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“Take those branks off,” I said, though I knew firsthand the worst pain would be when the spiky piece of metal was taken off his tongue. Ironically, Dunn had been the cause for my own experience with branks, but I felt no anger toward him for that now.
No one moved.
“Give me the key and I’ll do it! He can’t do any harm now.”
The man who’d first spoken handed me a silver key.
I put it up to the back of Dunn’s head, releasing the metal that pinned down his tongue.
He pulled the branks out, wincing as he did so. When he had them off, he gave one fleeting glance to the metal headpiece before tossing the device overboard and into the waves.
I was relieved the men had kept him alive, though I pitied him for all he’d been through, especially since he was in for a rude awakening when he learned his grandfather was dead.
“Do you have the strength to climb the ladder?” I asked him.
He moved his lips to speak, but a trickle of fresh blood flowed from his mouth and he nodded instead, squeezing his eyes shut.
“Go on then. I’ll follow.”
He went to the ladder, the men standing aside instead of offering to help. I knew how they hated him and I understood why, but as for me, I understood Dunn. He was duty-bound and ambitious, eager to please and to be respected by those more powerful than him.
But right now, he only wanted to go home and be free.
Vaughn lifted something to his face that looked like a cross between spectacles and a spyglass. It was black and bulky, with glass lenses.
“We found ‘em in the barrels. Wanna take a look?” he asked.
I nodded and took the weighty device, lifting it to my eyes and looking to shore.
Cael paced the shoreline, Graham beside him, his face as clear as if he were only a stone’s throw away. I saw the carriage that held Keane, still guarded by the Enforcers.
“Wow,” I said. “You can keep an eye on Cael from here.”
I tilted the spyglass spectacles to the west, exploring the landscape with what felt like enhanced eyes.
I reminded myself to look for some of these when at the arsenal. I wondered what other wonders might lay in wait there.
I scared the shoreline until I spotted a pair of figures among some boulders. My breath caught as I recognized Cait’s curly red hair. She and Lachlan were making their way along the shore, away from Cael, which was a relief, but I wished they’d hide entirely instead of walking out in the open.
I looked past them, where the shore met large boulders, and found something odd. It looked like a sharp white vessel partially hidden behind the curve of the shore. The shape was unlike any seacraft I’d seen and I wondered if it was something else entirely—a creature, perhaps, or a rock, or a trick of the light.
“What do you think—” I started to ask but was cut off by Vaughn.
“Well, we gave up our hostage. Is Cael gonna send back our men now?” he said.
“He will if you refuse to return the weapons,” I said.
“Remember,” he said, “we’re outta here if he does anything we didn’t agree to.”
I climbed down the ladder and into the rowboat across from Dunn. Then I picked up the oars and began to row to shore. I didn’t know what Cael would do next, but at least Dunn was safe.
“How’s your mouth?” I asked. “Did they feed you at all?”
He only grimaced.
“By the way,” I said, “Ruskin doesn’t know that you warned me about the ambush. I didn’t tell, so I suggest you don’t either.”
“Thank—” He started to say, then shut his mouth, his eyes watering.
