Hraesvelgr woke, his thoughts fuzzy and his body stiff. After a few moments to clear the grogginess, the admiral could feel his right wrist was bound above his head and bandages on his left shoulder. He was shirtless, laying on a bed, tucked into an alcove of a ship. He could easily guess it was a captain’s quarters. He turned his head to the side.
Serenity had her back to him. She was naked, her hair dripping wet as if she had just bathed. Melromarc watched her as she carefully dressed in her brown pants then turned to use a nearby chair to put on her stockings and black boots. She pulled her hair into a messy knot to keep it out of the way. She had turned to face him but still didn’t notice he was awake as she tied her blue shirt under her bust.
“I always knew I’d end up in hell. If this was heaven, you’d be taking your clothes off.” Hraesvelgr turned his head to look at the ceiling. Serenity jumped slightly but was able to hide her surprise from him.
She smirked. “It’ll be heaven for me soon enough. I expect a large payout soon.”
“You found treasure?” His curiosity peaked.
She moved over to the bed. “Boop,” she said, poking her index finger against the tip of his nose. Melromarc felt his heart flutter and then drop.
“How am I your treasure?”
“You think it might be a secret but I happen to know that your best friend is King Talamaar. I expect he’ll be easily persuaded with a hefty ransom from one of the most notorious pirates. Besides, your crew went back to him, tail between their legs.” Serenity pulled up a chair next to the bed.
“I’m sorry to disappoint but the king has nothing to do with me and even if he did, he wouldn’t be allowed to spend the kingdom's finances so frivolously.” He couldn’t help but look at her.
“We’ll see.” She began to unwrap the bandages on his shoulder. “The ransom note has already been sent. If he doesn’t payout, I expect we’ll be able to put you to work. Your pretty face doesn’t deserve to rot in the brig, though your ego sure could use it.” She set to work cleaning his wound.
There was a knock at the cabin door. Caspian poked his head inside. “Captain, I need a word.”
“What is it, Caspian?” Serenity stood and half turned to face her second in command. Caspian cast a suspicious glare upon Melromarc. She caught his look. “You can say it in front of our prisoner. He’ll accept his fate sooner or later.”
“The men are getting restless. We only have a few days before we can get back home and waiting for a reply to the ransom could take awhile.”
“Firaskie knows the way home. There’s no reason for the men to be worried about being away any longer.” Caspian nodded, a smile beginning to form on his lips. He left the room, the door clicking to confirm it was shut. Serenity felt someone pet the fur on her tail. A feeling of surprise jolted through her, followed by pleasure. She spun around, her face turning bright red. She hugged her tail tightly. “Don’t touch my tail, idiot!” She took a deep breath and composed herself. She tried to ignore Melromarc’s little smirk when she looked down at him again. “Clearly, your arm is feeling better.” She hastily wrapped a bandage around his shoulder once more. The grunt of pain that passed his lips when she handcuffed his free hand to the other over his head gave her a small sense of satisfaction.
“I wasn’t trying to offend you, you know,” Melromarc said, watching her face closely.
“You’ve been trying to offend me since we first met,” Serenity shot back. “I’ve dealt with my fair share of gentlemen that viewed women as nothing more than a prize to be won. If you just need someone to bed, go pay the girls at the brothels. They work hard for their money.”
Melromarc blinked, surprised at the venom she suddenly had for him. “Well now, I’m all the more curious about you.”
“Be curious then.” She moved to the cabin door. “I doubt you will get any of your answers. Caspian will be in shortly to guard you. I have to oversee our trip home.”
“Wait!” But it was too late, she had slammed the door behind her. A few moments later, her first mate stepped in and the admiral resigned himself to a far less pleasant voyage.
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