Page 57 of Pirate Witch

Cirio cocks his head to one side. “So he speaks now?”

Kier meets Nilsa’s eyes over the table. “Yes.”

The single word, even delivered in his rusty voice, contains so much emotion that the moment suddenly becomes uncomfortably private. Most people look away, but I watch Nilsa’s face as she smiles softly back at him.

If our mate isn’t wearing ice fae markings in the next week, I’ll eat a cannon ball.

“We won’t abandon the witches,” Val mutters, conceding defeat. “With the right winds, we can be in Coveton before the mage fleet, but it will beclose.”

“If we can kill my father in Coveton, his mages will be left in chaos,” Cooper adds. “Those who remain in Cawshome will probably sit the battle out while they wait for the Council to vote on a course of action.”

“We’ll be outnumbered,” Sade adds. “And to beat them there, we’ll need lighter ships. That means fewer weapons to fight them with.”

Nilsa bites her lip and reaches into her satchel. Wordlessly, she pulls out a hunk of crystal and places it onto the table. It glows with pure energy, brighter than any crystal I’ve ever seen before.

“Why have you got a hunk of unrefined crystal?” the mage kid asks, pushing his glasses up his nose. “It’s useless to a witch.”

At his words, the crystal seems to dull, and Nilsa scowls. “Thisis how we can save Coveton. This is why the wraiths have been attacking us for centuries. Thisisa wraith, and we’ve been slaughtering them by using crystals to power our society.”

Almost everyone at the table stares at her like she’s gone mad.

“I don’t expect you to believe me,” she continues, as if she really couldn’t give a fuck if we do or not. “But when I was in the Claw, I fell into one of their cities. I met their king, and I struck a deal.”

“Struck her head more like,” one of Sade’s enforcers mutters, and I glare at him.

“If I can destroy all of the crystal mines, they will aid us. All we have to do is get Catherine’s forces far enough inland that I can summon the wraiths.”

Reva sucks in a breath. “That’swhy you had me blow up Fort Ilya.”

“And why I told Danika to destroy the mine in Coveton. Only Fort Sole remains.” Nilsa looks thoughtfully at the tiny island, isolated in the middle of the map.

Sade shakes her head. “Fort Sole is going to be too well protected. If it’s the last crystal source, they’ll have it more tightly locked down than the Queen’s underwear drawer.”

Nilsa purses her lips. “It has to fall.”

“If we get you inside, can you repeat that ostentatious display of ruination you unleashed on the Claw?” Cirio asks. “That was efficacious last time.”

Goddess, he really needs to stop using those damned words.Ibarely understand him half the time. It takes me a long second to fill in the blanks, and when I do, I bare my fangs at the pirate king. He didn’t see the state of Nilsa when she fell from the top of the Claw. He wouldn’t be calling it ‘efficacious’ if he had.

My mate seems to actually consider it, but Cas puts a hand on her shoulder. Stopping her. “It almost killed her.”

“It’s not a bad idea,” Reva mutters. “But I would agree, too risky for one witch alone… It would be safer if it was a whole coven ritual.”

Nilsa’s head shoots up. “Every Lunar witch is gathered in Coveton right now,” she repeats. “With all of us together, channelling the Goddess in her destructive aspect…”

“The Fort would be obliterated.” Reva’s grin is savage.

But the excitement fades quickly from our mate’s face. “We’d be useless afterwards.” She chews at her lip. “Exhaustion would leave us sitting ducks.”

“The Solars could provide defensive shields,” Elsie adds. “We’ll protect the Lunars while you destroy the fort.”

“Then the wraiths can extirpate the mages,” Cirio finishes. “But I can’t see Castleman loitering around to be slaughtered. The second he orders a retreat…”

I scoff. “Have you ever seen a wraith attack?” It’s not something you can forget. The speed at which those spectral demons can turn a person into mincemeat is horrifying. “They won’t get achanceto retreat. All the Solars have to do is hold that shield.”

“Your crystal better work,” Reva mutters, before turning back to the table. “Leave the Fort to us. Now, how do we get Everett’s fleet to make land? The wraiths will be useless as long as there’s salt water between them and the enemy.”

“By giving them nothing to fight at sea,” Pierce says, moving most of the model ships away from the harbour, bringing them back to linger at the edge of the Galmeri Strait. “We leave our main force here, ready to ambush Cawshome. Any of Catherine’s ships which do manage to retreat will be caught in an ambush as they try to return through the Strait. Leaving her with only the half of her fleet anchored in Cawshome harbour later on.”