The Mermaid's Pearl (Tears of the Deep Book 1) (12 page)

“Aiden?”

Slowly he turned the large wheel in front of us, and then looked down at me. “What?”

“Have you heard any word from my father?” Even as I asked him the question, I worried what he would say. If he received a notice, would it be a message in a bottle? Would he be angry I was eager to leave? Why did I even care?

Every ounce of emotion faded from his face at my words, and he began to fiddle with the helm. “Not as far as I know. You won’t tell me anything about your family. The best I could do was stuff a letter in a bottle and cast it out at sea. If he somehow got that,” —he looked at me with a suspicious look in his eye—“then I suppose we will get one in return. Perhaps when we come upon the port soon, you may have answers then. If you would tell me who he is, that would help. You really shouldn’t encourage my imagination.” His gaze returned to the sea, and his face was once again filled with wonder and sadness like I saw that morning. 

“What do you think about when you look out at the sea?” I asked, unable to keep it in. I wanted to know more about him, and I would push him if he wouldn’t give it freely.

His eyebrows pulled together and he ran his hand down his face as he turned to me. “You are so nosey.”

“And you are too guarded.”

“Are you saying
you
trust
me
?”

My words caught in my throat. No, I didn’t fully, and my pause made him frown.

“Hayes, I need you to watch the girl. I need to check on some things.” He wasn’t happy with my response.

“Aye, aye, Cap’n.”

Aiden stepped away from his post then, his jacket flying swiftly behind him as he hurried off. I stood up to run after him, determined to continue our conversation, but Hayes took a hold of my arm.

“Don’t touch me,” I growled and jerked my hand away.

Sadness crept into his eyes as I snapped at him, and he dropped his gaze to the ground. “I’m sorry, milady, but the cap’n needs his space.”

The second his eyes glazed over with hurt, I realized the other men probably yelled at him frequently. I wasn’t as cruel as them; I had better manners than that.
Pirates,
I reminded myself.
They are pirates. That’s why they have no manners.

“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have taken it out on you.”

I walked over to the side of the ship and laid my arms on top of the wooden side. My gaze settled on the vast waters in front of me. The ocean twinkled with shades of blue and green, reminiscent of the way Tristen and I’s tails looked gliding through the water. I yearned to be under the sea again. When Aiden wasn’t around, the loneliness returned to me, and I felt as if a part of me were missing. I hated he was my sole companion aboard the ship, especially since I’d fought any dependence on him from the moment I laid eyes on him. I hadn’t meant to get this close to him, and I cursed myself to know I’d failed.

“Anything I can get you miss?” Hayes asked as he came to stand by me and lean against the side of the ship.

“I don’t suppose so.” I sighed and laid my chin on my hands.

“I wouldn’t get too upset with the cap’n. He means well, he does. It’s been a long time since we’ve had a lady aboard the ship.”

“Oh?” I asked and turned to look at him, my interest piqued at his words.

“Aye, she caused the cap’n a lot of pain, she did. Brought bad luck upon the ship and then betrayed him.”

“Who was she?”

“Oh, I don’t know I should tell ya much more. Wouldn’t want any trouble.”

“Hayes, I won’t tell a thing you say to me.” ” I giggle and slapped his shoulder playfully. Magic filled my words as I spoke, charming him even further when I rested my hand on his arm. 

He sighed with relief, his eyes drooping slightly. “Thank you.”

“Was she a captive?”

“No, no, she was here willingly.”

“Uh huh.”

“And well, and she’s gone now. No need to worry about it, yes?”

“No, go on,” I encouraged and rubbed his arm back and forth.

Hayes nodded and reached into his pocket to retrieve a handkerchief. He wiped the sweat from his brow. “It was all the worse for the cap’n. He doesn’t
trust many anymore. Has become bitter…but oh I’ve said too much, I have. Too much.”

“It’s our little secret, Hayes.”

“Yes, yes. But you’re so beautiful, lass, and I wouldn’t want you getting hurt. He has a temper he does.”

“I’ve noticed.”

“Aye, he will slit a throat or gut a man in a second. But the way he looks at you…” He trailed off and looked away as if he said something wrong. He turned away from me and scurried down the steps, stepping into the darkened space below the highest deck to go down into the ship. I hurried after him, not ready to let the subject go. I needed to know more.

“How so?” I asked and stepped in front of him. Now was time for answers, for honesty from someone who would give it to me. Aiden wasn’t going to do it.

The man glanced around nervously, obviously wanting to keep it to himself. As Hayes opened his mouth to speak, a seagull flew overhead and his eyes grew wide.

“No!” He screamed as if the ship was falling apart below us.

It seemed to be an exaggerated response to a bird, and I thought that was why Aiden called me a “bird”. Maybe pirates were afraid of them. Before I could ask though, a white substance slapped onto his shirt.

“Damn seagulls.” Hayes’s face twisted in disgust as he ran his handkerchief over the spot. It continued to smear as he rubbed it, and I couldn’t help my fit of laughter. Out of all the things I
expected to see, Hayes pooped on by a bird was not one of them, and the way he reacted to it was even funnier.

He looked up at me and shook his head. “Every time they fly overhead…” His eyes grew wide as he looked behind me.

“Well lookie who has been left alone up here,” a deep and unfamiliar voice sounded beside me.

“Oh, the cap’n will be back,” Hayes said as he rang his hands together.

I turned to see a tall pirate smiling down at me with his yellow teeth.

“I don’t care.” He pushed Hayes to the ground and fixed his menacing gaze on me. He raised his hand to run a finger down my cheek. “You’re quite the beauty.”

I slapped his hand away and stepped back from him. “Don’t touch me, you nasty pirate.”

He laughed deep in his throat. “But you don’t find the captain nasty do you?”

“That’s none of your business.”

“Well I’m making it my business. I’ll keep you busy while he’s gone,” he said as he grabbed me with one hand and yanked me to him.

I fought back, kicking and punching him best I could. He was easily three times my size, and my fighting did no good. He backed us up against the wall, his large hands running up and down my body and making me want to hurl. The fear prickled through me as he tried to kiss me, the sudden jerk of my head to the other side being the only way I got away from it. He smelled of filth, and he was so much larger than me. I couldn’t get away from him.

His hand dropped to my pants and began to fiddle with the string of them, the other slamming against my chest and forcing me back against the wooden wall. No manner of struggling was going to get me away from him, so I dropped my pride and did the only other thing I could think of to do.

“Aiden!” I screamed, screamed for my life, screamed for my sanity. I desperately hoped he would hear me from the cabin before the fiend had his way with me. “Aiden!”

The pirate’s large hand slapped across my face, stunning me for a moment as the sting vibrated through my head. Tears formed in my eyes as the pirate clamped his hand over my mouth and pushed me harder against the side of the ship with his body. He shook his head as he looked down at me and frowned. He made a sound of disappointment and ran his free hand down my body. When he reached my shirt, he pulled it to the side, ripping it and exposing the top of my chest. I clawed at him in a desperate attempt to free myself.

No one was coming to save me, and I was left to fend for myself. I couldn’t charm him because my mouth was covered, and that’s where the magic lied. I had been too confident in those abilities, and too cocky about using them. I hadn’t considered a situation like this, and I didn’t know what to do.

His hand slid down my body and returned to the strings of my pants. I bucked my hips away from him to try and stop his attempt. He growled in frustration and ripped the front of them away, giving him better access to me. As he pulled his waist back to undo his pants, I brought my knee up to slam into his groin.

He glared at me. “Oh you will regret that, lass,” he whispered and leaned in closer to my face. 

Suddenly, he was pulled away from me, revealing Aiden with a terrifying scowl on his face. The pirate opened his mouth to give some sort of excuse, but Aiden didn’t give him a chance to explain before his sword was pulled from its sheath and plunged into the other man’s stomach. Fear froze me in my place. The man cried in agony as Aiden jerked him forward to growl in his face. “I told you men not to touch her.”

Aiden pulled his sword from the pirate’s stomach and he fell to the ground, clutching his body with fear in his eyes. Without so much as a hint of emotion, Aiden ran the blade over the man’s throat, slicing it open. The larger pirate fell to the ground, and Aiden’s eyes flashed with malevolence as he kicked him away.

I averted my eyes, not wanting to see the damage. Before Aiden could address me, my stomach rumbling harshly and I ran away from the scene to the other side of the ship where I could breathe. The second I touched the edge, I leaned over it and lost the contents of my stomach. The violence made me sick, and I hated to think I developed feelings for such a horrible person. It made me feel even sicker, and I threw up again. The carnage I witnessed was not the only thing I was sick over; it was the thought of the nasty pirate’s hands on me. If Aiden hadn’t shown up, he would have done as he pleased with me.

It was everything I originally feared. I was aboard a ship with a madman and other pirates who would take me if they had the chance. I remembered the stories of his ruthlessness, stabbing his sword through his enemies or anyone who simply displeased him without a second thought. They were all true. What was there to keep him from doing the same to me?

“Rae, love,” his voice cooed from beside me.

His hand reached out toward me and I jumped back from him, out of the way. Being touched by anyone felt wrong and dirty, and not in any sort of good way. My body still shook from the encounter. I wanted to escape but there was nowhere to go. He frowned and held out a tissue for me.

“Thank you.” I snatched it away from him and wiped my mouth before throwing the tissue to the ground. “That was a little much don’t you think?”

He ran his hand down his face and reached into his vest to pull out another tissue to clean his sword off with. “There’s no need to get pissed off. I’m simply making sure you are safe. He shouldn’t have touched you.” Aiden reached out to touch the red mark on my face, and I slapped his hand away.

“If you hadn’t left me alone—” I started accusingly but then stopped. He wasn’t going to understand.

“I needed a moment away from you. You are incredibly infuriating.”

“You are too, Aiden. If you would just talk to me instead of hiding all your feelings all the time, maybe we could figure something out!” My eyes flew open in shock that I actually said the words and told him how I felt.

“Feelings have nothing to do with this, love.”

I balled my fists up at my sides and stepped up to him. “Really?” I wanted to reach out and touch
him, but I couldn’t get myself to close the distance. Fear still flowed through me, but it was fed with irritation at his insistence that there were no feelings involved. If he didn’t care about me, he would have let the man have his way with me. “You don’t feel anything when we are close?”

Aiden reached out to brush my hair out of my face, but I recoiled from him. I could see the hurt in his eyes. He didn’t even attempt to hide it this time. He opened his mouth once to speak, unable to find the words, and then ran his hand down his face in defeat. Still, he avoided the question. “We need to get you ready to go ashore.”

He turned to walk away but I grabbed his jacket. The truth I demanded from him dimmed beneath the weight of his words. “Wait, we’re going ashore?”

I let go of his as soon as I realized I touched him and wrapped my arms around myself. The sudden fear of going ashore with other humans worried me. I didn’t need to be around so many men in a tavern for one; they would all be drawn to me and it wouldn’t end well. Second of all, I was accustomed to walking on the ship, but I wasn’t sure how I would fare on land.

“Yes, I suppose you missed the part where I mentioned it earlier,” he said, irritation seeping in his voice. I could see the immediate regret in his face though, even though he masked it soon after.

“When will we arrive?”

“Tomorrow just before sundown. You can see it from here if you look out that way.” He pointed out toward the shore. I could see it now, the faint glow of brown sand. Establishments lined against the green grass further ahead. My better judgment begged me not to go. It wasn’t a good idea.