AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Don’t tempt me, woman,” he whispered. “I’m already out of patience.”
He stood against me for a breath, until the door opened beside us. Henrik stepped out, looking between the two of us. His face was flat, completely void of all emotion. He crossed his arms over his chest.
Adrian took a step back and then grabbed my hand and pushed me toward Henrik.
“Get her ready,” Adrian growled. “Let’s get this over with.”
***
The moon started to rise over the ship. It was full and white, sending light over the deck as Henrik drew circles with white chalk around us.
“What is it for?” I asked.
“It protects the ship,” he said, not looking up. “And you.”
I shuddered. “Am I in danger?”
To this, he stopped, lifting his eyes to meet mine. “We all are.”
Adrian’s boots echoed over the deck as he appeared on the scene. He looked over the chalk markings.
“You’re going to clean all this up, right?” he asked. “I don’t want this staining the wood.”
Henrik rolled his eyes. “You should be worried about more important things.”
“This is important. This ship is a loan.”
“It’s stolen.”
Adrian waved his hand apathetically. “Logistics.”
Adrian looked over at me, as I sat quietly in the middle of a triple circle of chalk, an unlit candle three feet from my ankles.
“You’re finally being submissive?” he asked.
I shrugged and folded my arms in annoyance. “Henrik acts like a gentleman and treats me with utmost respect. Your life would be much more fruitful if you did the same.”
He swallowed roughly. I didn’t know why he was so angry about the critique.
“How do you know this is going to work?” Adrian asked Henrik while glaring at me.
“Does it matter?” Henrik returned. “You haven’t believed anything I said about the spirits since I first spoke with them. I don’t need your interest now.”
“By the way,” Adrian said, ignoring his brother’s bitterness, “I heard you told the crew to prepare for battle. They all have weapons at the ready and keep watching the horizon. What ghost story did you tell them to get them all spooked? You’re supposed to be second in command. I don’t want you abusing your power.”
Henrik slammed his chalk on the ground, breaking it in half. “Which one of us has abused his power, Adrian?”
It went silent, with only Henrik’s breathing and the waves filling up the void.
“Forget it,” Adrian said, huffing. “Just finish up.”
He went toward the edge of the ship and sat against the rail, turning his back on the both of us.
Henrik exhaled slowly, putting his hand through his hair. He came and kneeled in front of me, pulling out a dagger. It was just as Luc had said: a silver dagger made with a black stone and a pearl handle.
“It’s beautiful,” I said, not thinking.
He stopped in surprise, then quickly smiled. “For such a proper lady, you have a strange interest in sharp objects.”
