Venom of the Viper

A Bargain

"Hello Captain." Vesper whispered into the pirate's ear, tightening her grip on the wire. "I have a bargain to make with you."

"Sorry love. I don't make deals blind." the pirate replied but she didn't loosen her grip, she reached her arms up higher to tighten the wire. The captain had the nerve to laugh. "I've been threatened like this before, and it usually doesn't end well for my assailant."

She snorted, leaning her lips back up to whisper into the captain's ear. "I could kill you with a flick of my wrist. Now, if you're done with pointless threats then perhaps, we can talk like civilized people."

"Is that what we are? I thought we were savages." His voice was so even and smooth she didn't realize his coming attack until he had captured her wire, twisting it around so that their positions were flipped.

She groaned. Why didn't I see that coming? He's a pirate! Of course, he cheats.

"You really shouldn't have done that." she warned, her hand going automatically to the sleeve of her tunic.

"And why is that?" the pirate asked, his breath warm against her ear.

She grinned wickedly. "Because that wasn't my only wire."

She unraveled the whip from her wrist, bringing up the hilt to the garrote wire around her neck and pushing back against the force, escaping from the pirate's hold. Before the pirate could even think about making a move, she turned around to curl her whip around his feet, effectively bringing him to his knees.

Vesper brought her knee down on the pirate's chest, pressing down with as much force as she could muster. In the dim light of the cabin, she was finally able to see what the captain looked like. He looked perhaps a year older than her, with wild brown curls that fell around his sun kissed face, and dark green eyes that shined with flecks of gold. He was attractive, she supposed, but that didn't mean she was going to lift her knee off his trachea.

Although it didn't seem as though he had much interest in whether she choked him to death. He only stared at her blankly, as though she was boring him.

"Are you ready to play nicely captain?"

His words were slightly breathless, choked. "I was playing nice love. If I weren't then you would be begging for a siren to sing over the edge of my ship."

Of all the pirates Cassandra had to make friends with, why did she choose the one with an infuriatingly stubborn captain?

"Want to bet?" she asked, already reaching for another wire around her wrist.

"Ten pecunia says I win."

"Coward! Make it twenty!" Cassandra shouted, still in her barrel, and the girl, Emmaline looked at the three of them as though they had claws growing out of their fingers.

"No!" Emmaline exclaimed and Vesper had to agree with her. If she was going to make a bet, she was going to have to wager fifty. Emmaline glared at Vesper with eyes the same color as the pirate. "You are not going to make a bet wagering if you or my dumbass brother will win! You are going to get your knee off Eric's windpipe and tell us what bargain you came to make!"

Vesper had to hand it to the girl, she sure knew how to make demands. She sighed dramatically, lifting her knee off the captain's chest. She strode over to where Emmaline stood, meeting her glare with one of her own. If she was going to make a deal with pirates, she figured she might as well make it with a competent one. "My sharpshooter and I need passage to the island of Danar."

"And?" came the captain's voice as he walked to stand next to Emmaline. "It isn't our problem whether you make it to Danar or not."

Vesper shrugged, "Perhaps, but I have two things that you will likely find very interesting."