“Exactly. No more bringing me meals or asking Sage about my favorite foods. I won’t have anyone using you to get to me.” The thought made me sick to the core.
“I’m not a complete idiot, you know.” Ghost rolled his eyes. “I wasn’t obvious about it just now. Sage only thinks I’m trying to earn favor with the scary first mate to be assigned better chores.”
“Speaking of friends, though,” I said, “Ariella would be good to have in your corner. She’s skilled, respected. The crew listens to her.”
“Yeah, yeah, I get it. Ariella is amazing.” Ghost’s voice took on an exaggerated dreamy quality. “So talented, so beautiful, so perfect in every way.”
The teasing lilt in his voice made something in my chest loosen. I hadn’t realized how tense I’d been. A soft laugh escaped my lips before I could stop it. The sound felt foreign—when was the last time I’d genuinely laughed?
“But seriously.” I sobered, fixing him with a stern look. “I can’t show you any leniency in front of the others. And you’ll need friends if you’re to survive this place all the way to Asteris.”
Ghost leaned back against the mast, a playful smirk dancing across his lips. “Oh, I wouldn’t worry too much about that. Most of the crew quite like me now, after I played the knight in shining armor and rescued their prince in distress.”
“I had that situation perfectly under control,” I joked, crossing my arms.
“Of course you did. You could’ve handled all five of them, all by yourself.” His eyes sparkled with mischief. “I’m sure youwere just about to dramatically reveal your master plan when I showed up.”
I checked my wristwatch, the pebble-grade fluxstone inside casting a faint blue glow across its face. “Puffy takes over for me in ten minutes.”
The words came out heavy, weighted with a reluctance I hadn’t expected to feel. The night had shifted something between us, carved out a space I wasn’t ready to leave.
“Already?” Ghost’s shoulders slumped.
My gaze slid down to my private cabin below, its wooden door tempting me. Icouldsuggest we move our conversation there. I’d never invited anyone into it before. The thought sent heat flushing through my body—Ghost perched on my bed, that pale skin glowing in my lamplight, those freckles continuing down his—
Don’t be ridiculous,a voice snapped in my ear, sharp as a blade.You’re his superior. The Reaper. And you just promised not to endanger him by association. Besides, he’s only toying with you. He wouldn’t actually want you in that way. You smashed his head against a mast a week ago.
“I’ll be here again tomorrow night,” I found myself saying, the words slipping out before I could catch them. My shift rotation made it true enough—no need to rearrange things, thankfully.
“Okay.” Ghost’s voice came out soft, almost shy. The sound did something strange to my throat.
“Okay,” I echoed.
Our eyes met in the starlight. His green gaze held mine, searching for something I wasn’t sure I wanted him to find. The night air crackled between us, heavy with words neither of us dared speak. I broke away first, my fingers unconsciously twisting a silver band on my right hand—a token from a man who’d once claimed it meant we belonged to each other. I kept it as a reminder, not of love but of betrayal. The last time I’d letsomeone this close, I’d lost more than my leg. I wasn’t sure I had anything left to give. Especially to someone as brilliant as Ghost.
I cleared my throat. “Well… you better be off then.”
“Charming.” Ghost’s lips quirked up at the corners.
On all fours, he shifted toward the ladder, and for one heart-stopping moment, his face hovered inches from mine. I caught a whiff of soap and a hint of the cinnamon Sage used to flavor the gruel.
My breath hitched.
Then he was moving away, pausing at the top of the rigging to flash me one last smile. It rivaled the moon above in brightness, pure and unguarded in a way that made my heart stutter.
I swallowed hard, watching him disappear down the rigging into the darkness below.
A burst of drunken laughter shattered the night’s peace. I peered over the crow’s nest to see Butcher, Maneater, and Jimmy stumbling across the main deck, their steps uneven from too much drink. The stench of cheap rum wafted up even from this height.
Below me, Ghost froze on the rigging, a small, strangled sound escaping his throat. His knuckles whitened against the rungs.
My fingers twitched toward him. Up here in the darkness, no one would spot him without goggles. The crow’s nest could hide him until the drunken idiots passed out somewhere.
But Ghost had already started moving again, climbing down with careful, silent movements. Smart—better to reach the lower deck before they got close enough to—
“Oi! Who’s that?Ghost?” Butcher’s gravelly voice rang out. “Look what we caught sneaking around after hours, boys. Our resident rat.”
Ghost’s shoulders tensed, but he kept climbing down. Twenty feet. Fifteen. Ten.
