Hoots of laughter echoed in the hold.Captain Martin held up his hand, and the sound ceased.
“For adiscussion.”
“Is that what they’re calling a hearty fuck these days?”one of the men asked.
“Simon.Are you avoiding me?”
“Of course not.I’m playing with my dog that you gave me as a gift.You wouldn’t want her to be neglected.”
The captain looked at the men gathered nearby.
“Who might be available to look after this dog for the next few hours?”
Several hands went up.I narrowed my eyes and glared at all of them.
“Fine.”I stood and passed the puppy to Squid.“You look after her.”
I turned to the captain, crossing my arms over my chest.“I’ll come with you, and we can discuss what we’d planned.But I ain’t promising more.”
“Fine.”
“Fine.”Ever since the rude and terrifying conclusion to our adventures with Domingo, I’d felt cowed and tired and sour.Being haunted by a terrifying sea creature that may or may not be a product of my own imaginings was not helping my attitude.
“Come on, then,” Dinesh said, ushering me out of the hold.
Instead of turning toward our rooms, however, he led me up on deck.
“Wanting to minimize the damage?”I asked.
“What?”
“Well, if this experiment goes wrong up here, at least our chambers won’t be destroyed.”
“If the attempt goes wrong, we shall have more to worry about than the state of our rooms.”
“Aye,” I agreed.I spread my hands out.“Then what are we doing?Is this worth the risk?”
He led me to the quarterdeck and leaned against the mast.“These powers of yours.They are causing you a degree of mental upset.We need to see if you can gain more control so you won’t be wielding such an unpredictable defence.Do you agree?”
“Aye, but—”
“Yes?”
A chill went through me.“What if it backfires?”
“Rooster.You’ve done it before.”
“Twice.I did ittwo times.In desperate circumstances.I don’t know if I can do it again…”
“Well.That’s what we need to find out.”
I did not feel good about this, but I knew he was right.
“Shouldn’t we warn them?”I asked.
“Who?”
“The crew.Everyone.”
