She struggles to wrench her arm out of my grip, but I don’t let her go. I’m too incensed to even look at her right now.
She hurries behind me, her free hand smacking me repeatedly on the back as I lead her below deck. On another day, I’d admire the way she never gives up. She is fierce. But not today.
We don’t stop moving until we reach my office.
“Sit down.” I shove her past the threshold. Crossing my arms in front of my chest, I wait for her to do as I say.
And wait.
A minute passes, then two, as she purses her lips and shakes her head. Her pink eyes flash as she silently hisses, baring her teeth at me.
Blood rushes to my face as I clench my fists. I turn, smashing a fist into the wall. It’s a poor conduit for the brunt of my anger, but it will have to do. I yell, “Gods, Helena! You just don’t get it, do you?”
She stares at me, her eyes wide as she tilts her head and grabs a notepad. Ripping off a piece of paper, she scribbles a note and shoves it in my general direction.
Get what?
Crumpling the note and throwing it on the ground, I run my hands through my hair as I turn around.
I hiss, “Thorn.”
She stares at me blankly.
“The Vampire. The one who was just here,” I say, my voice dangerously quiet. “He would have killed you. Probably me, too. You don’t play games with the League. They aredangerous. Even for people like me. Why couldn’t you just have stayed put like you were told?”
She shrugs. Shrugs!
Another note.
I didn’t want to.
“You know what? I don’t care what you want anymore,” I say. Grabbing her arm, I pull her out of my office. “You refuse to be anything other than a problem, Princess. It’s time you finally learn your place on my ship.”
I don’t even register the walk to her room. In the back of my mind, I know she’s fighting me every step of the way, but I don’t care. She keeps putting herself in reckless danger, and I’m tired of having to watch out for her every moment of every day.
I didn’t want this female in my life. I didn’t ask for any of this.
Before I know what I’m doing, the door to her room is open. Shoving her inside, I slam the door behind her. Leaning against the door with all my weight, I pull the knob as she pounds against it. Her knocking is frantic, like drums banging against the door, and she is clearly putting her entire weight into fighting against the door.
“I can do this all day, Princess. You should’ve listened to me. I know you’re mute, but I thought you had some brains in that pretty little head of yours.”
A couple of sailors pass us by. Their faces turn ashen when they get a look at my face. The moment their eyes meet mine, they hurry down the hall. Their whispers reach my ears as they pass, walking around me like I might hurt them.
“... angry...”
“Give the captain his space...”
Space won’t fix me, but they don’t know that. It’s this female that’s the problem. Well, she will just have to stay in her room until she learns her lesson.
A few minutes into my vigil, a white piece of paper slips under the door. It pokes me in the leg, and I bend over to pick it up.
Please let me out.
“No.”
Settling in for a long day, I slide down the door and lean against the wall. The sound of her frustration is like fuel to my fire.
Finally, this female will learn that everyone on this ship listens to me for a good reason—so they can be safe. Minutes pass, and the door rattles behind me as Helena continues her relentless attack on the piece of wood keeping her prisoner. For a woman who can’t speak, she certainly is loud.