Page 154
Story: Defend the Dawn
I have half a mind to grab his dagger myself, but then Corrick is there beside me, wind whipping at his hair. “Tessa,” he says. “Tessa, you need to get below.”
I point. “The sail—the sail needs to come down—”
“I know. I’ll go.” He takes my face in his hands and kisses me. Then he looks to Rocco. “Get her below.”
“Corrick!” I shout, but he’s already moved away. Just like the night of the competition, his hands hook in the rigging, and suddenly, he’s ten feet off the deck.
Beside that flaming sail, he’s an easy target, just like Brock was. My breath catches in my throat.
There’s no way I’m letting Rocco take me below.
He doesn’t even try.
Another arrow comes sailing onto the ship, but this time it aims for Rian. He lets go of the wheel and dives out of the way. The flaming shaft drives into the deck at his feet, but he pulls it free and tosses it over the railing like Rocco did.
He sees me and points at Corrick. “Hold the beam!” he shouts at me. “When he cuts that loose, it’ll swing.”
Hold the beam.I stare at the complicated maze of sails and ropes and rigging in the darkness.
“This one,” Rocco says, tugging me toward one of the beams. He’s a bit breathless, and I’m reminded that he probably shouldn’t be on the deck either. Sparks rain down around us, but I grab hold of the stretch of wood and grip tight, digging my feet into the deck.
“I told you to get her below,” Corrick shouts down.
Rocco ignores him. “There, Miss Tessa. Put your feet against the mast.”
Corrick must begin sawing at the ropes, because I feel the instant there’s a bit of give in the beam. It jerks hard and nearly gets me off my feet. I whimper from the strain.
Rocco is stronger, by far, but his face has gone pale, his brown fingers white where they grip the wood.
Then, without warning, the beam stabilizes. I blink and look up.
Lochlan has a tight hold on the wood beside me. “Watch yourself,” he says. “We don’t want it to come down on top of us.”
The warning is a moment too late, because suddenly canvas and ropes are falling. A hand grabs me around the waist and pulls me out of the way just as the beam swings wildly, knocking me in the shoulder.
Then I’m free, sprawled on the deck, a male arm around my waist. I look over, expecting Rocco.
Instead, it’s Lochlan. His face is close, full of sweat and bruises, but his eyes lock on mine.
“Are you all right?” he says, and I’m so stunned that all I can do is nod.
I get to my knees just as Corrick drops back to the deck. It’s been a few minutes since I’ve seen any flaming arrows, and I think maybe it’s a good sign, until someone from down below shouts, “They’re readying cannons.”
“Who is it?” I gasp.
“Oren Crane,” Lochlan says, as if that explains everything. He lets me go, then moves toward Corrick. He’s pointing across the water. “Watch for cannon fire. We won’t see the ball in the dark.”
TheDawn Chaserbucks and shudders, and an explosion rocks below.We’vefired.
A moment later, I hear the impact. The shouts from out on the water seem to indicate we’ve made a direct hit. The sudden cheering down below confirms it.
“We just need to get past them!” Rian calls down. “They can’t follow now!”
I look across at Corrick, who’s with Lochlan near the railing. His eyes meet mine, and I take a deep breath for the first time in what seems like hours.
Then a loudcrackechoes across the water, and I see the blast of fire that lights up enough of the other ship that I can see that it is, in fact, sinking.
I remember Lochlan’s words.
Table of Contents
- Page 1
- Page 2
- Page 3
- Page 4
- Page 5
- Page 6
- Page 7
- Page 8
- Page 9
- Page 10
- Page 11
- Page 12
- Page 13
- Page 14
- Page 15
- Page 16
- Page 17
- Page 18
- Page 19
- Page 20
- Page 21
- Page 22
- Page 23
- Page 24
- Page 25
- Page 26
- Page 27
- Page 28
- Page 29
- Page 30
- Page 31
- Page 32
- Page 33
- Page 34
- Page 35
- Page 36
- Page 37
- Page 38
- Page 39
- Page 40
- Page 41
- Page 42
- Page 43
- Page 44
- Page 45
- Page 46
- Page 47
- Page 48
- Page 49
- Page 50
- Page 51
- Page 52
- Page 53
- Page 54
- Page 55
- Page 56
- Page 57
- Page 58
- Page 59
- Page 60
- Page 61
- Page 62
- Page 63
- Page 64
- Page 65
- Page 66
- Page 67
- Page 68
- Page 69
- Page 70
- Page 71
- Page 72
- Page 73
- Page 74
- Page 75
- Page 76
- Page 77
- Page 78
- Page 79
- Page 80
- Page 81
- Page 82
- Page 83
- Page 84
- Page 85
- Page 86
- Page 87
- Page 88
- Page 89
- Page 90
- Page 91
- Page 92
- Page 93
- Page 94
- Page 95
- Page 96
- Page 97
- Page 98
- Page 99
- Page 100
- Page 101
- Page 102
- Page 103
- Page 104
- Page 105
- Page 106
- Page 107
- Page 108
- Page 109
- Page 110
- Page 111
- Page 112
- Page 113
- Page 114
- Page 115
- Page 116
- Page 117
- Page 118
- Page 119
- Page 120
- Page 121
- Page 122
- Page 123
- Page 124
- Page 125
- Page 126
- Page 127
- Page 128
- Page 129
- Page 130
- Page 131
- Page 132
- Page 133
- Page 134
- Page 135
- Page 136
- Page 137
- Page 138
- Page 139
- Page 140
- Page 141
- Page 142
- Page 143
- Page 144
- Page 145
- Page 146
- Page 147
- Page 148
- Page 149
- Page 150
- Page 151
- Page 152
- Page 153
- Page 154 (Reading here)
- Page 155
- Page 156
- Page 157
- Page 158