a blink of an eye. Perhaps this is all now a dream and I will wake when it’s over, back in my bed. Either way, Mother and Father have their hands quite full with Michael and John. I daresay they shan’t miss me beyond needing to write an embarrassing explanation to a certain family in Ireland. I just hope Nana remembers to feed Snowball.
“But what about you, Captain Hook? What exactly are your plans for Peter’s shadow? Are you going to keep it and hold it over his head forever? In return for your…hook?”
“Forever?” Hook sat back in his chair, looking astonished. “Oh no, no, my girl. I have no desire to continue this endless charade with Peter Pan any longer at all. I have wasted far too much of my life on it. My crew hasn’t looted a merchant vessel or stormed a port in years. No, I am done with Never Land. Rather permanently. I think it’s high time I put it and Peter behind me. Rather permanently.”
“That sounds a bit ominous,” Wendy observed.
“It was supposed to. I’m actually quite thrilled by the fact that you will be here as an audience to his and its fate.”
“What precisely are you going to do, if I may ask?”
“Well, my dear, unlike the villains in your quaint little tales, I am not daft enough to reveal my cunning plans to anyone—a hero or even a bystander like yourself—before carrying them out.”
Wendy took some umbrage at the term bystander—wasn’t she on a pirate ship headed to Never Land of her own volition? Didn’t she invent much of the world he inhabited?
But there were more pressing issues than her own ego.
“Of course not,” she agreed, around a sip of water so she wouldn’t choke on her subterfuge. “But surely you couldn’t keep such ideas entirely to yourself. Even a great captain like yourself needs help with the dirty work. And perhaps a sympathetic ear.”
“Well, you are right there, of course,” Hook said, swirling his deep red wine in its glass. “But I have Mr. Smee, who holds all my secrets dearly. He alone is aware of the not so happily-ever-after that awaits all of Never Land.
“And I’ll have you know, Miss Darling, I was rather despairing of ever being able to carry out all the details needed for my plans. Your offer of Peter’s shadow came like a miracle out of the blue—finally Mr. Smee and I can get to work on it!”
Wendy…was, however inadvertently, responsible for setting in motion one of Hook’s most murderous schemes? That involved all of Never Land? Rather permanently? She swallowed and tried to stay calm.
“Lucky break for you, I suppose,” she said casually. “But how does it involve Peter’s shadow? You couldn’t have made all of these plans without knowing for certain you could get it, and—”
“Tut tut,” the captain said, shaking a finger at her like a schoolmarm. “It’s highly impolite to question a pirate captain so closely when he has invited you to lunch, don’t you know? Terribly bad form.”
And Wendy ground her teeth, defeated.
The moment lunch—or whatever it was; the world was still gray and formless—ended, she escaped back to the deck. Her eyes had that dry, crusty feeling of having been open too long from being up too late. How long had it been since she had left the house? It was mad not having clocks or watches around. Despite just eating a rather substantial meal she felt a little light-headed. But not queasy. Even with the rhythmic rocking of the ship, she walked steadily and her stomach remained firmly digesting the surprisingly good repast.
“Lady! Missy! Miss Darling!” A pirate ran up to her, a loop of string in his hands. Two other pirates came reluctantly behind, looking chagrined. One of them cradled a badly bleeding hand.
“My goodness, whatever happened here?”
“Me and these louts was just arguing about the proper play of cat’s cradle,” the pirate with the string said. “The White Duke here kept flubbing it up.”
“I had to cut him,” the second pirate admitted, pointing at the wound on the third’s hand.
“Can you show us how to do it, proper-like?” the Duke asked, heedless of his injury.
Wendy gave them all a severe look.
“Let me take care of this poor fellow first and then see what we can do.”
She took the pirate’s bloody hand and gently peeled open his fingers for a better look. It wasn’t so bad, really—just deep and narrow. All it needed was to be thoroughly cleaned before