will excuse me, I shall go and make sure the meal is ready.” She bustled out, not seeming to notice the tension between her husband and friend.
“I have a question for you, Lady Aranati.” Nikolas fixed her with an icy stare. “Where is Samael Delacost?”
Esta sat up straight but couldn’t stop her fingers fiddling with the parchment in front of her. “I have no knowledge of his whereabouts.” What did he think she was? The man’s keeper?
“Ah, but you could take an educated guess, could you not?”
Esta didn’t know what to think but she was not about to reveal Samael to his brother. She had already done enough harm. “I have no idea. Where do you think he is?”
Nikolas laughed. “Perhaps you don’t know at that. I had a nagging feeling that I had heard of Samael Delacost before but I couldn’t remember where. It’s tickled my mind ever since we met and then over the last two weeks, there has been an increase in piracy on the seas I control. Violent acts by these pirates have killed and maimed honest merchants plying their trade between Shawmere and Eagle’s Reach. The name on everyone’s lips is the Singing Pirate. I have heard that name linked with Samael Delacost.”
Esta feigned shock. “I had no idea. Are you sure?”
His hand hit the table and Esta jumped. “You know damned well who that man is. I wonder how you came to know a pirate. I also wonder what I would find if I delved into your finances, Lady Aranati, so you had better cooperate with me or I’ll have the royal accountants go through your ledgers.”
Esta couldn’t hide her dismay, not to this man who seemed to read her like a book. “I’d rather not tell you how I know Samael.”
“I thought not.” He paused, watching her like a seagull watches a fish. “Listen, I don’t wish to cause trouble for you, however I can’t have this man raiding the seas to his heart’s content, especially when people are being hurt.”
“That doesn’t sound like Samael,” she said. “Are you sure?”
“As sure as I can be. He has a Lenweri crew.”
Esta sighed. “Perhaps there is another captain using elven sailors?”
Nikolas merely raised one brow and fixed her with a stare that chilled her belly. Esta tried to remain silent, to wait for him to take the lead, but in the end she couldn’t endure it any longer.
“What do you want of me?”
“You’re the only link I have with him at the moment. I want you to help me find him before he causes more trouble.”
Esta’s heart threatened to beat its way out of her chest. “What will you do with him?”
“Prison for the rest of his life if he is guilty,” Nikolas said.
Esta took a deep breath and closed her eyes, battling feelings she should not have for Samael Delacost. Was this her moment of choice? A critical moment when she must choose the correct path or forever regret? Could she truly leave her old life behind, turn her back on the man who had saved her more than once? Did she owe him anything?
“I’m waiting for your decision, lady,” Nikolas said.
Esta’s eyes flashed open to take in his uncompromising visage. “Do you feel naught for your brother?”
“You’ll not mention that again!”
“Open your eyes, man,” Esta snapped. “He is the image of Vitavia and you and he share many features. If you weren’t so stubborn you could have acknowledged him weeks ago and then maybe this wouldn’t be happening. I lay this at your feet!”
Her words silenced him and Merielle walked back into a room thick with tension.
She looked from one to the other. “What are you fighting about?”
Esta rose. “I’ll leave you to talk.” She kissed Merielle’s cheek. “Call me when you’re ready for lunch.”
“You’re not leaving until I know what this is about,” Merielle said, surprising Esta with the edge of steel that infused her words.
Esta looked at Nikolas. “Should I tell her or will you?”
He sighed and stood. They all waited as he paced the length of the room and then back again. Finally he turned to Merielle. “I have reason to believe Samael Delacost is my half-brother.”
Merielle gasped, her hands flying to her mouth and tears springing to her eyes. She let out a long breath. “That is the most wonderful news I have had since Esta told me Reid had proposed. I thought he looked familiar. Now I know he reminded me of you.” She went to her husband and pulled him into her arms. His eyes found Esta’s as he
cradled his wife.
“I don’t understand,” Merielle said, pulling back. “What is there to argue about?”
Nikolas frowned. “I don’t wish to admit he is my brother.”
“Why Nikolas?” she said. “You have no immediate family. This man is a gift from the Goddess. Remember how lonely you were before I came along?”
“He’s a pirate, damn it!” Nikolas snapped. “I can’t have a brother who is a thief, not in my position.”
Merielle frowned. “Oh, well, I can see that might be awkward… but he is your brother. How could you allow something so trivial to come between you? You would never have allowed this with Jon.”
Nikolas’s face turned red. “You of all people should know better than to bring my little brother into this. How dare you!”
Esta wished the floor would open up and swallow her. But it was intriguing. There was some issue over Jon that caused trouble for this pair of lovebirds.
“I am sorry, beloved,” Merielle said. “You are right of course. But the fact remains. You need this man.”
“Need him like a hole in the head!” Nikolas pulled away to pace back and forth across the room, his fists bunched at this side. “When I think of what the King and Queen will say when they hear…”
Esta moved in front of him to halt his restless pacing. It was careless of her for she hardly knew the man and didn’t know how he’d react to anything she did. “Don’t tell them,” she said. “Please?”
He scowled at her. “What’s he to you? Why do you care?”
Esta swallowed her fear. “I owe him for my life. You can’t bring trouble down upon him. It was at my insistence that he even told you he was your brother.”
Nikolas looked skyward, shaking his head. “So you feel guilty. It’s not your fault. He’s the one boarding ships and robbing people. I would have been drawn into this eventually.”
“What will you do?” Esta asked.
Nikolas took a deep breath, looked at Merielle and then at her. “I’m going after him.”
“I wish you would reconsider,” Merielle said.
“I’m going with you—” The words were out of Esta’s mouth before she had time to think and she clamped her jaw shut to stop any more impulsive decisions escaping. But when she thought about her alternatives, she realized it was the only thing to do.
Merielle gasped. “You cannot go, Esta, you have a wedding to attend.”
Esta looked at Nikolas. “We may be back before then,” she said.
He shook his head. “I wouldn’t count on it. This will be an open ended mission. No way to tell how long it will take.”
The enormity of what she had said was beginning to dawn on Esta. She was about to postpone her wedding to sail off in search of a man who should mean nothing to her. Oh yes, Samael Delacost had saved her and made her heart race and brought more excitement to her in a few short days than she had known in her entire life before meeting him. Who was she deceiving? He was important to her or she wouldn’t even consider upsetting Reid and risking everything she had worked on for the last weeks and months.
As Esta stood staring into space, Merielle appeared in front of her. “Please, Esta you cannot take to the high seas in pursuit of this man.”
Esta huffed out a breath. “I thought you would support me, knowing how important this is for your husband.”
“You cannot throw everything away now. Nikolas has enough sailors to help him find his brother. He doesn’t need you.” She turned to her husband. “Tell her not to be silly.”
“If she wishes to come, I’ll not stop her. I suspect that Lady Aranati might have an idea of where I might find the pirate.”
Merielle scooted back to her husband. If she were not so appalled at what she had just offered to do, Esta could have giggled at the sight of her hostess, upset and desperate, flying from one to the other trying to convince them she was the only sane person in the room.
“Why now, Nikolas? If you must chase after your brother, why must you go now? Wait until after the wedding. Reid will not understand. I just know Esta is risking everything.”
Nikolas’s face hardened. “Her choice. And stop calling him my brother. I’d rather not think of him that way.”
Merielle’s fists bunched and her body trembled. Esta thought she might strike Nikolas. “You are so stubborn. Why am I surrounded by stubborn people?” She stared at her husband for long moments and then spun and left the room, slamming the door.
Nikolas looked at her. “If you really mean to accompany me in the search, be ready to leave in fifteen minutes.” He too left the room, the heels of his boots echoing down the hall.
Esta paused for mere moments before following him. She had made her decision, or her heart had, and now it remained for her to see if she could save Samael from himself and bring the brothers together.
Chapter 17
Samael Delacost was on his ship sailing through high seas to the north. He had offloaded his goods and received a handsome price in Shawmere, then spent a week repairing and cleaning Silver Lady. By now, a week down the track, it should be safe to return to one of his secret harbors.
They had a smooth run north despite the big swells and he was looking forward to reaching his island home, Pirate’s Rest. It was his most used retreat, an island shaped like a horse shoe with deep water mooring and a narrow channel out to the open sea. He had makeshift huts there and permanent fire pits. Inland was a spectacular waterfall where he liked to swim. Over the years, Sam had planted all manner of fruit trees and they had thrived in the sheltered spot. He dreaded the day when it was claimed by another pirate but so far they had only detected the occasional visit by others.
As they neared the island, he gave the order to trim the sail so that they could prepare for entry into the narrow channel that would take them into the harbor. Navigating that channel was a task many captains would shun and that was why Sam had this haven to himself. A ship of Silver Lady’s size shouldn’t be forced to squeeze through these towering cliffs but Sam had never scraped even one splinter off her hull. The Lenweri were gifted sailors and without them, the task would have been more difficult.
Sam smiled as he looked forward to the next few days, lying in a hammock in the sun, partaking of the sweet fruits of his labor, both on the island and those he had purchased in Shawmere. He deserved his reward—he did. He had mouths to feed. One day he’d retire and perhaps enter the world of legitimacy but not for now. Not after his experiences in Wildecoast and with his brother. That place was more dangerous than the high seas by far, for his life and his heart.
Esta Aranati. Where was she at this moment? Was she still slaving away on her estate? Even he could tell that wouldn’t last forever. Sooner or later there would be a tough season and the estate would fail. He hated to think of Esta going hungry, scouring her books to try and locate the savings that would allow her farm to function for another year. But she had other options. She could marry a rich man before she was too old to have children and so save her lands and people. He saw in his mind’s eye a contented Esta, surrounded by her children, an older husband by her side. Any man would be proud to call her wife—except him.
The thought struck at his belly like a knife wound. He could have saved her estate, given her a ship, but he couldn’t give her himself and that was what she needed more than anything in this world. Esta needed a partner to help her in life. He could never be that man, not if he gave up the life of a pirate, not if he turned his back on the ocean and lived the rest of his days on land. It wasn’t in him. And so he would never see her again. Sam couldn’t bear to see her with another man, a man who might make her happy and secure but not excite her as he knew he could.
Damn it! His thoughts were whirling round and round, telling him the same things they always did. But his heart was with Esta. Somehow he’d have to convince his heart to give her up. And while he was at it, he would convince his soul to stop hoping for a brother to fill that void he seemed to have—that had al
ways been there. The missing piece of the puzzle he could never quite find. Nikolas.
The mouth of the harbor opened before him and Nande turned the ship into it without a word from Sam. Tonight they would feast on pig and he would drink until the thoughts of all that he might have had were silenced.
Esta knew freedom for the first time in weeks as she breathed in the salty spray picked up by the freshening wind. She longed to take the wheel and send this beauty over the waves but she couldn’t give away her sailing knowledge. Already it had been nigh on impossible to hide her familiarity. Nikolas’s eyes were constantly upon her as if he tried to solve a difficult puzzle. She looked up at the foretop castle where her sister perched and they shared a smile. Katrine had been at Wildecoast in her rooms waiting for her when she and Nikolas had returned from his estate. It was as if she had known Esta needed her, but of course she had returned home to the news of the wedding and set out in search of her older sister. Mother would have been pleased about that; Katrine had spent only one night with her before setting off for Wildecoast.
The two women were attired in breeches and tunic with white undershirts and scarves to keep their hair tidy. Esta wore an orange satin sash around her waist and had knives tucked into her boots. The sailors had laughed when they boarded but one look from Katrine had silenced them. Esta didn’t care how her sister had changed as long as she was here with her, but there might be trouble from those who feared her silver-flecked eyes.
Her stomach churned like a bucket of bait fish. They hunted Samael. What would he do if they found him? Would he run from them and perhaps risk his life and that of his crew? She couldn’t see Samael surrendering without a fight and of that she was terrified. Not for her own life but for the man who had been her savior. Hanging onto a line, she closed her eyes and recalled all the occasions when he had moved her. Samael Delacost had gotten under her skin and there was no digging him out. Was there a deep hidden part of her that still longed for a life with him?
She opened her eyes to the bight silver gaze of her sister.
The Lady and the Pirate Page 13
