Page 22 of Tell No Tales
Vadim had to check the secret compartment. He hoped Efren hadn't cleaned it out years ago.
He gently eased his way off the sail. The added sturdiness meant it didn't creak as much as a regular sail bed, but it was difficult to avoid Klaus's legs. He slept like he'd been knocked over by a strong wind, his arms and legs splayed. Vadim had been hit once or twice by his flailing limbs during the night, too.
His chest ached as he glanced back at Klaus from the doorway. He looked so peaceful. Vadim wished he could keep him safe, but he had a bad feeling whatever he was about to find was going to change all their lives, and not for the better.
Stan startled him as he stalked toward the ladder into the true hold. He stood in the dark with his arms crossed over his chest.
"What in all hells are you doing here?" Vadim asked.
"Took you long enough," Stan said.
"Like you know what I'm doing."
"I know exactly what you're doing. You're going to kill Martiz."
Vadim laughed. "I'm going nowhere near Martiz."
"Please?" It was unusual to hear a whine in Stan's deep voice.
"Did he dishonor your good name?"
Stan shook his head. "He said Tovey was going to die in Hearthstone unless we turn back now."
"Tovey's not ill." Vadim took another moment to confirm it before draping his arm over the larger man's shoulders. "I promise, Tovey's not going to die for years to come."
"Martiz says there is a bounty out on him."
"How the fuck would Martiz know that, unless he's the one who put it there?"
As usual, Stan was trying to scrunch his thick shoulders and make himself smaller. Vadim grabbed him by the scruff of his neck and stepped in front of him, meeting his gaze until Stan stood taller and looked away.
"I mean it, Stan. How the fuck would he know? He's been drained of power. No element allows us to see into the future."
"But Nola …"
The captain ofWildfire,the only other pirate ship the size ofStarlight Specteron these waters, loved to pretend she could read minds like a death weaver, but Vadim knew her trick all too well.
"She listens through the water. She cannot read minds."
"Are you sure?"
"She's a fucking water weaver, Stan. I promise you."
"And Tovey's going to be all right?"
Vadim smirked. "As far as I know."
"What are you doing down here, then, if not to kill Martiz?"
"Is there still a loose floorboard near the bulkhead?"
Vadim was grateful for Stan's presence, since he couldn't remember where the board was. Somehow, he'd blanked on its location.
"There's a loose floorboard, but it's nowhere near the bulkhead." Stan frowned at him. "You'll need a light globe to find it."
"Will this work?" Vadim held up his pen light. He stabbed the sharp blade into the soft skin of his wrist beneath the hem of his glove, and it lit the mostly empty hold.
"Yes. Follow me."
