Unhooked(63)

I force myself to stay as still as possible. The way the Captain is holding me has to be a mistake. It has to be part of the act, just as Fiona proposed. But the way his hand is pressing into my throat doesn’t feel fake. Nor does the way my breath has been cut off from the pressure of it. I wanted so badly to believe that I’d made the right choice this time, but his grip is tight, and I don’t doubt he’s capable of what he threatens. With the strength of his steel fist, it would be an easy thing to snap my neck like a bird’s.

“Let him go,” the Captain growls, “or the girl dies.”

“I don’t think you really want me to do that, do you, Rowan?” Pan says, and to punctuate his point, he lets his grip slip a little before he catches Will again. Will lets out a high-pitched wail of pain and fear all mixed into one.

“Hold on, William,” the Captain says, adjusting his grip on me without easing it at all. I wriggle violently, but I can’t get away. “If you kill him, I’ll make sure you never get the girl,” he growls. “All those years, all your plans will have been for nothing, because I will snap her neck and take away your last chance at defeating the Fey of this world.”

“Please,” I try to say, but nothing comes out but a choking sound.

Pan is silent for a long moment before he speaks. “Well played, Rowan,” Pan says with no little admiration. “It seems I’ve taught you well.”

“You’ve taught me nothing,” the Captain sneers.

“Now, that’s not quite true, is it?” Pan retorts, a dark smile playing at his mouth as his eyes meet mine. But then he turns back to the Captain. “Just leave the girl to me, and the lad is all yours.”

“No!” Will’s face goes stony as he shakes his head. “Don’t listen to him. You know what you have to do—take the girl. Save the rest.”

Pan laughs, a low, humorless chuckle that makes my skin go cold, even under the warmth of the sun. “Oh, it’s much too late for that. There’s no one left for you to save.”

A menacing growl rumbles in the Captain’s chest, and I notice then what I hadn’t before—in the cove the Captain’s ship is waiting, its sails still in the windless day. Its decks are empty.

“What have you done with my crew?” the Captain growls, tightening his grip around my neck.

“That is the question, is it not?” Pan’s eyes dance with cold delight. Suddenly an explosion tears through the silent calm of the day.

“No!” The Captain’s voice is filled with rage and pain, but his grip never loosens. Below us, his once gleaming ship is nothing but a ball of riotous flames. Black smoke billows as fingers of orange-red fire climb up the tall masts. “They were but children,” he rasps, his chest heaving against me in ragged bursts.

“Ah, yes. The ever-protective Captain. So kind and caring to the boys under his protection.” Pan’s smile is terrible now. “Until, of course, he kills them. Jealous I beat you to it?”

“You are a monster,” the Captain rages. His grip is so tight and fierce, I can’t help but whimper. My neck is at such a severe angle that my shoulders are starting to ache.

“Perhaps,” Pan says pleasantly. “Or perhaps someone took the lads to safety before this terrible tragedy occurred. Perhaps someone has them under his protection . . .”

The Captain goes very still.

“ . . . for now,” Pan finishes.

“They’ve done nothing to you,” the Captain says. His muscles are rigid against my body, and I couldn’t escape if I wanted to. “They mean nothing to you.”

“But they mean everything to you, Captain, don’t they? And I think you’ll do most anything to protect them.” Pan’s face turns serious then. His crystalline eyes go stormy. “Give me the girl, and I’ll let them live, including this one,” he says, nodding to Will. “You won’t be so lucky, of course, but then, you’ve nowhere to run. Nowhere to go. Save your boys or watch them die, but either way, the girl will be mine.”

“If I give you the girl, you’ll assure their safety?” the Captain asks.

I struggle against his grip, trying to wriggle free. There’s no way I want to go back with Pan, not with the way he’s looking at me, all anger and anticipation lighting his eyes.

“Of course,” Pan says. “I’ve no reason to harm them, so long as they renounce their loyalty to you, of course.”

“And Will, you’ll ensure his life as well?”

“No!” Will says, writhing against Pan’s grip. “It’s not worth it, Cap’n. I’m not worth it.”

“Never doubt that, Will,” the Captain says, and the desperation in his voice chills me.

I try again to writhe away from him. He will do this, I realize. He will hand me over to Pan to save his boys, to save Will. In truth, I’d probably do the same, but that thought doesn’t comfort me any.

“Make your choice,” Pan says, dangling Will more precariously now, teasing the Captain with his friend’s death.

Will’s eyes are sharp with pain, but they are no longer filled with fear. “You know what needs to be done,” he tells the Captain. “You’ve delayed long enough.” Then, with a violent wrenching, Will twists and rips at the bandage on his arm. It falls away, revealing the black, menacing crack. And before Pan realizes Will’s intention, Will thrashes, pounding at the crack with his fist.