Page 10 of The Deep End of Death (Twilight Lake #4)

“Take them to the dungeon!” The captain jabbed a finger at Toothless.

“I’m not touching that devil!”

“Now!” The captain roared.

The last time I’d been a guest to Captain Hallow’s hospitality, he’d put me in the first mate’s suite.

This time, we were locked in the storage room below deck. The ‘dungeons’ as Toothless said. Tied to the beams below the ship, held still as the boat rocked on the water.

A weak ball of faelight clung to the wall, magic leaking like sludge. The light flickered, unfed and ready to go out.

Another prisoner sat swathed in shadow on the other side of the ship; their stink was enough to turn my stomach. Long red hair dyed with blood. Their head hung down as their limp body moved with every wave.

I shuddered, feeling the chill.

No one spoke until we were fully secured and our captors had disappeared up the steps.

My stomach growled, clenching with hunger. I thought about gnawing through my bindings to search the surrounding crates for food.

Cormac grunted, still gagged, as he shifted his hips and moved to face the rest of us. Rainn bit back a snicker.

“So, you’re a devil?” Tormalugh glanced at Shay Mac Eoin. “After all these years, you think you know someone.”

Shay shrugged as much as he could with a rope wrapped around his body. “I know as much as you do. Maybe land-fae don’t like Nymphs?”

“Who doesn’t like Nymphs?” Rainn replied, puzzled. “You’re sex in a bottle.”

Shay rolled his eyes.

Cormac grunted again, his nose wrinkled around the foul-tasting rag.

“Can someone help Cormac?” I asked. “I don’t think he can breathe very well.”

“I wanted to let him squirm a little longer.” Rainn narrowed his eyes. “Serves you right for mouthing off.” He told the Mer-King.

Tormalugh snorted a laugh, the sound remarkably horse-like. The usually stoic Kelpie seemed shocked by the outburst. “You’re one to talk.” Tor pointed out. “If annoying people was a competition, you’d win every time.”

“I resent that.” Rainn sniffed, tilting his nose in the air pompously.

“Maeve,” Shay whispered my name as the others bickered. “Are you alright?”

“I think so?” My brow furrowed. “I don’t know what happened to the Merrow. I tried to swim, but Nuada’s pearl did something. I couldn’t breathe underwater.”

“That’s not good.” Shay’s colorful eyes rounded. “Are you hurt?”

I shook my head. My wet hair fell in my eyes. “What do you think is going to happen?”

“They’ll probably sell us to the highest bidder.” Shay’s nostrils flared with anger. “If they don’t kill us.”

“The last time I was onboard, Captain Hallow mentioned there were Fae in Everfall that would pay for a gilded Sídhe.” I bit my lip, thinking about those fuzzy memories of when I’d first run from the Twilight Lake.

“We want to get to Everfall. The Siren Queen wants us as far from the Lake as possible, but she also wants us to find out who took her son all those years ago.”

“It might be worth asking those pirates up there.” Shay pointed out, jerking his chin towards the ceiling and the pirates above.

“Maybe they know who sold Darragh’s wings to the Night King,” I said thoughtfully.

“That’s got to be a lot of coin.” Shay agreed. “Maybe we should stay on board and let them take us to Everfall.”

“What if they kill you all before then?” I arched a brow. “ Devil .”

“Good point.” Shay clicked his tongue against the roof of his mouth.

“FINE!” Rainn shouted, interrupting us both. He glared at Cormac as his body shifted into a grey seal with black eyes and whiskers.

Rainn as a seal was too cute. It was easy to forget that he had sharp teeth in both forms.

The ropes slid off Rainn’s body as he grew smaller and more slippery. He skidded across the floor, free of his bindings, before his body grew longer and less grey, revealing his Fae form. Rainn brushed his hands down his front before sauntering to Cormac and ripping the rag from his mouth.

The Mer-King gagged. “For feck sake!” He spluttered. “Took you long enough.”

“That isn’t any way to show gratitude.” Rainn waggled a finger in his face.

“I’d sooner rip my scales off than owe a debt to the likes of you!” Cormac bit back.

“Ha!” Rainn threw back his head and laughed. “That’s rich coming from someone caught in a net, like some common trout !”

“Oi!” I snapped. “Stop fighting!”

Rainn put his hand on his hip. “Why? It’s fun.”

“And there’s bugger-all else to do,” Cormac muttered.

Rainn sauntered to Tormalugh, bending down and focusing on the heavy ropes around the Selkie. Rainn cursed. “I need a knife.”

“My blade is trapped under these ropes.” Tor’s nose wrinkled. “Check the corpse.”

“Corpse?” Cormac echoed, his head snapping around as he checked his surroundings.

“There’s a body behind you.” I pointed out.

Cormac let out a squeak.

“What was that?” I laughed, unable to contain my mirth.

“Bodies…” Cormac shuddered. “Ever since the Whispering Pass, the idea of someone not turning to foam when they die…it makes me feel sick.”

I hadn’t given much thought to Cormac and his experience of the Whispering Pass, surrounded by bodies. I’d been too focused on saving his life and running for mine later.

Rainn stood up, tiptoeing over to the corpse tied to the beam at the other side of the galley. The Selkie knelt down, patting down the body’s pockets and searching for anything sharp he could use to cut out bindings. He found nothing.

“Don’t molest the poor thing.” Shay exhaled in exasperation.

Rainn lifted the Sídhe’s long red hair and fell back on his ass, scrambling away from the body.

Before anyone could ask why he’d thrown himself back in fear, the corpse let out a long, pained gurgle.