“Not well enough.”Caleb turned from staring out the stern window, his gaze sweeping over Desi before focusing on his crew.
“What precisely is it?”Liam asked.
“It be de devil’s work.”Ayida slinked from the shadows.
“I agree!”Alden all but shouted.“Those were not real birds, but demons with feathers.”
Releasing a heavy sigh, Caleb twisted the Ring still on his finger.“It saved us.Twice that I know of.The rats and the birds.”
Alden snorted.“At what cost?You know a better way.Call upon the Lord!”
Brandt chuckled.“Cursed rings, invisible gods, the hot Caribbean sun has finally fried all your brains.”
Ignoring the doctor, Alden gripped his leather baldric.“The townsfolk believe theSentinelis cursed, and I don’t blame them.They are angry at the loss of their lanterns and now their warehouse, along with all the valuable goods stored within.”
Clutching his lucky stone, Liam rubbed it between his fingers.“The town commandant denied yer invitation to discuss what happened, Cap’n.Said he won’t board the devil’s ship.”
Caleb frowned.“A superstitious lot.”
“This is madness.”Alden groaned.“Get rid of the Ring.It has caused us naught but tragedy.”
And possibly Desi’s journey through time.Sighing, she stroked the cat’s fur.
“Nay.”Caleb’s eyes shifted to the pink ribbon on his desk, and Desi knew he thought of his sister.“I promised my father I’d sink it to the depths at the precise location he gave me.And I intend to do just that.”
Alden took a step forward.“Then store it away somewhere safe.Place a guard on it, if you must, but by all that is holy, do not call upon its powers again.”
Ayida shuffled toward the desk, her dark eyes full of wonder and yet something else Desi couldn’t name.“De sea knows.De sky knows.Nothin’ done wid dat Ring goes unpaid.It be cursed an’ the source of all yer troubles.Only de dark powers can tame it.Give it to me, Captain, an’ I’ll put it somewhere where it can do no harm.”She held out her hand.
Caleb studied her for a moment before shifting his gaze to Desi.“What do you say, Miss Starr?”
All eyes snapped her way, and she swallowed down a burst of uncertainty.Even though it touched her that Caleb would ask, who was she to offer a solution?She slid an errant strand of hair behind her ear.“I say if the Ring is as powerful as you think and as dangerous as Alden believes, it should be locked away and kept from anyone being able to use it.”
Ayida’s eyes grew cold as she withdrew her hand.
Caleb smiled.
Alden waved a hand through the air.“Finally, words of wisdom.”
Yet at that precise moment, a ray of sunlight angled through the window and landed on the Ring, setting the amber jewel aglow.A sign?
Lowering his hand, Caleb circled his desk.“One thing I do know for certain is that someone or something does not want me to complete my mission.”
“Perhaps ’tis Geneviève,” Alden said.“You spoke to her last night, did you not?”
“Ah, the princess has arrived back at her palace.”Liam teased.
Princess?Palace?Geneviève?So that was where Caleb had gone last night.Yet he failed to mention the lady.Against her will, a surge of jealousy hammered through Desi, followed by anger, and she drew her lips tight.Stupid, stupid girl.When would she learn that men like Caleb would never settle for one woman?
♥
Caleb didn’t fail to notice that at the mention of Geneviève, Desi’s body stiffened and her eyes narrowed.He should have told her about the chance meeting, but in truth, the encounter had meant so little to him, he’d all but forgotten it.
He faced Alden.“Aye, and she only confirmed my suspicion of her father.I must go see him again.Confront him.”
“Are you sure that is wise?”Alden asked.“What good can come from it?”
A poignant question and one Caleb didn’t wish to answer.Yet he had to know the truth.He was desperate to understand what had happened that night.In order to put the sordid event to rest, blame must be placed where it belonged.Lord knew, he had already owned his part in the tragedy.
