Page 67 of Of Magic and Rum
Jack’s head bobs like he’s mulling over my words. “A sea witch?”
“Yes.”
Jack points to the sea. “Underwater?”
“Also, yes.”
“And it’s—” Jack walks his fingers along where the sky meets the water “—on the way, so to speak?”
“Mostly.” A crab bumps my ankle, and I hold out my palm, letting it crawl onto it. “It’s a little off our path, so I hesitated to ask.”
Jack cups my cheek and kisses my head. “My sails are yours, Anne. And the crew will understand.”
Warmth pools in my chest, and I grin at Jack swinging his finger above the crab, which opens and closes its claws but never tries to clamp onto him. We simultaneously glance skyward at the moon’s position.
“Sunrise will be soon. I suppose we should sleep somewhere other than a sandy beach?” I lower my hand and encourage the crab home.
Jack lets out an overly dramatic sigh. “If we must.” He stands and helps me to my feet.
We dust the sand away from our bodies, dress in still very wet and cold clothes, and follow the sea’s shoreline back to The Revenge. When we board, I expect the ship to be quiet, with everyone except those taking the first watch asleep below deck. But it isn’t silent at all. Most of the crew crowd in a circle near the main mast, pointing down at something.
“What in the hell—” Jack squeezes my shoulder before shoving through the crowd. “Make way, make way. Captain on deck and all that.”
When Jack freezes and goes silent, I’m next to push through.
“Oh, Cap, you’re back,” Red says. “Where’s Anne?”
No sooner does he ask my whereabouts than I arrive and pause, much like Jack, at the sight of Truffles and an imp with broken-off hornsplayingtogether. It doesn’t pay the pirate crew much mind, enjoying its frivolous tackling with Jack’s cat, but it stops when Jack bends forward, the imp’s eyes as wide as scallops.
“Will someone please explain why this imp is on my ship?” Jack says in his imposing captain voice, and he doesn’t look away from the tiny creature. The imp backs up with its forked tail wrapping its body, claws twirling around its fingers.
“I caught him rummaging through a barrel of rice,” Glog answers, shaking his head and smiling.
“Andwhyis he still on board?” Jack asks.
Mary tackles my side, hugging me and feeling every inch of my face. “Fuck, Anne. Don’t scare me like that.”
“Scareyou?” I elbow her ribs. “I’m not that easy to get rid of, immortality or not.”
Mary grins and bounces in place. “Cap, we decided to keep the little ugly cute thing around because he doesn’t pose a threat and could come in handy.”
“Handy?” Jack displays a hand toward it. “For what? Shimmying through our legs and tripping us? You all realize this creature belongs to the very same lunatic that kidnapped Anne?”
“This is Nøkk’s imp?” I point at the fantastical creature.
And Jack points at me. “See?” He asks the crew. “Yes, itis.”
Truffles ignores the drama unfolding and licks the imp’s face, proceeding to clean him.
“If I—” The imp’s hooved feet turn inward, and it curls its tail over its hands repeatedly. “If I may speak?” His voice is meager and higher-pitched.
Jack sighs but gives a curt nod.
“I’ve wished to run from my master for a long time.” The imp frowns, pausing and dragging a hand over one of the horn stumps on its head. “Treated badly. They said a pirate crew is where one goes to escape. To be—free?” The imp’s eyes brighten with hope toward his would-be captain.
Jack beats a fist against his thigh. “And I suppose you have all voted on this already?”
“We have,” Duke chimes in, several crew members stepping out of the way to let him join us. “And it’s unanimous.”
