Beware The One They Call The Shadow

In the low light below deck, a maid pulled her knees to her chest, her back against heavy iron bars. A wild tumble of black curls fell around her shoulders, escaping the elaborate arrangement that had once held them neatly in place. The rocking of the ship was a small comfort, allowing her to pretend that, behind closed eyes, she was still aboard her father's vessel. Lost in her own imaginings, desperately denying the aching parts of herself, she nearly shrieked at the sudden snarl behind her. Leah jumped to her feet, whipping around to face the beast upon her cage. Golden irises glinted in the gloom, the silhouette of a man just visible.

Dark-skinned hands gripped the bars.

For a heartbeat, Leah was caught breathless, hands to her chest, as the figure leaned closer.

A man with sharp features leaned out of the shadows, resting his forehead against the metal bars, his golden eyes hooded in amusement. His hair was done in dozens of tiny braids, bunched into a wild knot with thick black cords. His open-mouthed smirk revealed yellowed canines, a predator's grin.

"I can smell it, you know."

His raspy voice broke the spell upon her, finally allowing her to breathe.

He closed his eyes and tilted his head, breathing deeply as if entranced.

"The fear on your skin..." He paused and looked at her slowly. "Your desire."

Of all the ships she could have mistakenly boarded, it had to be his.

Leah had stowed away on The Stargazer, mistakenly hiding in cargo she believed would board a merchant ship. Her father had whisked her away from their island home aboard one of his many trading vessels, swearing she'd be safer from the local strife in another land.

She'd thrown a fit. And several objects.

Her captain had pleaded for her to behave, even conceding to stop at the next port for an extended stay. From there, she'd snuck away, determined to find her own way back home. Only, she couldn't just walk up to another crew and ask. She and her father were known figures; she'd have been turned over immediately. But if she stowed away and revealed herself later, she might convince a simple merchant to take her home.

When she was discovered aboard [i]The Stargazer[/i], she'd been dragged before its stoic captain. Her dark curls had come loose from their pins, framing a face flushed with indignation. She'd raged like a beast at the rough treatment, demanding his name and employer.

The crew had laughed. One man had held her by the hair, another twisting her arm behind her back and grabbing at more than was necessary to restrain her.

The captain never even looked at her. She cursed and spat at his black-cloaked back as he ordered her to be tied to the mainmast.

"She hid away, now she can be seen by all." He had chuckled, still watching as the port disappeared into the distance.

Leah was lashed to the rough wood and gagged, though now, as the crew worked and leered around her, she was silent. She glared daggers at every man who strayed too near, trying to regain some composure. She studied her captors, every ragged, dirty detail gnawing at her confidence. She came quickly to the conclusion that she had made a grave error, that she had found herself in the worst of company.

Pirates.

For nearly the whole day, they left her to stand at the mast, the ropes digging angry lines into her arms and waist, and the sun burning what wasn't covered. Leah alternated between watching the crew and trying to catch a glimpse of the captain at the helm. As each hour in the unrelenting heat passed, she felt more and more like jerky hung to dry. Her legs ached from standing, and even holding her head upright had become a chore. By evening, she'd given up watching the crew altogether, closing her eyes and resting her head against the wood.

A shadow crossed her face, the sudden shade jolting her.

She blinked, trying to focus on the backlit figure.

The captain.

A sun-darkened man who towered over her, broad of chest and dressed in finery that seemed entirely out of place among his ragged crew. A red linen shirt and long black coat, loose black trousers, and a tricorn hat of dark leather. Beneath its brim, dark brown hair framed a hard, weathered face, black stubble shadowing his jaw. Deep creases marked the corners of his brown eyes, the sort earned from years of squinting against the glare of open water. He was younger than she'd first imagined a pirate captain ought to be, perhaps in his middle thirties, but there was nothing youthful about his countenance.

He looked her up and down, taking in the dirt smudged across her olive skin and the fine dress that had suffered considerably under the crew's handling. Her green eyes met his with a defiance that seemed entirely at odds with her predicament.

"We have gold and supplies aplenty, an urgent heading, and a runaway." He crossed his arms. "Tell me, what use have I for you, or the reward I'd surely earn for your return?"

Leah straightened as best she could in her bindings, hunger squeezing her stomach. Her dry tongue felt like lead. "I am the daughter of Duke Montgomery of the Emerald Isles, merchant king of the East. Your treachery against me will have your boat sunk and crew hung—"

Her head snapped to the side as the captain struck her.

No one made a sound as Leah bit her tongue, desperate to keep from crying out. The burnt skin of her cheek stung viciously from the blow.

"Not what I asked." The man crossed his arms, hands resting on his elbows and head cocked in a thoughtful posture, as if deliberating deeply with himself. He was mocking her.

Leah looked back at him with tears in her eyes, teeth clenched. She seethed, "My station rivals that of royalty, you scum of the—"

A second strike, a motion so quick she didn't even see his hand come up.

She cried out now, her face aflame.

"A veritable princess, with the humility to match. Put her under watch, out of the way." He nodded to the golden-eyed man who came up beside him. "Wolf, find Isolde. Meet me in my cabin." He turned to walk away, then paused. "No one lays a finger on her." He glanced over his shoulder at Leah. "Might be something worth trading her hide for."

As the captain strode away, the crowd converged on Leah, rough hands pulling at her bonds. Her legs buckled beneath the sudden weight of standing on her own, blood rushing back into her numb limbs.

Despair clutched at her as she was heaved over a sturdy shoulder like a sack. Pain and exhaustion kept her quiet now, each smart remark or rebuke checked by the discomfort every movement provoked.

Leah was placed only slightly more gently than she'd been lifted, her backside aching as she landed on a short wooden box. She had been deposited on a crate of munitions against the bulkhead of the captain's cabin, the surly man stepping aside to stand guard over her. Now Leah had a view of the full main deck, a long stretch of sun- and salt-bleached planks, a forest of cloth and rope and wood.

A boy, perhaps in his teens, approached with a leather waterskin and something wrapped in cloth. The youth nodded to her guard and held his goods out to Leah.

"Water, and something to chew on."

Leah felt a sigh of relief rise in her throat but held it back, furious at herself for wanting to thank the boy. She took the waterskin with a scowl and turned her nose up at the bundle.

"Whatever it is, I don't want it. Gods know what you scum gnaw on."

The boy was unfazed, simply shrugging and turning away again. Leah's guard grabbed his shoulder, though, and took the bundle himself, tossing the cloth back to the young man. Leah watched as he tore a bite from a chunk of dark bread, grimacing when he grinned at her with his mouth full. Instead, she drank tentatively from the waterskin, half expecting it to be seawater or alcohol. Fresh, cool water made her spine shiver, and she drank deeply. Refusing to look desperate, she forced herself to put it down again and survey the new angle she had on the deck and her captors.

There were fewer men than she had thought, several pulling on ropes and shouting at each other as they adjusted a slack sail on the foremast. A trio leaned back against the railing to her right, farther down the deck, and only a few others seemed to mill about, occupied with menial tasks now that the excitement was over. She watched the crew fighting the sail with scorn as sweat glittered on their skin, disgusted. She'd never been forced to witness the labor that had spoiled her for most of her life. It was tedious and added insult to her ire.

Even as she looked on at the menagerie of men before her, short, tall, wide, and small, the figure emerging from below deck stood out. Dark, richly toned skin, a wild knot of braids, and a look that froze her in place. The man called Wolf stepped from the hatch near the bow of the ship. He walked like a predator stalking prey, head slightly lowered, shoulders back, gold-ringed eyes sweeping from left to right. He wore no shirt, just loose tan trousers and sandals.

The men chatting along the railing quieted. They watched as he passed them with wary looks before dispersing. Wolf paid them no heed and instead made for the red door of the captain's quarters to her right. Leah watched his path with apprehension. She clenched one hand hard enough for her nails to bite into her palm, trying to tear her eyes from him.

Wolf pulled the door open almost gently, his eyes flickering to hers in the split second before he crossed the threshold.

Her spine went rigid, and then he was gone. She sighed, dropping her gaze to the floor.

"That was odd."

Leah jumped at the sudden voice beside her. So entranced by Wolf had she been that she hadn't even noticed the woman come to stand beside her.

"By the Gods, where did you come from?" she sputtered, a hand to her chest to calm her thudding heart.

The woman cocked her head as she studied Leah. The motion reminded Leah of an owl rotating its head, a peculiar, staring action. Tawny brown hair escaped the colorful wrap around her head, framing a fair face and a pair of sharp hazel eyes. She wore a loose, flowing gown of boldly patterned yellow and black cloth, its wide sleeves stirring in the sea breeze as she moved around Leah, seeming to find this new angle even more interesting. Gold hoops adorned her ears, with matching rings at her fingers and wrists and a gleaming collar of gold around her neck. The ornaments tinkled lightly with every movement.

"I walked right up to you, but the better question is, where did you come from?" She straightened again and came around to Leah's other side, seeming to find this new angle even more interesting.

Leah frowned at her, "The Emerald Isles of Avecyn, as I've already told your brute of a captain, and I demand to be taken back!" She whipped back to glower at the crew again, crossing her arms.

A thoughtful hum came from beside her, followed by silence. Leah glanced back, then turned and gaped. The woman had vanished, the click of the cabin door's latch being the only trace of her disappearance.

"What a bunch of freaks," Leah muttered, crossing her legs and resting her chin on one fist. She contemplated her predicament now, eyeing the rest of the ship. "What kind of name is 'Stargazer' for a pirate ship, anyway?" she asked her guard.

The man laughed at her. "Lass, let's just see what Captain Marrow wants to do with you before you find out otherwise." His voice was surprisingly clear for his appearance.

Leah rolled her eyes and looked him up and down, seeing him properly for the first time. The oaf was barrel-chested, his arms as thick around as her legs and covered in shaggy, sandy-colored hair. Though he had a rotten smile and one eye pinched closed, he wasn't terribly filthy, nor as ugly as she had assumed.

The man crossed his arms over his hairy chest and turned slightly away, clearly not interested in saying more.

Leah groaned and leaned back gingerly. Blasted pirates.

The sun hung just above the edge of the sea when the captain's cabin door opened again.