Page 30 of Seaborn and the Seven Seas

“I changed the terms.”

“Did you?” The corner of his mouth twitched. “Careful. Last man who held a blade to my throat lost a hand.”

“I’m not worried.”

“No?”

“You’d have taken it back by now if you meant to.”

Humor danced in his face. He placed a hand, not on the dagger, but my fingers, and pushed it an inch lower until it sat against his collarbone instead.

“There,” he said. “Now you’re not going to nick something I need.”

“Where are you taking us?” I put the dagger back in its safe place.

He leaned against the railing. “Somewhere safe. Eventually.”

“Eventually?” I narrowed my eyes.

“I have somewhere to be first.”

“Where?” The wind whipped strands of hair across my face and I brushed them back.

“Like I said.” The corner of his mouth twitched. “Life is a debt.”

He wasn’t going to tell me. Fine. I would find out soon enough.

I faced back to the calm ocean, the moonlight reflecting off the dark surface. “What were you doing there at the tavern?” When he kept quiet, I said, “Let me guess. You were paying a debt.” Though I had no idea what kind and why.

He continued to stay silent, glancing out at the sea as if he could see a memory there. I guessed this conversation was done.

I took a step away to head to Jina, but his fingers closed around my wrist.

“What did the king of Jeju make you do? Were you mistreated?”

Why that question? Why did he care? To humiliate me?

“Mistreated?” A short laugh escaped me as I pulled free of his grip. “Is that what we’re calling it? There’s not a word strong enough for what he did to us.”

It was difficult to talk about the family I’d been forced to leave behind. And I had no idea why I was confessing any of this to a stranger.

His jaw clenched, eyes darkening until the blue was almost gone. “How long were you held captive?”

I swallowed. “All my life. Twenty-five years. My mother died shortly after giving birth to me. I was raised in the cavern the same way she had been. She was a slave, same as her mother before her, most likely.”

“Your father?”

I shook my head. “Nobody knows. Not even Nam.”

“Nam?”

“One of the elders. A mother figure to all of us, but especially to me.” I didn’t bother telling him how none of us had names until I gave them one. “Why were you at the auction if you didn’t buy anyone?”

“Resse told me about it. I’d thought I’d take a look.”

“How do you know Resse?”

“We’re pirates.” He shrugged. “We all know each other.”