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We are very late to the feast, to the extent most of the pirates have either collapsed drunk or gone to bed like sensible people. Siryn is still holding court among the last people present, trusted advisors and old friends, not to mention several girlfriends. She has no shortage of lovers or admirers, and I am glad for that.
She calls Kail over, and we join them. Nemo is fast asleep in a cot nearby. He is always looked over here. There is not a person in the port who does not consider him family.
“I have good news for you,” she says, addressing Kail rather than me. “You’ve brought in enough raw materials and riches to extend the port,” she says. “I think it is time you two got your own home. Kail has earned it.”
“Congratulations, Kail,” I say, my smile only half-forced. “That’s exciting news.”
“Yes, you’ll have plenty of privacy for your fornication,” she says, drawing a huge laugh from everybody present.
“Yes,” I agree, catching her eye. “We will. Thank you so much for your generosity in allowing us to keep a small portion of the proceeds Kail has earned in his many weeks away from home.”
“Do you have a problem, Tarni?”
That’s my cue to submit, be sweet, and shut up. Maybe it’s the whole day of washing that has done it. Or maybe I’m just tired of being made to pay for a mistake I made a long time ago.
“Do you want me to have a problem?”
“Tarni…” Kail says warningly.
“What? Everybody knows my talents are being wasted washing clothes. Everybody knows I’m being punished persistently. Everybody knows that every hour of every day here is another opportunity for her to fuck with me. So what’s the catch? I’m not actually allowed in Kail’s house? I have to scrub every inch of the dock with a toothbrush before we can move in? What? I know there’s something, because she’s not happy unless I am unhappy. But you know what, Siryn? I am happy. So suck on that.”
There’s a lull in the wake of my outburst, a sort of stunned silence. I made a scene, and not in a good way. Even to my own ears I sounded like a petulant teenager.
“Your talents are not being wasted here, Tarni. It is just that we have no need for treacherous spies.”
There’s a gasp from the pirates, followed by mocking laughter. I knew it wasn’t going to be easy to make my way here. The resentment coming from all those around me is palpable, but I did think it would improve over time. Instead, I am the port punching bag.
“Enough.”
Kail says the word quietly, but firmly.
I fall silent, sucking up the humiliation yet again.
Kail looks around all the pirates before his golden gaze settles on Siryn. “Tarni is my mate, and only I have the right to punish her. She will do her fair share of labor here, as we all must, but there is no doubt she is being wasted. She knows the Colony inside and out. We could make use of her in our incursions. The only reason I do not want her on the ships is because I want her here, safe. I also want her to be respected. I think I have earned that, and I think she has earned it too. I am not interested in houses or riches. I am here for the happiness of my family.”
Another silence, followed by a nod from Siryn. “Fair enough. Laundry every other Tuesday. And perhaps a consulting role, though I have trouble trusting anything she says.”
Kail is unexpectedly harsh in his response. “That’s your failing. Not hers. She changed long ago, and she has proved that at every turn. If you cannot see that, then you are not as perceptive as I imagined.”
“I can see it,” Siryn admits. “I’m just petty, I suppose.”
“We all have our failings,” Kail says. “I think we’ll take our leave for the night, Captain Siryn.”
Now they are the ones who look like guilty, petulant, bullying children. I try not to look too smug. That would ruin things. I want them just as they are now, scolded by Kail, from the lowest of the low all the way up to the port Captain herself.
Siryn nods. We barely got to eat a bite, so I grab a plate and load it up with everything I can under the skeptical gazes of the other pirates. With enough food stashed, I give a sarcastic curtsy and head into the night with Kail.
We find somewhere private and sit down, letting our legs dangle off the dock into what looks like empty space. We share the plate. When it is empty, I say what I probably should have said when it was full.
“Thank you for standing up for me.”
“I will always defend you. That is what I am doing out there, raiding Colony ships. I do not do it to destroy them. I do it because it keeps you and Nemo safe.”
“And I’d do laundry every day if it meant that you and Nemo were safe. I hate that you’re out there, at risk of being killed by a Colony fighter. It would make all of this such a waste of fucking time.”
He wraps an arm around my shoulders. “It wouldn’t be a waste. We are living a life, Tarni. We are raising Nemo. We are loving one another. That is all anybody can ask for in any life.”
“You two are so sweet it is sickening,” Siryn comments as she walks past us, her arms around two pretty female pirates, both of whom are beaming with carnal anticipation. Her guilt has clearly been short-lived, as one might expect a ruthless pirate captain’s guilt to be. “Go get your baby from Gabrielle. She needs to sleep. You are parents, remember?”
