Miya Black, Pirate Princess I: Adventure Dawns (43 page)

"How is your mouth?" Sola asked.

"It's fine unless I talk or breathe or someone mentions it."

"Ah." He hesitated a moment, then smiled. "It looks awful."

Miya smiled back. "I'll live," she said, then winced. She looked at her father, who had closed his eyes. She pushed at his shoulder.

"Hey. Don't sleep."

"It's okay," he said, opening his eyes again. His voice was a little stronger than before. "I've been ... near death before. This isn't ... what it looks like. Sola ... thank you, I'm sorry—"

"Later," said Sola. He finished tying the last bandage around Miya's arm, then smiled at his father. "There will be a later."

Tomas smiled weakly back, then nodded.

"Yes," he said, as Miya took his hand in her own, sitting beside him. "There will be a later."

*

The rain lightened as the sun began to rise, visibility better than it had been, but still nowhere near good enough for ship-to-ship combat. Sola had tied Lars securely and treated his wounds, then put him in the brig with the other prisoners, under the careful watch of the northern islanders below.

"I'm embarrassed to say," Tomas said, as he walked slowly and painfully along the deck, "that I'm in no condition to fight."

"No one's asking you to fight," said Miya. "In fact, less than one minute ago I'm pretty sure I told you not to even move."

"I've just going over here," said Tomas, letting out a pained grunt as he sat on the stairs leading up to the stern deck. "I think you did these bandages up too tight."

"If they weren't as tight as they are, you'd have spilt half of what little blood you have left just moving from the mast to those stairs," said Miya. "So don't complain."

"Perhaps so," said Tomas. He smiled. "And with a little luck there will be no need for more fighting. We've captured every one of Pete's frigates. We hold a position of power now. In any case, only a great fool would attempt to engage in ship-to-ship combat with this visibility, you'd be as likely to hit your own side as your enemy. Now we can try to—"

"What are ye lot doin', sitting around like useless great lumps o' Highland Pudding when there's fightin' to be done?"

Miya looked up at Heartless Jon. He was standing up on the stern deck, beside the wheel, hands on his hips as he glared down at them.

"How did you get on board without any of us hearing you?" she demanded.

"Legendary pirate, remember? Got a wee bit o' bad news. Yer town there's been captured."

"What?" Miya stood, shocked.

"Gets worse, sorry to say." Heartless Jon sat heavily beside his son, put a hand on his shoulder. "Yer wife's been taken."

Tomas looked sharply at his father. "No," he said, flatly.

"Ye can sit there denying things till the ocean dries up and the sky turns green, won't change the fact o' the matter. Pete's taken her, son. Left a message. She's safe enough now, but he wants another parley—aboard his ship this time, just the Black family and ALL the Black family, afore the sun sets. As for yer 'subjects' or whatever ye call 'em, he's got a bunch tied up in yer town square o'er yonder. Sola lad, bad news for ye too. Ain't no sign of a single Tonfa-Tonfa'an on any of the frigs we captured. Reckon Pete's got 'em on that ugly great white whale of a ship out there."

Sola nodded.

"I had expected this," he said. "Thank you for telling me."

"Ah, listen to the boy, show yer rage, lad! When I were your age I was raging against any little damn thing, I just told ye Pete's got
yer
entire village tied up at that ship, and ye THANK me?"

Sola looked down at the deck, then up at his grandfather.

"When I stand before Badger Pete, then perhaps I will show my rage," he said, his voice calm.

Heartless Jon looked at his grandson for a moment.

"Aye," he said. "Aye, maybe so. Now what's yer problem, son?"

Tomas had closed his eyes and laid his head back against the steps. He shook his head, and Heartless Jon cuffed him on the back of it.

"Come on, look lively! Ye've a wife to rescue! If I had to count the times yer mother got herself in trouble and needed me to get her out of it ..." Heartless Jon squinted for a moment. "Well, it were mostly her rescuing me, now that I recalls, but I'm sure there were a time or two where she needed me help like yer wife does yours now. And you, granddaughter! Yer ma's in trouble, what are ye gonna do about it?"

"Fight!" said Miya, drawing her sword.

"Damn straight!" said Heartless Jon, drawing his own.

"No," said Tomas. His daughter and his father looked at him. "We can't fight."

"Well, ye may not be able to, what happened to ye?" Jon asked, casting a beady eye over the bandages wrapped around Tomas's midsection. "Ah, ye didn't go and let yerself get cut now, did ye?"

"Had a little bit of trouble," said Tomas. "I'll live."

"Of course ye will, wee nick like that, surprised ye bothered wrapping it," said Heartless Jon, although he knelt and inspected the bandaging. "Been done up good and proper, though, won't be seeing yer insides slopping out over the deck any time soon, will we?"

"Father is right," said Sola, looking up from where he'd been staring at the deck. "We cannot do anything that might put our families and people in danger."

"Sola ... son. Don't call me 'Father'. It sounds bloody awful—excuse my language, Miya. Please, call me 'Dad'."

Sola nodded solemnly. "Dad," he said.

"Got one bit o' good news for ye," said Heartless Jon. "Pete's raiders may have taken yer town, but they weren't so lucky with yer ships."

Tomas shook his head. "That doesn't help us. We can't attack with this rain. We should have abandoned those ships and set the crew to repel the raiders."

"Dad, we can't change that now. Remember? All the what-ifs in the world couldn't shift a grain of sand," said Miya.

Heartless Jon glanced at his son, his expression amused. "Aye," he said. "Words o' wisdom from yer daughter there."

Tomas sighed, then stood, Miya rushing to help him up. He grimaced at the pain in his side.

"I'm all right," he said. "I can stand on my own—thank you, Miya."

Miya stepped reluctantly away.

"So what are we doing?" she asked, after a moment. "Because we have to do something, right? Right?"

"Yes," said Tomas. He smiled, just a little. "We have to be very clever."

Badger Pete's great white frigate was huge and intimidating. It was of Highland make, strong and bulky and functional, with rows upon rows of cannons lining the sides.

The climb up to board the ship was long, and once upon the main deck the sight that greeted the small party from Clover Island was not cheering. Pete's crew had been posted everywhere, by the ladder leading up to the ship, around the meeting spot Pete had chosen on the main deck—a wide, clear space—and up on the stern deck. Then there was Badger Pete's parley group, the same as he'd taken to Clover Island; his daughter, scowling viciously at Miya, her forehead bandaged, along with his two lieutenants, the slim man Tomas had greeted as 'Darkeye' and the red lady he had greeted as 'Steel'. Behind them were a dozen northern islanders, older and younger, all tied, blindfolded, and gagged, each with an armed member of Pete's crew behind them. To Steel's right was Lilith, on her knees, her hands tied behind her back. Her right eye was blackened and there was blood around her mouth. When Miya saw this, she thought that perhaps she understood a little of what her father felt when she was duelling with Grace; it took every ounce of her willpower not to draw her sword and fight through to her mother there and then.

As for Tomas, nothing of what he felt showed on his face, except for the determination in his eyes.

The rain suddenly dropped off as they walked towards Pete's group, then stopped completely. The sky above was still overcast, but the sun was around an hour risen and the clouds were bright.

"Gonna be a beauty of a day once these clouds clear," said Heartless Jon, conversationally. Pete smirked at him.

"Jonathan Black," he said. "I had a few run-ins with your wife a couple of years back."

"Ah? Hope ye gave the ol' wench what-for, she like as not deserved it," Heartless Jon replied. Pete's expression darkened, and Jon chuckled. "But knowing Jean, she whipped ye straight and sent ye home crying. Notice ye said 'a few', so ye crossed her more'n once? Doesn't speak much to yer brains there, mate. No offence."

Pete stared at Heartless Jon a moment, then clasped his hands together and smiled.

"But would you look at this," he said. "The entire Black family, gathered together in one place. Even the long-lost grandfather and illegitimate son. Very nice to see you again, by the way."

Sola breathed deep, and inclined his head. Miya glanced back at him, then looked straight ahead, at Badger Pete.

"Now," said Pete. "You all being here means you got my message, which means you know I not only have your queen and young Sola's entire village, but also several hundred of your good 'subjects', all tied up and very well-guarded over on that island that you used to call home. Last we parleyed we spoke of positions of power, did we not?"

Tomas closed his eyes a moment, then nodded. "We did."

"I believe that this time, the position of power is held clearly by myself. Now. I want that island. I want my frigates. I want anything and everything of value you've got hidden away. In return I'll let you keep ships enough to cram the whole stinking lot of your 'subjects' aboard—a couple of brigs should be enough, though it might be 'standing room only'." Pete paused, smiling to himself before continuing. "Then you'll be free to go off and 'build' some other stinking little kingdom on some other stinking little island, so long as it's a good distance from here. How does that sound? Fair? After all, it's the lives of your subjects that's the important thing, that's what you told me, isn't it? Where there is life there is hope, yes?"

Tomas looked at Badger Pete a long moment.

"Have you looked out north, since the rain let up?" he asked. "It's a beautiful view."

Pete narrowed his eyes, then jerked his head at a crewman. The crewman pulled out a spyglass and scanned the oceans to the north for a moment, before moving to Pete's side and whispering to him. Pete's expression didn't change.

"So ye've noticed our tactical manoeuvre, then," he said. "Ah well, can't keep everything a secret."

"Was that an attempt at a bluff?" The voice was Lilith's. She smiled thinly at Pete. "Your Highland friends have left. How interesting."

"They've not left, they're ... they're—"

"It's amazing what a simple little note can do," said Tomas. "When properly applied."

"What the hell have you been up to?" Pete growled. "What did you tell them?"

"Only the truth, Badger. Only the truth."

Pete seethed silently.

"When the day of your defeat comes, and that day will come," said Miya, her voice level. "There will be not one of these people standing by your side."

Badger Pete glared at Miya. She shrugged.

"I thought it seemed an appropriate quote."

"Shut that little sea rat up," Pete growled at Tomas.

"I see no reason to," said Tomas. "She's made no threat, said no words of disrespect. Which is more than I could say for you. It's interesting, you've obviously had some dealings with the Highland but you clearly don't understand how they work at all." He smiled grimly at Badger Pete. "My wife is perhaps best suited to explain one of the cornerstones of Highland philosophy. Lily?"

" 'Never back a losing team'," said Queen Lilith, the smile on her face mirroring her husband's.

Tomas held Pete's gaze for a moment, then he shrugged lightly. "I'm a reasonable man. Perhaps you'd like to present a more suitable offer, considering the effect that this new information might have on your 'position of power'."

Pete glared at Tomas, then shook his head angrily.

"Keep the damned island," he said. "It's nothing. But I want me frigates back."

"I'm sure you do," said Tomas. "As much as I'm sure that the moment I returned them to you, you'd turn around and attack us again."

"Then toss the gunpowder overboard!"

"You'd resupply and be back within the week."

"What'd be the point! If the—" Badger Pete stopped himself, glared at Tomas and his family.

"If the deal with Highland has gone sour?" Lilith asked. "I wonder what kind of message those ships are going to take back to their superiors. The Highland view of failure isn't exactly positive. I don't think you're going to get many invitations to parties after this."

Pete gritted his teeth and gave a brief nod to Steel, who grabbed Lilith by the hair and put her sword to her throat. Lilith didn't cry out, didn't change her expression, except perhaps to one that was even more determined than before. Miya's face darkened, her hand going to the hilt of her sword before her father's hand clasped around her wrist. Tomas wasn't looking at her, his eyes were fixed on Lilith's, but Miya understood clearly what he was saying to her:
choose your moment
.

"Position of power," said Pete, as the remaining crew behind him put their swords to the throats of the Tonfa-Tonfa'an prisoners before them. "You give me what I want or I'll have your wife's throat slit, don't think I won't."

"Ah, give it up,
boy
." Heartless Jon stepped forward. Miya looked at him, worried. Tomas's expression was neutral, his eyes still locked with his wife's.

"Take one step further and you'll have your daughter-in-law's blood on your hands," said Pete. Heartless Jon grinned.

"Sure'n what do I care for her? Nah, ye won't do it anyways. The lass with the sword to her throat saw it plain in ye and I can too—ye're cursed with pride, Badger Pete."

Pete glared at Heartless Jon.

"I'm right, ain't I?" Jon continued. "Can see it in yer eyes, read it on yer face plain as day. Because ye knows that giving that order'd damn ye—damn ye to knowing ye lost, now and forever."

Heartless Jon stared Pete down, then spoke again: