Tags:
Paranormal,
YA),
Young Adult Fiction,
Young Adult,
teen,
teen fiction,
ya fiction,
ya novel,
young adult novel,
Paranormal Fiction,
teen novel,
teen lit,
abyss surrounds us,
emily skrutsky,
emily skruskie
now the balance of the NeoPacific is in my hands, and the last thing I can do is die. Somehow, impossibly, these pirates have gotten hold of a Reckoner pup.
And even if it means surviving when I shouldnât, I have to find out how.
Itâs the last smidgen of value my life has. I may have failed as a trainer, but the universe has a twisted way of providing second chances. Even if the last Reckoner I train is a pirate-born perversion, I can do some good by figuring out the piratesâ source and getting the information back to shore.
So I nod, keeping my eyes fixed on the wooden floorboards, on the tassels of a carpet that once lay on the floor of a lounge in the Nereid .
Santa Elena stands again, her heels squeaking as she pivots to face her protégées, and I glance up to see what sheâs about to do. âSwift, you did an excellent job identifying her and bringing her aboard.â
âThanks, boss,â she says, returning her captainâs sharp-toothed grin.
âSince you seem so dedicated to making sure this endeavor goes just as planned, Iâm putting Cassandra in your charge.â
The word ânoâ leaves both our mouths simultaneouslyâmine whispered, hers groaned. For a second, our eyes meet. We glare. I canât be stuck with this girl. Give me any other person on this ship, give me Santa Elena for godâs sake. Anyone but her.
Santa Elena grins wider. âI donât want you to misunderstand this, Swift. This is a big opportunity. You could really impress me here. But I donât want to be unfair to the rest of you, so naturally thereâs a bit of risk involved.â
Swift blinks.
âIf Cassandra here fails me, youâll be punished equally. Make sure she succeeds.â
And for the first time since they dragged me onboard this boat, I smile. Swift canât do shit to me with Santa Elena watching, with her fate entwined with mine. Itâs like the captainâs just given me my own personal guard dog.
But before I can let the feeling get to my head, I spot the looks curdling across the other four protégéesâ faces. The resentment. The ambition. Whatever this opportunity means for Swift, itâs setting them back in some way.
And suddenly I feel as if Iâm in the crosshairs of all four of them. From the looks of it, Swift can fend for herself. But I need a monster to stand between me and these people, and all Iâve got right now is a half-baked pup and a pirate girl whoâs looking at me like Iâm a cloud of Reckoner shit.
Thereâs far too much at stake for me to let that shake me. So Iâll weather it.
I straighten my spine and meet the captainâs gaze as she stalks back to her throne. Santa Elena flops into her seat, kicking her heels off and picking at something stuck between her teeth. âThatâll be all,â she says with a dismissive wave. âSwift, make sure your new pet gets fed.â
The pirates filter out of the room in groups, some chatting, others slapping each other on the back. The lackeys all move in a knot, save for Swift, who ducks to the captainâs side and mutters something quick in her ear. Santa Elena shoots back, her voice low. I wait until the other four lackeys make their exits and then approach the throne, my arms folded over my chest.
Swift steps down and grabs me by my elbow before I can get a word out. She tugs me out through the wooden doors and I feel like I should be looking for steam rising from her half-shaved head.
âIâm supposed to give you a tour of the ship,â she says. âCaptain says to treat you like new blood.â
âIââ
âCaptainâs wrong,â she hisses, her eyes flicking down the corridor to make sure no one heard her. âYou donât belong here.â
âThereâs something we can agree on,â I reply, trying to wrest my arm free. It doesnât work.
Swift narrows her eyes.