Page 38 of A Princess, Stolen (A Kiss of Revenge, Blood, and Love #1)

O therwise, it’ll be impossible , his words echoed in my mind as I watched his gaunt, spidery figure disappear.

He vanished through the door that led to the lower deck.

I wondered if he would come with me. If he were a traitor, the others would make short work of him.

Isaac certainly would and Sparta couldn’t make the ring disappear. Only Icarus could, if anyone.

No, he would definitely come with me. I gripped the railing and turned my face into the night wind that was gently blowing over the sea today. It was warm, not cold.

Was it all too risky? Would he take the ring and then kill me? I decided to pocket a knife from the galley just in case I needed to defend myself, although I wasn’t even sure I would say yes.

As I started to walk back to the stern, I spotted Troy not five yards away. “Hey, princess.” He stood motionless at the railing, a shadow in the darkness.

“Hey!” I glanced around uncomfortably, but no one was around except Troy. What did he see? “Have you been here long?” I rubbed my hands over my upper arms and felt the soft wool of the turtleneck sweater under my fingers. Suddenly, I felt cold.

Troy approached. “Not long. What were you doing with Sparta? He doesn’t like you. He thinks you’re a spoiled brat.”

“I wanted to convince him otherwise,” I lied. “I don’t want to be hated.” Troy stopped two yards in front of me and studied my face, searching for signs of a lie.

I raised my hands in a mock disarming manner. “Okay, I plead guilty. I tried to bribe him with my ring so he’d help me escape before Isaac shows up.” Sometimes the truth was so unbelievable that no one took it seriously.

Troy’s chocolate-brown eyes immediately widened and he seemed speechless.

“I was kidding,” I said with a wink, hoping he would buy it. I held my breath waiting for his reaction and inhaled sharply when he burst out laughing.

He pointed his finger at me. “You’re good, princess. Really good. I almost bought it.”

I laughed with him to hide my relief, and then he suddenly became serious.

“Can I ask you something? Something personal?”

Surprised, I nodded.

Troy glanced at the ring, and for a moment, I thought he was going to make me an offer but he said, “It’s no secret that your mom drowned in the Atlantic, but…” He paused briefly. “Why didn’t she have the ring on, well…you know…they were married and all…”

I gently ran my fingers over the ruby. “She wore it on a chain most of the time because it bothered her when she was painting. She painted a lot, every day actually. And that day when…she didn’t have the necklace on, I don’t know why.”

“Oh…I’m sorry. You’re probably attached to that ring.” Troy looked at me and I merely nodded.

It would be difficult for me to give it to Sparta.

Following Troy, I ascended the few steps to the stern, but that was a mistake.

Troy was obviously only searching for me because as soon as I stepped on the deck, Taurus and Icarus grabbed me under my arms. They set me on a box in the middle of the deck without letting go.

I barely managed to say, “What’re you doing? ” when Ilias appeared before me.

“So!” He smirked ominously and then grinned. Suddenly, I was surrounded by men crowding around us. A hairy paw appeared in front of my face, clutching a bottle of liquor. “Now we drink rest, prinsessa!”

Today, I don’t have many memories of the few hours that followed.

They meant well in a strange way even though they filled me up like a brewery keg and laughed themselves half to death.

They patted my head good-naturedly while roughly forcing me to drink.

I believe Ilias even held my nose at one point. Or maybe it was Pan.

After that, they roared and slapped me on the back in a friendly manner as if I were their drinking buddy. One even threw me over his shoulder and spun around in circles. I think it was Icarus or Castor and that was the last straw for me.

After the man set me down, I threw up over the parapet and heard someone say, “I told you, men, that anything that can’t pee over the railing standing up has no place on a ship.”

As if I was here voluntarily, not a hostage.

Tock-tock-tock. The disgusting taste of stomach acid and old alcohol clung to my mouth and my skull throbbed as if a hammer was pounding it. I sat up with a groan, which was fatal because it only made the pounding even stronger. “Damn it!” I cursed angrily.

Great, not much longer and you’ll sound like Pan or Taurus .

With leaden eyelids, I blinked. I was soaking wet with sweat and lying on a bed in a tiny room fully clothed except for my boots.

With one hand pressed to my forehead, I looked around more closely. I was alone. The room was no bigger than a sardine can, just enough room for the bed and a chest of drawers.

Who had brought me here, and what else had happened during the night?

A shock shot through me like lightning and I glanced at my hand.

Thank God! The ring was still there! My pulse continued to beat rapidly in my head for a few seconds before returning to normal.

No one had taken the ring from me! I hadn’t thought about that at all on deck yesterday.

Whoever wanted to steal it from me would have had it easy as drunk as I was.

But, obviously, the person would have had a huge audience.

I snuck into the bathroom in my sweaty clothes, relieved myself, and brushed my teeth with the toothbrush Nathan had given me before dousing my face with several handfuls of water. I glanced in the mirror by chance. “Oh God!”

The young woman in it was a stranger to me. All the radiance that had always surrounded me seemed to have vanished. I looked like an ordinary young girl after a night of drinking. Pale and slightly unhealthy. Maybe like Penelope when she came out of Seven Stories.

What did Dad tell her about my disappearance?

And what did Delilah know about it? How had Dad explained my disappearance to our staff and the party guests?

Perhaps with the usual excuse: Willa wasn’t feeling well …

yes, she’s very fragile…easily worn out, a breeze blows her over .

Perhaps he said that I had left the party for health reasons and was now at a spa.

However, how did he fool Penelope? She was persistent and would probably try to call me.

Sighing, I combed my hair with my fingers, then I redid my braids and wove the bracelet back in. I wondered if the girl in the mirror still met Dad’s standards of beauty and glory.

Had I ever pleased him?

What was he doing right now?

Was he sitting at home in his leather armchair, drinking his sinfully expensive tea, and following the oil prices on his mega-TV? Or was he anxiously waiting for a message from his special task force? Had he even commissioned one? What if he was simply waiting to see how serious the abductors were?

I shook my head, dismayed at myself. I had to stop doubting him all the time. Dad obviously had hired men to search for me. He was probably worried sick.

Then why doesn’t he comply with the demands?

a tiny, angry voice inside me that I didn’t recognize whispered.

Why is he playing with your life when you would have given yours for him voluntarily?

You are his only daughter. He is attached to you—as much as a person can be attached to someone. Why doesn’t he help you?

For a few seconds, I had the horrible notion that he might be quite happy to get rid of me in this way.

I was quite certain that he never remarried because of me.

He had never said it, but he would never have put a stepmother before me.

Had I stood in his way the whole time with my lack of independence?

Numb, I stood there, trying to stop the whirlwind thoughts.

Then a new idea occurred to me: Perhaps Isaac was lying to unsettle the men on board.

Why hadn’t I thought of that before? Perhaps Dad had fulfilled all of his demands and Isaac’s claim was merely an excuse so that Nathan would allow him to board earlier.

In order to kill me personally, not to take control of the situation.

Or was he trying to extort money from Dad after all?

For a moment, I put my hands on my cheeks and stared at my pale face in the mirror.

I had to escape, no matter what Sparta’s plan was.

Even the worst plan was better than waiting for Isaac.

Sparta was my only chance of getting out of here even if I felt like I had barely survived a fistfight last night.

A short time later, I stuck a dull paring knife in the leg of my boot; I hadn’t found a sharp one—I could guess why.

Exiting the tiny galley, I ran into Nathan. He looked different without a headband on. His hair was tied back in a ponytail with a few too-short strands tucked behind his ears. It made him look younger and his narrow eyes seemed larger and less sinister.

When he saw me, he abruptly stopped and I felt caught. I hoped I had pushed the knife deep enough into the opening.

“How are you?” He examined me and I felt myself blushing.

“You mean in regards to last night?”

He pulled down one corner of his mouth. “No, I mean about everything, although, I don’t approve of you getting drunk with the crew like a hardened sailor. It might give them stupid ideas.”

“It was involuntary,” I protested.

He didn’t respond. “A pretty girl, so far out at sea. Many of them don’t have a woman waiting for them. Don’t push it.”

A taunt, considering he was the only one who had kissed me. “You don’t trust them?”

“I trust myself, that’s enough.”

“Nobody else?”

“Almost nobody.”

“Sounds lonely.”

“Loneliness doesn’t have to be bad. I’m a realist. I can’t afford anything else, princess. No dreams, no trust, no feelings. That’s the best way to live.”