I swallowed a large lump in my throat. “I-I guess not.”
He stretched his hand closer to me. “Would you care to get off the floor now?” I raised my hand, but hesitated.
“Just take his hand and get up!” Ramaro snapped.
The man took advantage of my irritated distraction and snatched my hand in his. He stood and pulled me to my feet with such swiftness that I lost my balance and fell against him. I whipped my head back and found myself staring up into his bemused face. “You’re quite the bold creature when you want to be, aren’t you?”
My cheeks felt like they were on fire as I stumbled back, removing myself from his grip. I snatched the sheet from the floor and hugged the blanket tightly around myself. “Where am I? Who are you? Who were those people you took me from?”
“That’s quite a few questions,” the man mused as he strolled over to a chair near the table and took a seat. He crossed one leg over the other and folded his arms over his chest. “I had hoped you would know the last question.”
I blinked a few times, trying to recall what I had asked. “Who are they?”
“To be more precise, what they wanted with you,” he admitted as he looked me over. “Encina likes the ladies almost as much as I, but he wouldn’t have dared the rather of his men unless you were worth the trouble.”
I tilted my head to one side. “Wrath of his men?”
“You are a woman,” the man pointed out.
“And women shouldn’t be within a mile of a boat,” Ramaro chimed in with an emphatic nod. “They’re bad luck enough on shore. They’re a curse on the seas.”
“As for your other two questions, I can answer them,” the man assured me as he stood. “My name is Marcellus Torvus, captain of this ship, the Tempest.” He crossed an arm over his chest and bowed low at the waist to me. “It’s quite the pleasure to meet such a lovely lady.” He lifted his head and his eye sparkled. “Might I know your name?”
“I-I’m Rose. Rose Larkin.”
“The pleasure is all mine, Rose,” he returned as he straightened. “From where do you hail?”
“Some recently founded city,” Ramaro spoke up.
I frowned at him. “It isn’t that. New York City is just the name of it.”
The captain rubbed his hand on his chin. “New York City? I’ve never heard of this place. In which kingdom is it placed?”
My heart sank deeper with every word from the pair. “It’s not in a kingdom, it’s in a country. The United States?” The blank stares were all I needed to see.
I blacked out.
Chapter 5
“Are you sure we shouldn’t heave her overboard? She is dead weight.”
“Not until we find out what Encina wanted with her.”
My eyes fluttered open, and I found myself staring up at the ceiling of the old-timey cabin. A great weight sat beside me, and I turned my head to find the captain seated there. So he had been the one to nurse me himself. The lizard was perched on the footboard.
Ramaro’s tongue flicked out. “Can’t you stay awake for more than a few minutes?”
My heart was terribly heavy as I drew myself up so my back leaned against the headboard. I clasped my hands in my lap and stared at them. “I’m really far from my home, aren’t I?”
“You may be,” the captain mused as he examined me with a soft eye. “Encina steals what he likes from all the corners of the four seas.”
That was the wrong number of seas. I swallowed hard. “What four seas are those?”
“Did you hit your head a few too many times?” Ramaro spoke up as he tapped one clawed finger against his temple. “Everyone from the smallest child to the oldest man knows the four seas.”
I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. “I. . .I just want to get things straight with where I am.” I opened them and found the captain giving me a curious look. “Please?”
He stared at me a moment longer before he folded his arms over his chest. “The four seas are Erebus, Necatrix, Cynnes, and Verist.”
