“Why so glum? The neverberries bitter?” He reaches out and grabs one, popping it into his mouth. “Nope, taste good to me.”
“All right. Get out so I can get dressed. I’m leaving this cave today, and I’m not going anywhere near the water. Pick out somewhere we can explore without getting murdered, all right?”
“No can do. Like I said, I’m going with Nibs and Slightly to the town. Tootles will stay in the cave to guard you.” He glances out the door. “Though I’m not sure why he isn’t here yet.”
“Stay with Tootles? No. I’m coming with you.” I have to admit I’m damn curious about what sort of town could be on Neverland.
“No way. Peter would have a fit.”
“Where’s Peter now?”
“He’s out scouting for the Jolly Roger. If it weighs anchor on this side of the island, Peter’s going to get a better layout of it so we can get to Hook.” He taps the side of his head. “I feel like we should know that ship by heart, but like I said, memory doesn’t hold up here in Neverland.”
“Sounds like he’ll be gone for a while.” I nibble my bottom lip. “Is it dangerous?”
“Nah. Not for Peter.”
“Great. No worries then. Let’s hit the road.” I kick him off the bed.
He lands with a thump, then jumps to his feet. “Well, that was a nasty trick, Moira.” He tries to sound disappointed, but he fails when he smiles right through it.
“Out! I’m getting dressed, and we’re going to town!”
“No can do, Moira.” He adopts a more serious tone. “We’ve got orders from Peter that you aren’t to leave the cave unless he’s with you.”
“Oh, so I’m a prisoner?” I cross my arms over my chest, almost letting the blanket fall in the process.
A pink blush creeps into Coy’s cheeks as he stands his ground. “Not a prisoner by any means. We have a special cave for those.”
“Really?”
“Certainly.”
“I can’t tell if you’re kidding, but it doesn’t matter. I’m leaving the cave, and you can either take me with you to the town, or I can go exploring on my own. Up to you.” I’m bluffing. There’s no way I’m going out into the forest alone. There are too many predators and creepy eyes and eerie sounds, but Coy doesn’t need to know that.
He lets out a long-suffering sigh. “You’re going to get me in so much trouble if we do this. If Peter finds out, it’s—” He drags his thumb across his throat. “—for me. Is that what you want?”
I raise a brow at him. I’ve seen the way Peter is with the Lost Boys he keeps closest to him. They’re a family. There’s no way Peter would ever hurt them. “Look, Coy, I hate to be the one to break it to you, but the whole ‘Peter might kill you’ thing is a risk I’m willing to take.”
“Cold, Darling. So cold.” He pauses, his eyes sparkling. “You know, you would’ve made a decent pirate.”
“So you’ll take me with you?”
“Can’t do it. I’m sorry. I really am.” He backs out the door, as if he’s afraid I might throw something at him—and he might be right.
“Coy!” I can’t exactly go after him. I need pants, not to mention tighter lacing on the tunic. “Don’t leave me with Tootles!”
For some reason, I feel the slightest pang of hurt. I’m more comfortable with Coy than the others, though none of the men have struck me as threatening. They all seem curious about me, but they follow Peter’s orders to the letter. I thought Coy might be warming up to me, but I suppose I was wrong.
“You’ll be safe. I’ll bring you back something nice from town.” His voice is farther away.
Disappointment overcomes the hurt inside me. I thought I had him convinced. Maybe I need to work on my persuasion skills.
With resentment in every move, I get dressed then head down the tunnel to the kitchen.
Tootles is sitting at the table drinking his invisible tea with his pinky out, his blond curls bouncing a little as he moves. “Good morning, Moira.” He puts his cup down and rises. Even though he’s a total cinnamon roll, he’s still taller than me and muscledlike the others. Though, given the amount of running around, swimming, and apparently fighting they do all the time—it’s no surprise.
I size Tootles up, then pour myself a cup of water from the pitcher on the counter. Each of the Lost Boys follows Peter without question, but they also are quite different from one another. For example, I’ve noticed Nibs is pragmatic to the point of almost being surly, Slightly is creative and loves to make things, and Tootles … Well, Tootles seems to possibly be the youngest of them. He doesn’t have any gray hairs or laugh lines, which makes me think he must’ve been quite small when he came to Neverland. The youngest, and I’ve noticed, the most open to persuasion.
