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.""Indeed, indeed, and the other pirates will not cease to tease me about it!" Again came that great belly laugh, and Perrault joined in."Very well, very well.Waterdeep it is.We should be there inside four days."Chapter Twenty—TwoPerrault seemed to know his way around the ship, and after finding shelter for Haze, he led us to an unoccupied cabin near the bow.I waited until we were alone before I allowed myself to say what I'd been thinking."You know the pirate captain." It was not a question—it was an accusation."Never met the man," Perrault replied."But you knew he was coming." I paced the small cabin."Yes." Perrault sat down on the edge of thebed, his back turned to me."How did you know?""I called him.It was a simple spell, really, to send my voice out across the miles and tell our good Captain Baram about a ripe and cooperative take."I stopped pacing.It took me a moment to regain enough composure to say anything."You.called him?""I did.For good reason." Perrault loosened his traveling cloak and laid it on the bed beside him.I could see dark patches of sweat staining the back of his finely woven shirt."What reason?" I clenched my fists and tried not to shout."The captain would not divert his ship's course," Perrault said with no emotion in his voice."We needed to be off the sea a good deal sooner than Luskan."I covered my face with my hands."But what about Captain Smythe's ship, and his sailors, and all their stuff? They're all captured.Joen's captured.And it's all because of us.because of you."Suddenly I knew exactly why Joen had forgiven me.She knew the terrible thing that Perrault had done.My eyes began to fill with tears I didn't want Perrault to see."If the sailors hadn't surrendered, they would have been killed.You nearly got the whole crew killed! Is getting to land sooner than Luskan worth the lives of every person on that ship?""Yes." Perrault said without turning around to face me.I let my hands fall to my sides."But why?" My voice was choked with unshed tears and I could barely push out the words."Because Asbeel has eyes everywhere.The demon was wounded, surely, but not badly.He will not stop looking for you, so we must step quickly to keep you out of sight.We cannot remain still, the way we were on the ship."I shook my head."But a ship is not still.It's always moving.That makes no sense."Perrault stomped his foot hard, his boot cracking sharply against the floor."I tell you where we're going, and there we will go, and thatis the end of it.I know how to keep you safe.You do not."My tears had dried, and I was just angry."Why is that so important? Is my life more important than the sailors'? More important thanjoen's?""It is to me!" Perrault swung around from his seat on the bed and glared at me.I could see what he'd been hiding.His silk shirt was soaked with blood, from the top of his wounded shoulder all the way to his waist.The sight caught me off guard, and left me breathless.A million questions spun in my head then disappeared.I wanted to respond, to say something, anything, but no words came out.Perrault continued."A lesson for you, child,"—he spat the word angrily, as if it were an insult—"the most important one you shall ever hear from me.You protect first those you love then yourself, and last everyone else.You are my ward, so I will protect you first among all the souls in this world.And if doing so means harming others, even those who deserve no such harm, then so be it."He grimaced then turned his back to me, pulling off the shirt and the bandage beneath.I saw the wound only for an instant, but it was long enough to horrify me.The gash was an angry red, dripping watery, pale fluid.The flesh around it was blackened and burned where the demon's fire had touched it.It looked as if it had not healed at all—it looked as if it had grown worse.Perrault got up and opened the cupboards.Finding what he sought, he pulled out a fresh linen sheet.He murmured a few words, poured some liquid on the fabric from a vial in his pocket, and tore the sheet into strips.Quickly, sure-handedly, he wrapped the linen tightly around his torso then pulled a fresh shirt from the cupboard and put it on."It's not about me—is it?" My words came out in a rush."None of this is about me.It's about this stone.If you really cared about me, you wouldn't have cursed me with it." I ripped my shirt open and tugged the bandolier off my chest."Why don't you just take it back?"I marched over to Perrault, shaking the leather strap with every step I took."Because of this stone, I'm an orphan.Because of this stone, I don't even know my real name.So tell me, why is it worth so much to everyone? To everyone but me?"Perrault turned to face me and I could see the pain in his sunken eyes.His beard seemed more white than gray; his pale skin sagged."That stone is your heirloom and it will be forever intertwined with your destiny.I cannot answer any more than that, Maimun.There are some things you must learn for yourself." He looked as if he'd aged a decade in the past hour.His breath was labored."Now please, child, help me to the bed."I took his hand and was shocked by how cold it felt.He shuffled to the bed and helped him slide beneath the woolen blanket."We will make port in three days," Perrault said."From Waterdeep, we make for Silverymoon with all haste.I've a friend there who will hide you.""But what of you?" I asked."You're hurt.You need help.""I'll be fine.And besides, the finest healers in all Faerun are in Silverymoon.Now, get some rest."I supposed the plan was as good as any, though I knew the journey to Silverymoon would be long.Perrault had just placed a salve and fresh bandages on his wound, and he was a skilled healer.The oil he poured on the linen was surely magical, so I hoped the wound would heal soon.I pulled some blankets from the cupboard, wrapped myself in them, and lay on the floor, affording Perrault the comfort of the cabin's only bed.Perrault spent the next day in the cabin, barely moving, and sent me to fetch our meals.I had planned to seek out the captured crew, to learn Joen's fate, but Perrault's condition seemed far more urgent and I had to push my plan aside.The second morning, he couldn't even rise from bed.The ship's healer came to see him, but was unable to do more than simply change the bandage.Captain Baram personally delivered our meals, to check on Perrault, and he informedus—informed me, as Perrault was asleep—that we were making fine time and were near the coast, but a powerful storm was battering Waterdeep and we couldn't sail into the harbor.The third morning, Perrault did not wake.Chapter TVent^—Tibree"You should wait till we hit port." Captain Baram's voice was gentler than I'd ever heard it, full of something like pity.Somehow, that made me angry."Can't wait.Can't stay here with pirates," I spat
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