She frowned. “Not until I can see some humility in you. From now on, you’ll speak politely to me, like a true friend, or not speak at all.” And as our vigil returned to his post, she whisked herself upstairs.
There was a brief silence before Fink said, “Wow, she really hates you.”
I ignored him and instead used a small stool in the room to prop myself up high enough to see out the window again.
“What do you see?” Fink asked.
“Stop talking and let me think!”
“This is why people don’t like you,” Fink said. “You’re lucky I’m more patient.”
There she was, crossing away from the prison. She paused as if she could feel me watching her, then stopped and turned around. She marched to the bars and held the water bucket by the handle and base, then without warning splashed it all in my face.
“Stop staring at me, filthy thief,” she said.
I fell backward off the stool, with the top half of my body soaked. Both Fink and the vigil launched into fits of laughter.
“Never seen the flower girl so upset,” the vigil said.
I wiped my hair off my face. “Flower girl?”
“She’s only been here a day or two, but so far she has spent every free moment collecting flowers in the woods and replanting them around the camp. Says they beautify the place, but I think just having her here does that. Don’t you?”
Rather than answer, I considered reaching through the bars to choke him. She was nearly half his age.
“Devlin wouldn’t let her plant them at first, but then he decided why not?”
I knew why not. Because she had no business being here.
“That’s the most I’ve heard her say yet,” the vigil continued. “Something about you really offends her.”
“Yep, she definitely hates you,” Fink agreed.
I shook my head to get rid of the dripping water, but a small flash of metal nearby caught my attention. Imogen hadn’t only thrown water at me. She had hidden something in the bucket, a hairpin. I palmed it and let it fall into my boot. It probably wouldn’t be too much longer before the pirates released me, but if they didn’t, Imogen had given me a way through the locked doors.
Maybe she didn’t hate me so much after all.
We remained in the cell for several hours. I was going mad in the confined space and began pacing in circles like a caged animal. What could be taking so long?
At least I had a confirmation that Imogen was on my side. I wasn’t sure how she knew I’d be coming here, but I was furious she had inserted herself into my plans. Her presence here made everything more complicated.
“Calm down,” Fink said through a wide yawn. “Erick will take care of us.”
“I never trust anyone to take care of me,” I muttered.
“Well, you should. That’s why you came to us in the first place, right? You couldn’t do this alone.”
“Sit down,” the vigil said. “You’re making me nervous.”
I was in no mood to take orders from someone like him. “Why don’t you go find Agor and tell him I’m no good to the pirates locked up down here?”
“Tell me that yourself,” Agor said, walking down the stairs.
I stared at him a moment. “It’d only be repetitive now.”
“Erick and I had a long talk about you. He says you’re a thief.”
“I’m a lot of things.”