“Whether she is or isn’t, she knows the punishment for failure. Now pick up the girl and let’s go.”
The burly man’s arms wrapped around me, and I was hefted over his shoulder. The pair strolled deeper into the alley, and I watched the glow of the streetlamps fade with my hope. My consciousness failed along with it, and I slumped over his back, heeding nothing but the vague shadows of dreams.
Dreams, and the strong scent of saltwater. The odor was so strong that my nose tingled. I woke up just in time to let loose a powerful sneeze. My head whipped back and struck a hard wooden surface.
“Ow!” I hissed as a sharp pain ran down my head. I gritted my teeth and peeked open one eye.
My jaw dropped open as I beheld not the familiar clutter of my city, but the curved interior of the belly of a wooden vessel. The hold was filled with crates and boxes, all stacked and lashed to the wall. A wide set of stairs started about ten feet from my position and led up to a large hatch.
Footsteps above me forced my attention to the boards over my head. Gaps between the wood allowed me to see a sparkling sun, and garbled voices floated down. I tried to stand to get a better listen, but discovered my wrists and ankles were tied by a thick rope with an intricate knot.
Noises at the hatch made me freeze. The gate opened and sunlight streamed into the hold, illuminating all the dust and bits of barnacles that surrounded me. The familiar figure of the lithe man strolled down the steps and stopped at the bottom to examine me.
“So you’re finally awake,” he mused as he strolled over to me. I shrank away from him, but I couldn’t get very far bound as I was. The man knelt in front of me with that bone-chilling grin. “How did you sleep?”
“Where am I?” I shot back as I swept my eyes over the hold. “What is this place?”
He chuckled. “This is the interior of my ship, the Huracan, and I am Inigo Encina, the captain of this fine vessel.”
I stared blankly at him. “A ship? Who owns a ship like this?”
He puffed out his chest a little. “I do, miss, a spoil from one of my more daring adventures.”
This guy was nuts. He had to be. I had to get away from him as soon as possible.
I fidgeted in my bindings. “I don’t want to know who you are, I just want you to take me home.”
The man draped one arm over his bent knee and sighed. “That is one wish I cannot grant you, miss. You see, someone has paid me very handsomely to transport you to them, and I cannot go back on my word.”
I blinked at him. “Somebody paid you to kidnap me? Who would want to do that? I’m nobody!”
He grasped my chin between his fingers and examined my face. There was a glint in his eyes that made my blood run cold. “I could think of more than one man who would be willing to pay a gold piece or two for your pretty little head.”
Tears popped into my eyes as my body began to shiver. “Please. Please just let me go. I swear I won’t tell anyone about this-”
My pleas were interrupted by another loud laugh from my captor. He pushed my chin away and stood, casting his shadow over me. “You’re stuck with us, miss, and I’ll take you to your buyers as fast as the winds can take us.”
My words just burst out of my mouth. “But why? Why are you doing this? What would anyone want with me?”
“I don’t ask questions, I only make deliveries, and you’ll be delivered tomorrow if the gods favor us.”
“Captain!” The shout came from the hatch, and a man popped his head in the hold a moment later. “There’s a ship coming from the stern!”
Encina glared at him. “What of it?”
“It’s coming faster than the wind! It’ll be on top of us in a few minutes!”
Encina narrowed his eyes and a hissed word escaped his lips. “Torvus.” He raced up the stairs and shoved the man out of the way. His voice cut through the rest of the noise on the deck. “Hoist the sails! Make for the nearest island!”
“Aye, aye, captain!” came the shouts of many men, followed by their furious footsteps.
The hatch was slammed shut and the shadows flew back in place. My heart pounded in my chest as I fidgeted with my wrist bindings. They were as tight as iron manacles, and all I succeeded in doing was cutting deep gashes into my wrists.
Shouts from above me turned my attention back to the deck. Encina’s voice yelled above all the others. “Hold your positions and ready your swords!”
“A wave is coming!” someone else screamed.
A huge shadow fell over the ship, blotting out the sunlight between the boards. I tensed as the vessel was struck, violently shifting it several yards. The crates and boxes rattled around me, and the ropes that held the cargo groaned under the strain.
