Page 75 of Tempest

She ventured his command of the Covenant was barely weeks old, if that.

And perhaps the Venerable his first prize, or what remained of one, she mused.

Her fear melted, and the scales between them tipped towards balance, if only a little.

He had barely sat before glancing at her shoulder. His gaze snagged on her simple shift and the stretch of exposed skin around her neck.

Cat went warm beneath his inspection, but held still, reluctant to show any unease. It would only be seen as weakness. And she could not be weak if she were to save Jasper—and herself.

“Would you like a jacket, Lady Rose?” Valerian said in a halting voice, eyes skipping between her collarbone and her face. Then he extended a hand towards a wardrobe by the bed, the top drawer missing, the others crooked and stuffed full.

It was the last question she thought he might ask.

Her first thought was to shudder. His clothes were probably riddled with fleas and gods knew what else. Not to mention the shame of wearing a man’s things, let alone a pirate’s. But warmth curled in her too. He offered so easily, with little agenda she could find.

Beyond granting me a favor, and perhaps winning my trust, Cat told herself. She was at enough of a disadvantage without indebting herself to a pirate captain.

Nor did she need to cede what might be a small advantage of her own.

She shrugged, aware of her bare, freckled skin exposed to the warm, sunny cabin, and Valerian’s stormy eyes.

“No, thank you,” she answered, sitting back in the broken chair as if she was entertaining in her parlor. Her heart thrummed, though her voice remained level. “And I told you—my name is Cat.”

At that, Valerian grinned, settling back in his seat. He kicked up a boot, resting his foot on the desk.

“So I’ve heard,” he drawled, pointing back towards the deck. “That officer carries a candle for you. I’m certain you’ve noticed. And your husband,” he added, whistling a low tone. “I do not envy you.”

Her hand closed on the single remaining arm of her chair, fingers tight on the wood. But her face, like her voice, remained serene.

“I apologize for my husband’s behavior,” she said. “He is not himself when sailing.”

Valerian’s eyes darkened. “The Arcayans say the sea reveals a man’s true nature.”

“I do not know the ways of Arcayo,” Cat replied, with a ladylike humph, as if they were discussing the weather or a passing scrap of gossip. “Though you seem to collect their treasures.”

“Collect?” Valerian scoffed and followed her eyeline, noting the stones. “No, those were given, my lady. I do not take from my own.”

“Good luck charms then? Magic to guide you on the sea?”

At that, Valerian threw back his head and laughed. But there was no mirth to it. “Magic? The crowns of the Continent squeezed the magic from these waters a generation ago,” he said, his voice going tight. “When they slaughtered and sickened and drove away the true people of the Lyrian. There is no magic here anymore.”

Cat frowned, feeling like a child scolded by the teacher. “That isn’t what the history books say,” she answered, keeping her chin high.

Another laugh echoed around the cabin. “And who wrote those books, Lady Rose? Someone who was there, someone who lost something? Or a Meridian man at a desk on the other side of the world, with only the words of the conqueror to tell the tale?”

To that, Cat had no answer at all. She did not miss the interesting glint in Valerian’s gaze, the way his hand strayed to the tattoo on his chest. The braided circle, the twisting lines.

But she was in no position to ask probing questions.

Through the window, a few pieces of the Venerable drifted into view—then the first body. She winced, only to find Valerian still staring, not at her exposed shoulder or throat, but her face.

“You are changed since last I saw you, and yet your fortunes have not changed at all,” Valerian said slowly.

Cat felt her jaw clench. “I was in the process of changing said fortunes when you decided to blow up my ship.”

His grin widened, but it did not reach his eyes.

“I did not decide to do anything of the sort.”