Roden glanced down at me. I’d managed to roll to one side, but the pain in my leg suffocated me with nausea and dizziness. My vision had blurred so that I couldn’t tell for certain whether Roden was standing crookedly, or whether the ground where I lay had somehow tilted.
“Get your sword,” Roden said. “Get your sword and fight me.”
My eyes flitted up to him, then I laid my head back on my arm. There was no point in continuing to fight. Before, I could at least use my broken leg for balance. But I wouldn’t even be able to stand now. It was all I could do to remain conscious.
Roden walked toward me. “Get your weapon,” he said. “You started this fight and you will finish it.”
He would finish it.
I closed my eyes a moment, then finally made the decision that if I was about to die, I would do it with a sword in my hand. Digging my fingers into the dirt, I clawed my way toward the fallen sword. My injured leg dragged uselessly behind me, with my good leg little more helpful in pushing me forward.
Roden stood back as I passed him, the point of his sword dangling somewhere above me. I reached the sword by my fingertips and inched it into my hand. Using my other hand to prop myself up, I raised the sword and forced a slight smile to my face. “This is your last chance to surrender,” I said, my words barely audible to my own ears, much less his.
“I have no choice, then.” Roden raised his sword, and I closed my eyes, as prepared as I ever could be for his blade to pierce me and finish off the pain. But he slammed the tip of his sword into the dirt beside me and fell on his knees. “Obviously, I must surrender, or lose this battle.”
I opened my eyes and saw Roden’s crooked grin as he stared back at me. Then he nudged his head, clearly exasperated that I was slow in catching the meaning of his words. Finally, I held out my sword, with no more strength in my hand than had I been a small child. But my voice was strong as I said, “Swear loyalty to me, Roden, and renounce the pirates.”
Roden bowed his head. “Jaron, you have defeated me in battle. Therefore, I renounce my position and swear loyalty to you, as King of Carthya, King of the Avenian Pirates, and my King always, wherever in this world you go.” When I motioned for him to stand, he turned to the pirates still surrounding us and said, “You heard me. Jaron won this battle and he commands us now.”
It was the last thing I heard before I blacked out.
When I regained consciousness, I was in an actual bed and was covered in blankets. Three or four lit candles were in the room, or hut, where I guessed I was. Although I’d figured out that much, it wasn’t clear why I might be here. Maybe it was a dream. A slight shift in position sent waves of pain through me and I gasped. Definitely not a dream, then.
“Shh.” Serena appeared beside me and helped me lie back down. She glanced behind her. “Roden, he’s awake.”
She moved aside and Roden filled the frame of my blurred vision. “I don’t think I ever could’ve killed you,” he said. “Not when it came down to it.”
“You couldn’t have told me that in the gardens?”
“I didn’t know it myself, not until the end. As proof of that, I let you win. I went easy on you the whole time.”
“Then I demand a rematch.” I smiled sleepily. “But not today.” In a whisper I added, “Where will you be when I’m ready?”
“At your side, Jaron, as captain of your guard.” My smile widened and I closed my eyes to return to sleep.
When Roden woke me it was light again. Serena was in her chair with a bowl of something that was steaming, but the thought of eating made my stomach turn.
“Are you hurting much?” Roden asked.
I squinted at him. “Is that a joke? How many pieces do you suppose my leg is in right now?”
He rolled his eyes. “I forgot what a baby you can be when you’re injured.”
I eyed a cup sitting beside my bed. If it wouldn’t have been so difficult, I’d have thrown it at him.
Roden sat beside me and smiled sympathetically. “There’s no one here who can fix that leg.”
“You should’ve thought of that before you broke it.”
“There was no need to fix the leg of a dead man.”
“Ah. How’s your leg where I stabbed you?”
“It hurts.”
“Good.” I closed my eyes again, wanting more sleep, but Roden shook my arm. I shrank from his touch and directed my attention to Serena. “Get me some aravac leaves, all you can find.”
When she left, Roden said, “They’ll help the pain but won’t fix your leg.”
“Prepare a cart to take us to Libeth,” I said. “A noble named Rulon Harlowe lives there. That’s where we’re going, if he’ll have me.”
“I don’t think you’re strong enough to travel. You don’t look so good.”
“I don’t feel so good. But I doubt I’m the most popular person here. My odds are better on the road to Libeth.”
“And what are you going to do about the pirates?”
“That’s your decision.” Then I remembered that Roden had given me the win. I was the pirate king now. “Send for that man, Erick.” I was still tired and my words were slurring. “Fink too. Bring them.”
Roden stood and immediately I fell back asleep. I awoke some time later when the door creaked open and Erick walked in, with Fink at his heels.
Erick shook his head in disbelief when he saw me. “I kept watching at the window, waiting to see your body fall. When I didn’t see it, I figured you’d fallen in another place. It never occurred to me you were still alive.”
Fink rushed forward but I held up a hand to stop him. Even that movement hurt. “If you touch me, I’ll have you hanged,” I warned. He probably wasn’t going to, but I was feeling particularly cautious.
“I heard you won the sword fight,” Erick said.
Above me, Roden gave a cough. I looked from his annoyed expression back to Erick. “That debate hasn’t been settled. But I am king here now.”
Roden managed a half smile at my words, then cursed under his breath.
Erick went on as if he hadn’t noticed. “To your credit, everyone’s talking about what you did. Nobody likes you, but they respect you.”
I nodded. That was good enough.
“What are your plans now?” he asked.
I tried to shrug but gave up the effort and instead just said, “I have to go home. But someone needs to be in charge while I’m gone.”
“And you’ve chosen Roden to lead us.” Obviously, the latest gossip hadn’t reached Erick’s locked room.
“Don’t be ridiculous. He just lost to a one-legged opponent, who I might add was mostly unconscious by the end. No, Erick, you’re in charge now.” Erick’s eyes widened but I quickly added, “On two conditions. The first is that you must return that pocket watch to me. I’m tired of trying to steal it from you.”
Erick groaned and pulled the watch from his shirt, then held it out to me. “It doesn’t keep good time.”
“That’s not why I want it,” I said, clutching it in my hand. “The second condition is that you remind the pirates of their oath to the pirate king, to me. But I’m also the Carthyan king, so to cause harm to any citizen of Carthya, or to our land or property, is to harm me. From now on, there will be an oath of peace between us. All pirates must renew their oaths or be expelled.”
