Erick grabbed me by the shoulders and dragged me off the thief, then put a foot on his chest to keep him from coming after me. When Fendon signaled that he had calmed down, Erick told him to sit up. He kept his seat, but his glare was fierce and his fists remained tightly balled.
“We have rules here!” Erick said. “We’re thieves, not murderers.”
“Isn’t that what he did in the noble’s house last night, to that man?” Fendon pointed a stubby finger at me.
“If that man had escaped, he’d have called others to capture us,” Erick said. “Sage saved all of us — twice — and he netted a fine profit besides. But what you did, that is inexcusable.”
“It won’t happen again.” Fendon’s pouting tone suggested he couldn’t care less if it happened again. Then he addressed me. “You’re one of us now?”
“A pea-brained maggot like you?” I said. “No, never. Erick and I are leaving today.”
Fendon’s lip curled. “I’ll be waiting here when you get back. We have a score to settle.”
“Get used to waiting. I’m not coming back.” With that, I marched out of the tent.
I kept to myself while we completed our preparations to leave, although Erick made several attempts to ask about my part in the raid. I told him as little as possible, and nothing about Nila. It surprised me to find that he was nearly as bothered about the event as I had been.
“The pirates have a code about women and children,” he said. “They don’t touch them, not if they’re innocents. It should be the thieves’ code too.”
“Maybe the code will protect me,” I said. “Do I still count as a child?”
Erick tilted his head. “You don’t count as an innocent.”
Fink brought me an extra serving of breakfast soon after. “Not because I’m a servant,” he pointed out when he handed me the bowl. “But just because we’re friends, right?”
“Did you spit in it?”
“No.”
“Then we’re friends.”
When it was time to leave soon after, Fink made a last-minute appeal to come with us. He didn’t bring out the tears, so I suspected he’d already played that card.
“You’ll be in the way,” Erick said.
“I can help,” Fink protested, but Erick shook his head.
“Erick doesn’t have time to look after you,” I said. “He’s going to have enough trouble just watching me the whole time, making sure I don’t run off.”
Erick sighed, then he noticed my grin. “All right, you can come,” he finally said to Fink. “But you’re too young to become a pirate, so you’ll only be there as my boy. And you will keep an eye on Sage any time I’m not around.” Then he walked up to me as he untied his horse. “Don’t think you’ve tricked me into taking him,” he muttered. “I chose to bring him. He’s useful to have around.”
I chuckled lightly and mounted Mystic. “Here you go,” Erick said, handing me a sword. “You earned this.”
It was cheaply made and not weighted properly. Even if I were only a thief, I still wouldn’t have accepted it. I gave it back to him. “This isn’t mine.”
“But it’s good enough for you.”
I snorted. “Hardly.”
He tried again. “Take this sword.”
“I want the one I came here with.”
“Why that one?”
“The stones in the handle match my eyes.”
“Take this one or none at all.” When it was clear I wouldn’t accept the sword, Erick frowned at me, then kicked his horse forward, the rejected sword in his white-knuckled grip.