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
shrink back a little. Looking at her is like looking into hell itself.
âWelcome aboard the Minnow , Cassandra,â she says. She must have searched the Nereid âs file system, must have pulled data to find out exactly who sheâs taken prisoner. âIâm Santa Elena. You can call me that, or Captain. Swift here is a big fan of âboss,â but I donât think weâre quite on those terms yet.â
Everyone in this room could kill me, and most of them look like they want to. Swift and Varma have joined their captain on the dais. They stand next to three others at Santa Elenaâs right, and I start to understand the hierarchy on this ship a little more. The pirates that crowd the room are the regulars, the muscle. On Santa Elenaâs left sits a child. He canât possibly be more than ten years old, and Iâm stumped about his role until she ruffles his hair, a soft smile breaking over her cruel features. He has to be her sonâby blood, it looks like, given the golden brown skin and wide nose they share.
But the five to the captainâs right are different. Theyâre all kind of young-looking compared to most of the crew, and unlike some of the crowd, their eyes never leave Santa Elena. Something sets them apartâsome favor of the captain has elevated them to this position.
It seems like theyâre her protégées. Itâd explain why Swift is such a showoff.
âYouâre quiet,â Santa Elena purrs. She hauls herself upright and stands, the dress falling elegantly around her ankles as she steps from the dais and approaches me. âIâd imagine youâre bursting with questions. Canât hurt to ask them.â
Iâm not going to give her the satisfaction of my curiosity. I wonder why Iâm here, why the Reckoner trainer was the only one worth kidnapping on a ship that carried so many wealthy tourists, but the first words that leave my mouth are âWhat happened to the Nereid ?â
âDepends. If someone responded to the distress call, thereâs a very large chance that the passengers will be rescued before the ship sinks. If not ⦠â She doesnât need to finish the sentence. The devilish smile that spreads across her face tells me everything I need to know. âAnd we killed the crew that resisted, of course. We have to be efficient about these things.â
âWhat did you take?â
I catch the slight twitch of her upper lip, see her resist the urge to sneer at me. âYou. Cash, and a few finer goods. Food, to replenish our stock. No electronicsâwe donât want anything that could be sending out a signal. The dress is new. Do you like it?â
I draw my lips tight. My wetsuit is drying out and starting to itch, and I have to fight to keep myself standing as still as possible.
âWhen I ask a question, Iâd like you to answer, Cassandra.â She lashes out and grabs the collar of my wetsuit, dragging me toward her until Iâm staring up into her deep brown eyes.
I canât blink. Not now. âItâs beautiful,â I tell her flatly, and it isnât a lie.
Her fingers go slack, and as she draws back, I notice a tattoo of a small fish over her heart. Santa Elena doesnât miss the way my eyes travel. This time she really does smirk. âLike it? Every loyal member of my crew has the shipâs namesake inked on their body somewhere important. See, for me this ship is my life, my beating heart. So my Minnow is right here.â She folds a hand over her breast. Her smile turns goading. âMaybe youâll earn yours someday.â
I donât have the words nor the courage to tell her thatâs never going to happen. I grit my teeth and stand a little straighter, fighting to keep down the question thatâs burning inside me. She wants me to say it, wants me to cave to her will, and I canât let her have her way. Iâve got to show her that no