Page 56 of Escaping Pirates
“I did.”
“I almost got him that one time. He said I nearly knocked the wind out of him.”
“I think he was being kind.” A kind pirate. If only I could tell Blossom about that oxymoron.
Gil laughed, breathless and proud. “Yeah. But I still get a tally mark. That counts! One day, I’m going to be the one to win that day off!”
I smiled faintly. “I’m sure you will.”
Another match began in the ring, and the mood shifted again. Two full-grown men were going at it with hard fists and red faces. This fight wasn’t gentle. After five minutes, one of them had blood running from a brow, and the other was limping. I couldn’t watch any more.
Yet all around me, the men still cheered and laughed. They loved it.
I looked around at their faces—sweaty, grinning, and shouting. Some of them had bruises already darkening theirskin. Others had coin purses clutched in their hands, waiting to collect winnings. They werehappylike this.
I couldn’t understand it.
“They aren’t bad,” Gil said quietly beside me, like he’d read my thoughts.
“I didn’t say they were.”
“They just… grew up different. They live different than high society.” He nudged my arm. “It’s not about hurting people. It’s just…how they let things out. Better for fun than for real, right?”
I glanced down at him with his sweaty curls and shining eyes.
“Right. I’m glad they went easy on you,” I said.
Gil grinned. “Me too. But next time, I’ll win for real. When my muscles come in big, I’ll be ready. My mam always said that if I hadn’t been born a human, I would have been a wild stallion! Nobody can tame my spirit!”
I couldn’t help it. I laughed.
“We’ll make port tomorrow,” Tyrone told me over dinner several days later.
My heart leapt. Freedom! I would be able to be done with pirates at last.
“It’s been a week since we fished you out.”
“It has.”
“Have you been harmed or injured while aboard my ship?”
“No,” I admitted, wondering where this was going.
“Did you ever feel mistreated, malnourished, or deprived in any way?”
I didn’t like the way he worded his question. “Am I still free to leave when we get to port?”
Tyrone stroked his moustache. “In a way.”
I knew it. I knew I wouldn’t have been allowed to just walk away. “What do you meanin a way?”
“There’s a ball tomorrow evening at Ebora’s palace,” Tyrone told me silkily. “I’d like you to come with me.”
“You said I was free to go once we got to land.”
“And you are. But of course, it would be a shame if anyone found out about Harlan’s little secret because you refused to help me with a tiny little business deal.” His gaze lifted to meet mine. “Just imagine how much someone would pay to find out where the real prince is.”
I froze and my mouth went bone dry. “What are you talking about?”
