Privateer (The Five Kingdoms #1) Page 5

  I took three deep breaths to calm down, then it was my turn to offer a tiny bow of my head. "You are right. It is my turn to apologize for jumping to the wrong conclusion."

  "Accepted," she said. "May I finish dressing?"

  I nodded and backed out of the room.

  The woman was confounding. I began to wonder whether it would be possible to remove her from the ship sooner rather than later. I moved to the other end of the passageway and stepped out onto the deck, securing the doorway open to the night air. It was a cool but not cold night, and the fresh air tasted good. My eyes glanced up to the sails and saw they were well-filled and trimmed. I glanced at the stars and verified after a moment we were on course. The motion of the ship told me we were in mild seas.

  All was right with the ship.

  Would that I could say the same for myself. Whenever I closed my eyes, all I saw were a pair of green eyes staring at me in the darkness.

  I had it bad.

  But her temper! I needed to bed her and move on.

  I wondered if she had ever been with a woman. With that tongue, I wondered if she'd ever been with a man.

  I wondered if she would let me call her Rani. I wondered if I should let her call me Sorri.

  I wondered what I was going to do with her.

  * * * *

  Rani Karden

  I finished dressing. None of the clothes fit me that well. It didn't matter. I was small. I knew I had curves, of course, but only in relation to my small size. My breasts remained small and pert, and they would survive ill-fitting clothing. I didn't care that the rest of what I wore had been a boy's clothing. Everything was clean and well-mended, and it wasn't the first time I dressed or acted in a fashion contrary to the expectations of society.

  I didn't care to be bare-footed, not because I had especially tender feet. But the captain wore fine boots, and my bare feet would help to underscore my position on board her ship. It was going to be difficult to achieve the upper hand with a constant reminder I was subject to her whim.

  I wondered if I could tame her. It had been a long time since my last lover. It had started as a lark for Mori Wentworth, a wager with, of all people, her brother. She had wanted something from him, I forget what, and he had wanted a champion in his quest to conquer Mori's best friend. If she could bed me, dear old Lindo would grant Mori's request. She had a month to bring him proof. If she failed, then she would do everything she could to convince her friend into Lindo's bed.

  I had figured it out, late one night, the night she would have won her wager. I'd had the clues for a while, and I put them together while we were both still fully attired. I had lashed her firmly with my tongue, and she was sure she had lost. But I intercepted her before she reached the door, placing my back against it. I had looked her up and down, slowly.

  "You're beautiful, Rani," she told me. "Bedding you might be pleasant, if you let me gag you first."

  "How badly do you want to win?" I then asked her.

  "Badly enough to have showered you with my attention and affection for the last three weeks," she replied hotly. "Not badly enough to grovel to you."

  "Am I that unpleasant?" I already knew the answer.

  "Only when you open your mouth."

  "That's not what you said last night," I replied hotly. The previous night had included a hot and heavy session on my sofa, although we only partially disrobed. "Are you that good an actress?"

  "You're a good kisser," she admitted. It was her turn to look me up and down.

  "But you don't enjoy my company."

  "You know, Rani, I do. Up until I say something the wrong way and you lash out at me. I don't deserve it. Get out of the way. I need to go admit I've lost."

  "When is the wager over, Mori?"

  "I have another week."

  I considered her carefully. I was angry over the wager, but I had enjoyed her attention, and I didn't think it had all been an act. She was bright, well-educated, and attractive. She was exactly the sort of woman I craved. But she was the sort of woman everyone craved, and she undoubtedly knew it.

  "What do you owe if you lose?" She told me, and it was a near thing before she received another tongue lashing for wagering over her friend's emotions.

  "Don't start," she said. "The wager requires me to do everything I can to convince her into his bed, but there wasn't anything about not telling her about the wager. I told her about it, but it wasn't necessary; she already hates Lindo."

  I laughed, and Mori smiled, laughing with me. I sobered. "Am I worth a real chance?" I asked her.

  She looked me up and down again, stepping closer and laying three fingers over my lips. "Yes."

  I spoke past her fingers. "You haven't lost yet, Mori."

  Her eyes widened.

  "If you come to me honestly, and if you think I am worth a real chance, you have a week to convince me. Come back tomorrow night."

  She watched my face, then her fingers caressed my lips before moving to my chin. She lifted my face and bent down for a soft, sweet kiss.

  We lasted six months, and it was only that long because I worked very hard to control my temper and apologized profusely, every time I failed. In the end, I drove her away.

  That had been two years ago.

  I hadn't thought much about Mori in recent months, but I realized the captain reminded me of her. I wasn't quite sure why. They weren't remotely similar physically. Mori was taller than I was; everyone was. But she wasn't tall and she didn't have the captain's athletic build or broad shoulders. But the way they looked at me was similar. Mori was bright, and I had enjoyed talking to her. I thought perhaps the captain was equally intelligent.

  But if she thought she was going to bed me as a submissive little wench, she had another think coming!

  I checked my appearance one last time then gathered the towels I had used, rubbing my hair once more. I stepped to the door of the cabin and opened it.

  The far door was open, and I saw the captain's distinctive profile outlined against the night.

  "Captain?" I queried.

  She turned around. She wouldn't be able to see me clearly; the light in the passageway was dim. But I saw a flash of teeth and decided she had smiled. She showed me where to hang the towels.

  "Won't they grow musty?"

  "They would. Feel the pipes."

  The towels were draped over a pipe in a closet built into the side of the head. I put my hand on one of the pipes, and it was warm.

  "How?" I asked.

  "We maintain a small fire in the laundry," she said. "It vents through these pipes."

  "Shouldn't this be hotter?"

  "It's a long way from the laundry, and this is the smaller of two vents. Gather your clothes. I will show you the laundry."

  I collected my things and obediently followed her out onto the deck. She began leading the way back to the brig, but then we took another turn and stepped into another room. I waited for her to turn up a lamp, and she showed me the laundry.

  "Water remains dear," she said. "For this short voyage, you would need to be especially wasteful for there to be a true concern, but that is no excuse for waste."

  "I washed everything already," I said. "But they are very damp."

  She showed me the hot iron.

  "I do not typically iron my underthings," I stated.

  "It's the fastest way to dry them," she said. "You risk burning them if you try to iron them all the way dry, but you can remove much of the water this way, and then you may hang them."

  "In the head upstairs?"

  "No, here," she said, showing me a closet. It was outfitted with more hot pipes, and there were already other clothes hanging up.

  She waited quietly while I ironed my clothes. The dress was ruined, but I had cleaned it as best I could and ironed it as well, careful with the fabric. We hung everything, and she showed how to mark the hangers as mine.

  "How soon will they finish drying?"

  "Perhaps by morning. Do not put any cl
othes away wet." I already knew what would happen if I did, and I nodded.

  She turned down the lamp and led the way out of the laundry room. "Can you find this room without help?"

  "I think so."

  "Can you find the brig?"

  I eyed her in the dim light. "Am I staying there tonight?"

  "No. I am helping you learn your way around the ship."

  "Why am I worthy of the captain's attention?" I asked her. "Nearly all of your other prisoners-"

  "Guests-" she interrupted.

  "Nearly all of your prisoners," I said, stressing the word, "are of more importance than I am."

  "They aren't sharing my bed," she said. "And I don't trust your tongue to anyone else."

  "Ah. So, the brig?"

  "Can you find it?"

  I gestured left. "This way?"

  "Is it?" she asked. "Show me."

  I led the way forward and stopped outside the door I thought was the brig. I put my hand on the door, but she said, "Stop!" I froze.

  "You are not to open any closed doors except those you have been authorized to open," she directed. "For now, you have access to my cabin and the head as well as the laundry. That is all."

  "Yes, Captain," I said immediately, removing my hand from the door handle.

  "That door is locked, anyway," she said. "But if you had taken us the wrong way, we would have been at one of the officers' cabins."

  "Is this the brig?"

  "Yes." Then she proceeded to show me the rest of the ship, those portions I was allowed to see, which meant the galley and the mess. Both were deserted at this late hour. She shared a few more rules with me designed to keep me from doing anything foolish, and I agreed to them immediately.

  "Can you find the main deck?"

  I led the way and only took one wrong turn before climbing the correct stairs and opening the door onto the deck.

  "You may now wander the ship subject to the rules we have discussed," she told me. "Or you may stay with me. I have duties."

  I thought about it. I was curious. And the more I knew about her and the ship, the more opportunity I would have to vex her while remaining within the limits of my parole. She had a lot to answer for. "I would like to stay with you," I admitted.

  She nodded and led the way aft. We arrived at the ladder leading to the aft quarterdeck. "You are allowed up this ladder only on permission. You will leave without argument if any officer orders you to leave, and once you have left, you will not return without fresh permission."

  "You are very precise," I pointed out.

  "I dislike misunderstandings due to incomplete explanations."

  "May I follow you now?" I asked.

  "You may," she said, and then she climbed the ladder. At the top, she turned around to watch me ascend after her. I admit I got a good look at her ass while she climbed the ladder, but I thought perhaps she got a glance down the top of my shirt, as deeply shadowed as it may have been.

  At the top of the stairs, I practically stepped into her arms, she was standing so close, but then she stepped back a scant half step and reached out a hand to my arm. "You seem like an intelligent woman," she said.

  "Thank you," I replied. "So do you."

  "Intelligence is frequently accompanied by curiosity."

  "That has been my experience."

  "From where we're standing, can you tell which direction we are traveling?"

  I didn't even look around. "You said we would travel to Candora. That implies west. The wind is currently from..." I pointed back behind me and to the left. "The wind would normally come from the west or northwest when out at sea. Those three facts do not add up to one answer."

  "Can you read the stars?" she asked. "It is a clear night."

  I looked up, and the stars shown brightly, the sky full of tiny lights. "I can not tell where we are by the stars," I admitted.

  "Can you tell the direction we travel? Can you perhaps find north?"

  I studied the stars, but they meant little to me. "No," I admitted in a small voice.

  "You are unaccustomed to admitting ignorance," she stated.

  "You are right; I am not." I hadn't decided if she was trying to be kind or trying to be superior.

  "Curious?" she asked.

  I looked at her. "Yes."

  She smiled. "Good. Stand here." She gestured to a point in front of her, then used her hands on my shoulders to turn me away from her. She stepped up very close behind me, and I suddenly wondered if this had all been a ruse to stand this close to me.

  She was warm, and if it were a ruse, I didn't mind, but my own reaction to her body annoyed me. She was my kidnapper, and I had not been treated well so far.

  "I will tell you now," she said. "We are facing north."

  We were facing towards the bow of the ship and slightly to the right side. "We're traveling north?"

  "North-northwest," she said. "Do you know why?"

  "No. Shouldn't we be going due west?" My face fell. "You're taking us to Alencia!"

  "No, no," she said. "We're avoiding Tenitia. We don't want to bother the wizards. That's all."

  I glanced over my shoulder to look into her face, then looked back at the stars.

  "How do I know this is north?"

  She began to give me a tour of the sky. "There is a star." She pointed, lowering her head to rest on my shoulder and sighting down my own arm. "There. It is very bright. Do you see it?"

  "I think so."

  "There is a string of stars leading away from to the right, curving up and then back down. That is the cat's tail. Do you see it?"

  "Yes."

  "And then you see the cat?" She pointed to the stars forming the cat. "And the cat's eyes?"

  "The cat is on her back."

  "Yes, right now, she is. By morning she will stand on her tail."

  "She moves?"

  "The world moves. She only appears to move, but she is always there in the north sky."

  "So north is..." I pointed vaguely. "That way."

  "The star that is the cat's shoulder never moves. It is always there in the same place. That is north."

  I looked a the cat for a while, tracing her outline with my hand. I pointed at the star I thought was her shoulder. "Yes," the captain said. "That one. Will you be able to find it another night?"

  "Yes."

  "You will not always be able to start with the tail star," the captain said. "Sometimes it can't be seen."

  "I will find the cat," I said.

  "All right," she said. "Close your eyes."

  Dutifully, I closed my eyes.

  "I am going to turn you around several times. You will keep your eyes closed. Please, can you stand on one foot?"

  "I'll fall over," I said.

  Her hands were on my shoulders. "I won't let you. Please, stand on one foot."

  I shifted my weight onto my right foot, bringing my feet together. I wobbled, but she steadied me. And then I felt her walking around me, her hands on my shoulder turning me, my bare foot twisting on the deck. I shifted my weight to the ball of my foot, and then my foot was able to rotate against the wood of the decking.

  "Keep your eyes closed," she said. "Can you tell from the motion of the ship which way you are facing?"

  "Could you?"

  "Yes."

  "On one foot?"

  She laughed lightly. "Yes, but feel free to stand on two if it helps."

  I lowered my foot and tried to feel the motion of the ship. It took a moment, but I pointed behind me. "Front."

  "Can you be more accurate?" she asked.

  I moved my hand a little further. "There?"

  "Yes," she said. "Good. Now, without looking, judging only from the wind, can you tell which way is west-northwest?"

  I pointed further towards the left of the ship. "The wind is from that direction."

  "Yes, sort of," she said. "Why only sort of?"

  "Because we are moving forward, and that makes the wind feel different."

 
"Yes. Good. Open your eyes and see how you did."

  I opened, and I realized I had done fairly well, but not perfectly.

  "By the end of the week, you will always be able to point to the bow, exactly and without thought," she said. "If you pay attention. I wouldn't make the same prediction for your brother's wife."

  I turned in her arms. She kept her hands where they were, so by the time I was facing her, she still had hands on my shoulders. I looked into her face.

  "You're enjoying this."

  "Aren't you?"

  "Yes. But I don't understand."

  "I am trying to start over. We started poorly."

  "That was equally my fault and yours," I admitted.

  "You were freshly kidnapped," she pointed out. "That is not so much your fault. Will you answer a question?"

  "Perhaps."

  "Why did you offer yourself? You didn't have to, I do not believe."

  "I am a guest of my brother, there to help him with a small task."

  "Will you tell me this task?"

  "No."

  "All right," the captain said. "You are under no obligation. So you are staying with your brother, but I gather there is little love between you. Are you so sure he will ransom you?"

  I wasn't sure I wanted to answer that question. I would rather he paid my ransom than it came from my insurance bond. If I paid it, I would be obligated to post a new bond, one I could little afford.

  The silence stretched between us as I wondered what to tell her that wouldn't give too much away. The insurance bond was a sure thing. My brother was not. If she knew of the insurance, she may bypass him and go straight to my bond. I didn't want her to do that.

  "You have insurance," she said. "You don't want me to know."

  I swore, and she immediately moved fingers in front of my mouth.

  "I won't gag you for that," she said in explanation. "I only worried what was to follow."

  I nodded understanding, and she moved her fingers from my mouth.

  "An insurance bond assures your safety," the captain said. "But it did not make you a legitimate hostage. You could have remained quiet. Even if we had questioned you, we would have believed you if you told us you were estranged from your parents."