Prologue
The swirling depths of the sea threatened to consume Brody as he stood on a plank extending from the ship while his mutinous crew watched from behind him. He’d just inherited the title of captain of the Sea Mirage and, now, just as quickly, it was about to be taken away.
“Go on – jump,” came the rough voice of the pirate, Old Man Muck, as he poked Brody in the back with the tip of his sword. If Brody’s hands and feet weren’t tied, he’d take on Muck even without a weapon to save his ship. It was early morning as much as he could tell. The fog was thick and he could barely see through it.
“Why are you doing this?” asked Brody, turning his head to talk to the old man. “And how did you and Lucky get aboard? For that matter, how did you get out of the dungeons of Hermitage Castle in the first place?” Brody needed to stall for time and, hopefully, come up with a plan quickly. He’d been woken from a sound sleep by Muck and Lucky who must have come aboard at their last port before the ship set sail for the night.
Brody had been dragged out of bed and removed from his cabin, being jumped by Muck and Lucky as they tied him up and hauled him to the side of the ship. His crew did nothing to help him. None of this made any sense.
“I told you, Rowen set us free,” spat Muck, spittle dribbling down his chin. His teeth were broken and rotten, and his clothes were dirty and ripped. Brody could smell the stench coming from the man’s body all the way from the end of the plank.
“That doesn’t make any sense,” said Brody. “Rowen is the one who put you two behind bars for attempting mutiny when the ship was under his command. He would never set you free.”
“It was actually his brother, Reed, who let us out,” admitted Lucky.
Muck shot him a menacing look, squinting his eyes as he spoke to his sidekick. “Shut your mouth, Lucky. I’m the one doing the talking, not you. Say another word and I’ll add to that scar on your neck.”
“Sorry, Muck.” Lucky rubbed the long scar across his neck that Rowen had given him years ago. His vocal chords had been cut and Lucky was very lucky to be alive – hence it earned him the nickname. His voice suffered from the injury and sounded raspy and frightening when he spoke.
“So, I was right,” said Brody. “Rowen didn’t set you free. Crew, do you hear that?” He peered through the fog, his eyes traveling from Big Garth – his cook, over to Spider with the hairy arms. Then his gaze settled on the pirate named Ash who walked with a limp. “Do something to help me!” They were all pirates but this was a cutthroat crew, and each man always thought of himself first.
“I don’t know,” said the pirate named Odo. His eye twitched as he studied Brody. “Old Man Muck does deserve to be cap’n. After all, it was his brother who captained this ship at one time.”
“That’s right!” said Muck. “And Rowen never deserved to be captain. He’s finally realized it. That’s why he’s given the ship to me.”
“I don’t believe you,” said Brody, trying to loosen the ropes that bit into the flesh at his wrists. “Rowen would never do that.”
“Not only that, but that bastard son of the king decided he no longer wants you on the ship. So, you have to die,” added Muck.
“Nay! Rowen is like a brother to me,” Brody told him. “He would never give that order. I won’t believe it until I hear it from his own mouth.” Brody and Rowen had both been abducted by pirates at a young age and grew up together like brothers. Rowen was a triplet. He and his brothers, Rook and Reed, found out they were King Edward’s bastards when they were twelve. They also discovered that the king was superstitious and ordered them killed at birth. They were lucky to be alive. They’d raided the king for the past three years. But now, one by one, they were pledging their allegiance to the man instead.
“You won’t hear it from him because he’s snug in his castle and a bloody lord of the land now instead of the sea,” said Muck. “He won’t be back to a pirate ship ever. He’s now paying fealty to Edward.”
“He’s got a point there,” said Odo. “Rowen did desert us. Muck would never leave his ship for a woman.” Commotion went up from the crew as they discussed it.
“No matter if he deserted us, Rowen is no longer the captain of the Sea Mirage,” said Brody. “He gave the ship to me and you all know it.”
“Well, mayhap he’s had a change of mind.” Muck chuckled and poked the tip of his sword at Brody again. “Now are you going to jump or do I have to kill you?”
“Nay, don’t kill him,” whispered Lucky in a hoarse voice. “You heard our orders. We’re supposed to commandeer the ship but let him live.”
“Who gave that order?” asked Brody, knowing it couldn’t be his good friend, Rowen.
“It was Reed,” said Lucky. “He wants us to take back the ship so we can use it to steal from the king again.”
“I told you to shut up!” Muck yelled at Lucky.
“Does this have to do with the fact I won’t use the crew and ship to raid against Rowen?” asked Brody.
“You won’t let us raid anyone lately,” complained Ash.
“That’s right,” added Spider. “If we don’t raid soon, we’re all going to starve.”
“Rowen pays fealty to the king now,” said Brody. “I can’t go against him. Not after all we’ve been through together.”
“We’re pirates!” said Muck. “And raiding is what pirates do. You’re not a true pirate and never were. We all know that. You’re weak.”
The crew all seemed to agree with Muck, all except Link – the young boy of the crew. Link had been an orphan and Rowen took him onto the ship and treated him as part of their dysfunctional family. “Leave Brody alone,” said Link. “He’s never done a thing to any of you.”
“Step back, boy, or you’ll be walking the plank with him,” warned Muck.
“Nay, I won’t!” Link pushed Muck. It was all the distraction Brody needed. With his feet tied together, he hopped across the plank, swinging his arms at Muck. Muck turned around with his sword raised. Brody jabbed his arms upward, running the ropes that bound his wrists together across the sharp blade. He managed to cut his bindings and pushed away from the blade at the same time. Quickly, his fingers removed the ropes. He dove for Muck, taking him down on the deck. The crew cheered and shouted.
Brody struggled with Muck, throwing a few punches, but Lucky pulled him off the old man. With all the kicking and squirming, the ropes at Brody’s ankles came loose and he reached down to free himself.
Seeing a dagger on the deck, he snatched it up. But when he stood, Muck was holding his blade to Link’s throat.
“Reed might have told us not to kill you, but he never said a word about not killing the boy.” Muck smirked.
“Nay! Let him go,” said Brody.
“I agree, let the boy go,” shouted Big Garth. The crew moved in closer.
“If a single one of you takes another step closer, the boy is dead,” warned Muck.
Lucky held up his sword, protecting Muck. “You heard him. Back off.”
“What do you want?” asked Brody, knowing the man was using the life of the boy to control him.
“Jump overboard of your own accord or I’ll kill the boy.” Muck brought the blade closer to Link’s throat and drew blood.
“Nay!” Brody slipped the dagger into the back of his breeches. Then he held his hands up in the air. “Don’t hurt him. Please.” Link was like a little brother to Brody and didn’t deserve to die. Brody had no doubt that Muck would kill Link if he didn’t do as instructed.
“Nay, don’t kill Brody, please,” begged Link.
“There’s an island nearby,” said Muck. “If you can swim faster than the sharks, you might have a chance to make it there alive. Do it and both of you will live.”
“What do you say, Brody?” Lucky talked without looking back, still holding his sword up toward the crew.
Brody knew he didn’t have a chance in hell of beating Muck if his crew wasn’t behind him. The crew had always been loyal to Rowen, but Muck had somehow convinced them to follow him instead. Then again, the pirates had known Muck longer and once been under the command of Muck’s brother, One-Eyed Ron. Respect was something that had to be earned amongst pirates and thieves. Brody had lived with them for over ten years, but hadn’t been captain long enough to earn it.
“All right. I’ll do it. Just promise me you won’t hurt Link.”
“I’ll not make you any promises,” said Muck. “But since I need a lackey aboard the ship, the boy won’t be killed unless you give me trouble.”
“I’m going.” Brody nodded, looking back out to the water. If only he could think of another plan. The trailing edges of the red cloth covering his hair blew in the breeze as he slowly made his way back down the plank, wanting to kill Muck for this. But Brody was one man against a crew that had turned mutinous. There was no hope for him or Link unless he jumped.
“Jump,” ordered Muck from behind him.
Brody lined up his booted feet at the edge of the plank, feeling like he was going to his death. Could he swim to the island to save himself? He had an idea where they were, but in this fog, he couldn’t see a thing. How would he even know if he was swimming in the right direction? He looked down to the swirling black water beneath him, not able to believe this would be the way he would die.
“Wait! Take this.” Lucky slid a goatskin across the plank to Brody.
“What are you giving him, you fool?” grunted Muck.
“It’s just some ale to help him survive if he happens to make it to the island,” Lucky explained. Brody reached down and picked up the goatskin, placing the strap over his shoulder.
“Do it!” shouted Muck. Link whimpered. When Brody turned around, he saw more blood running from the boy’s neck. His eyes scanned his crew members one by one, looking for someone who would be willing to help him. Not a one of them dared to make eye contact with him. Instead, they looked at the deck or off into the fog. His situation was hopeless.
“You won’t get away with this Muck!” Brody told him. “I’ll not only survive, but I swear I’ll return and kill you for this. You’d better sleep with one eye open because the next shadow in the mist will be me, coming to slit your throat.”
Then Brody turned around and dove into the water, only hoping there was an island nearby. Because if not, he’d never get the chance to kill Muck after all.