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He’s raging now, not of his right mind, and he raises his fist to strike me.

But everything happens so fast.

There’s acrackthat seems to part the air and a cat-o-nine tails whip appears from out of nowhere, the leather coils reaching through the bars and snapping around Aerik’s forearm before he has a chance to touch me.

Captain Battista yanks the whip back and Aerik’s arm is pulled right through the bars, his face and body smashed up against the cage.

The pirate flicks the whip again causing Aerik’s arm to twist at an ungodly angle. Aerik screams and Battista twists his arm even further as he saunters over to him.

“You aren’t to lay a hand on the princess,” he says in a low, steady voice, words brimming with menace. “I know you figure that’s your right as the husband, but you have no rights to anything anymore and especially not to her. She’s my property now, as are you, and if I catch you leaving a mark on my property again, I’ll eat your balls for breakfast. Savvy?”

Aerik is still screeching in agony, enough that I have to speak up.

“Stop,” I tell the captain. “He understands.”

The pirate gives me a furtive look. “You sure about that? Because on your word, I’ll do a lot worse than this.”

I nod. I don’t need to tell him that if I ever get half the chance, I’m capable of doing the same as him.

He nods slowly, just a hint of a smile curving his lips. He knows.

“Alright, Princess,” he says. He steps back and, with a quick flick of his wrist he uncoils the whip, freeing Aerik who collapses against the bars. He sinks to the floor with a pitiful moan and the captain puts the whip back against the wall. “Have it your way.”

Then he leaves, closing the door behind him. The room is windowless and without the light from the rest of the ship, Aerik and I are plunged back into darkness, the planks on the ship so airtight that not even a speck of light gets in.

“Fuck,” Aerik curses from at my feet. “And fuck you, you doxy bitch.”

I’m so damned tempted to kick him in the side, same way he’s done to me when he’s laid me down on the floor. But I don’t.

Instead, I threaten him.

“You can curse me out all you want,” I tell him. “But the next time you lay a hand on me, I’ll make sure you lose it at the wrist.”

“Oh, fuck off.”

I don’t say anything to that. I don’t need to. The threat is there.

I just hate that I have Captain Ramsay Bones Battista to thank for that.

* * *

Aerik spends the rest of the morning whimpering in pain. I do what I can to tune him out. The more I listen to him, the more I feel sorry for him, and right now he’s not someone who deserves an ounce of my pity.

At some point one of the crew, a young sweet-looking boy around the age of ten, come to give us a bowl of water like we’re a pair of dogs, and couple of pieces of hardtack to nibble on, placed gently just outside the bars.

If I were in a better frame of mind, I would try and talk to the young lad and convince him to set us free. I’m sure it wouldn’t do much good with him being a pirate-in-training, possibly press-ganged into service, but it would have been worth a shot.

As it was, I was too tired from the morning’s ordeal and didn’t say a word. Aerik, who also normally would have tried to command the boy, stayed silent too.

The boy left and we were plunged back in darkness again. Only then did I help myself to a few leaking palmfuls of water, for the bowl wouldn’t fit through the bars, and a piece of the hardtack bread, which tasted like heaven having not eaten since breakfast yesterday.

With my belly somewhat full, I sleep on and off and I wake only when the ship is filled with screams. Screams from the hold beneath us, screams of our crew and servants that are being kept below. A most hair-raising unnatural sound.

One of the screams belongs to Daphne.

CHAPTER7

Ramsay