The Blood Reaver
Page 11
With fair skies ahead and the wind at their back, the Melinoe glided gently into Perranporth Cove beneath the enormous citadel of Perran Castle, and the anchor was thrown into the soft, white sand bottom. Then, and only then, did Lucifer breathe a sigh of relief, for his ship had come home safely and the booty they’d collected from an ill-placed merchant vessel near the coast of Ireland was quickly offloaded and taken up to the great vaults of the castle.
Lucifer was the last man to leave the ship, heading up to the castle as carpenters began to comb over the Melinoe to repair what damage there was from the Spanish cannonballs. It was barely mid-morning, but Lucifer was already thinking about a good meal and a soft bed. He’d been at sea with his men for nearly eight days, so he was anxious to see what had gone on in his absence and administer Constantine’s empire as best he could. But he was seriously thinking that all of that could wait until he’d been fed and rested.
Except for the women captives. His conversation with Remy had brought them to light again, something he’d put aside for so long that thinking of them again brought instant distaste. Damnation, he’d already put them off long enough, and something was nagging at him to see to the women before he took care of his own needs. Given that there was some guilt with the way the women had been caged up for so long, he didn’t want to put it off any longer. He needed to get it over with, and the women had to know they hadn’t been forgotten and that their fates would soon be determined.
In hindsight, his choice to visit the captives that day would be a decision that changed his life.
Read the rest of SEA WOLFE by Kathryn Le Veque