Immortal War

said.

Johnny saw that she was right. “I hope to see you again sometime, once all this dust has settled.” He leaned over and kissed her tenderly on the cheek. “Remember, Grace, the ride is far from over.”

Then he stole away into the night, leaving Lola and Sidorio’s baby already sleeping peacefully in her arms.

“Where is he?” Lola cried, running along the corridor of The Vagabond, Nathalie at her side. “Where is he?” Each cry more desperate than the one before. “Can you see him?”

“There he is, Captain!” Nathalie cried, pointing out through the porthole toward the deck of The Tiger.

As Lola came to a stop beside her, Nathalie opened up the porthole so that their view was no longer impeded by its smeared surface. Now Lola stepped forward and saw the terrible truth—Sidorio, her dear husband and father of her twins, commander in chief of the empire of night, was trapped on the deck of the enemy ship.

“Come away from the window!” Nathalie urged her. “The light!”

A single tear fell across the black-heart tattoo around Lola’s eye. “How can you tell me to step away from the light when you see the predicament Sidorio is in?” She remained at the window, watching with horror as the light grew more golden. Dawn was imminent now. She saw the light stalk hungrily across the decks of the pirate ships, swiftly overpowering their sails and rigging.

Her eyes returned to the deck of The Tiger, watching in mounting horror as the light began to steal its way from the prow to the center of the deck, where Sidorio was effectively pinioned by his three captors.

“Let’s destroy him!” Jasmine repeated.

“No,” Cheng Li said. “We’ll simply allow the light to do its work.” She glanced across at Obsidian Darke, seeking his agreement. He nodded.

They stood there, their three swords pressed into Sidorio’s neck, as the light crept across the deck toward them. Suddenly it was upon them, bathing Jasmine and Cheng Li’s face with welcome warmth. Obsidian Darke kept his head bowed. He might be able to endure the light, but still it was not something he welcomed. He kept his face fixed on Sidorio’s.

As light fell on Sidorio’s forehead, the Vampirate grinned and lifted his face, as best he could, to meet the sun’s rays. He laughed, his eyes turning from Cheng Li to Obsidian. “You see. I’m just as powerful as you now. The light can do me no harm.”

Jasmine was the first to notice that the tip of her sword, still plunged into Sidorio’s flesh, had begun to glow red. It was as if the sword was being heated from within Sidorio. She turned to Cheng Li, wondering if she had noticed, too. Cheng Li nodded discreetly, then turned her eyes back to their captive.

Sidorio’s expression had faltered. He appeared far less cocky now. In fact, he looked as if he was in considerable pain. There was fire coming from within him. The skin on his face and the exposed parts of his body rapidly darkened, cut through with traces of fire, like embers. Already, his face had started to disintegrate—no more than ash floating away on the ocean breeze. There was a sudden splintering as his shoulder detached from his body and fell to the deck, breaking into a thousand tiny pieces.

“No!” Lola cried out, still watching the nightmarish scene unfolding on the opposite deck. She lifted her crossbow and swiftly loaded it with a single silver arrow. “I’m going to make Obsidian Darke pay for this. Pathetic excuse for a Vampirate that he is!”

Lola aimed the crossbow sight through the open porthole at her unsuspecting target. With a guttural cry, she sent the silver arrow flying through the air and onto the deck of The Tiger.

Perhaps it was the infinitesimal movement of The Vagabond; perhaps a sudden gust of ocean breeze; or perhaps simply the maelstrom of Lola’s own emotions. Whichever, her aim was a little off, and the arrow sailed clear past Obsidian and deep into the heart of Cheng Li.

“No!” Cheng Li cried, falling toward the deck. “Not yet! There’s so much more to do!”

Her fall was broken by a pair of strong arms, which reached out from behind her. They broke her fall and lowered her gently down onto the deck boards, but still the hands kept hold of Cheng Li.

“Don’t worry, daughter,” whispered a voice in her ear. “You’re safe now.”

On the deck of The Typhon, Barbarro shook his head with relief and delight. “We did it!” he said. “Together, we won this.”

“Yes,” Molucco said, squeezing his brother’s shoulder. “Another victory for the Brothers Wrathe!” He turned to Porfirio. “We should be getting back, don’t you think?”

Porfirio nodded. “I think so.”

“Wait!” Barbarro said, reaching out to Molucco. “Moonshine is on The Diablo, brother. Let me call him over so he can thank you in person for giving him the chance to be captain. It’s been the making of the lad.”

Molucco smiled. “I knew he’d pull through,” he said. “There’s a lot of me in that kid, I always thought.”

Now Trofie addressed her erstwhile brother-in-law. “I have to ask you this,” she said. “If you have such a high opinion of Moonshine, why did you apportion the majority share of your inheritance to Connor Tempest?”

“Trofie!” Barbarro exclaimed in shock. “This is hardly the time…”

“I have to ask,” Trofie repeated. “When will I get another chance, min elskling?”

Unfazed by her question, Molucco shrugged. “It felt like the right thing to do,” he said. “Moonshine has all the advantages of your wealth and status. I thought Connor deserved a leg up.” A strange look came over his eyes. “It doesn’t really matter now.”

“On the contrary,” Trofie said. “It matters very much.”

Porfirio turned to Barbarro. “We really should say our good-byes now, brother.”

“Won’t you stay until I can get word to Moonshine?” Barbarro asked. “He’d love to see you again, and I’d so like you to meet him now that he’s all grown up.”

“I would have liked that, too,” Porfirio said with evident sadness, “but it’s not possible. Jack Tar’s is calling us back.” He turned to Molucco. “Come on, brother, the clock is ticking. We must take our leave.”

Molucco nodded. The two brothers hugged Barbarro and Trofie good-bye. There were tears in Barbarro’s eyes as he finally released Molucco.

“We’ll see each other again,” Molucco said.

“Not too soon, I hope!” Trofie said.

Porfirio and Molucco laughed at that. “Quite right,” Molucco said. “Not too soon—for all our sakes!”

Bart and Cate stood together at the deck rail of The Diablo. They had stood there many times before, but they both knew this would be the very last time.

“I have to go now,” Bart told Cate, stroking her cheek. “But before I do, there’s something I want to say to