“Thar she blows!” Alexei shouted in delight.
Bethany couldn’t bring herself to be quite so thrilled. What the hell was she doing out here anyway? Did she really believe she could somehow keep this giant warrior safe if he couldn’t do it himself?
“Isn’t that for whales?” she asked dubiously, slowing the ship down to a crawl as they approached the strange foggy spot in the middle of an otherwise clear sea. The sun was going down, and its orange glare lit the mystery boat with an additional ominous aura. As if it needed one.
Alexei gave one of his huge, booming laughs. The crazy man was actually enjoying himself. “Probably,” he admitted. “But I don’t know the proper term for sighting a supposedly haunted pirate ship.”
“Probably ‘this blows,’ would be sufficient,” Bethany muttered.
“You just don’t know how to have a good time,” Alexei said.
“You have a very short memory,” Bethany countered.
“Ha,” he said. “But that’s different. This is dangerous and uncertain.”
Bethany thought back to their wild coupling. “And I say again, you have a very short memory.”
Alexei scooped her up and kissed her, then put her down with a thump. “Oh, I remember every moment of that night, believe me.” He grinned. “Perhaps we’ll repeat it once I have dealt with our supposed pirate.”
“Don’t bet on it,” she said, glaring at him.
“Which?” he asked. “The pirate or the repeat?”
She smacked him on the arm, which only hurt her hand. “Either. Both. Now, what’s the plan?” It occurred to her that she probably should have asked that question before they left port. Oh well, too late now. A grim, darkly bearded figure was striding toward them out of the mists, their boats so close to each other they were almost touching. Alexei strolled down to meet him.
“Foolish churls, you are trespassing on the waters claimed by the ghost of Blackbeard the pirate. Be gone and never return, lest I send your bones to the bottom of the sea to become food for oysters!” The figure brandished a long, curving broadsword.
Alexei leaned casually against the side of the cabin. “No, I don’t think so.”
“What?!” roared the bearded man. Smoke wreathed his head and mingled with the eerie fog.
“Well, for one thing, oysters don’t eat people. That’s just silly. For another, you’re no more a ghost than I am a ballerina.” He straightened up. “So I’m kind of curious as to what you’re up to here and why you want people to stay away. Care to enlighten me?”
“I am the ghost of Blackbeard the pirate!” the man thundered. “How dare you speak to me that way, you miserable failure? You are the laughingstock of the Otherworld. You are nothing but a shadow of your former self. You should abase yourself before me and run away in terror.”
From her vantage point above him in the raised cabin, Bethany could see the muscles in Alexei’s neck and shoulders tighten as the other man taunted him. For a minute, she was afraid he would lose control, but instead, he simply responded with a soft drawl that belied the tension that coiled in his body.
“Well, which is it?” he asked. “Abase myself or run away? It’s kind of hard to do both at the same time.”
Despite the seriousness of the situation, Bethany had to try and smother a laugh. Dark piercing eyes followed the sound and glared at her with a hatred that made them seem to glow red around the edges.
“You bring your Human whore with you to confront me?” the purported Blackbeard said. “What kind of fool are you? Her bones will lie beside yours, twenty fathoms deep.”
Alexei’s hand tightened on the side of the boat so hard, Bethany could hear it creak. But when she expected him to respond with anger, he surprised her by smiling.
“Not as big a fool as you are, whoever you might be. You just told me that you know who I am. Very few people on this side of the doorways would, so I’m guessing you’re from the Otherworld. I’m also guessing that you are here without the queen’s permission. Now that really is foolish.”
The figure took a step back, suddenly less aggressive. “This is none of your business, Rider. Leave this place now and I will let you go in peace.” He made a gesture to someone unseen behind him and his boat slowly began to move away. His voice, thick with malice, drifted to them over the widening gulf of water. “But I warn you, Rider. If you do not stay out of my way, I will make you and yours suffer in ways that made what that insane Baba Yaga did to you seem like a gift. Heed me in this, or pay the price.”
The pirate boat drifted away, taking its strange fog with it. It faded into the growing darkness within minutes, as soon as it was out of range of The Flora MacDonald’s lights.
“Well, that was interesting,” Alexei said, rolling his shoulders in a way that revealed that he’d been much more tense than he would ever have admitted. He rejoined her in the cabin as they headed back.
Bethany realized her hands were trembling as she fired up the engine to take them home. “Interesting? That’s what you want to call it? I don’t know about you, but I thought that guy was scary as hell, even if he wasn’t a ghost.” There was something about the man’s casual malice that frightened her to her core. No wonder Clyde and his men had been so shaken. “I sure as hell wouldn’t want to meet him in a dark alley. Hell, I don’t think I’d want to meet him in a sunlit park.”
“Mmm,” Alexei said. “A thoroughly unpleasant character, I agree. But coming out here was well worth the trouble. I learned something very important about our friend Blackbeard, something that Beka needs to know as soon as possible.”
Bethany thought back to the confrontation. “Wait, you said he was from the Otherworld. That’s how he knew who you were. How can that be?”
“Some Paranormal folks do visit from time to time, as long as the queen consents to allow it. Or if they keep a low profile and happen to have access to one of the portals that lead to this world; although most of them are guarded, there are always random doorways if you know where to look,” Alexei admitted. “But this fellow didn’t strike me as a casual traveler. You saw how he reacted when I accused him of being here without the permission of the high queen. No, he’s not supposed to be here. I’d bet my Harley on it. And that means that whatever he’d after is important to him and probably valuable.
“Plus, I’m guessing from the way he talks that the last time he was here was some time ago. That may help us to narrow things down nicely, especially if Beka gets an answer to whatever it was that she couldn’t quite remember.”
“I’m glad it was helpful,” Bethany said. “But I’d still just as soon never see that man again.”
“Oh, no worries. I don’t see any reason why you would,” Alexei said.
But Bethany wasn’t so sure.
* * *
Hayreddin was so furious, it was all he could do to hang on to his Human shape. Inside, his dragon roared and raged, wanting to breathe fire at the sky and torch this fragile wooden boat until it burned to a crisp, taking its insignificant and annoying occupants with it.
How dare that Rider laugh at him, Hayreddin the mighty, the glorious, the renowned? A fallen hero, pathetic and useless, dared to put himself in the way of Hayreddin’s plans? This could not be allowed to stand.
But what was he to do? Killing the one who insulted him would be temporarily satisfying, but the queen had a ridiculous soft spot for the Riders, even in their current reduced state. And the Baba Yagas…those witches would hunt him to the ends of the earth. So killing Alexei was out of the question, alas. But there were other alternatives.
Red knew the Riders of old. They were well known throughout the Otherworld. Everyone knew Alexei was restless, always wandering (his brothers had been too, and Red had no idea where they had ended up, being simply grateful they were not here for him to deal with in addition to Alexei). It was passing strange that he had stopped in this tiny port town for long, although less so that he pretended to be helping the Baba Yaga as he once had. Still, as far as anyone Red talked to could tell, the only thing keeping Alexei here was his apparent infatuation with a barmaid. A Human, whose father he was caring for. It was beyond Red’s comprehension.
But he supposed that when one was a former Rider, with no real useful occupation, anything at all might seem worth doing. Or perhaps it was the free beer. Either way, it was unlikely that Alexei would stay around for long. Hayreddin intended to see to it that the Rider moved on sooner rather than later.
One of the men Red had hired had been at The Hook and Anchor the night Alexei had wrecked the place. The whole fishing community talked of little else for days. So Red knew that the woman who ran the bar had told Alexei that if it happened again, he would be forbidden to return. If Alexei angered her, she would no longer wish him to care for her father, and he would leave town.
Simple enough.
“I have another brilliant plan,” Red shouted back to where Len was sitting, as far away as possible.
A groan was his only answer.
* * *
Alexei sat at the bar and watched Bethany through half-shuttered eyelids as he pretended to listen to a drunken sailor tell some long, rambling story about a sea monster that turned out to be a lost Russian submarine.
About a tenth of Alexei’s attention was focused on the story - enough so he could grunt in the right places. Another third was focused on the door, hoping that Beka would walk through at any minute. Now that he knew their mysterious fake pirate was from the Otherworld, it shed an entirely new light on the whole matter.
Alexei really needed to talk to Beka and compare notes. Assuming she had learned something worth sharing, of course.
The rest of his attention was in the same place it had been for days, studying Bethany and trying to decide what she was thinking. She hadn’t shown any change in attitude since the night they’d spent together or any indication that she expected their relationship to have altered because of it.
That was good. At least, he was pretty sure it was good. Of course it was good. Wasn’t it? After all, it hadn’t affected him at all. Other than the fact that he couldn’t stop thinking about the way she looked in the heat of passion, like a wild and glorious valkyrie. Or the glow of the sun on her creamy skin when they were out on the boat together, or the fierce glint in her eyes when she was mad at him…which admittedly, was pretty often.
She glanced in his direction and he nodded enthusiastically at the man next to him, trying not to seem like he was watching her. Unfortunately, the sailor launched into an entirely new story, encouraged by Alexei’s supposed interest. Great, this one had something to do with inappropriate tattoos. Please, gods, let there not be pictures.
It wasn’t as though there was anything wrong with Bethany not wanting to jump back into bed with him, although it made him worry a little that their encounter hadn’t been as wonderful for her as it had been for him. After all, she knew he was just passing through, and she wasn’t the kind of woman who went for casual relationships.
Unless she just didn’t want to be with him in particular. Not that he wanted to be with her. He didn’t do relationships at all, casual or otherwise, his attachment to his brothers and the Baba Yagas aside. Of course, he also didn’t brood over women, and look at him now. What the hell was wrong with him?
Bethany brought him over another beer, nodding at the guy next to him, who had pulled up his shirt to show off a tattoo of…what the devil was that, anyway? A mermaid and a dolphin? Alexei grimaced, pretty sure that the act depicted in the tattoo was not only physically impossible but unlikely to be considered desirable by either party.
Unlike the adorable redhead currently winking at him, who was absurdly desirable on multiple levels.
“Put that away, John,” she was saying to the sailor. “And if you drop your trousers to show him the other one, I’m calling your wife.”
“How do you know what he’s got under his trousers?” Alexei asked, curious (but not at all jealous, because he’d never been jealous a day in his life).
She rolled her eyes at him. “Not that way, you big oaf. Everyone in town knows what he’s got tattooed on his left butt cheek. The tattoo artist who did it was so proud, he has a photo up on the wall in his shop.” She gave a mock shudder. “Believe me, you don’t want to know. You’ll never sleep again.”
Bethany turned to John. “Speaking of which, you need to go home and sleep it off, buddy. I’ve called you a taxi. You can come get your car tomorrow.” She held out one hand and he dropped a set of keys into it meekly and staggered off in the direction of the door.
Bethany sighed, resting her elbows on the bar and her chin in her hands. “It was nice of you to let John blither on at you. I know he can be kind of annoying, but today’s the anniversary of his mother’s death, and he always gets drunk and tells ridiculous stories. You were kind to listen to him.”
“I am not kind,” Alexei growled, out of sorts for reasons he couldn’t quite put his finger on. Probably just tired of waiting for Beka to come back so they could solve this damned kraken problem and he could get back on the road.
Bethany blinked at him. “Well, you’re grumpy tonight. And you’re not fooling me, either. You’re kind to my father, and you’re kind to Lulu. Once or twice you’ve even been kind to me. Probably accidentally.”
Alexei opened his mouth to apologize when a deep, gravelly voice said, “I’ll bet lots of men are kind to you, pretty lady.”
A strange-looking guy slid onto the barstool vacated by John. He had an odd haircut, with a one side of his head shaved a third of the way up, and the remaining hair combed up and over, so it fell in one straight gray sheet down to his chin on the other side. He had a tangled salt and pepper beard, a hooked nose, cold gray eyes, and wore gold hoops in both ears. Something about him seemed familiar, but Alexei was sure he’d remember having met someone so distinctive, so perhaps he’d simply seen the guy in the bar on a previous occasion.
Bethany ignored the compliment, although she raised an eyebrow in unspoken commentary in Alexei’s direction. “Hi, I’m Bethany. What can I get you?”
The man gave Alexei a sideways glance, then stared rudely at a spot well below Bethany’s face. “How about a whiskey, neat, and a night with you?”
“How about a whiskey and you stop ogling my boobs?” she countered. “Any particular brand you prefer?”
“Yours will do quite nicely,” the man said with a smirk. “As for the whiskey, I am not particular.”
Bethany seemed to be dealing with this asshole with her usual patient forbearance, but Alexei had had enough.
“You don’t seem to be too particular about your manners, either,” He said, swinging around to face the man. “I’m going to have to ask you to stop being so rude to the lady. She’s a friend of mine.”
“It’s fine, Alexei,” Bethany said. “I think the gentleman would be happier drinking in some other bar, that’s all.”
The man reached over and grabbed her arm. “The gentleman is quite happy right where he is, thank you, darling. Although we might have a more enjoyable evening if you would tell your large ugly friend to go elsewhere so we can get to know each other better in peace.”
A red cloud seemed to descend over Alexei’s vision. “Remove your hand,” he said through gritted teeth. “Or I will remove it for you. Possibly permanently.”
Alarm crossed Bethany’s face. “Alexei, don’t.”
But it was too late. The stranger gave him a grin that glinted gold at one edge. “I will enjoy seeing you try,” he said, and let go of Bethany to stand up. “Shall we have at it?”
“Oh, yes, why don’t we?” Alexei stood up too, so the two of them were almost toe to toe. The man was larger than he’d thought - almost as tall as Alexei himself, although not quite as broad in the shoulders. Of course, he was a Human, so he wouldn’t have nearly the strength and endurance. Alexei might be a former Rider now, but his father was the god Jarilo and his mother had been the daughter of the legendary warrior Svyatogor, whose name meant Sacred Mountain because he was so large - no normal man could match him.
“Alexei,” Bethany said warningly. “Not again.”
Crack. The stranger struck Alexei so hard, it flung him across the room and into the wall.
Alexei straightened, shaking his head. Son of a bitch. That actually hurt. He roared as he raced back over and swept the man off his feet, barreling him a few yards before throwing him down on the ground with a thud.
The man bounced back up, seeming unshaken. He aimed another roundhouse punch at Alexei’s head, but this time Alexei was expecting it and ducked under the blow. He plowed into the man again, ramming his shoulder into the stranger’s gut and making him grunt as all the air left his lungs. They shot forward another couple of yards before the man dug in his booted feet and they screeched to a halt.
“Open the door!” Alexei yelled to one of the regulars who was sitting next to it. The guy stopped staring and jumped up with alacrity, suddenly figuring out what Alexei was doing.
A meaty fist connected with the side of his head, but Alexei just shook it off, although his ears rang a little from the impact. He took one step back to gather himself and then hit the man with all his strength. The stranger flew out the door and landed in the parking lot on his ass.
“The lady asked you to drink elsewhere,” Alexei said, folding his arms over his chest. “I suggest you do as she says.”
The man stood up, making a low growling sound of mixed frustration and anger. His eyes seemed to glow red in the reflection from the neon beer signs in The Hook and Anchor’s window. “Fight me,” he said. “Come back inside and fight me like a man.”
Alexei shrugged. “No thanks. I seem to have lost my taste for brawling. Besides, I promised not to bust up the bar again. So I’m afraid you’ll have to find your entertainment elsewhere.”
“I could keep striking you,” the man hissed. “You would have to fight me then.”
“Sure. If you insist.” Alexei shrugged again and gestured around them. “If you feel like rolling around in the dirt in a parking lot. I suspect all these cars and trucks are insured. But I will beat you to a pulp eventually, and what would be the point?”
The stranger scowled. “What would be the point indeed?” He glanced back at the doorway, where Bethany stood looking out at them. “Very well. But this is not over.”
“I think it is,” Alexei said mildly. “Go home.”
“Soon,” the man said. “But not soon enough.” He turned and stalked away into the night.
A small crowd spilled out of the bar and applauded. Alexei just grinned and waved them off. He couldn’t believe he was being hailed for not fighting. His life was getting odder and odder. The Baba Yagas would never believe it.
But then Bethany ran over and jumped up into his arms, kissing him soundly before sliding back down to the ground. “You were amazing!” she said. “You purposely moved him out of the bar so it wouldn’t get wrecked. And then you chose not to fight.” Tears seemed to glimmer in her eyes. “You crazy, wonderful, amazing man.”
She kissed him again, to more applause from the regulars, and suddenly Alexei didn’t care how odd his life had become. If not fighting got him this kind of reward, he might just give it up forever.
Once it was clear the excitement was over, everyone went back inside and got back to their drinking, although not without a heightened buzz of conversation as the entire fight was recapped and discussed from every angle. Bethany and Alexei followed the pack, but she surprised him by grabbing his hand and steering him toward the storeroom instead of the bar.
“Hey!” he protested. “I thought I’d at least get a free beer for not wrecking the place.”
Bethany closed the door behind them and shoved him up against a stack of wine crates. The bottles clinked cheerfully as she stood on her toes to whisper against his lips, “I thought I’d give you a different kind of reward,” and kissed him with so much passion, it made him tingle down to his fingertips.
“Just so you know, you have never been sexier to me than you are right at this moment,” she said in a husky voice.
Naturally, he kissed her back. He liked drinking, but the buzz that came from having his body pressed up against Bethany’s was better than the most expensive champagne.
“Not that I’m complaining,” he said hoarsely a few minutes later when they both came up for air. “But there is an entire bar full of thirsty sailors out there waiting for their drinks. And I’d rather not have that big a cheering section for this kind of activity.” He’d been holding her up with both hands on her bottom and set her down reluctantly until her feet touched the floor again.
Bethany sighed, but took a step backward. “You’re probably right,” she said. “But you’d better believe you’re going to get lucky when I get home tonight.”
“I’ll be counting the minutes,” Alexei said. “And possibly the seconds.” That was, if he got enough blood flow back in his brain to count anything.
* * *
That had not gone as planned. Not at all. Hayreddin could not believe that the Black Rider of all people had refused to fight him. Had the man completely lost his nerve when the wicked Brenna tortured him and his brothers? Or had he lost his mind over that silly, flame-haired Human? Either way, yet another brilliant plan had failed miserably.
Hayreddin had had enough. It was time for more drastic measures. If a direct attack could not achieve his goal of getting the former Rider out of his hair, then something more underhanded would be required. Fortunately, Red excelled at devious and malicious schemes. With the help of Len and the two remaining pirates, he would do something that would force Alexei to do as he was told. Or else.