Her Pirate Master (7 page)

Seleucus chuckled. “I’ll make a sea woman of you yet.” He bent and pressed his mouth to hers before striding off to join his men. After he’d gone, Imi brought her fingers to her lips. She could still feel the pressure of his kiss: her nipples had puckered at the contact, her arousal immediate and undeniable. She didn’t know how she was going to do it, but she would have to tell him she couldn’t live up to her end of their bargain, not if it offended the goddess. The success of her mission was more important than anything else, but what would she do if he dumped her at Delos? Or worse, decided to sell her as a slave after all?

Worry clutched at her heart. She hoped a walk would clear her mind, help her to come up with some kind of solution to her problems. She watched the pirates at work for a little while then faced inland, trying to decide which way she should go. On the left, the vegetation was thick, almost impenetrable, but she could see a hill rising in the near distance and would have liked to climb the summit. Directly in front of her, the land opened up to reveal a grove of trees. On her right, the stony shore disappeared around a sharp corner. Imi decided to follow the coast. If she was up to it tomorrow, she would head for the hill.

She removed her sandals and waded into the shallows, finding that the stones, worn smooth by the water, soothed her bare feet. The air smelled clean and pure. She gulped in huge lungfuls as she walked. Her silk tunic was rough and stiff with seawater. Imi didn’t mind. She was grateful simply to be alive. It was strange to think the tempest had wanted to kill her, but she was sure of it. Sure, too, that the woman creature had meant her no good.

“You are right,” a voice said.

Startled, Imi looked up and saw an old, gray–haired woman seated on a boulder farther up on the shore.

“I’m sorry,” Imi said, “I didn’t see you. What did you say?”

“You may not have seen me, but I’m sure you heard me, child.” The woman’s voice had some of the quaver of age but was low and melodious.

Imi wondered if she was god–touched, one of those people whose heads were turned by a malicious deity. It was better to give such people a wide berth.

“May the blessing of the Great Mother be upon you,” Imi said courteously, starting to move away.

“You must not allow your man to delay your journey,” the woman said, her eyes boring into Imi’s. “You must be on your way as soon as you can.”

Imi stopped, torn between ignoring her and wanting to know more.

“Why do you say this?” she asked, curiosity winning out over her suspicion.

“You do not want to believe it, but it is true that that was no ordinary storm you faced this morning,” the woman said. “The Nereids, creatures of the Roman gods, raised the squall against you. They desire your destruction.”

“Nereids?”

“You saw one of them. The half–woman, half–fish creature in the waves.”

It was only then that the full import of the woman’s words sank in.

“My destruction? But why?”

“If you succeed in your mission, if all goes as you wish it and your mistress is restored to the throne she claims, then Rome will be cast out of Egypt. Emboldened by this, the princes of the East will rise and overturn Rome’s dominion over their lands. Rome’s power in the world will wither. The Roman gods fight to retain Rome’s dominance. Do you understand?”

Imi nodded, seeing it all at once. “If Rome falls, its gods fall also.” So, it had nothing to do with her and Seleucus, with what she’d done with him, to him. She was still frightened, but a weight lifted.

The woman nodded, approvingly. “Yes, child. And these are not the divinities to go down without a fight.”

“But we are safe. They did not succeed,” Imi pointed out.

“Isis sent her own guardian to protect you.”

“The crocodile.”

Again, the old woman nodded. “The Nereids lost two of their number and are weakened. The farther they are from Rome, the less their power, but if you remain here much longer, they will recover their strength and come against you once more. You must seek Delos without wasting time.”

“Will I be safe there? At Delos?”

“The Great Mother’s hold is strong there, stronger still at Ephesus, but you must always be on your guard. Now, take heed of my words, and be on your way.” The woman rose to her feet almost as if pushed up on a gust of wind.

“What about here?” Imi looked around the harbor fearfully. “Can they reach us here?”

“The Nereids are creatures of the deep sea. The Great Mother rules over harbors and inlets, you know this. When the Earth was young, ten Nereids stranded themselves near shore during low tide. They died because their bodies were too heavy and ungainly for them to pull themselves to sea. Now they avoid coming close to land. I must depart.”

“Wait. The man, the pirate captain, Seleucus, I saw him in the smoke at the temple.” The old woman quirked an eyebrow at her. “Is he . . . I mean . . . can I trust him?”

“The answer to that lies within your own heart. But, remember, even the truth can be revealed in smoke.” The corners of the old woman’s lips lifted in a brief smile before she shimmered like a flickering candle–flame and disappeared.

Oh. Great answer. Just great. Imi stuck her tongue out at the boulder where the woman had sat. She started guiltily when she heard a cackle of laughter.

“Tell me who you are,” she called into the air. “How do I know you’re not on Rome’s side, yourself?”

There was no response. Imi thought of asking again, of demanding an answer, but discarded the idea. Had the old woman been no more than Isis’s messenger? Or had she been the goddess herself in disguise? The ways of the gods were mysterious, even the priests were sometimes puzzled by them. Yet much of what the crone said made sense. The gods of Rome fought the ancient gods of Egypt for control. The storm had given her a glimpse into the war between the spiritual powers and emphasized the importance of her mission. She hurried back to where she’d left the pirates and called Seleucus aside.

“We must leave at once,” she told him, glancing over his shoulder at the men who were still off–loading the galley. “Tell them to stop.”

“What are you talking about? I told you we need to fix her up.”

“Yes, I know but . . . “ Should she tell him what the old woman had said? Would he think she was crazy? “I . . . we’ve got to get to Delos as soon as we can. We can’t stay here.”

“Why not? I don’t understand.” He wiped his cheek with the back of his hand and scowled. Sweat beaded his forehead. He’d stripped off his tunic and wore only linen trousers like those of the Carthaginians. Imi did her best to ignore his bare chest or how his muscled skin gleamed in the sun.

“It is dangerous to stay.” Would the Nereids be able to send the storm against them on land, or would they have to wait until the galley put out to sea?

“Why?”

She glared at him. All these questions. Why couldn’t he just take her word for it and do as she asked?

“You do not believe in the gods,” she snapped. “It would be useless to explain.”

“Try anyway.” He grabbed her arm and pulled her further away from the others. “Say what you’ve got to say.”

“Are you going to believe me?” He was so close she could smell him, smell that peculiar scent of oils, sea, and perspiration that was his alone.

“I won’t know that until you tell me what’s going on. I can only promise to hear you out.”

Imi nodded. That was fair enough.

“When I came out from the cabin and saw the storm, I immediately sensed there was something wrong with it, that it was evil.” Seleucus’s eyes widened. “I know,” she said. “I know you’re not a believer, but there are gods and powers out there and they do not always mean us well, whatever we think of them. After you told me to take the prisoners inside, I went over to them. They had seen something in the sea that scared them, and when I looked I saw it, too.” His face was a mask of disbelief. “It was a creature called a Nereid—not a woman, nor a fish, but half of each. It wanted me dead and had called up the storm to sink the ship and drown us all.” She left out how the Nereid had called her name and the strange compulsion she’d felt to go to the creature.

“Why, Imi? Even if I grant that there is such a thing and that you saw it, why would it wish you harm?”

Imi took a deep breath and his scent assailed her anew, almost staggering her with the need to reach out and touch him. She’d already told him so much, what would be the harm in telling him everything?

“The gods of Rome love not the gods of foreign countries,” she said, curling her fingers into her hands. “Neither do they love their devotees.” It was not the whole truth, but it was as much as she dared give him.

“You’re saying this thing, this Nereid, wants you dead just because you’re a priestess of Isis?”

“Yes.”

“Well, it failed, didn’t it? You’re still here, so why should we worry?”

“If we wait here overlong, they’ll return and we may not survive another onslaught.” Her voice shook. “Let’s go. Let’s leave before they recover and come back.”

His expression softened. “You really believe all this, don’t you?”

“It’s true; I swear to you.” She had to make him understand. “I’m not lying. The Nereids are real.”

“You said these creatures need time to recover. Did raising the storm weaken them?”

“Yes,” she said, and begged forgiveness of the Goddess for the lie. If she told him a crocodile had fought to save them, he’d surely think she’d lost complete hold of her senses. She knew she wasn’t thinking logically, but she didn’t care.

“Well, we can’t leave now. The men have had no rest, and I cannot ask them to load everything back on again without risking their just wrath.”

“Tomorrow, then. We can leave tomorrow.”

“No.”

Imi could have wept.

“The day after. That’s when we’ll go—the men will have had some rest, we’ll make the small repairs, mend the sails. It won’t be as good as a proper careening, but it will be better than nothing. Will that do?”

“It will have to since you refuse to go now.” She’d meant to sound gracious, but it came out surly. Seleucus grinned.

“Strange these Nereids waited until you left Rome to attack you instead of trying to get you while you were there or when you were on your way in.” He raised his eyebrows at her, inviting a response.

Imi shrugged. He was clever. Very clever. She must never forget that.

“There’s no accounting for the will of spirit creatures,” she said, demurely.

“Nor of humans,” he agreed. She caught the twinkle in his eyes before he strode away. Imi took a deep breath, indulging herself with this most ephemeral of pleasures before the pirate’s scent was completely dispersed by the wind.

Later, after they’d eaten a supper of fresh baked fish, he took some rough linens from a chest that had been in his cabin and made a sleeping area for them apart from the others not far from where she’d seen the old woman.

“Are you thinking what I’m thinking?” he asked, his hand linked in hers.

“What are you thinking?”

“That I’d like few things better than a sea bath right now.”

“No more than a few things?” she teased.

“Actually only one,” he replied, pulling her into him. “And I think, if you are willing, I can have my honeycake and eat it, too.”

“Oh?” She pretended not to understand him, but his closeness, his words, had already lit the flame of desire in the pit of her stomach.

“Take off your clothes,” he said, his voice thickened with need. “I want you to bathe with me.”

“As you command.” But she wanted it, too. All day she had longed for this, for him.

In seconds they were naked and walking into the water. It was warmer than she’d expected, but her nipples tautened and goose pimples rose along her arms.

“Have you ever gone at night into the sea like this?” he asked. “With a lover?”

“No.”

Her answer pleased him. He still doubted she was a temple whore, but he couldn’t deny her sexual experience. Not after the way she’d pleasured him, so it pleased him to think that swimming naked below the stars was something new to her. If she left him at Ephesus, if he couldn’t hold on to her, at least she would remember this night and think of him.

“Come.” He drew her out of the shallows. “Can you swim?”

“Not well. But I can float.”

“Show me.”

Without a word she pushed herself back, allowing the water to cushion her like the softest of mattresses. Her breasts bobbed gently as her arms floated out from her side. Seleucus’s breath caught in his throat.

“Are you sure you’re not some spirit creature yourself?” he asked, his voice guttural, almost harsh.

She laughed and fiddled the water with her fingers. Floating had come naturally to her as a child, but the water had to be calm or she couldn’t do it.

“Why would I have let you capture me if I am?”

“Like you said, spirit creatures doubtless have their own reasons for doing things. As a mere mortal, I couldn’t hope to understand you.” He lifted his hand and skimmed it over her flat belly. He palmed one breast then the other, noting the feel of her pebbly nipples. She closed her eyes to the stars and gave herself up to pure sensation. When he bent over her, she felt the heat of him. His kiss was as gentle as a moth’s wings, but when she opened her mouth his tongue darted in, tasting, exploring. Nothing existed for her but his kiss. Her whole being was focused on his lips, his tongue, his warm breath. He slid his hand down her stomach, through the coil of wiry hair at her crotch. His fingers found her swollen clitoris, convulsing her body. Her eyes flew open and met his. In the light of the half–moon, she wasn’t sure what she read in them: confusion, tenderness, or simple lust.

He circled her clit lazily, the lightest of pressures, barely there. Ribbons of heat rippled through her body. Something bumped against her side. Panic hit her, and then she realized it was his erection, which stretched and pushed into her.

“Do you like this?” he asked, wanting to hear her say it.

“Yes,” she said, easily, simply. “Very much.” She reached up for him, sparkling droplets falling from her arms like jewels. Gripping him around his neck, she climbed onto him.