Sold as the Alpha King’s Breeder

Chapter 43: Captain vs Captain 

Keaton

Robbie hoisted me up onto the Persephone, and my eyes immediately scanned the damage on the deck.

“Pick,” I said shortly, looking at the masts that had been snapped, the shredded sails, and the piles of debris covered in seaweed.

I looked back over the railing at the sandbar where the Persephone had run aground, and then to the beach where two of the four skiffs had made it to shore.

“We didn’t take on much water, only in the engine room,” Robbie said, shaking his head, “Her hull is intact. We’re not sinking.”

“Good. That’s good,” I said through gritted teeth, “Drop the anchor. We’ll see how she floats at high tide.”

Robbie nodded and called out the command to the few crewmen who had followed us to the ship along the sandbar. They were all busy cleaning up the mess the storm had made.

We should be dead. All of us. The Persephone should have been laying on her side beneath several fathoms of water. We had gotten the younger crewmen and the women off the boat just in time. But not Maeve.

I saw Troy standing near the railing, looking out over the water. What could I possibly say to him right now?

“You should go back to shore,” I said as I stepped towards him, “She might have made it to the island. We were in the shallows when—”:

He looked over his shoulder at me, his eyes telling me everything I needed to know. Absolute heartbreak, utter dread. He was covered in bruises and scratches. Deep cuts ran along his chest. He had a black eye and a deep purple bruise along his jaw. A bloodied nose.

He looked as though he had been through a meat grinder. Even his arm, the break in it which had only just begun to heal, was hanging limp at his side, bruises covering it from shoulder to wrist.

“Troy, I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be,” he breathed, looking back over the water, “This is what you wanted, wasn’t it?”

“Don’t you dare blame this on me. I lost three crewmen,”

“I lost Maeve.”

The words were biting, meant to be harsh. I swallowed, shaking my head as I turned away from him and walked along the deck, kicking at long pieces of rubbery seaweed as I went along.

Troy stood in the same spot for an hour before turning around and walking to the other side of the ship, disappearing over the railing and down a rope ladder we had unfurled.

“The boys are draining the water from the engine room and gathering whatever can be salvaged of the masts. The extra sails are water logged but are in perfect shape. She’s going to be seaworthy soon. Very soon.” Robbie came up beside me, pointing to the various men as they went about their tasks.

“You got this?” I asked, tilting my head towards Troy, who was walking along the sandbar towards the camp.

Aye, I do,” Robbie assured me regarding the ship.

“I need to make sure he doesn’t go into the jungle and kill himself,” I said shortly, snorting with mirth.

I climbed down the rope ladder, jumping down the last few feet and landing in the wet sand. At high tide, this whole area would be under water, but right now you could see the expansive reef and colorful fish that swam about, their scales reflecting off the sun.

However long we’d be here, we’d be able to eat at least, I thought, watching a very large crab scurry across the sand and disappear back into the water.

to Troy, breaking into a jog to catch up to him. Troy quickened his pace, turning sharply away from

as I caught up to him, he turned around, his fists clenched into fists,

my hands resting on my knees as I caught my breath. “I don’t trust you right now, Troy. I

but–”

nnnn

16:32

Captain vs

fury flaming behind his eyes, “Go back to Myla.

will you do? Hmm? Drown yourself? Over

into the sand. I spit blood from

deserved that I said, spitting

you have anything else you want to

you’re

slamming me into the sand. I took a second to recover from the

we were

it out on me, I thought, just as he wrapped his arm around my neck, pulling me

approach, a long piece of driftwood in her hands, wielding it like a sword. Troy loosened his grip

He let me go, bringing his hands to his nose. I stood and began taking off my clothes, tossing my shirt down

Troy, shift. Let’s finish

harsh with a motherly edge to it. I looked at her hoping, like a lovesick pup, that she had seen me headbutt Troy and

exclaimed, sticking her stick in the sand, “I’m

up, a glimmer of hope in his eyes. “Do

I really believe she’s alive. And she’s gotta be around here, somewhere. Do either of you

nodded, rising to his

blown off course. We’re southeast of where we need to be. This

looking from Troy

said quickly, glaring over at Troy. “Which

beach and the three of us turned toward it, watching as the people making camp on the shore swiveled their heads to the

again, three or four yelps in rapid succession. The hair on my arms rose, my skin

“Was that,”

a step towards the beach, his

the sand, gripping it tightly

his head, his brow knitted as

a dog?”

then quieted, her face flashing with confusion. “A dog? From where? I thought

across the sandbar

figure had emerged, her pinkish

Troy. I looked over my shoulder at the Persephone, where men were crowded along the railing to

Maeve

He sank to his knees, his face buried against my neck as he held me to him. I kissed his forehead, then his cheeks, and then fully on the mouth, tears

for a moment, a choked

him. “Did you just – lick my

“What?”

stood, his teeth pulled back in grimace as he looked down at the dog, who was sitting back on his haunches,

thing?” Keaton said with a laugh, holding a bloody rag to his lip as he approached.