Sidney could only watch as the Lost Boys were lashed to the masts or to barrels or whatever was tied down to the deck. She was left standing next to Sasha, as “Mr. Smee” was guarding the special prisoner.
One of the gross men standing next to her leered at her.
She decided she was never going to like anything with pirates in it ever again. “Can I pick the next book?”
“I don’t know if that’s how this works, but, sure, if they let us pick.” Sasha reached out and took Sidney’s hand and squeezed it gently. Nobody seemed to want to say anything about Mr. Smee and Wendy getting a little cuddly. In fact, nobody seemed to notice.
It was like if they did anything extremely out of character, it just didn’t exist to them. Just skipped off the surface.
“But if you recommend some sappy romance novel, I’m going to bet money Vile refuses,” Sasha continued.
“That—but—” Sidney lifted her head. She wiped her eyes with her sleeve. Her tears were finally starting to dry up. “But that’s not fair. It’s a perfectly valid genre.”
“I’m not saying it isn’t, trust me. I’m just saying I think he’d rather gouge out his eyes.”
“Are we putting words in my mouth?” A heavy metal hook rested on Sidney’s shoulder. It was Captain Hook. He’d come up right behind them. “I love it when people put words in my mouth.”
Sidney went rigid in terror.
“Technically,” Sasha glanced over her shoulder at him, much less tense than Sidney was. His flesh-and-blood hand was resting on Sasha’s shoulder. She seemed far less unnerved by the murderouspirate’s presence than Sidney was. But, to be fair, Sidney wasn’t the one stuck with the guy. “Isn’t everyone always putting words in your mouth?”
Hook paused, looked as if he wanted to argue, then let out a hum. “Touché, my dear.” He smiled down at them. “Regardless. What were we saying about me?”
“Sidney wanted to know if she could pick the next book. I said I wasn’t sure if that’s how it worked.” Sasha brushed off Hook’s hand before reaching over and pushing the hook of Sidney’s shoulder. “And I was warning her you probablydon’twant to get put through a romance novel.”
“Well, I wouldn’t jump to conclusions.” The insidious smile that bloomed across Hook’s face sent a wave of revulsion crawling up through Sidney, threatening to make her want to yack. “But only if I get to pick thekindof romance novel. There are some wonderfully entertaining sub-genres these days.”
When Hook lifted his fingers and wiggled them at Sasha, a sick grin still plastered on his face, it took even Sidney—who’d be the first to admit that her mind was usually lodged firmly in the dumpster—a hot second to realize what he was insinuating.
“Oh mygod,gross!” She grabbed Sasha and pulled her a step farther away from the villain. “No, absolutely not. I change my mind.”
“Bah. And here I thought you were the fun one.” Hook began to stroll away across the deck, folding his hand at his back.
Sidney glanced at Sasha. There was a weird look on her sister’s face. It wasn’t disgust, whatever it was. Lowering her voice, she elbowed her twin. “Sash?”
“What?”
“You’re kidding me.”
“What?” Sasha blinked as if snapping out of a thought. Then grimaced. “Ew, no.”
“Good. Just checking.”
Hook cut back into their conversation. “Let’s do this, then. A bitof an amendment to my game, since I make the rules. Whichever side wins this story picks the next one. Then, we’ll alternate.”
“Well, seeing as Peter Pan always wins, I better start thinking,” Sidney gloated. “He’ll be along any second now to rescue us all and feed you to that horrible crocodile.”
Hook spun to face them, smiling in a way that promised only mayhem. “We shall see.”
Sasha couldn’t shakethe feeling that something was wrong.
Very, very wrong. Hook—Vile—was scheming. She wracked her brain for everything she remembered about the ending to the original book. Wendy and the Lost Boys were all abducted and brought on board—check. That was where they were now.
Hook would then try to convince the Lost Boys into joining the pirates—or at least some of them—or threaten them with walking the plank. It was then, when it seemed all hope was lost, that Peter would sneak aboard with what was the clock from the crocodile, terrifying Captain Hook and scattering the pirates.
In the confusion, Peter would pick off the pirates until Hook would send the Lost Boys down to confront what he believed to be a monster who had taken over the hold of the ship, only to play into Peter’s hands.
There would be a showdown, one that Hook would lose, and it would result in him being fed to the real crocodile, no longer ticking, who lurked in the water waiting for his prey, just below the plank of the ship.
