Thorne lowered his sword and gestured to the two pirates nearest him. “Go retrieve my guest.”
While Thorne’s men did his bidding, Isaac scanned the deck, his eyes searching for Samantha’s familiar red hair. If she was hurt… He squinted in the sun. There. She stood flanked by two pirates, blue eyes flashing, her blood-stained rapier cast at her feet.
Her safety confirmed, he turned back to Thorne’s ship, where the men dragged someone from the main cabin. Isaac’s heart pounded when they turned and Josephine’s dark hair billowed in the wind. A gangplank had been lowered between the two ships and they dragged her across it.
Isaac started forward, but Thorne lifted his blade. “Not so fast.”
Chapter Twenty-Two
“Let go ofme!” Josephine struggled against the hands gripping her arms as the two pirates dragged her across the deck.
Her pulse slammed through her, the thunder of cannons still ringing in her ears. After Thorne had locked her in his cabin, she’d been hopeful for rescue. But when the boards shook beneath her and the sound of splintering wood filled the cabin, that hope quickly turned to a grim fear—even if the opponents won, she could very well be blown to bits in the process.
So much for rescue. Thorne’s men had quickly overtaken the other ship. As the pirates guided her toward the rail, her heart sank. The smaller ship had been gravely damaged with its main mast cracked in half. Its surviving crew had been rounded up in a small circle near a mess of rigging and fallen sails. Bodies lined the deck, pools of blood glistening in the sunlight.
Her stomach heaved as she averted her gaze. Thorne stood at the helm, his dark coat whipping in the wind, like a fallen angel lording over the ruin before him. He held a crimson stained sword at the ready, vaguely pointed toward the man standing next to him.
Blue eyes locked with hers and she let out a strangled cry.Isaac. He stared at her, jaw clenched and hands curled into fists. He was alive.
For now.
He took a step toward her and the pirate swung his sword up to his throat before shouting across the water separating the ships. “Bring her over.”
The men pushed her onto the gangplank. This one didn’t have anyrope guidelines. Just a narrow board with nothing between it and the rolling swells below. She swallowed, her throat thick. One foot edged forward. As soon as her fingers left the rail, her body pitched, swaying precariously over the water.
The pirates behind her laughed and she pulled her shoulders back.Breathe. She bent her knees like Isaac had shown her and stepped farther out. Better. Her gaze flitted up to him, and her heart stuttered. His eyes had not left her, and concern filled them. She took another steadying breath and started across, rising and falling with the pitch of the waves.
Once her feet hit the solid planks of the ship, she nearly collapsed at the steady comfort. But she didn’t have time to savor the feeling. One of the brutes had followed her across and grabbed her arm again. He gave her a shove toward the captive crew and a glint of copper caught her eye.
“Samantha!” Relief crashed through her as she rushed to her friend’s side and pulled her into a hug.
Samantha’s hands were bound, but a rueful smile touched her lips. “Sorry we were unsuccessful in rescuing you.”
“Tie her up.” Thorne’s cold voice sliced through the air, jerking Josephine’s attention back to the reality ahead. They were all at the pirate’s mercy—which she knew didn’t stretch any further than the edge of his blade.
Rough cords bound her wrists, pulling them tight together in front of her. Thorne watched until the last knot had been tied, then jabbed his blade between Isaac’s shoulders. “Go join your crew, Lieutenant.”
Isaac kept his gaze on her as he descended the steps. He walked past the group, his eyes searching, counting. When he finished, he pressed them shut. Her own heart squeezed as the weight of his losses hit him. Squaring his shoulders, he turned and strode to the front of the group.
Captain Thorne made his way down to the main deck. His stepsechoed across the ship, deliberate and slow. Josephine slid her gaze to Samantha. “What happens now?”
Samantha didn’t look at her. “Now is when he kills us.”
Josephine’s heart pounded at the words, spoken so matter-of-factly. A chill slid through her as the pirate paused at the gangplank, then turned to face the captives.
Isaac stood perfectly still, his fists clenched at his sides. “Spare them.”
Green eyes flashed. “And why would I do that?”
“If you do, I will join you.”
“Isaac, no!” Josephine snapped her mouth shut. Too late. The name was already out—desperate and unmistakably intimate.
Thorne’s eyes gleamed as a smile played at the corners of his mouth. A shiver trembled down her spine as his gaze traveled up and down her length, and she fought the urge to step back.
Isaac stepped forward and went down on one knee. “Their safety, for my allegiance.”
Josephine’s hands balled into fists at her sides as her heart twisted at Isaac’s rough voice.
