Norah stared at her. A betrothal contract? The pirates had offered her parents a contract… forher?
She sat back, stunned. This revelation cast a new light oneverything.
That her parents had betrothed her to the nearest crown prince had been rather unusual in and of itself. Her sisters had all been allowed to choose their own husbands. But after Freya had revealed Phillip’s illness and the risk it placed upon the kingdom, Norah had better understood why such a contract might be made. Still, it had confused her, seeing as her parents knew healing could only take place when she was in love.
But with what Willamina had told her…
What if her parentshadbeen worried about her one day falling in love with a pirate prince? If he were really as gentle as his mother said…
“Our goal was to find and save you the night of the fires,” Willamina said, her voice suddenly soft. “But not a single person could locate your body. For years, we thought you’d perished.”
“Served you right for setting the fires in the first place!” Norah snapped. “You killed my family and tried to kidnap me! You murdered scores of the sick and the injured and those who were trying to heal them! And you thoughtthatwas going to win my affections?”
“We didn’t mean for the fires to spread so rapidly,” Willamina snapped back, though the way she looked at the ground made Norah think that perhaps she did feel some guilt after all. “A storm hit that night, and the winds came up, and they got out of control.”
“Let me guess, though.” Norah glared at her. “You left spies in the region, just in case I reappeared. Then you could come and get me.”
“What was I supposed to do?” Willamina rolled her eyes. “My son was–isstill suffering from the illness. And he’d sworn never to love any but you. After losing my husband and my eldest, you think I would deny him his only hope of healing?”
Norah had no desire to feed the woman’s insanity. To even consider that Norah would ever love anyone at her captors’will was bizarre and ridiculous. But curiosity still got the better of her in the end. “What is he suffering from?” she asked.
“He’s… losing his ability to sleep,” Willamina said stiffly. “The healers say it will drive him to insanity if he isn’t healed soon.”
As for insanity, this woman was already there, Norah decided. But against Norah’s will, a part of her somehow still felt sympathy for the woman’s son. She hardly remembered him. As it was, until he’d been brought up in the royal meeting, she hadn’t recalled his existence in years. But not being able to sleep until it killed one or drove one insane was a horrific way to live. And yet, what could they really expect her to do? Relinquish the vows she’d just taken? Love the man who had threatened Nanny, and whose mother was trying to take an entire kingdom as her own?
“As sorry as that makes me,” Norah said slowly, trying to steady her breath, “I cannot love him. You’re aware that I’ve married another today.”
“Aye, I saw that,” the pirate said, eyeing Norah’s ring. “But you won’t be for long.” With that, she pulled a large scarf from her neck and began to wrap it around her own face and nose.
Sensing what was coming, Norah tried to lean away, but as she was still bound and locked inside the tiny room, there was nowhere to go as the woman pulled a little bottle from a bag that was slung across her shoulders. Removing the lid, she dumped a little pile of orange powder into her hand. Then she tossed it in the air above Norah, and with bright eyes, watched it all descend.
Norah tried not to breathe the powder in, but Willamina grabbed her by the hair and pinched her nose shut, forcing Norah to breathe through her mouth. As soon as she took a breath, she began coughing and choking on the powder. It tasted of dust mixed with curry.
“You’ve given me Kempter!” Norah shouted. “You wish me to forget!”
“It’s a pity it has to be this way,” Willamina said, stepping back and surveying her work. “But you’ll be much happier for it in theend. And so will my son. Oh, I suppose I’d better lay you down so you don’t hit your head before you come to.” She came forward and gently pushed Norah sideways so that she lay on the bed. Then, after another look, she removed Norah’s wedding ring before turning and exiting the room, locking the door behind her.
As soon as she was gone, Norah began struggling against her bonds. Not because she was worried the Kempter would knock her unconscious the way Willamina thought it would, but because she wanted to be on her feet and ready when the door opened again.
Kempter, as Norah’s mother had taught her, was one in a large family of plant-derived poisons. Only, if given in small doses, this poison didn’t kill. It destroyed memories. Which was a great danger to humans in general, as it could destroy both the mind and the body if ingested liberally.
But Norah, as Willamina must have forgotten, was no normal human. The healing power inside of her was already fighting the poison as it rushed through her system, just as it had already healed the laceration Willamina’s knife had made on Norah’s neck. Really, Norah thought, it was almost insulting that they thought such a paltry trick could remove her memories.
But then another thought struck Norah, and she stopped struggling.
What chance did she really have of escaping, or even trying to fight her way out of the room? She hadn’t been able to overpower Willamina. And it was highly unlikely she would be able to escape any of the other pirates. But if she pretended that the powder had worked…
If she pretended to have lost her memory, and that she was docile and frightened, there was a good chance they wouldn’t watch her as closely.
Norah did her best to free her hands so she could hold the ropes to her wrists and make it look like she was still bound.But the knots were tied too well, so she would simply have to wait for her moment of escape, wrists bound or unbound. She might not have been able to heal him, but she wasn’t about to abandon the man she had just pledged her life to.
Unless… Did he want her to? She had failed him after all. Norah’s stomach turned, and it wasn’t from the bobbing up and down of the boat. Would Phillip possibly be relieved when he returned to the palace and found her gone?Ifhe returned?
She had to abandon her morbid thoughts then, however, as a key slid into the door and it clicked open. Norah lay still and closed her eyes just before heavy boots stepped inside.
“What…Mother!”The man’s voice sounded furious, and Norah was reminded that Willamina had mentioned that he didn’t want his mother interfering. Maybe this would be easier than she thought.
The boots came closer after a moment, and Norah felt herself being lifted gently into an upright position.
