He staggers. Good. I grab his arm, yanking him out of the room. A dozen sailors are standing in the hallway. Every single one is gawking at us.
I glare at them. “Get back to work,now.”
They scurry off, although I see them glancing back and forth between us. I tighten my grip on Conrad’s arm and shove him up the stairs before following him onto the deck.
The afternoon sun has disappeared behind deep gray clouds, and a storm is on the horizon. A frigid wind blows past us as we stare at each other. The water is rough, and the ship rocks back and forth as we stagger on the deck.
“I told you not to touch her.” I shove Conrad’s bare chest, ignoring the pounding in my ears.
He grasps the railing, trying to catch his footing. Pitiful creature.
“I thought... I just...” He swallows, then continues. “Sinceyou know whatwill happen tomorrow, it would be okay...”
Adrenaline rushes through my body, and I lunge at him, grabbing his neck and pulling him close to me until our noses nearly touch. He’s shorter than I am by a few inches, so I stare down at him with narrowed eyes.
“I told you not to touch her,” I repeat through clenched teeth. “What about that was so hard to understand?”
“Erik, man, we’ve known each other for twenty years.” Conrad laughs, trying to peel my hand off him. “She wanted it. You should have seen the way she was looking at me. All smiles.”
“That scratch on your neck says otherwise.” I want to hurt him. The desire to inflict pain is coursing through my body.
He shakes his head, smirking. “You just don’t get it.”
“I get it just fine,” I say, shoving him again. He stumbles, and I crack my neck. “I told you, asshole. She is off-limits.”
Conrad laughs, and the sound grates against my every nerve. “You’ve got to lighten up, man. That’s why no one likes you. You’ve got a stick up your ass about the rules.”
I twitch when I hear him use Helena’s phrase for me. “Those rules,” I whisper, my voice dangerously calm, “are why I’m in charge here, not you. And you will pay the price for breaking them.”
Raising my voice back to normal, I circle him, raising my fists. Not for the first time, I’m grateful that my prosthetic functions exactly like my other hand. This isn’t the first fight I’ve ever gotten in, and let’s face it, it won’t be the last.
Conrad stares at me, his eyes wide. “Shit, man, are you going to do this over a female withgrayskin? She’s not even a human, and you don’t—”
My control snaps again, and my nostrils flare as I lunge forward. My left fist connects with Conrad’s nose, cutting off whatever he was going to say. The impact reverberates through my prosthetic. I shake out my fist as a loud crunching sound is followed by a heavy stream of blood that gushes down the front of Conrad’s shirt.
“Theriously?” Conrad yells. “You broke my noth.”
“You broke my rules,” I reply curtly.
Conrad wipes his hand under his nose, bringing his arm away, covered in blood. “Athhole.” he says. My first mate barrels towards me, swinging out a fist.
I duck. My arm swings out, and I pummel him in the side as he lurches forward. He doubles over, groaning, but he continues charging at me. Conrad’s fist catches me on my cheek, and I yell. That’s going to be a nasty black eye tomorrow.
“Son of a bitch,” I curse. “You’re going to regret that.”
A crowd of men has gathered in the distance, watching to see if they will get a new leader. No such luck. Iwillwin this fight. No one gets away with the disrespect Conrad is showing me right now.
No one.
The ship's rocking causes both of us to stumble for a moment before I lift my right leg and kick Conrad in the stomach. The force of impact pushes him back as I stagger to my feet. He curses, turning around and clenching his fists.
“The only thing I regret ith not doing thith yearth ago.” Conrad spits out a wad of blood and saliva. It lands in a glob on the deck. “Thith ith an overreaction. You’re too uptight, Erik.”
“I amnotuptight. It’s a basic rule of humanity toonlyhave sex with people who are enthusiastically asking for it, you disgusting bastard,” I yell, running towards Conrad. Before he can move out of the way, I’ve pinned his body against the railing. My arm is braced under his neck, and the other against his chest. He is struggling under me, but I’m stronger. “I am the captain here,” I bite out. “Not you.”
Conrad pushes against me, fighting against my grip.
A large wave comes over the side of the ship. Water drenches us both, leaving us dripping in its wake. My heart is pounding. My fists tighten. My whole body is tight.