“Now explain yourself. Why did you call Niridia?”

Everything is silent, halted. All the men and women hold Draxen’s crew at gun- or sword-point. My father doesn’t care about their discomfort. He’ll take as much time as he wants to question me. It’s as if everything stops for him. It has always been this way.

“I needed a way off the ship. I had the map and needed a way to transport it.”

He looks at me, slightly disbelieving. “Why didn’t you bring this ship to me?” Before I can answer, he holds up a hand to silence me. “Niridia?”

“Aye, sir!” Niridia shouts from where she has two men held at gunpoint.

“Tell me, where did you find my daughter when you boarded the ship?”

“She was—”

“In the brig,” I interject. Niridia would lie for me. She’d die for me, too. And in this case, they would be the same thing. My father may do many things to me, but I know he would never kill me. He would not show the same courtesy to anyone who lied to him.

“It was a minor setback,” I say. “I was kidnapped off this ship. Vordan Serad came for me.”

“Vordan?” My father’s face darkens. He has a deep contempt for his competitors. “How did he know you were here?”

“He had a spy on the ship.”

“What did he want with you?”

“He was curious about my … skills. He locked me up and forced me to do things for him.” I try to keep the conversation as unrevealing as possible since we have listening ears.

“What did he learn?”

“A lot, I’m afraid. But he already knew most of it. Said he had a spy high up in your ranks.”

My father’s eyes pass over his men quickly. “Be that the case, I will deal with it later. Was your escape difficult?”

I hold myself straight. “I handled it fine.”

“And Vordan?”

“Dead.”

“Did you search his body for his map?”

“Aye. It wasn’t there, and the circumstances of my escape didn’t allow me time to do a search of the area.”

“Really?” my father asks doubtfully. He has trouble seeing how others are unable to complete even the most difficult of tasks. “And why was that?”

Because I had to get Riden away to safety. “His whole crew was nearby. They were being alerted to my escape. I did not have time on my side.”

“Time?”

I’m really starting to hate his prying questions. They always unnerve me, but I try to keep my temper in check. My father is a good man. He has to keep a tough face in front of the crew, even during his dealings with me.

“It was difficult enough taking down Vordan’s massive bulk and escaping. I needed to get out of there.”

Now Kalligan looks at me strangely; I cannot guess the reason for it. “Describe Vordan to me.”

“He was tall,” I say. “Over six feet. Well-muscled. Bald on top with a brown beard. Had five gold hoops in his left ear—”

“That wasn’t Vordan.”

“What do you mean?”

“Vordan is an unremarkable man. Average looks and build. Brown hair. Casual clothes. He likes to blend in, in a crowd. Although, he does have a rather obvious habit. Likes to flip a coin over his fingers.”

My mind feels as though it physically expands as the information seeps into my ears. My jaw drops.

“Clever bastard!” I exclaim.

“What?” my father asks.

“He was there. He was here. He was the spy on the ship. He wanted to observe me for himself, but he didn’t want me to know who he was, so he let one of his men pretend to be him. He ensured that all the attention was kept away from himself.” That’s why he was the one who had the key to my cell. And he would have been the one carrying the final map piece.

Father looks up suddenly. He grabs me by the arm and hauls me to the side just as Draxen lands right where we’d been standing, his sword pointed at the pirate king. He must have climbed the netting when all the attention was on my father and me.

Damn idiot! If I’m bothering to save his sorry arse, Draxen could at least make it easy for me!

My father’s men move forward, prepared to protect their king.

“No,” he tells them, holding up his hands to halt them. “I’ll handle the boy.” He draws his sword and prepares to duel.

“Father,” I say hurriedly.

“What?” He keeps his eyes on Draxen, but I can see the look of annoyance on his face.

“Death by your hand is too good for him and his crew. Let me take them captive.” I smile in a way I hope is convincing now that Father’s glanced my way. “I’d like to return the courtesy they have shown me while I was aboard their ship.” It shouldn’t matter to me if Draxen dies, or anyone else in his crew, but it does.

I wish I could sweeten the deal with a little song. But my powers of persuasion don’t work on my father, unfortunately. Actually, none of my abilities work on him. He’s the only man I’ve ever met who is immune to all my abilities (though I now know my powers of seduction don’t work on men like Vordan—or whoever that man was pretending to be Vordan). It probably has to do with the fact that he’s my father. His blood runs through my veins.

Kalligan finally looks at me with approval, and it warms me to see that look on his face. “Very well. Take who you will. Kill the rest. Can’t have any of them going free. Dump their bodies in the sea and bring me back this ship.”

“Aye, sir.”

“And when you’re done and cleaned up, come find me. I’m expecting a full report.” The pirate king leaves the ship, taking his men with him. Tylon and his men follow.

My crew have already removed all the weapons from Draxen’s men. They are now moved before me in a line and forced to their knees. Several of my girls have to wrestle Draxen’s sword from him. Even though he’s surrounded, he still won’t go down without a fight. But he’s forced to the ground in line with everyone else.

I survey them slowly, letting the fear sink in. I have experienced a great many things while on this ship that I’d rather forget. These men will not suffer the same misfortunes. They’ll only face death or imprisonment. So a little fear is healthy for them right now.

“This feels oddly familiar,” I say to the pirates who are now at my mercy. I knew this day would come; I just hadn’t expected it to feel so good. “Who wants to live? Should I be merciful? Or should I kill you all like you tried to do with my crew when you captured me?” I address that last part to Draxen specifically.