Hook smirked. “I’m right, aren’t I?”
“Yes,” Maggie replied through gritted teeth. “Why should it matter to you?”
“Well isn’t it curious that the King of Neverland’s pet has miraculously appeared in my private study? Aboard my ship?”
Maggie huffed and backed away from him, her leg hitting the table. Behind her, the oil lamp rattled. “I amno one’spet.”
“Right, right,” he snapped. “You’re just theircook.”
Her heart raced.Where is this conversation going?Maybe it was good that he knew. The entire island knew about Maggie and the restaurant, even his own pirates wanted to visit it.
Hook, surprisingly, sheathed his blade.
“W-What’re you doing?” Maggie asked, one hand hesitating as she reached for the lamp.
“Well, my lady,” he began with a loud, exasperated sigh, “knowing what I know now, I suppose there isn’t a good enough reason to kill you. Not if you were just sneaking aboard.”
She almost laughed. “You’re kidding.”
“Haven’t you heard, my lady?” Hook stretched his arms out. “I am quite the gentleman, after all. In fact,” he stepped closer, “I’ll be so kind as to keep youright here.”
“W-What?”
Hook placed a hand over his chest. “I am a good captain, my lady. My men would like your food at hand, and now, I can supply.” A sinister smirk stretched across his face. “Hold still,pet.”
The pirate captain lunged toward her.
Within the nick of time, Maggie snatched the oil lamp and dove out the way. Careful not to spill it, she straightened at the center of the room, holding the lamp high above her head. Hook met the wall with outstretched hands, releasing a frustrated grunt before he whipped around exuberantly.
“Why you –” Hook’s eyes locked in on the lamp.
Maggie tilted her head. “Go on, captain,” she murmured. “I wouldn’t want to stop you in your monologue.”
His dark eyes glanced between the lamp and Maggie, entirely calculating. Effortlessly, his demeanor changed. Gone was the teasing and the mocking, the playful amusements. It was replaced with a kind man, a gentler man. He eased himself off the wall, hands extended to her like a long lost friend. And as Maggie met his gaze, she waited to see where this act might go.
Hook’s brow furrowed handsomely, a sincere smile curving along his lips. “We got off on the wrong foot, my lady,” he cooed.
“Did we?”
“I meant it when I said it, you know.”
Maggie raised a brow, her hold over the lamp loosening. “What?”
“I’m a gentleman,” Hook replied in a soft voice, his eyes snapping up. “I believe we ought to be friends, my lady. Whatever is Peter Pan doing, hiding you away, keeping you all to himself?” The pirate slowly stepped closer. “Up in that treehouse. Don’t you long for adventure? To be free?” Hook tilted his head and flashed a charming smile. “We can talk all about it, my lady, if you only –”
He was reaching his arm up, acting as though she couldn’t see him, only inches away from taking the lamp right out of her fingers. Maggie could hardly believe him. Sure, he could act well enough, but what did he know? The first time she ever felt free was alongside Peter Pan and the Lost Boys. What Hook referred to was a life of danger, a life of violence. She shook her head, catching his eye. Perhaps, she hoped, that it was fear that she saw dancing across his gaze.
“If I only what?” Maggie whispered as she peered up at him. “Put it down,pet?”
Hook’s eyes widened, a word caught on his lips.
Maggie stepped backward and slammed the oil lamp down on the floor. She lunged the moment it left her fingers, leaping for the door before the lamp had a chance to implode. Flames licked at the bottom of her feet as she crashed through the wooden door, escaping at the very last second. The heat followed her out, swallowing up the boat effortlessly. She took a quick look over her shoulder, but there was only a mess of chaos. The captain’s quarters were no longer recognizable as the orange flames grew. She caught a glimpse of the windows through the splintered door, but there was only a splash of blue on the other side.
I’m safe,she thought to herself as she turned back around.
Reaching her arms up, Maggie felt the rush of lingering fairy dust come to life beneath her skin. It sparked and surged to her feet, pulling her off the ground within a moment. Relief strung through Maggie’s chest as she began to hover. Soon she’d be back with her friends, back with Peter, and with an outrageous story to tell. Maggie was reaching six feet off the ground, aboutto soar toward the island’s shore, when a fiery hot hand wrapped around her ankle.
Maggie whipped her head around. “No– !”
