So I Married a Sorcerer (The Embraced #2)

“Come now.” Sister Fallyn motioned for her to hurry. “We’ll feel safer in our cabin.”

“But then we won’t know what’s happening.” Brigitta glanced at Jeffrey, who was hovering behind her in the doorway. “Can we stay here? With the door open so we can hear?”

“I-I suppose.” He glanced to the side and laughed. “I can’t close the door now. A big fat pelican just sat in front of it.”

“Really?” Brigitta peered outside and smiled when she saw the pelican sitting against the door.

She glanced to the portside but could no longer spot Rupert. Where was he? She scanned the deck till she saw his hat. He was indeed tall, for the tip of his hat stood a foot above most of the crew. He was standing close to the mainmast, putting on his gloves. Then he grabbed a rope with one hand and pulled a lever with another.

Suddenly he zoomed straight up into the air till he reached the crow’s nest.

Brigitta gasped. “How did he—”

“It’s one of his inventions.” With a grin, Jeffrey pointed up. “See the pulley up there and the trapdoor? When Rupert pulls the lever, the trapdoor swings open and a heavy weight drops down. The weight’s connected to the same rope Rupert’s holding. So when the weight goes down—”

“Rupert goes up,” Brigitta finished. “But doesn’t the weight crash onto the deck?”

Jeffrey snorted. “Rupert designed it so the weight falls into a cargo hole, where it’s caught in a net.”

Brigitta watched the pirate swing his legs over the railing of the crow’s nest and land neatly inside. “’Tis a clever idea.”

“Oh, Rupert’s really smart,” Jeffrey boasted. “He invented the privy down below.”

“Really?” Brigitta had been astonished by the sink and toilet that had pipes with running water. There was even an odd thing Jeffrey had called a shower.

“See those tanks over there?” Jeffrey pointed at three metal tanks at the far end of the passageway. “It’s my job to make sure they’re always full. The water goes down three different pipes to the privy. One for the sink, one for the chamber pot, and one for the shower. Gravity makes the water flow downward and eventually out some pipes into the sea.”

Brigitta recalled the levers Jeffrey had shown them. By twisting them up or down, a person could make the water pour out or stop. “What if ye run out of water?”

Jeffrey waved a dismissive hand. “Rupert has it covered. He put a bunch of barrels on deck to collect rainwater.”

Indeed, Brigitta thought, the pirate had an annoying way of being quite thorough. He’d certainly blasted her idea full of holes in just a few seconds. Even so, she couldn’t help but admire how inventive his mind was.

Tall and handsome. Extremely clever. He certainly seemed like a dashing young hero. Except for the fact that he was a thieving, sorcerer pirate. And that small thing that kept nagging at her. Something about Rupert was off. She just couldn’t quite put her finger on it.

“I hate to admit it,” Sister Fallyn grumbled, “but the privy was quite impressive.”

Jeffrey nodded. “That’s what Lady Ellen said. She’s the one who left all those clothes.”

“A noblewoman?” Sister Fallyn asked. “What happened to her?”

“She was in big trouble,” Jeffrey explained. “It was a few years ago when King Frederic was in power. Lady Ellen’s husband failed to do something that King Frederic had ordered him to do, so he was executed. The king took his land and ordered Lady Ellen to be executed, too. She fled to Danport and begged Rupert and the captain to help her. We took her to the Isle of Moon where she’d be safe. She didn’t have a way to pay for her passage, so she left the clothes behind. Said she wouldn’t need them at the convent.”

Sister Fallyn exchanged a surprised look with Brigitta. “Sister Ellen!”

“Of course.” Brigitta grinned. Sister Ellen had helped Luciana prepare for her role as a noblewoman. “She taught us how to do the court dances.”

“Then she’s all right?” Jeffrey asked.

“Aye. She’s very happy.” To be alive. No wonder Brigitta had felt a great sense of relief when she’d touched Sister Ellen’s discarded clothing.

These pirates weren’t so bad after all, Brigitta thought as she draped her cloak on the second step, then took a seat. They were not only intelligent, but capable of acting with honor and compassion. They’d rescued Sister Ellen, so perhaps they would help her, too. She just needed to explain everything to Rupert.

The thought of spending time alone with him made her heart beat faster. If she touched him again, would she see more of his secret past? Would she be able to figure out what was bothering her?

Horns suddenly blared again, and Brigitta stiffened.

“Good goddesses.” Sister Fallyn made the sign of the moons. “What is happening now?”

Brigitta eased to her feet. “What do the horns mean?”

Jeffrey hesitated before mumbling, “Battle stations.”

Sister Fallyn gasped. “Goddesses protect us!”

“Who is threatening us now?” Brigitta asked.

“Pirates,” he began but when they gasped, he quickly added, “Don’t worry. There are only three of them. Rupert will finish them off before you know it.”

“Why are we fighting other pirates?” Brigitta winced when she realized she’d said we. Was she siding with Rupert now?

“They’re the bad pirates,” Jeffrey explained.

Sister Fallyn scoffed. “All pirates are bad.”

“No.” Jeffrey looked insulted. “We’re the good guys. Whenever we buy supplies from a village like Danport, Rupert always pays in gold. The villagers love it, so they never report him to the Eberoni army. It’s what Rupert calls a mutually beneficial business arrangement.”

Sister Fallyn planted her hands on her hips. “Ye mean he bribes them to stay quiet.”

Jeffrey scowled. “They consider him a hero ’cause he protects them. You see, the bad pirates figured out that whenever Rupert leaves a village, there’s gold there, so they started attacking the villages after we leave. You wouldn’t believe how angry Rupert and Captain Landers were when they found out. Rupert calls them bloody vultures.”

“So these bad pirate ships are about to attack Danport?” Brigitta asked.

Jeffrey nodded. “We bought supplies there two days ago. We were staying close by when Rupert got the message about you, my lady. So we hurried north to get you, then rushed back to make sure Danport was all right.”

Outside, Captain Landers shouted, and a thunderous noise vibrated throughout the ship as cannons were rolled into position.

“Goddesses help us,” Sister Fallyn whispered.

“I doubt we’ll even use the cannons,” Jeffrey told her. “Rupert can handle it himself.”

What on Aerthlan would he do? Brigitta peered through the open doorway. She could see Rupert in the crow’s nest, but couldn’t tell what was happening with the three pirate ships.

The pelican took off, flying high into the sky. A bird’s-eye view, Brigitta thought with envy, as the door started to swing shut. How could she remain here, not knowing what was happening?

She caught the door before it could close.