“Captain Black?” Elaina turned to see a man in a faded Five Kingdoms navy uniform flanked by two bruisers with arms as thick as her legs. “You are Captain Black, yes?”
“One of ’em,” Elaina said cautiously. “Reckon that uniform ain’t earnin’ you any friends, hmm?”
The man nodded. “Indeed not. Still, we must remember where we come from. Merridan Barklow, captain of Hearth Fire.” Barklow extended his hand. Elaina ignored it.
“Good for you,” she said, and made to walk past him.
“If you don’t mind,” the captain said, moving to block Elaina’s flight. “I would like a private meeting with your father.”
Elaina glanced at the two bruisers behind Barklow; they were unarmed, but looked like they could deal out some punishment even without a weapon. Barklow, on the other hand, carried a sabre attached to his belt and, judging by his uniform, had some experience poking folk with it.
“Best go see him then. He’ll likely be up in the brothel.” Elaina sidestepped the captain and started walking again.
“Now listen here.” Barklow grabbed hold of her arm.
Elaina was in no mood for manhandling, and especially not from some ex-navy captain who clearly thought her just another waif. She turned her arm in a quick arc, removing Barklow’s hand, and punched him as hard as she could in the nose. The captain stumbled away, collapsing onto the ground and clutching at his bleeding face. His two bruisers started forwards. Elaina drew her sword.
“Back down, lads,” she hissed.
“Stop. Stop,” Barklow sputtered from behind his bloody hands. He flailed about a moment longer before one of the bruisers helped him up.
“Ya bleeding, mate,” Elaina said with a grin, still holding her sword.
“I meant no…” Barklow started, but was interrupted by a cough that brought up flecks of red. “I would like a private meeting with your father. I hoped you could arrange it. I have news for his ears only.”
Elaina considered the request for a moment. Her father wouldn’t be pleased if she turned the captain away only for his information to be valuable, but if it was shit then Elaina might well foot the blame. She put her sword away.
“How about you tell it ta me, and I relay it to Tanner, hmm?”
Merridan Barklow shook his bloody head.
Elaina felt like skewering the man. “Fine,” she hissed. “Come up to the brothel with me and I’ll have a word. Might want to leave your dogs behind though.”
Barklow didn’t look like he’d be willing, or able, to make the climb up to the brothel, so Elaina consented to using the lift even though she hated the idea of putting her life in the hands of the donkey winding the gears. In her experience donkeys ranged from placid in temperament to downright murderous, and it was nothing but luck as to which you got.
She stepped off the lift with Barklow just a pace behind, and once they were both inside, she told the captain to wait while she approached her father. Tanner was in his usual spot, presiding over his little court. Blu was there too, and Elaina wished the bastard would just pull up his anchor and actually play the pirate for once.
“Da,” Elaina said, stopping in front of her father’s gathering and giving each member a wary glare. Tanner was hosting a large number today, and Elaina counted fifteen men including his raping bastard of a first mate, Mace.
Tanner Black looked up at Elaina and smiled. He was a dangerous man when angry and even more dangerous when happy. “Come to weather the coming storm, daughter?”
Elaina needed to get her father alone; she had to talk to him about Keelin and Drake, and she didn’t want to do it with Blu and the rest of the court around. Luckily for her, Captain Barklow had provided a useful opportunity.
“Captain of Hearth Fire,” Elaina said, thumbing in Barklow’s direction. “Reckons he’s got some useful words to be said to you and you only.”
Tanner Black leaned sideways to look past his daughter and stared towards the bleeding captain.
“Tell him to fuck off,” Blu said with a sneer.
“Quiet, boy,” Tanner snapped. “Never underestimate the usefulness of a pandering, rat-infested fop like Merridan Barklow.”
“You know him?” Elaina said.
Tanner turned his dark gaze on Elaina, and she felt like shrinking from those eyes. “No. Perhaps we should meet.”
Tanner drained his mug and stood. Blu got up with him, just as tall and just as broad but without the imposing air. Tanner Black didn’t stop his son from following, so Elaina joined her brother, giving him a savage, three-fingered poke in his ribs. Blu swung an elbow in retaliation, but Elaina easily ducked it and hurried to catch up with their father, grinning over her little victory.
Merridan Barklow seemed to grow smaller as Tanner and his two children approached, and it would have been hard not to notice the intense fear on the man’s face.
Tanner walked past the man into an unoccupied alcove, and Elaina followed him. Blu stopped by Captain Barklow and shoved him along to join them. Blu pushed Barklow down onto the bench that lined the alcove’s walls and moved to join Elaina and their father, who were still not sitting. The poor captain looked ready to shit himself, and Elaina didn’t blame him. It was frightening enough to be faced down by Tanner Black, but Merridan was also staring into the snarling face of Blu, who had inherited his father’s imposing size, and Elaina, who had inherited her father’s dark stare. She wagered that was more than enough to loosen most men’s bowels.
For a long while the tension held, with Captain Barklow looking anywhere but at the three Captain Blacks facing him. Elaina fought to control a deep laugh that threatened to erupt, and managed to keep her face straight. Blu wasn’t so composed, and a snigger escaped his lips, breaking the tension. Tanner turned a seething glare on his son, and behind his back Elaina pulled a stupid face at her brother.
“So,” Tanner growled, putting both hands on the small table between him and Barklow and leaning forwards. “Captain Barklow. My daughter tells me ya got something to say?”
“Well…” Barklow coughed. “I would like to start by offering my allegiance to you, Tanner.”
“Cap’n Black,” Blu said quickly.
“Um…” Barklow coughed again. “Of course. Captain Black.”
Tanner smiled, all teeth and flashing eyes, and Elaina watched him closely. “You’d give me command of that little ship o’ yours, would ya?”
Barklow paled and his eyes bulged. “I mean to say I’ll sail in your fleet,” he corrected himself. “With Hearth Fire under my command, of course.”
“Aye?”
“Yes,” Barklow asserted.
“Good. I’ll take thirty percent of your takes from now on then, mate.”
“Thirty percent?” Barklow winced, his fingernails digging into the table.
“Of course. Standard cut for a captain in my fleet. In return ya get ta tell folk ya sail under my flag, and ya can call Fango ya home and safe harbour.” Tanner Black was no fool; he was shrewder than most folk gave him credit for, and he knew exactly why Merridan Barklow was there. And he was more than willing to extort the fool. “Good?”
Barklow nodded, it was obvious he had no choice. With Sarth and the Five Kingdoms burning pirate towns all over, he needed to pick a side and sign his allegiance. Tanner and Fango would seem a safer bet than Drake and New Sev’relain.
“Good,” Barklow said, tying himself to Tanner Black – and Tanner was not a man who let ties go easily.
“So what is it ya have to tell me?” Tanner sat down opposite Captain Barklow, and both Elaina and Blu quickly followed suit.
“There’s a ship built by the Five Kingdoms, Storm Herald, and it’s here in the isles.”
Elaina couldn’t tell whether Barklow was terrified because of the company or the thought of the ship.