Before she could ask about it, William took her arm and ran with her for the gangway. He all but dragged her onboard while the crew scrambled as if they were making sail in the dark.
William didn’t slow until they reached the mainmast, where Kalder stood next to an even more peculiar-looking man. This one was tall and lean, with a bare chest decorated by animal bones, beads, and feathers strung together to form the kind of adornment she’d only seen worn by certain Powhatan tribal elders who came to trade with merchants in Virginia or meet with town officials. Yet that and the feathers strung to his staff and beaded armbands seemed at odds with his long, dark blond dreadlocks that were favored by some of the islanders she’d met on this latest quest. And he’d painted his face like no one she’d ever seen. Not shaman or warrior. Meanwhile, he wore the breeches and boots of a fine European nobleman and the sword of a Saracen nomad. Truly the man had a style unique unto himself.
“What is it?” William asked them as he let go of her arm and moved to stand beside the strange man.
“There’s an ill breeze blowing off the port bow.” The man glanced to Kalder. “Reeks of what we’re charged with policing.”
Kalder rolled his eyes. “I think the fetid bitch just wants to make sure none of us sleep tonight.”
He snorted at Kalder’s rude words. “I’m not the one you need to fear, brother.” He jerked his chin at something behind Cameron. “Sancha appears to have been ass-up in Nelson’s Folly a bit early tonight.”
Cameron turned to see an exceptionally tall and gracefully lanky woman headed for them. Her long, curly black wig was askew as she weaved across the deck, making her way for the steering wheel. Without a word, the woman clapped a hand to Kalder’s shoulder as she attempted to step around them, fell against him, then righted herself. With a kiss to his cheek, she pushed herself away and fell against Bart, who then helped her stand upright. How the woman could make her drunken dance appear so beautiful, Cameron had no idea. Yet Sancha was elegant while tipsy.
But when the men actually allowed the woman to take her place at the helm, Cameron gaped at them. “What the hell, man?” The curse was out before she could stop it. “You’re planning to let her steer the ship while drunk?”
The strangely mismatched man laughed. “Of course. We only fear her when she’s sober. Then Sancha’s a nasty tart with a wicked twist of the whip … and a tongue that lets even more blood, ever quicker.”
That only confused her more. “Then why did you say you feared her?”
“Everyone fears her, love. I merely commented on the fact that, second to the captain, she’s the scariest thing on this ship, and that she’s imbibed quite a bit tonight … even for her.” He winked at Cameron. “Name’s Rosenkranz, or Rosie, and what be the name of such a sweet tender morsel as you?”
As she opened her mouth to answer, a cry sounded for Kalder to duck. Yet before he could oblige the call, a bucket of water ended up being slung against him.
She expected him to explode into anger.
He didn’t.
Rather, he groaned as his entire body changed instantly … his skin became slick and silvery like a fish’s iridescent scales. Gills opened at his neck, while his teeth elongated to fangs. What she’d mistaken for tattoos became fins that protruded from his arms and legs.
Choking, he sputtered and coughed, then turned to glare at the sailor who’d doused him. “Careful! You lousy bilger! Watch where you be tossing that or I’ll be making you drink it through your nose!”
“Sorry, Kal, it slipped from me hands. Won’t happen again.”
“See that it don’t. Or else I’ll be plaguing and poxing a piece of your anatomy you’re going to miss using.”
“Here, Mr. Dupree.”
Cameron bit back a scream as Captain Bane literally appeared out of nowhere to stand beside Kalder with a towel for him. He handed it off, then began to help shout orders as they cast off for the open seas.
Too stunned to speak, she watched as Kalder’s skin and coloring returned to normal, though “normal” was beginning to take on a whole new meaning with this particular group.
Kalder cast an amused grimace toward her. “You handled that well, for an air-breather. Surely, you have questions about it … and me?”
Aye, she did—of course she did. But the more she looked at this crew …
She didn’t know where to begin as her head spun from the madness of it all. The riggers moved along the masts and lines with inhuman skill. It was terrifying to watch the way they scaled the spiny wood and thick ropes to drop sails, without fear or hesitation. The way all of them rushed about, displaying talents that hadn’t been born of this world or of a typical woman. Surely, they were demons all.
This is a crew of the damned.
And she’d walked right onboard. Voluntarily.
With both feet.
What have I done? She’d given no real thought to joining them. Not really. Rather, she’d placed her trust in total strangers she knew nothing about. And that wasn’t like her. Ever. Cameron Maire Jack trusted no one. Never in her life had she done such as this.
Was she really that desperate?
Of course I am.
Without Paden, she had nothing in this world. She had no one. Even before her parents had died, she’d worshiped her older brother. He’d been everything to her. Her best friend and protector. Her confidant and playmate.
While her parents’ deaths had been hard to bear, news of his had devastated her to a level she’d never known existed. The pain had been unimaginable. Indescribable. Sent her reeling into a despair she had yet to recover from.
Since the day she’d learned what death meant when she was a girl at age five and her favorite pup had perished after tangling with a fox, she’d known that her parents would precede her to the grave. That was to be expected, as it was the way of things. The natural order that children outlived their parents and carried on their lineage.
But Paden …
Five years her elder, he was to always be here. Always. No matter what, he wasn’t to leave her alone in this miserable world. He’d sworn that to her. That he would be forever by her side to keep her safe. He wouldn’t fail her or his word. Not for anything. Not for anyone. It would always be the two of them. Thick and thin, and all that lay in between. Not even the devil and all his demons would keep her brother from her.
That had been his vow every night of her life when he’d tucked her into bed.…
Have no fear.
Keep your cheer.
It’ll always be
You and me.
Thick and thin
To the end.
Neither heaven nor hell
Will keep me from me Cammy-belle.
How could Paden have broken her heart so? Did he not know that it wasn’t his life he’d lost at sea?
It was hers.
But worse than that, he’d taken her faith and hopes with him to the grave. Her heart. Her belief in God Himself. Truly, she was now a hollowed-out shell with nothing inside except a profound, unending pain, and a sense of loss so deep she feared she’d never feel anything else ever again.