Chapter Twenty-One

"Wha' yeh think yer doin' by lyin' ta that girl?" I glanced back at my companion, but when I did, I almost wished I hadn't. I had known Claire was angry with me, of course... even without Ann having told me. Still, I had no idea she'd be furious enough to give me a look quite like that. One that told me she wanted me dead. "Tellin' 'er yeh travel by stars alone? I thought yeh were better than that."

"But I do travel by stars... mostly," I replied with a sheepish grin as I rubbed the back of my neck. After all, it was true that we made the most progress by charting our course by night. It just wasn't our only means of travel was all. "Besides, I don't want to give away all of our secrets."

"Coulda fooled me." I winced even before I felt the blow of her boot against the back of my head and drove my chin into the railing. Not surprisingly, I was dazed, but soon enough I began to feel the pain settle in my jaw... as well as the taste of blood in my mouth. "Just who the hell do yeh think you are? You think I don't know how that head of yours works?"

If I doubted her temper at all before, I didn't then. Even when she was arguing with the others, she never spoke quite right, so for her to be so angry that she showed herself to be more than just a brutish woman, I really had to have done her wrong.

"Now, love..." I spun back, my hand reaching out for her, but I didn't strike her. I only caught her by the collar and brought us face to face. "I'm trying to keep the look out, so if you don't mind... how's about you stop with all this jealousy until we get to where we need to be."

"Yer not usin' yet head at all wit' this one, are yeh?" she muttered darkly. "I don' care if yeh fancy 'er... no' really. I jus' don' wan' yeh to have ta hang fer 'er. No' wit' us comin' so far."

Though she had gone back to her more plain way of speech, I could tell by the gentleness of her voice that she was being sincere. Well, as sincere as a woman like her could be anyway. After all, she had never been the kind of person to show her softer side even in our most intimate moments, so for her to be so concerned, I was genuinely touched... if not more than a little perplexed.

"How much longer then... until we reach port?" she asked, gazing out over the horizon. "We oughta be close, don't yeh think?"

"It's right there," I replied, turning back to the railing and pointing straight ahead. She scowled then, most likely feeling inclined to strike me again for not telling her sooner, but she came to think better of it. A kindness for which I was grateful as I doubted whether I could take another blow from her. "Denny knows this as well as I do," I explained, "but we have to wait for our host to give us the signal."

"What signal?' As if the man himself had overhead the question, there was a brilliant light that burst just above the water. The sound that followed was like that of a cannon blast or a sudden clap of thunder, yet the shower of gold that glittered over the shoreline soon began to crackle and snap before dying away into smoke. "What the hell was that?"

"The signal." Claire smacked the back of my head, but I just chuckled. "Sorry, love, but you made it far too easy that time. It was a firework... and given the size of it, I'd say we couldn't be any more clear of the admiral." Of course, also given the size, we would be owing our defender quite the pretty present for his troubles. Even the simplest of fireworks cost a small fortune, so I had every right to fear the worst. "I know you girls don't care for him, but you've got to admit he does his work well."

"Yeah," she agreed with a smirk, leaning on the rail beside me. "Jus' too bad he's such a pretty boy... He'd have better business if he learned to keep 'is hands to himself." Then she glanced down to her hip where I had brought my hand to rest. "An' by the looks o' it, yeh ought to be doin' the same."

"How can I help it when you've been so cold to me?" I sighed, bringing her close before nibbling on her ear. "You can be such a stubborn woman, you know..."

"Ellos tienen etra señal de listo, el capitán. ¿Tenemos respuesta?"

"La luz de la lámpara!" I snapped, glaring up at the crow's nest. Just as soon as he saw my face, Denny disappeared again, but it wasn't long before the lamp was lit like I ordered. Thankfully before I was down another hundred guilder. However, that did little to appease the woman still in my arms. "Sorry, love. I thought he would know how to respond."

"An' tha's what makes yeh a damned fool," she teased before giving me a kiss. "Alrigh' ladies! We got a ship ta anchor, so git yer pretty lil' asses on deck 'ere!"

"Ever the business woman," I chuckled, shaking my head. "She got me good, though... Let's just hope it doesn't bruise now, shall we?" At least the pain had gone away for the most part evne if I was sure I was still bleeding. "Guess it can't be helped."

When we finally came ashore, the harbor was all but empty save for a merchant vessel and a couple of the local fishing boats that had been anchored there for as long as I could remember. The beach itself was bare, and the buildings that lined the shore were dark. However, I didn't so much as hesitate to step onto the docks once we arrived. I had no reason to. The worst that could happen was it was a trap set by the admiral, but I knew better than to think that could be the case. Not when the man I was looking for was the head of all illegal trades in the Western Hemisphere.

"May I ask why everything is so still and quiet here?" My heart all but leapt out of my chest to find Popuri standing beside me, her red eyes wide with curiosity, only to look back at the ship once again. Sitting there, on the gang plank, was Claire. It was too dark for me to make out her expression, but one thing I was sure of was that she was rather proud of herself for having left me to meet our host on my own. "They had told me you wished to go alone," the young woman explained. "They said that this man we are meeting has no patience for women."

If only we should have been so lucky.

"Perhaps I ought to teach you something, Miss Hurst," I sighed as I offered her my arm. She only nodded as she took it, but her eyes never parted with mine until I brought my gaze ahead of us. "The words of a pirate are very rarely true... and even when they are, there is almost always something else to what is being said."

"Well, of course," she replied. "That is true for any man. After all, even my brother is more than capable of lying in order to meet his own ends, yet I find the motives behind the lies to be of more valve than finding the lies in and of themselves."

"You really are a sharp one," I chuckled, patting her hand softly. "A shame you rarely have the chance to use it wasting away aboard our ship."

"But there is far more use to it being here than at home," she assured me with a laugh. "Of that I can promise you." I was fairly glad to hear it, yet I knew it wouldn't be long before she would come to regret her being with us. After all, a pirate's life was never meant to be lived by a woman such as herself. "Is that the man we are to meet?"

Having been lost in my own thoughts, I didn't see him step out, but there he was, standing right in front of me with his arms spread wide in a grey shirt and purple pants all in silk. "Ah, Viento, hoe goed te hebben u komt en zien ons opnieuw!" he cheered. "Ik ben blij u heeft kunnen zien dat onze aanwijsplaat. Ik was bang hadden we geschoten te laag om het water, maar ik zie dat ik had het mis." Then his attention turned elsewhere. "A lady? You have a lady here?"

"Well, I am the Women's Keeper."

"Women, yes," he agreed, taking her free hand into his own and kissing it. He smiled up at her, his silver hair and cool green eyes shining in the moonlight, and although she tried to hide it, Popuri couldn't seem to help blushing. "Ladies.. no."

"That's enough, Skye," I warned, eyeing the man carefully. "She's a friend of mine... A dear friend." She looked up at me, her grip on my arm tightening, but she stayed quiet. "I think you frightened her..."

"I'm so sorry," he apologized. "That's not what I... How do you say 'wilde' in your language?"

"Can't say that I would know." I was being honest with him, but he seemed to doubt me. Not that I really blamed him, of course. After all, we both tended to chase after the same thing, and such things always made problems of one kind or another. However, my understanding of Dutch was even less than that of Portuguese, and so I was unable to speak with him into great detail about much of anything. "Ik vind het jammer voor de moeite, maar ik dank u voor uw hulp."

"Het was geen moeite voor me," he chuckled. "I expect you will pay me in full?" I nodded weakly, feeling the color drain from my face when he said it, but he only continued to smile. "Do not worry, Viento. I feel very kind today, so I ask for only half."

"What about Won?" I asked. "You have to pay him yet, don't you?"

"No longer a problem," the man huffed. "Won is dead to us here. Never trust a man who loves only money, my friend. Never." So he was cheated then... not that I found it particularly surprising. "Come. there is food and drink ready for you and your women." He turned to lead us towards the house along the shore, but just as we were about to follow him, he looked back at me. "Since I let you off with only half, I would like very much for the lady to sit by me.

"I'm sure you understand, of course..."

We were led into the smallest house on the end of the shoreline, and I had to chuckle to hear my companion gasp upon entering. I could understand, though, because while his home seemed humble enough from the beach, the inside of it was anything but. "Quite the collection, isn't it?" I whispered to her. "All of this is actually stolen goods, though."

"All of it?" she breathed in wonder. I only chuckled while guiding her to the dining room, but even I had to admit it was rather impressive. Skye really had out done himself over the past few years... at least when it came to his private collection. Every room was lavishly draped over with fine linens and silks from faraway lands such as Egypt and China, and any exposed surface that was left bare was either made of rare woods, marble, or gold. "Well, he certainly has out done himself..."

"I thank you, my lady," our host beamed. "All from the great India," he continued as he opened his arms to the dining room. "I wish to live there some day, you know."

He went on to rattle about what he had acquired, speaking in Dutch and English in tandem, and even though she could only understand half of it, Popuri still did her best to be amiable. She smiled and even made conversation, but all the while, she kept glancing back at me for release. She was worried, of course, but she was careful not to show it.

"'Ey! Who started this 'ere party with us?" We turned to find Claire standing in the open doorway with her hands on her hips and the crew standing just behind her. She was grinning, her feet widely set apart and her shirt loose and unbuttoned, but she wouldn't dare to go any further without being invited. "What? No welcome for a beauty like me?"

"Of course there is," the man assured her. "All you must do is sit down."

She huffed, having no doubt wanted to be given a more grand entry, but she came in with her entourage regardless of how she was treated. It was her pride that drove her, but as she walked past us, I could see the fire that burned within her. That passion had always drawn me like a moth to flame, and at that time I was more than ready to give her the adoration she so desperately desired. After all, with Popuri being taken aside by our host, it was far better than leaving me to my own company for the night.

How was I to know she had plans to betray me?

-/-

Author's Note: Just to clarify, Skye is Dutch, but he lives in a port whose people are mostly of Portuguese origin.