“But I meant what I said. I’m done learning things from you.”
“There is always more to learn,” Eriatt said, slipping back into Drurr now they were alone.
Drake watched her for a while, conflicting emotions warring inside of him.
“Why did you come for me?” he said. “Why not just let me go?”
“You belong to me.” She smiled at him then, and he felt an ache in his chest.
Drake gave a sad shake of his head. “I belong to no one.”
Eriatt laughed. “You will always belong to me, my love. Even long after you kill me here, you will be mine. I made you, moulded you…”
“You…” Drake started, the accusation dying on his lips. He couldn’t say what she’d done to him, couldn’t admit it even to himself. “You made me love you.”
Eriatt smiled. “Yes. And you will never love another. Not a person, not your ship, not even this kingdom you hope to build. You are my masterpiece, my favourite. Never have I had anyone resist me quite like you, but every time you resisted it only bound us tighter together. You claim you have put yourself back together.” Eriatt laughed. “I can see it. You are still broken. You will always be broken. You will always be mine.”
Drake ground his teeth. “Aren’t you gonna beg for your life? Offer to take me back if I let you go?”
Eriatt’s eyes turned sad, and she smiled. “We both know you will never let me go, my favourite. You are going to kill me here, and you will try to trick yourself into believing that is the end of it. It is not. No matter how far you run, no matter how much power you garner, no matter how many women you fool into loving you – you will always wish it was me.”
Drake opened his mouth to deny it, but his throat closed and no words escaped. He wiped away tears with the back of his hand and stared into the face of the one woman he could ever love.
“Do it,” Eriatt said.
Almost gently, Drake reached up with the knife. He paused for just a moment. Eriatt didn’t move to stop him. He drew the blade across her neck and waited as blood ran thick and the life faded from her dark eyes.
Chapter 31 - The Phoenix
“Hard to starboard,” Keelin yelled as loudly as his voice could carry.
Fremen spun the wheel and a moment later the ship began to turn, slipping through the water at a new angle. Keelin leaned over the edge, trying to spot any hidden rocks on their new course while listening for the scrape and crack of the hull breaching. After a while he let out the breath he’d been holding. It was the tenth course correction in the last hour, and his nerves were frayed so thin he was about to snap.
A week out from Larkos they’d started to see evidence that they were straying into the waters surrounding the Forgotten Empire. The shoreline was now visible on their starboard side, and the trees were taller and more dense. There was a strange feeling too, almost as though the land itself didn’t want them near it.
The sea near the shoreline alternated between calm as glass and rough as bark, and the rocks grew ever more frequent, sharp, and devious. Every member of the crew was on edge, and even the normally serene Kebble seemed out of sorts. He came to Keelin on the third day of their navigation through the hazardous waters and made an earnest plea for them to sail away and never return. It fell on deaf ears. The crew were close to their fortune, and their captain was close to the vessel of his vengeance.
Drake’s chart was proving invaluable. It didn’t map all of the hidden rocks, but it did show them the beach they were headed to and the best route for them to take. It also told them which islands off the coast they could stop at for supplies, and which of those islands no man should venture near. Keelin thought about Zothus’ giant spider. Everyone knew the spider had come from one of the islands near the Forgotten Empire, and that was an island he wished to stay as far away from as possible.
Leaning over the side, Keelin could see deep into the crystal blue waters that lapped and sloshed against the ship’s hull. The sea teemed with life here, despite the ominous reputation of the area, almost as if the beasts that called the water their home had never heard of the fate that had befallen the once great empire. Not that Keelin knew much about what had happened to the Forgotten Empire either, only that it had vanished overnight and no one who entered the dark forests ever returned.
“Do you see the fish?” Elaina said. Keelin wondered how long the woman had been standing behind him.
“Which ones?” His eyes were focused on his ship’s path through the water, straining to see the hidden rocks before they presented a danger.
Elaina laughed. “The big ones swimming around our hull. Must be easily the size of a person, and I reckon they’re playing games. Every now and then one comes closer and touches the ship with its fin, then backs off to join the others.”
Keelin glanced downwards. Sure enough, there were some very large fish easily keeping pace with the slow progress of The Phoenix.
Keelin looked at Elaina to find her staring back at him, a wide smile on her face. She had a kind of plain beauty to her when she smiled, and right now it reminded Keelin of all sorts of things he’d thought he wanted to forget.
“Remember that time aboard the Death when my da stopped us for a spell off the coast of that island ring?” she said.
Keelin nodded. It was an island surrounded by water, which was in turn surrounded by a ring of land, which finally gave way to the sea. Target, Tanner had named the island, and they’d spent a good few days there exploring, hoping to find some hidden treasure in its green interior. In the end they hadn’t found a single bit, but that hadn’t stopped a young Keelin Stillwater and Elaina Black having fun. The waters surrounding the island were clear, clean, and free of any predators large enough to do a person harm, and they’d explored them for days.
“And why are you bringing up that little stop now, El?” Keelin said, turning his attention back to the ship’s course.
“There were some pretty big fish there too. We caught a couple.”
“Mhm,” Keelin agreed. “And I thought you were bringing it up to remind me that we spent half of that little stop fucking on every spot of beach we could find.”
Elaina laughed. “We did that.”
“Cap’n.” Aimi’s voice sent a wave of dread up and down Keelin’s spine. There was no way to tell how long she’d been there or how much she might have heard, but Keelin had a sinking feeling Elaina knew, and that was why she’d brought up their time on Target.
“Aye?” Keelin was afraid to turn and look at Aimi, so he kept his eyes on the water.
“According to the chart, we should be coming on the beach any time now. Just thought you might like to know.”
Keelin sighed. Their relationship had been more than a little strained since Larkos, and Keelin could only assume it was because he’d let Elaina come aboard. Aimi still shared his cabin, but she spent almost no time there other than when she slept, and at those times Keelin’s bed seemed like hostile waters teeming with sharks.
“Troubles?” Elaina said after a while.
“Leave it, El,” Keelin snapped. “Hasn’t Morley given you some duties to perform?”
Elaina laughed. “I do believe your first mate is a little afraid of me. Anytime I ask, he simply tells me to find something worth doing.”
“And you thought distracting the captain was something worth doing?”
His question was met with silence. Elaina turned her attention to the sea and a mad grin split her face.
“So you really want to be queen of us pirates?” Keelin said. It was a question he’d wanted to ask since before they left Larkos, but he’d needed to judge his timing. Elaina could be prickly as a cactus in the wrong mood.