Sebastian Darke: Prince of Pirates (14 page)

Cornelius sat at a rough-hewn table, counting up his remaining coins. 'We should be all right,' he said. 'In a way, Jenna's decision will work in our favour. If she'd asked for a straight fee, we'd have had trouble scraping it together.'

'I suppose we could go to a moneylender,' said Sebastian.

Cornelius scowled. 'I wouldn't give those grasping scum the business,' he said. 'They'd only add on huge amounts of interest, and besides, we'd have to tell them what we wanted the money for. Even if we were vague about where we were actually going, they'd soon put two and two together, and before you know it, everybody in Ramalat would find out what we were up to.' He placed his last coin on the small pile. 'We can't even afford to replace all the equipment we lost in the fire,' he said. 'We'll just have to make do with very little until we find the treasure.'

'And if there
is
no treasure?'

'We'll cross that bridge if and when we get to it,' he said. 'Jenna has agreed to a cut of whatever we find. If we find nothing, she gets a cut of nothing. That's the way it works. But as for me, I trust the man who sold me that map.'

Sebastian turned back from the window in surprise. 'What?' he cried. 'I thought . . . I thought you said you were
given
it. Somebody at the hospital in Keladon, you said. A man on his deathbed!'

'Well . . . he was dying, yes, but he . . . he didn't exactly
give
me the map. He sold it to me.'

Sebastian could hardly believe his ears. 'But why would anyone do that? I mean, what use was money to him if he was dying?'

'He had nothing left in the world,' explained Cornelius. 'The money was to pay for a decent burial. What's your problem?'

Sebastian shrugged. 'Well . . . call me stupid if you like, but I don't feel inclined to trust a man whose last act on leaving this world is to get a few more croats in his pocket.'

'More like five gold crowns,' said Cornelius quietly.

'Good grief.' Sebastian thought for a moment. 'He must have been buried in real style for that, with a fine coffin and a site in the poshest graveyard in Keladon. Still . . . I suppose you took the money back once he was dead,' he ventured.

'Absolutely not! I do have some principles, you know.'

'Well, it's good to see that
somebody
does.' Sebastian turned back to look out of the window. 'So, we're five crowns down before we even start.'

'No,
I'm
five crowns down. I'm the one who paid the money, remember. And it's not as if—' Cornelius broke off. 'Why are you gazing out of the window like that?'

'Hmm? Oh, I was just wondering . . . do you suppose Leonora will be able to follow us across water?'

'Shadlog's beard, what are you blathering about?'

'Leonora. I was just wondering if I would ever see her again.'

Cornelius stared at him for a moment. 'You are a hopeless case, do you know that? Don't you realize that woman wants nothing more than to see us both die a horrible death?'

'I suppose . . . and yet, I can't stop myself from worrying about her.'

'That's rich. The only worries she has about you are that you might go on living a bit longer. For my part, I hope we never lay eyes on her again, but something tells me that we won't be that lucky. And you'd better watch out, my lad. As if things aren't complicated enough, I'd say you have a new admirer.'

'Really? Who would that be?'

'Jenna Swift, of course! She has her beady eyes on you.'

'Me?' Sebastian stared at him. 'Oh, I don't think so.'

'Believe it! I know when a woman is making moon eyes at a fellow, and she was certainly doing that this evening.'

Sebastian frowned. 'Hmm, well, if that's really true, she needs to understand that there's only one woman in the world for me.'

'Ah yes, of course. Queen Kerin. Still carrying a torch for her, eh?'

Sebastian looked at him blankly. 'Who?' he said.

Cornelius slammed a hand down on the tabletop with a force that caused the piles of coins to go flying in all directions. 'I don't believe it!' he cried. 'You are the absolute end!'

'What have I done now?' cried Sebastian.

'You've only gone and forgotten the name of the woman who you claimed you'd love till the end of time!'

'Did I say that?'

'Yes, you did. And then you wandered about saying that your heart was broken and that there would never be another woman who could measure up to your beloved Queen Kerin . . .'

'Well, yes, but—'

'And then, practically the next day, you set eyes upon that hideous scheming witch, Leonora—'

'I've warned you, don't call her that!'

'And suddenly you're completely besotted with
her
, a woman who would happily slice your head from your shoulders if she could only get within striking distance. A fine sweetheart she makes!'

'I appreciate she's not perfect, but—'

'And finally, to cap it all, you've got what must be the only female captain in Ramalat going all weak at the knees over you. I suppose it's only a matter of time before you fall for
her
charms!'

'That's nonsense. Me and Jenna Swift? I can't think of a more unlikely partnership. I mean, she wears men's clothes, for goodness' sake! All right, she's quite good looking, I suppose . . .'

Cornelius shook his head and buried his face in his hands. 'We are most definitely in trouble,' he concluded. 'If you've noticed that much about her, the rest is sure to follow.'

'No, I assure you, the only woman who occupies my mind is Leonora.'

Cornelius groaned. 'Perfect,' he said. 'The one who wants you dead is the one you'd give your heart to. Sebastian, you are the absolute limit!'

'Oh, now, don't be like that.' Sebastian left his place at the window and came to sit at the table opposite his friend. 'Come on, Cornelius, you must have been through similar times yourself.'

'You are joking. When it comes to matters of the heart, nobody in the world has had similar times to you. You're a . . . serial romancer!'

'I'll take that as a compliment. But . . . there must have been young ladies in Golmira when you were a young man.
Little
ladies. You're not telling me you didn't fall for any of them?'

Cornelius sat up straight in his seat and smiled wistfully. 'There were plenty of young ladies in Golmira. It's famed for the beauty of its women. But there was only one who I ever really cared about.'

'Ah-ha!' Sebastian clapped his hands triumphantly. 'And what happened to her?'

Cornelius's smile faded. 'She married somebody else. A rich merchant, if you must know. So I enlisted in the army and since then I haven't so much as looked at another woman. And do you know what, Sebastian? I've been happy. Romance is an unnecessary complication. You're better off without it.'

Sebastian thought about that for a moment. 'Perhaps you're right,' he said. 'But what can I do? I'm under an enchantment. And until I find a way to shrug it off, I must accept what my heart tells me is true.'

Cornelius gave a loud tut of annoyance and went back to counting his coins. 'You're a hopeless case,' he said.

'Maybe,' admitted Sebastian. He got up and walked back to the window, where he stood gazing out over the great restless sweep of the ocean, shimmering like a carpet of precious jewels in the moonlight. Amidst the other points of light, two glittering jewels seemed to stand out from the rest, burning with a powerful tawny glow.

Sebastian and Cornelius were at the quayside as the first light of morning began to colour the eastern horizon. They were leading a very sorry-looking Max, who had quite clearly endured a restless night.

'My poor head!' he groaned. 'Which one of you insisted on me drinking that second bucket of ale?'

'Neither of us,' said Sebastian, not without a certain sense of satisfaction. 'That was all your idea.'

'I'm nauseous, I tell you! I've spent the entire night groaning in my stall. And that ostler wasn't very sympathetic either. Kept telling me to belt up!'

Cornelius gave Max a suspicious look. 'I hope you didn't tell him anything you shouldn't have,' he growled.

'Of course not! I was too sick to form actual words. Fine friends you two turned out to be, allowing me to get into such a state!'

'You're an adult,' Sebastian reminded him. 'It's up to you to exercise control. You've never drunk ale before and do you take it easy? Oh no. You drink two bucketfuls!' He glanced at Cornelius. 'I suppose we should have warned him that Ramalatian ale is the most powerful gut-rot known to man.'

'Oh, stop fussing!' said Cornelius. 'So he's got a bit of a headache. I'm sure he'll survive. Ah, that must be the
Sea
Witch
!'

Sure enough, the ship was moored at the jetty and her crew were busy preparing her for sea, swarming up rope ladders and edging out along yardarms to unfurl the great canvas sails. Sebastian and Cornelius were able to study the ship in detail, noting that she gave the impression of a once-proud vessel that had seen better days. Here and there she had been roughly repaired, and Sebastian noticed that the carved figurehead of a strange, witchlike woman that hung from the prow had suffered an accident at some point: her nose had been sliced off and one cheek flattened. But he would have been the first to admit that he knew nothing about ships, and Cornelius, when pressed, had to confess that he was no great expert either.

'The only ships I've been on were troop-carriers,' he said. 'Great slow hulks with massive holds for carrying hundreds of men. This one looks a sleeker, faster kind of beast in my estimation.'

'Oh, she's fast, all right,' said a gruff voice, and they turned to see Lemuel shuffling down the gangplank. 'Don't be fooled by the few bumps and scratches we've suffered. There's not a faster ship in Ramalat.'

Cornelius smiled. 'I'm glad to hear it,' he said.

'So, have you bonny lads been to sea before?' asked Lem slyly.

'I've done some sailing,' said Cornelius. 'But as for my friends here . . .'

Lemuel looked at Sebastian. 'Oh, so you've yet to get your sea legs?'

'Sea legs?' echoed Sebastian. 'What exactly are—?'

'You'll discover soon enough,' Lem assured him. 'When you get out on that deck and it starts going up and down, up and down, up and down—'