by J F Rogers
“What are they going to do?” I asked Evan.
He shook his head.
The crowd stopped at the railing. King Aleksander approached. “What is this outcry?”
The captain stepped forward. “The apothecary confirmed the potion was uisge bàs.”
“Well…” King Aleksander clasped his hands behind his back. “There’s not much reason to possess a potion that accomplishes nothing but death.” He eyed Valter until Valter lowered his gaze, then moved on to the captain. “And I assume by the rope around Valter’s wrists that he stands accused.”
“Aye, Your Highness. They found a flask with the poison amongst his things.”
“I’m not aware how you run your ship, Captain. In my kingdom, we have processes for a man who stands accused. I expect that process to stand even on the high seas without my presence. I can’t imagine you planned to throw this man overboard without a proper trial?”
“Of course not, Your Highness.” His face reddened. “My men got a little…zealous.”
“Of course.” King Aleksander smiled at the men. “You want vengeance for your fallen men. I understand. But I daresay, once our blood has cooled, we’ll agree justice is better than vengeance.”
“I most emphatically agree, Your Highness.” The captain glared at his men. “I assure you this is not how we handle such matters at sea.”
“Then let us proceed.” With his index finger, King Aleksander lifted Valter’s chin and peered into his eyes. “Valter, you stand accused of killing seven men. How do you plead?”
“Not guilty, Your Majesty.” He licked his lips as if he wanted to spit something out.
King Aleksander dropped Valter’s chin and rubbed his fingers together as if removing Valter’s filth. “Have you an explanation for the uisge bàs in your possession?”
“Someone planted it there, Your Majesty.”
“Who, pray tell, has the motive to incriminate you?”
“I don’t know, Your Majesty.”
“Is it true that, during the night, you attacked the sailor at the helm to turn the ship around?”
Valter hung his head. “Aye.”
“For what purpose?”
“This is a fool’s mission.” Valter’s bulging eyes scanned the crowd. “We’re running from our home, our country. Not to gather troops to return and rescue our people or reclaim our lands, but to follow a crazy man who thinks he hears from God. We need to gather forces with the pech and take back what is ours.”
“Is that why you tried to kill me?” King Aleksander asked.
“We need leaders who will make the right decisions. Decisions to protect us…protect our lands. Kagan understood that. He made such decisions until you returned.”
“So, you admit to the assassination attempt.”
“What? I—”
“No need to confirm, nor deny. We heard your confession.” King Aleksander straightened to his full height, his regal posture giving off an aura of greatness. “Thank you for simplifying the investigation. Valter Scholz, I, King Aleksander of Bandia, convict you of murder and treason.” He faced the guard holding Valter’s bound arms. “Shackle him and put him with the ballast.”
“Your Highness, aren’t we going to throw him overboard?” a crewman asked.
“’Tis the rightful punishment for treason, Your Majesty,” another said.
“Indeed.” King Aleksander threw Valter a sidelong glance and frowned. “There is much to consider. But I won’t throw a man overboard without considering the facts. Rest assured, he will face punishment for his crimes, starting now. Lock him up.”
Chapter Twenty-Seven
◊◊◊
ROWAN AND I SAT in the captain’s quarters. Everyone else was either working, keeping watch, or sleeping. Sometimes I wished I had more to do. Hanging out with royalty on a ship was mind-numbingly boring. They blathered on as if they had control and accomplished very little. Their issues ranged from navigation and rations, to plans for making peace with whatever natives we came upon, to dealing with Valter’s continual complaints about someone stealing his food. He probably wanted more rations. But our rations were dwindling.
“So, I guess your betrothal to Valter is off, huh?” It was a dumb question driven by sheer boredom. Sitting next to her, watching her study supply charts and take notes was getting stale.
Rowan took a deep, satisfied breath as she studied parchments. “That’s a safe assumption.”
I glanced at the foreign scribbles. “I’m surprised your father didn’t kill him.”
“Indeed. The king I remember as a child wouldn’t have hesitated.” She swapped the parchment to another that looked identical, dipped her fountain pen into the ink, and jotted something down.
“Have you talked to him?”
She sighed and dropped the pen into its holder. “I tried. It’s dangerous to keep Valter on board, even in shackles. But my father insists he stay alive…for now.”
The boat lurched with a loud slap. Rowan and I braced ourselves.
Shouts sounded above decks.
I jumped past Rowan to see what was happening.
She caught my sleeve. “Why is it you always run toward trouble?”
“I don’t.” Did I? “I have to know what’s going on. Don’t you?”
“I want you to remain here with me, safe.”
“How am I supposed to stay safe if I’m not aware of the problem? Do you think we’re safer sitting here? What if we sink when we’d had a chance to get to a longboat?”
“Very well.” She rose. “But I’m going with you.”
The deck was wet, but there was no rain. The crew scurried about, shouting. A giant tentacle lined with suckers slapped the deck. Cahal thrust his battle-axe down, slicing the end off. Purple slime spurted from the wound, and the creature shrieked. The arms slithered away, and the creature dropped back into the sea.
“What was that?” someone hollered.
“’Twas a sàl samhanach.”
Wolf charged me, his dark hair tousled like a young mad scientist. “What were ye thinking? Are ye so daft as to run toward a giant sea creature? Ye put the princess in danger.”
I slapped my hands onto my hips. “What if that thing tore the ship apart? We could die down there.”
“For the love of all that is holy, Fallon, do yer job. Keep the princess safe.” He spun on his heels and raced toward the men lifting the severed tentacle.
“Aye,” the captain chimed in. “The chances of survival aren’t good if you leave the ship. But, in the direst of circumstances, if we must abandon ship, someone will fetch you. Until then, stow away in my quarters when danger arises.” He joined the other men and shouted more orders while Rowan and I retreated to the captain’s cabin.
A crewman ran up to the captain. “Sir, the sàl samhanach took out our rudder.”
The rudder? Isn’t that the thing that steers the ship?
****
I was beyond sick of life at sea. We drifted for weeks with minimal winds and no rudder. But the crew was optimistic. The stars guided them. To me, it was just a sky full of glowing dots. But, if we continued in the same direction, we’d have to hit land…eventually.
After a meager breakfast, Rowan and I took our daily walk on deck. The temperature had dropped. A bitter wind blew my hair into my face. “It’s so cold.” I rubbed my arms, wishing I had a sweatshirt, but I’d lost my pack during the fasgadair attack. Choppy waves slapped against the ship, making it sway more than usual. Good thing I’d finally gotten my sea legs.
A weary crewman approached the captain. “There’s a westerly gale.”
“Aye. A storm’s rolling in.” The captain gazed at the sea.
“What are your orders, sir?”
He narrowed his eyes toward the darkening west and sniffed. “Stow the aft sails. We don’t need this thing pushing us sideways. Raise the foresails and hope this wind pushes us ahead of the storm. We won’t
survive it without a rudder. But be on the ready to stow the sails at my command. We’ll need them if we make it through this.”
That didn’t sound promising.
“Aye, Captain.” The crewman turned on his heels and barked orders to others. The crew climbed and shimmied along the rigging.
“Take shelter below decks,” the captain ordered us.
On our way to the captain’s quarters, Evan rounded the corner and almost collided with Rowan. “Oh!” He bowed. “My apologies, Your Highness.” Then he dashed up the stairs.
Was Rowan blushing? She’d been acting strangely around Evan for days. I had to confirm my suspicions. “Do you like Evan?”
Her eyes bulged. “Wha—I—How—” Her cheeks grew redder.
“You do.” I chuckled. “It’s okay. I won’t tell. He’s a great guy. Cute too.”
Rowan laughed. “This is why I enjoy your company. You don’t treat me like royalty.”
“Sorry. My people aren’t so civilized. I don’t have the first clue as to how to treat royalty. Other than what I’ve seen on TV. But sorry, no. That’s not me. That is why you will forever be Rowan to me.”
“What is TV?”
“Uh.” How to explain? “Moving pictures?”
Her eyes bulged. “You have portraits that move?”
I needed to remember to be careful about what I mentioned from my realm. “Sort of.” The boat swayed. I grasped the bed’s railing to keep from falling and gazed out the porthole. The sky had darkened fast. “That doesn’t look good.”
The door burst open. Evan poked his head in the room, his eyes wild. “Come with us to the great cabin. We need to tie ourselves to the ship.”
The ship pitched forward as we followed Evan. We fell and slid toward the front of the ship into Pepin tied to a chair. I pulled myself up, fighting the ship’s sway. Wolf rushed to me. He helped tie me up as Evan helped Rowan. Rowan and I stared at each other. The fear on her face likely a mirror image of my own.
Everything not nailed down rolled from one side of the room to the other. The ropes burned my skin. Winds howled, wood groaned, and waves crashed. The door broke free of its hinges and flew toward us with a rush of water. I fought against the ropes as everything went black.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
◊◊◊
BARKING WOKE ME. I groaned. Where was the barking coming from? There were no dogs on board.
Every bone, every muscle, every fiber in my body ached. My head pounded. I blinked. A cool breeze rustled leaves, and intermittent light blinded me. I held my hand up to protect my eyes. Waves lapped upon the shore. Another bark startled me, and I nearly fell. I grasped a branch and steadied myself. How did I get in a tree?
My legs dangled over one branch while another, thicker branch supported my back. A dog barked at the trunk, leaping up at me. He stood on his back feet, front paws against the tree, staring up at me, his tongue lolled out to the side as he panted. I sat up and stared out toward the shore. I didn’t see any people or wreckage debris, just one set of footprints leading to the tree.
One set? Had I walked here and climbed myself? No way. I hadn’t regained consciousness until now. Had someone carried me and put me here? On purpose?
“Quiet, Rác.” A muscular guy in a sleeveless tunic approached the dog. “What have you trapped this time?” He peered through the branches. “A girl?” Running his hand through his black waves, he laughed.
I straightened and felt the lump on the back of my head. “It’s not funny.”
“Mm.” He sucked his cheeks in, and his eyes, straining to be serious, sparkled.
The guy knelt and allowed the dog to kiss his chin. “You needn’t have climbed the tree. I can assure you Rác is harmless.”
“I didn’t.”
“You didn’t what?”
“Climb the tree.”
“How’d you get up there?”
“I don’t know.”
He waved toward the footprints. “There’s only one set of prints.”
“I noticed.”
He cocked his head and squinted one eye. “Someone carried you across the beach and put you up there?” He paused as if expecting a confession. “Then where are they? There are no footprints leaving the tree.”
I shrugged.
“Why would anyone put you in a tree?”
“Good question.”
He scrunched his eyebrows together and scrutinized me as if wondering if he should help a compulsive liar…or a psycho. “Want me to help you down?” He held out his arms, planted his feet, and looked up at me. Deep dimples appeared as he smiled.
Guess he decided to help despite my mental state. But that wasn’t going to happen. I didn’t know him. I couldn’t trust him. What guy happily helped a potential psycho? And he was big. At least six feet. With menacing, straight eyebrows. And all dark. Dark hair, dark clothes, dark eyes, darkish skin. He looked like he could make himself scary if he wanted.
Yet there was something playful about him.
Didn’t matter. “I think I can jump.”
He took a step back and waved his arms as if relinquishing the space to me.
I leaned over. It was high. Too high. “Maybe I should…” Should I tell this guy I could change into a falcon? I’d have to give him my clothes to put somewhere for me to change. That wasn’t gonna happen. I should jump. It wasn’t that high.
“Maybe you should what?” He squinted up at me.
“How high do you think this is?”
“Six cubits, give or take.”
“Do you know how many feet that is?”
“Feet? You want me to walk up the tree and count the steps?”
“No.”
He ran his fingers through the thick mass on his head again. His waves fell back into place partially across his forehead.
“Are you sure you don’t want me to catch you?”
“No. I mean, yes.” The ground was sand. There’d be some give. Right? I had to stop overthinking it and jump. One…two…three… I pushed off and landed…hard. My left foot twisted outward, and pain shot up the inside of my ankle. “Ow!” I fell backward onto my butt.
“Are you hurt anywhere?” Dark Guy asked.
“I think…I twisted my ankle.”
“Here.” He reached out a hand. “Let me help you.”
I glanced at his hand, then his dark eyes, and my heart ached. Why’d he have to be so cute? I clasped his hand and tried to stand. “Ow!” A twinge sent my foot buckling underneath me, and I grabbed his arm for support. His eyes sparkled as he grinned. I pulled away and shifted my weight to my good foot.
“Lean on me. I have supplies at home.”
Home? His home? No. I nearly stepped back, faltered, then righted myself. “My friends might be hurt. We were shipwrecked.”
“I haven’t seen anyone. And you can’t search for them. Come with me. I can take care of your ankle and come back to check the beach while you rest.”
Sure. No problem. I was in another realm, in the middle of who-knows-where, shipwrecked without my friends. And I’m supposed to go with this strange guy? To his house? Where he could do who-knows-what? “I don’t think so.”
He put his palms up. “I promise you’ll be safe with me. I can’t promise you’ll be safe out here without me.” He offered his hand again. “What other choice do you have?”
“Ah…” The beach was bare for miles. Dunes, rocks, and bushes ringed the side opposite the ocean.
I hobbled up a sandy path lined with beach grass, trying to bear the weight on my right foot.
Dark Guy scooped me up. “Are you crazy?”
“What are you doing? Put me down.”
He dropped me, and I fell into him. My face grew hot as I peeled myself away and glared at him.
He smiled, and those dimples appeared. Rude. “You don’t have a choice. You can’t walk. Your friends aren’t here. What are you going to do when night falls, an
d this beach is crawling with crabs?”
“Crabs?”
“Yes. Big ones. With large pincers.” He pinched his thumb and pointer fingers together.
“I know what a pincer is.” I knocked his hand away. “Is that why I was in the tree? Someone was protecting me from crabs?”
He narrowed his eyes at me as if to say, “You’re still sticking to that sad story?” then crouched, wrapped my arm over his shoulder, and helped me hobble to a rock. “You sit here while Rác and I search the beach. If we don’t find anyone, you’re welcome in my home. I promise you, it’s much safer.”
I stared at him as if you could tell a person by their looks. Supposedly, Jeffrey Dahmer was charismatic. Well liked even.
I scanned the beach once more. I’d have to find shelter inland if I stayed. How would I do that with an injured foot? I had no tools. No pack. Did it get cold here at night?
I had no choice but to hope this guy wasn’t a cannibal luring me home for dinner. With a weak nod, I eased myself onto the ground.
Dark Guy whistled. Loudly. Then clapped his hands. Rác tore himself away from a shrub he’d been inspecting and bounded toward his master. Ears flying, tongue flapping to the side. The dog trusted him. Dark and Rác headed down the beach. They shrunk smaller and smaller until they were out of sight completely.
My stomach growled as I waited for their return. How far had they gone? Had they found anyone? Had they decided to leave me here? The sun hadn’t set yet, but it was on its way. When did the crabs come out? The bushes rustled behind me. Birds squawked as they flew overhead.
My ankle had blown up to almost twice its original size. I rested my head on my arms.
The dog blasted past me, kicking up sand. Dark Guy came up the beach from the other end. He circled behind me?
He sat next to me. Close. I shuffled away. Did he have no sense of personal space? “I checked the beach on both sides and the paths off the beach. There are no traces of people or any shipwreck debris.”
My stomach growled. How many rations had I missed?
Dark Guy laughed, stood, and held out his hand. “Now will you let me take care of your foot and get you food?”
