But Connor could take care of himself and, for now, her place was here with the Nocturnals. She could see that Johnny was still watching her, as his ship receded into the night. With some difficulty, she pulled away and turned her face toward Obsidian Darke.
Was he really the Vampirate captain? It was such a big adjustment to make. When he had been disguised beneath a mask and cloak, he had instilled deep fear in others but never in her. Now that he bore a human face, she found him far more disconcerting.
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Hearing footsteps behind her, Grace turned and glanced over her shoulder. She saw Mosh Zu and Darcy walking together across the deck. They must have crossed over from The Nocturne . Grace was pleased to see them again, but nervous. She and Darcy had last parted company in an angry fashion, and it had all been Grace's fault. Would Darcy forgive her? As the two comrades reached the line, Mosh Zu set off to take his place at the end. Before Darcy could follow him, Grace reached out a hand and grabbed her, pulling Darcy into the space beside her. Darcy looked surprised but pleased. She smiled sweetly at Grace, and it seemed clear that she too was anxious to put any unpleasantness behind them. They stood side by side. The lineup was complete.
Suddenly the silence was broken. "Jacoby!" Jasmine cried. "Jacoby!"
All eyes turned to Jasmine and then followed the direction of her pointing finger. She was gesturing at The Diablo . The ship was almost completely shrouded in darkness now, but two new figures had stepped forward to enter the lineup. Johnny was no longer alone at the center of the ship. He had been joined by his fellow deputy, Stukeley. And there, at Stukeley's side, was Jacoby Blunt.
"Jacoby!" Jasmine cried again.
Jacoby stared out across the widening gulf, but he didn't seem to see her. He didn't seem to see any of them. There was a strange, disconnected look in his eyes. Was he the Vampirates' prisoner? No one seemed to be hold
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ing him, and his shirt was soaked with blood. A cold current of fear pulsed through Jasmine's heart. Had the unthinkable already happened?
Her question remained unanswered as the gap between The Tiger and The Diablo widened and the Vampirate vessel was, at last, swallowed up by the night.
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45 HEARTBEATS
"Connor," Kally said. "Are you sure you want to do this? It's not too late for Sidorio to sire him. You could still bring Bart back."
Connor remembered the night six weeks earlier when he, Bart, and the rest of Cheng Li's crew had gathered at the Full Moon Saloon. Connor saw, as clear as day, Bart smashing his fist against the palm of his other hand. "A short life but a merry one. That's what I signed up for. When I die, bury me deep as hell where no vampire can dig me up and have me join his crew."
The fire in Bart's eyes as he had said those words was still vivid in Connor's head as he turned back to Kally. "No," he said, shaking his head. "As tempting as it is, for my sake, I just couldn't do that to him." He had made a
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promise to his friend, and he would honor it. He looked back across the water to Bart's corpse, laid out on the sand. "He deserves a proper death and the peace that follows. That's the one thing left I can do for him."
"You're sure?" Kally asked once more.
Connor nodded. He was about to swim back for Bart but hesitated, turning to Kally. "Before we set out," he said, "there's something I wanted to tell you."
She looked up at him, her rainbow-colored eyes full of curiosity.
"Yesterday, I had a dream about you," Connor said. "It was about meeting you in Calle del Marinero and sailing with you guys on The Lorelei ."
Kally's eyes brightened. "Connor, you remembered! At last!"
Connor nodded. "I dreamed we went swimming from the boat. It was nighttime. You and the other fishtails were already under the water. Bart, Jez, and I followed after you. The water was dark at first, but then it was filled with colored lights, like lasers." Connor smiled at the memory. "The lights were coming from you and the other fishtails. You were so beautiful, Kal--like an underwater angel."
As Connor stopped speaking, he saw that there were fresh tears in her eyes. "You really did remember," she said at last.
"Yes," he said, swimming closer to her. "And I
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remembered one more thing." He paused. "You were falling in love with Bart."
Kally said nothing. She closed her eyes, but this didn't stop her tears. Connor leaned forward and drew the fishtail into his arms. He held her there as she released the sobs that had been building inside her. As he comforted her, Connor couldn't help thinking of Cate. She had loved Bart, too--for such a long time. She was going to be devastated when she learned of his death--perhaps all the more so if she knew that he had been planning to propose to her on his return. The ring had been in Bart's pocket, and now Connor had it. His first thought had been to deliver it to Cate, but he was no longer sure whether that was the right thing to do. Maybe it would just cause Cate too much pain.
At last, Kally grew peaceful again and opened her eyes. "What's next for you, Connor?" she asked. "Will you go back to Sidorio? Or to Cheng Li? Or will you embark on some new journey altogether?"
Connor had no answers. "I don't know what I'm going to do," he said. "All I know is nothing will ever be the same again. I can't even begin to think about my future until I've said good-bye to Bart."
Kally nodded. "Come on, then," she said gently. "Let's take him out for a swim."
Connor took one of Bart's arms and Kally the other. Together, the three friends began their journey out to the deep ocean.
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"There's this prayer," Connor told Kally as they swam away from the beach. "Bart spoke it at Jez's funeral. I think I'd like to say it for him."
"Great idea," Kally said.
"I know how it begins," Connor said, "but I'm not sure I can remember the whole thing."
Kally smiled up at him. "Whatever you can manage will be fine," she said.
Connor began speaking the words as he swam.
"Mother Ocean, Father Sky,
Send this pirate to his rest.
He was one among the best--
Set his spirit free to fly.
Brother Sun and Sister Moon,
Bathe him in your balmy light.
Now no longer need he fight--
The one you called back far too soon.
Lightning, thunder, wind, and rain,
Let his cutlass blunt and rust--"
Connor broke off. Tears were streaming down his face.
"It's okay," Kally said. "It doesn't matter if you can't remember any more. Bart will understand."
Connor shook his head. "I do remember it. I don't know how, but I do. The worst part is, in my head, I can hear Bart speaking it at Jez's funeral. And now..." he broke off. "And now..."
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Kally nodded and smiled reassuringly at him. They swam on for a time in silence. They were a good distance away from the shore now. Both the air and the water were cooler here. Connor was aware of Kally watching him, though his head was turned away from her. He didn't want to catch her eye. He was sure he knew what she was going to say.
At last, Kally spoke. "Connor, I think we're far enough out now."
He sighed, and stopped swimming.
"Are you ready?" she asked.
Treading water, he shook his head sadly. "I could never be ready for this moment." He looked once more at Bart's face, fresh tears coursing down his own cheeks. "All right," he told Kally. "We'll do this. Just let me say good-bye to him."
She nodded. Connor gripped Bart's hand and tried to stem the flow of his tears. "Bart, all I really want to say is that you've been the best friend I've ever known. From the very first night we met--you let me take your bunk, remember?--to the last." He took a breath. "I'm going to miss you so much, buddy." He shook his head. There was so much more he wanted to say, but he was too upset to give voice to the words.
"That was perfect," Kally told him. "Do you think it wou
ld be all right if I kissed him good-bye?"
Connor nodded. He watched as Kally stroked the hair back from Bart's forehead, then traced her fingers along
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his cheek. At last, she kissed him lightly on his lips. "Sleep tight, beautiful Bart," she said.
Kally released her hand from Bart's and waited for Connor to do the same. Connor could feel the weight of Bart's body sinking beneath the surface. His heart lurched. He wasn't ready. This was so final. His hand kept hold of Bart's, and now he felt himself being pulled under the water, following his dear friend.
Connor kept hold of Bart's hand as they sank slowly down from the bright, clear waters to the dark waters below. Kally followed close beside. As the waters grew too dark to see ahead, her tail became illuminated, and suddenly the ocean was filled, as Connor had remembered in his dream, with a rainbow of lights.
And so the three of them continued their journey right down to the ocean bed. In spite of everything he hated about being a dhampir, Connor was grateful that he could now breathe underwater and so accompany Bart on his final journey.
One thing that he still couldn't do, but that Kally could, was to speak underwater. "This is a beautiful spot, don't you think?" she said now.
Connor glanced around at the coral and other vegetation on the ocean floor. It was like a garden in a way, full of color and life. As they laid Bart down and made him comfortable, a vibrant school of fish swam by, lingering for a moment, as if greeting the new arrival.
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Kally touched Connor's arm. "He'll never be lonely here," she said. "I promise you, Connor."
Connor nodded. Bart looked peaceful now. He knew it was time to say good-bye.
Connor took one last look at that friendliest of faces, then felt Kally tug at his own hand.
"Ready to swim back up?" she asked.
He nodded. At last, he was.
On The Vagabond , Lola opened her cabin door to find Sidorio sitting, waiting for her. It was evident that he was in a pensive mood.
"I gather we've sustained our first defeat," Lola said. "But it's only a temporary setback, my darling. When the dust settles, we'll reconfigure our crews and come back stronger and harder than ever, I promise." She strode over to the freshly filled decanter and poured vintage blood into two glasses. She offered one to Sidorio. He accepted it but, unusually for him, did not immediately drink.
Frowning, Lola took a much-needed sip from her own glass.
Sidorio bore a haunted expression. "What's the point of this?" he asked.
"The point of what?" Lola asked, disturbed but disguising her feelings with a casual, upbeat tone.
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"All this fighting," Sidorio said. "The expansion of our empire. Remind me, Lola. What are we doing it for ?"
Lola could no longer control her feelings. "I can't believe you're asking me this!" she said. "It scares me to hear you talk this way."
Sidorio's sorrowful eyes met his wife's. "Connor has gone, and it's clear he won't be coming back. He doesn't want any part of our world. And now it transpires that Obsidian Darke was a fraud--the captain of The Nocturne in disguise. He led my crew into battle and half of them to their destruction. He played us for fools."
Lola frowned at this confirmation of earlier rumors. "What about Grace?" she asked. "I always thought she had more potential than her brother."
"Gone," Sidorio said, shaking his head slowly. "Grace chose to side with her former allies. She went back to The Nocturne with Darke and his crew." He turned to Lola, his eyes empty and desolate. "Both of my children have gone, and they're not coming back. Don't you see why that makes all of this feel utterly meaningless?"
Lola took another steadying sip of her drink and stepped closer to Sidorio, running her fingers across his smooth head. "Sid, I can see you're feeling low, but I promise you'll feel back to your old self again soon." Her voice grew steelier as she proceeded. "We began building this empire before we even discovered that Connor and Grace were your blood kin, and now that they are gone, we must continue our work."
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He gazed up at her. "I'm sorry; I just don't know if I have the fight in me anymore."
"You must find it again," she said, fire brimming in her dark eyes. "Connor and Grace were always going to prove problematic heirs. The human side of their nature would always have held them back--and us too." She drank another draft. It was fine blood--liquid velvet on the tongue. "I know this is difficult, but you have to let them go."
"I can't just... let them go," he said. "Whether they are purebloods or half and half, Connor and Grace are mine. They're the only children I'll ever have."
Lola smiled and set down her glass. "That's where you're wrong," she said. Now she reached for Sidorio's free hand and lifted it until his thick palm rested on her belly. As she did so, he watched her, his eyes wide with wonder. He glanced down at his hand, noticing that Lola's stomach was rather more curved than he remembered it. How had this escaped his notice? His eyes traveled back to meet hers. They seemed to dance with light.
"Do you feel the heartbeats?" she asked him.
"Heart beats ?" He directed all of his focus to his hand and Lola's belly, utterly still and silent. At first, nothing. Then, to his amazement, he did feel them. Two beating hearts. He shook his head and smiled up at his beautiful, extraordinary wife.
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