A Pirate's Revenge (Legends of the Soaring Phoenix) (6 page)

“I don’t want to talk about it,” William grumbled.  He tried to slip his arm into the sleeve and hissed.

“Let me help you.” Kane yanked the sleeve up William’s arm, and the material ripped.

“Christ.” Couldn’t one damn thing go right?

Kane pulled it off. “’Tis too small.” He picked up the boots and frowned. “These won’t fit either.” 

William rolled his eyes. “Aye.”

Kane draped the shirt over William’s shoulders. “You’re shivering.” Distress filled his emerald eyes. “Just wear it to keep the chill off.” He scanned the cave. “Where’s the lass?”

William tilted his head. “Washing up. Why?”

“Ronan said Lark told him about his sister while on the
Fiery Damsel
. The lass is Lark’s sister. According to him, she’s powerful enough to break the spell. We need her.”

More trouble. Trouble they couldn’t afford. “What spell?”

“To free Lark. She’s the key to break the vampire curse and yours.”

Another lass was not going to risk her life for him. His wife, Sharon, had paid the price. “No. We’ve already one lass on board, Kane. And you want another?”

“Superstitious, brother?”

“Aye. And you should be to.”

“I think Hannah has proven herself not to be curse once or twice. Even you have to admit this.”

William avoided Kane’s accusatory eyes and refused to admit the truth. Hannah’s powers had helped them defeat Palmer, but she wasn’t a witch. Not only was Kane bringing another lass on board the bloody ship, but a witch? “We’ve been lucky so far, Kane. But another female?”

“We do not have many choices, but bring another lass a board the
Phoenix
. Without the lass, we’ll not break the curse. Last night, Ronan said—”

“I heard what Ronan said last night,” William grumbled.

“You do? You remember what happens when you’re a dragon?”

“Aye. You mean to have people gawk at me as if I was something straight out of hell, including you.”

“I was not gawking at you. I’ve just never seen a real live dragon before. I wasn’t expecting it.”

“And you think I was?”

Kane stretched his arms over his head and yawned. “You’re not something straight out of hell, William. No more than we are.”

William snorted. Kane could think all he wanted. The townspeople would differ. He was a dragon, powerful enough to destroy their town and gobble ten or more people at once. He rested his head against the wall and closed his eyes. He had breathed fire, and it hadn’t burned his throat. ’Twas like exhaling warm air. But what he couldn’t get over was that he had actually flown. ’Twas the only ability that Kane possessed as a vampire that William ever envied. Now that he
had
the same ability, he had to admit, he liked flying—the air rustling around him, stretching out his wings. Freedom. 

“Would you rather have been transformed into a vampire?”

William jumped and opened his eyes. Kane leaned against the wall, staring at him earnestly as if he
wanted
William to say that being cursed as a vampire was better than being cursed as a dragon. William frowned and pondered the two choices. Each were predators, each ungodly, each condemned. “Hell, I don’t know. I honestly don’t.”

“Did it hurt to change?”

“’Twas like being stretched on the rack, then having someone sticking their hand inside me, ripping out bones and muscles.”

“Hopefully, it will become easier.”

“Easier?”

“The first time I changed into a vampire…bloody hell, ’twas painful. The sun sizzled our skin. Everything we ate turned to ash in our mouths. Weeks went by. Our parched throats turned bloody, skin hung off our emaciated bodies. Then the Spanish Galleon came upon us.” His voice faltered as if he had drifted back in time. “When I clashed swords with that sailor and nicked his neck, the sweet smell of blood stroked my vampire powers, powers I couldn’t control. The poor bastard.” He sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose. “The next time the full moon rose, I was surprised by how fast I transformed.” He dropped his hand and kicked a rock on the cave floor. “Almost too quickly. Blood satisfied the curse, sealed our fates. Now when we transform, we feel the thirst but ’tis not painful, and we’ve learned to feed without draining our human host.”

“Grand.”

“If you want to beat the curse, then we need the lass. Ronan said—”

“Do you think I’m deaf? I heard you the first time, Kane. Ronan can go to the devil. The lass is not coming with us. ’Tis bad enough you’re putting Hannah at risk. You almost got her killed the last time we faced Palmer. She should be safe back in London, not on board a pirate ship where a demon is determined to kill her. You should be thinking of her safety, not your own lust.”

Kane knotted his eyebrows, and his eyes were hard, his gaze steady and unblinking. “She’s safe enough.”

William snorted at Kane’s watch-yourself glare, not caring if his words cut Kane. He would have sent Hannah back to England, far away from this nightmare, no matter how much he wanted her. But Hannah hadn’t chosen him, she’d chosen Kane. 

“I do not have anything to say about this?” Mariah asked.

Kane and William turned, and Mariah stood with her now clean hands on her hips. William didn’t know how much she’d overhead and opened his mouth to reprimand her for acting like a spy but shut it. With her tilted chin and fierce glare, she was going to walk into danger like Sharon and Hannah. Sharon had lost her life, and Hannah was in danger of losing hers. He’d be damned if he’d let Mariah make the same mistake.

Mariah pressed her lips together. “You underestimate my power,
oui
?”

William and Kane glanced at each other. Warning bells clanged in William’s ears. “You can’t defeat a demon.”

“Do you not listen?
Grand-mère
has the gift of sight. She has seen the demon and knows his plans. He wants to transform Lark into a warlock. I am the only one who can stop him.”    

Was the lass delusional? “Lass, your g
rand-mère
is daft if she thinks you can defeat a demon. Zuto has your brother under control, and he’s a prisoner. And Palmer would like nothing better than a female slave.”

Mariah folded her arms across her chest. “I can take care of myself.”

William wanted to shake her. She had no idea what waited for her out on the open seas.

“I will not leave my brother to be tortured and brutalized,” she said.

“You’re not coming with us, and that’s final.”

She marched to William, and he couldn’t help but admire her fierce determination. “You are not my lord and master.” She turned to Kane. “Well,
Capitaine
?”

Ronan stretched his arms over his head and arched his back. “What’s going on?”

Mariah’s mouth dropped open, and a glimpse of desire flashed in her eyes, then vanished. William cringed. Of course, she’d be interested in Ronan. Most lasses swooned over him. Why did he care if they courted? He’d just met the lass. But bloody hell, he did care.

“William does not think I am strong enough to defeat a demon.”

Ronan’s brows furrowed. “’Tis not true. Without you, we’ll fail.”

“You’re a bleedin’
eejit
, Ronan,” William said. “You’re going to put the lass in danger. Do you want her to end up like her brother?”

“I will not abandon my brother. Not when I can help.”

William’s throat tightened at her small voice. He wished he could convince her to stay here, out of sight. But if she was bent on coming on this nightmare voyage, then she needed to know what monsters waited for her. “You could suffer the same fate, Mariah. The magic possessing Lark is dark, straight from hell. You can’t help him. You must stay here.”

“Then you condemn my brother to die.”

William stood toe-to-toe with her, his full height dwarfing her petite form. In his most menacing voice, he said, “You’ll stay here where you’ll be safe.”

“No.” She pushed William.

He fell backward, but easily righted himself. He was surprised at her strength. Not that she could topple him over, but she was no weak female, either.

“I will follow, you if I have to,” she said.

Doc stumbled to his feet. “Lass, stop. You done hurt him.”

“Like bloody hell she has,” William grumbled.

“
Mon Dieu
! Then tell him I am not a prisoner.”

“You’re not coming with us,” William said.

“Capt’n, William’s wrong,” Ronan insisted. “Lark said she can help. Give the lass a chance.”

William studied Ronan. Of course, Ronan would take the lass’s side. On board the
Fiery Damsel
, the stories Lark had told Ronan of Mariah kept Ronan alive. He had been determined to find Mariah, save Lark, and meet the woman of his dreams. William should stand aside and let Ronan court her, but he couldn’t deny he was attracted to the lass and couldn’t pass up the chance to test her charms.  

“C
apitaine
?” Mariah asked. “If Lark changes into a warlock, you will remain a vampire and your brother a dragon. The choice is yours.”

“Welcome to the crew, lass,” Kane said.

“Damn you, Kane,” William grumbled. “Do you know what you’re doing?”

“
Oui
, he does,” Mariah said. “We are wasting time. We need to move now.”

She was hiding something. William grabbed her arm. “Why?”

“Because before we set sail, we need to visit my
Grand-mère
.”

Not satisfied, William tightened his grip. “Why?”

“Ow! You are hurting me.”

He dropped his hand. “Sorry.”

She rubbed her arm. “Because
Grand-mère
can give you a clean pair of clothes and she needs to give you something.”

William took a step toward her. “A witch? What the hell does she need to give me?”

“She would not tell me.”

Suspicion gnawed at William. The last witch had refused to disclose a secret, and it had cost Sharon her life. “What games are you playing, wench?” he asked.

She grabbed Kane’s arm. “Please,
Capitaine
, ’tis important.”

“I trust Lark, Capt’n,” Ronan said. “If what she says is important, then ’tis important.”

Kane nodded. “Aye, we will visit your
Grand-mère
, lass.”

William scowled. “You’re making another mistake, Kane.”

Mariah grabbed her satchel. “Come on. Follow me. Our house is not far.”

William swore and followed the reckless little witch outside.  He couldn’t help but admire the sway of her arse. She was beautiful when angry. Hell, she was beautiful when she wasn’t angry. He wanted to make her smile, yet she wanted to come aboard the
Soaring Phoenix
and stretch out her beautiful neck for a demon to cleave it off her stubborn shoulders.

Her boots crunched on the pebbles and crushed twigs. Branches of pine trees rustled as the sea breeze blew around them. The sun played hide and seek with the branches overhead.  Despite the sun and the shirt around his shoulders, William shivered. With each step, his back throbbed.

“William, you’re going to slice your feet up more than a butcher dices up a pig,” Kane said. “Let us carry you.”

Kane and Ronan came on either side of him.

Mariah glanced over her shoulder. “What happened to the boots I brought?”

“Too small,” William said. “I don’t need to be carried. My feet are fine.” Surprisingly he walked over the sharp rocks without cutting his feet and didn’t stumble once. ’Twas as if his skin was made of leather. He waved his hand. “Lead on.”

“Humph,” Mariah said and headed down the winding ledge.

Ronan hurried to catch up with her.

’Twasn’t his damn feet that hurt. ’Twas his back. Each step he took on the rocky trail jarred his spine. He bit his cheek to keep from focusing on the throbbing pain.

Walk, just walk.

After a few feet, the ledge widened. Kane and Ronan passed William, while Sean and Doc brought up the rear. The trail wound downward, and the trees thickened. A stream bubbled next to him, and William licked his dry lips.

Sean came up alongside him. “Do you need to rest?”

Sweat trickled into William’s eyes, and the shirt tied around his neck stuck to skin. He wiped his forehead and sat on a large white boulder next to the stream, catching his breath. “Aye, my back aches.” He lifted his foot and examined it. No red marks. No cuts. No bruises. Why? Was it due to being a dragon?

“Kane,” Sean called. Kane, Ronan, and Mariah stopped.  

“You’re pale, brother,” Kane said.

William shook his head and closed his eyes. “I’m fine. Just…give…me…a minute”

He heard her approach before her gentle fingers wrapped around his arm. “Are you bleeding?”

He looked up. Large violet eyes stared at him with concern. He could drown in their purple depths.