“She was walking behind him,” Marvella said, “but he deserved it all the same for trying to sneak onto our ship.”
“Bramble might not have gnawed on his ankles if he’d known the hellkin wasn’t a threat, but we can’t blame the wee lad.” He reached over and scruffed the raccoon’s head. “I don’t know what that wee creature’s teeth are made of, but the hellkin went down fast.”
The hellkin made another noise, louder and more pointed.
“Our visitor was, in fact, attacked after I had him tied up,” Seraphina said, “but he’ll survive.”
The hellkin emitted more sounds that sounded like string disagreements.
“And we were just debating what to do with our prisoner when you came in.” The dwarf glanced at the hellkin. “I was in favor of tossing him in the bay.”
“I don’t like things cluttering up my kitchen,” Marvella said, “so I wasn’t opposed.”
The master-at-arms slid Marvella and Thrain narrowed-eyed looks. “I informed the dwarves that security on this ship is not something we vote on.”
Bonnie stepped forward, moving around the edge of the worktable until she stood in front of the captive. He was soaked through, with dark hair plastered to his forehead and his crimson skin shiny. His shirt was torn at the collar, and there was a lump on his forehead that was turning purple. “He was the only one?”
“I found no others,” Seraphina confirmed.
Thrain grunted. “No sign of her anywhere.”
He didn’t say the name. He didn’t need to. Cali’s fur rose along the back of her neck at the implication of it, anyway. The thought of Marina aboard the Cruel Mistress made fury flare hot in her chest.
The door swung open and Pinkie came through it at speed, chest heaving, her purple hair in considerable disarray. She pulled up short at the sight of the hellkin, and her eyes went wide and round.
“Gert sent me,” she managed between breaths. “No intruders on deck. No damage either. She’s still checking the rigging, but it all looks sound.”
Bonnie nodded. “Good. Thanks, Pink. Take your post and keep a careful watch, in case any more like this one decide to pay us a visit tonight.”
Pinkie’s gaze lingered on the hellkin for one more moment before she turned and went, her footsteps tapping a brisk retreat.
Bonnie reached down and pulled the oven mitt free. The hellkin gasped, and then he worked his jaw a few times as if checking that it still functioned.
“There’s no one else coming.” His voice was rough. “It’s just me. I’m alone.” He looked up at the captain, and his eyes had a wildness to them that was more fear than aggression. “I didn’t come to cause trouble.”
Bonnie said nothing.
The hellkin licked his parched lips. “I wasn’t trying to steal the ship. Came to strike a deal with you.”
“A deal?” Cali asked. “Marina didn’t send you?”
The hellkin snorted a dark laugh. “Hardly. That’s why I’m here. I’ve had my fill of her and her worthless schemes.” He looked at the floor and then back up. “If you give me safe passage back to the Known Lands, I’ll lead you to Marina.”
Cali eyed the hellkin with suspicion. “And all you want for betraying Marina is a return trip?”
“That’s right. I want to go home.” The hellkin released a weary breath. “Just as long as it isn’t in that hells-cursed boat.”
Thirty-One
Cali stepped closerto the hellkin. The circles under his eyes were deep, and the bruises she now noticed all over him came in at least three distinct shades. There were old yellow ones at his jaw, greening ones along his forearm, and a fresh purple one on his forehead.
Bonnie pulled a stool from beneath the worktable and sat on it with one foot on a rung and the other leg stretched long. “Start from the beginning.”
“I wasn’t trying to cause trouble,” he insisted.
“You climbed up the side of my ship,” Bonnie said with a chilling smile. “I watched you.”
“I tried to get on board without anyone raising an alarm.” He had the decency to look uncomfortable about it. “I knew if I walked up, you’d raise the alarm.”
