one who told me she was naked.”
“We’ll have to work on that, my friend,” she said, grinning. But of course, he couldn’t see her smile. But maybe he sensed it anyway, because he grinned back, red-stained teeth and all.
“Would you like my blanket?” he asked.
“I’d prefer some clothes if you have them,” she admitted. “Perhaps you have an extremely out-of-fashion black robe you can spare?”
“Are my clothes that terrible?”
“For a crow man, no. For the rest of us…”
He grinned a little wider, and despite her dire circumstances, she felt something untwist inside her. He doesn’t judge me, she thought, as the loosening in her chest manifested in tears. She pressed the meat of her palms to her eyes. She didn’t realize the sense of relief that would come with simply being accepted.
“I have pants and a shirt,” he offered, standing. “But I cannot promise they are any more fashionable or any less black than my robes.” He made his way over to a small chest in the corner behind the door. He opened it smoothly, hand moving inerrantly to neatly folded clothes in the top drawer. He brought them back and handed them to her. They were pale cotton, soft, almost luxurious, and thick enough to keep out the cold.
“Perfect,” she said, grateful. “And off-white. Not black at all.”
“Oh,” he said, surprised. “I assumed.”
She slid off the bench, taking her new clothes with her. She had never been the modest type. She came from a culture that lived on islands and in the water. Clothes were for protection from the elements and occasionally to show status, but generally, Teek weren’t big on covering up for any supposed moral reasons. Cuecolans and, frankly, all the mainlanders were much too uptight about nudity, so even if Serapio could have seen her, she would have done the same. No, she thought with a wicked grin, if he could see me, I’d put a little more flirt into it.
She chuckled under her breath, surprised at how much better she was feeling. Here she was, locked up for who knew what reason, memory a failed mess, and at least one crewman dead, and she was thinking about sex. Well, life-threatening circumstances did that to people, didn’t they? She’d heard that somewhere, and it sounded plausible enough.
“How do they fit?” he asked.
She held out an arm. The sleeve fell well past her fingers, and it was much the same with the pants length. At least the waist generally fit.
“Made for an Obregi giant,” she teased, “but they’ll do.”
She hopped back to her place on the bench, elbows propped on her crossed knees. “Can you hear them now? What they’re saying?”
He lifted a hand, asking for her silence. They both listened. She could tell they were still arguing, but beyond that, their voices were just a roar of distant wind.
After a moment, Serapio nodded.
“Well?” she asked.
“The crew and first mate are debating whether it would be sufficient to cut your tongue out so you can’t Sing and enslave them, or if they need to slit your throat entirely and take their chances on the sea without you.”
She stared at him in shock, heart thumping in her ears.
“Someone is making the case that your bones are worth a lot of cacao. No need to waste those.”
She rubbed at her throat, and the missing digit on her pinkie throbbed.
“That’s Baat,” he added. “He seems to be the most outspoken advocate for your immediate demise.”
“Wonderful,” she muttered, feeling light-headed.
“Are you all right?”
She looked up at him. His face was drawn in concern, eyebrows bunched and lips pressed together tightly.
“Seven hells,” she spat, some of her shock giving way to anger. “I saved that bastard’s life. I should have let him drown.”
“Yes,” Serapio agreed. “It would have been better for you had he drowned. Wait…” He lifted his hand again, listening. After a moment, he said, a note of surprise in his voice, “Callo appears to be cautioning the crew to patience. He doesn’t want to make any decisions until they’re within sight of land. They might need you after all. Although…”
Dread curled in her belly. “What?”
“Patu seems to think we’re both bad luck and they should slaughter us now and take their chances.” He laughed, light and amused. “I don’t recall doing anything to earn that kind of vitriol.”
“And I did?”
He cocked his head toward her, as if listening to her now. For what, she wasn’t sure, but she was suddenly aware of her breathing and the beat of her