Page 16 of Scourge of the Shores

He lifted her knuckles to his lips before placing her hand on the bed and standing up.

Ma told him before he turned to go, “You are a good man, despite what they say about the pirates.”

Robert half-chuckled. “Thank you, ma’am.”

He turned to leave, but Ervin stood between him and the door. His arms were crossed, and both feet were planted firmly under his shoulders.

“I was saying goodbye, mate,” Robert whispered.

Ervin motioned for him to follow, and when they were outside, he pushed Robert into the dirt and drew his flintlock. “I told ye.”

Robert lifted his hands. “I said me goodbyes, didn’t I?” He shook his head and lowered his hands to rest on his knees. “Shoot me if ye will, but I couldn’t leave without saying me goodbyes.”

Ervin’s finger twitched on the trigger before he lowered his weapon. “Fine. Leave us. Get back to yer camp.”

Robert stood up, and before his ego caught up with him, he realized Ervin was acting as a father.

No one would ever be good enough for his girl.

So maybe Robert had to show Ervin that he was the worthy one the enchanter spoke of all those years ago.

He stretched out his hand to Ervin. “Thank ye for lookin’ after her. ”

Ervin eyed his hand before his gaze lifted to Robert’s, but he refrained from shaking it. Still, Robert held out his hand.

“I’ll return tomorrow. I’ve got an enchantment that might save her, if she’s still breathin’. I’ve lost men with more color in their cheeks.”

Ervin slipped his hand into Robert’s and squeezed. Robert squeezed back, showing him his strength.

“Why not come tonight then?” Ervin asked.

Robert’s gruff chuckle filled the space between them. “In the pirate world, trust is slow-earned and fast-lost. If I vanish too long, the men’ll start whisperin’ mutiny. I’ll come back under the guise of talkin’ trade. No one’ll question it.”

Ervin yanked his hand back. “Fine. Come alone. No weapons.”

“Speakin’ of weapons,” Robert crooned. “May I have me guns back? They’re lined with gold, and ye took ‘em both.”

Ervin emptied the charges and handed the guns back to Robert. “Leave ‘em at camp.”

Ervin locked eyes with Robert as Robert passed by him.

“Aye, I’ll see it done,” Robert said.

Robert walked off alone and unescorted. He took in the damaged settlement and wondered how he was going to keep his fellow pirate kings from taking advantage of the islanders.

* * *

He returned to the camp only to be met by Rosa, Blackwood, Garrick, and Damien. Frank leered at them from a distance, but perhaps within earshot.

“Well, look who finally came crawling back,” Garrick said. “So matey, did ye warm that pretty wench’s bed?”

Robert laughed as they formed a semi-circle around him. “Hardly. Though, I’d wager she sleeps just fine without me and is likely to be an ally.” He leaned in with a smirk. “Unlike you lot, who seem awfully restless without me.”

“She held a pistol to yer skull, matey,” Rosa said. “She ain’t our ally.”

“She did what she had to, same as us. We’re pirates. We loot, steal, and kill. And by your own rules, Captain Rosa, she was dead right to assume the worst.” He paused with a deepened grin. “If ye ask me, her quick wit was more dangerous than her pistols.”

Damien stepped too close and leaned into his space. His fishy breath blew into Robert’s face. “Watch yerself. Don’t let a buxom beauty cloud yer judgment.”

“I haven’t,” Robert said, meeting his stare in a cool facade. “But we’ve a chance here for an alliance. They need us, and we need them.”

Garrick grunted. “What’s the deal then, Captain Jaymes?”

Robert stared Damien down until Damien returned to his place. Robert perched a small grin on his lips before he scanned the pirate kings.

“We start assembly lines today. They make pitch and tar; we cut wood. We work all day, all night; we’ll be outta here fast.”

Garrick grunted a satisfied “Aye, that’ll shave weeks off.” He walked away, shouting orders to halt everything and cut wood only. Damien did the same, though his stare lingered a little longer than Garrick’s.

Rosa ran a thumb over each ring on every finger. “I don’t like this Danna Chadwick.”

Blackwood tapped his fingers on the butt of his belted pistol. His other hand tenderly dabbed at the healing wound Danna’d left him. “Nor do I. She’s saucy and she’s trouble. What’s to say, they stockpile tar and pitch, burn our ships in the bay, and leave us stranded?”

“Think, mates. They want us gone— off their island. The sooner, the better for ‘em.” Robert looked around while Rosa and Blackwood stepped closer. “And me offered to lend a hand with their sea dragon.”

“Why help ‘em?” Blackwood asked, crossing his arms.

Robert leaned in with gleaming eyes. “Imagine it, mates. Pirate Kings of the North Sea: Jaymes, Rosa, and Blackwood—the ones who slew a sea dragon and saved an island of former pirate kings. We could spin the tale any way we like. Be legends carved in song with a dragon relic in hand, a prophecy from the DeepMother. Maybe it’s a myth.

But no one has to know. Sea dragon bones are revered by every sailor who’s ever kissed salt.

With one in our hold, we’d be untouchable. ”

A smug grin formed on Blackwood’s mouth as he stroked his beard. “Sea dragons be the last true beasts left in the wild. Slay this one, and the North Sea bows to us. South Sea Kings’ll stay tucked behind their tides till we decide it’s their turn.”

Robert nodded with a half-grin and cracked his neck. “Aye, and this one’s already wounded. Weakened. It’s as easy as it’ll ever get.”

Rosa and Blackwood shared a glance and a grin.

Rosa slapped a heavy hand on Robert’s shoulder.

“Thought I’d lost me matelot to some isle wench.

” His deep chuckle, though tinged with testing, spread to Blackwood.

They were both a few years older than Robert, but they had always treated him like a child, needing correction.

So, to even the score, he slapped a heavy hand in return on each man’s shoulder and shook with a firm grip to show them who was in control.

“Lost to her? Hardly. Listen here, you buckos, have I ever failed ye?” he asked.

Both men shook their heads.

“Then trust me.” Robert locked eyes with Rosa. “Especially ye, me brother, me matelot, me friend since boyhood.”

Rosa inclined his head and removed his hand from Robert’s shoulder. “Aye, Robert. Should’ve known yer cunnin’ style. The woman’s sand in yer hands.”

Robert chuckled. “Ah, for the flattery. She’s stone, stubborn, and hard to move. But even stone can be shaped by the sea.”

Blackwood grunted. “Good.” He shoved Robert’s hand off his shoulder and turned around to shout, “Cut the wood. Only the wood.” He walked off.

Rosa turned to go, too, but Robert tightened his grip, keeping him rooted to the spot. “Daniel, brother. Next time I save yer life and keep ye out of shameful shanties about eating a woman’s bullet, don’t start whisperin’ mutiny while I’m gone.”

Rosa’s ears simmered red and raised with a taut jaw. He popped his neck, but finally, he spat in a gruff, “Aye, mate. Ye made yer point. But ye still give me the shivers sometimes.”

“Ain’t yer worry, savvy?” Robert reassured.

“I made a deal, not a war. A truce, while we’re stuck here, and that sea beast is feastin’ on them instead of us.

Ye wanted to raid, take prisoners, make ‘em do yer work—but I did it without spillin’ a drop of blood.

The treasure stays, just as ye vowed, buried with the bones of the father pirate kings.

So maybe, instead of flappin’ yer jaw, ye oughta thank me for not gettin’ yer men gutted over nothin’. ”

Rosa growled and narrowed his eyes. He slammed his hand over Robert’s hand and pulled it off his shoulder.

“Ye’ve gone soft, Jaymes.” Rosa’s voice dropped low, jaw tight. “A real pirate king don’t bargain when there’s blood to spill. Don’t trade iron for stones when gold’s ripe for the takin’. And he sure as rot don’t lose his edge chasin’ after a wench’s skirt.”

Robert smiled, slow and sure. “Aye, brother, but I ain’t just any pirate king.

” He shifted to polished speech, letting each word drip with intent.

“I act with purpose. Always for our gain. Gold feeds the present. But prestige . . . power . . . that’s what carves names into legend.

” He leaned in. “The world will remember Jaymes. Will they remember Rosa?”

Rosa’s lip curled beneath steaming eyes. Finally, he spat, “Aye, brother.” He backed up in a saunter before turning to leave with the others.

Robert watched Rosa stalking off and finally released a slow, steady breath. His flintlocks were empty. He had walked into that whole exchange unarmed. If things had gone sideways, he’d be six feet under.

The camp settled into work, and Frank approached and stood beside him. Robert dreaded whatever the man was going to say.

Silence fell upon them as they both looked out at the sea.

Robert ran his tongue across his front teeth and spat the night’s paste away from Frank. “If ye’re going to compare me to my father, I’d rather ye not.”

Frank chuckled before a firm, but quiet word passed over his tongue. “Yer father’d be proud.” He peered down with a mild smile before going his way.

Robert’s chin touched his chest as he crossed his arms over his chest.

“My father would be proud,” Robert muttered.

But as Danna’s ashen face filled his mind, the thought curdled.

His father would never have let a woman become his weakness.

If he were smart, he’d forget her. His father would have left her to die.

Ruthless was his father’s name, and now it was his.

Ruthless in determination. Ruthless in taking what he wanted.

His father wanted a legacy. Danna Chadwick was not a part of the Jaymes legacy. Robert clenched his fists.

The first time he saved Danna was to maintain control over his pirate factions. The second time, it stemmed from his admiration for her. Now, for the third time, he made a definitive choice: Danna or nothing. He was determined to save the woman who had stolen his heart.

He looked at Storm Rider in the distance. He would have to make an excuse to go there to get the enchantment and return to Danna tomorrow. “Guess I ain’t my father after all. And maybe I ain’t that bright either… ‘cause as sure as the sea, I ain’t leaving her to Tophet.”