Illusionary by Zoraida Córdova

Author:Zoraida Córdova [Córdova, Zoraida]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781473677647
Google: 1pv9DwAAQBAJ
Amazon: B08JCDGPJC
Publisher: Hachette UK
Published: 2021-05-10T23:00:00+00:00

WE’RE PARADED ACROSS DECK, TIED TO EACH OTHER WITH OUR HANDS BOUND behind our backs. The pirates are not what I was expecting. Though I’ve only ever heard bedtime stories, I was preparing for a ship full of middle-aged men covered in filth and stolen gold. Dez used to say that pirates were simply wraiths without a cause or a country, stealing and killing for their own glory. But I am not entirely sure what to make of our captors. Boys swing down from the sails, and groups of young girls cease their wooden swordplay to stare. Weathered elders pause as we’re herded by.

At the front of our line, I feel the brunt of their scrutiny. A boy of perhaps ten, with ruddy cheeks and a nest of red curls, opens up a hatch. Hands begin to shove me down, and my natural reflex is to struggle, but another pirate runs to stop us. She nearly doubles over panting, the sun reflecting on the deep brown skin of her bald head. In her hand is the sextant.

“Wait! Cap’ll want to see them right away.”

I lurch forward, but I’m overcome with a wave of calm. The breeze tickles the baby hairs at my temples. Music is coming from somewhere on deck, and I hear the slap of the red-and-gold flag above. My heartbeat slows, and then I’m walking up wooden steps and through a shadowed threshold. The wide cabin is empty, and we’re positioned in front of a mahogany desk littered with parchment, quills, and coins from different nations. Deep purple velvet drapes are parted to let in the light. A boy runs in with a metal tray and sets down a pot of café and a clay mug. His wide eyes glance at the empty chair with relief before darting back out.

“Wait here,” the bald girl murmurs, and her voice has a distant chime. She moves her hands slowly, like she’s controlling the strings of a marionette. Copper rings adorn each of her fingers.

When she’s gone, I fight the weight against my eyelids that tells me to be calm. Leo hums his favorite opera. Leyre grabs a coin from the captain’s desk and brings it right up to her eye, laughing.

“Snap out of it,” Castian growls.

“Snap out of what?” I breathe deeply and take in his face. He’s upset, attempting to unknot his bindings and failing. Cas is so beautiful, even when he’s angry. I mean to tell him so, but then the haze around my vision begins to lift, and the realization dawns on me. Copper rings. That pirate is a Persuári! Her magics are tempering our will to fight.

“Moria,” I whisper as an entourage of four enters.

Two remain at the door, and two flank the desk. Daggers and swords are strapped to thighs, across chests and shoulders. But their metals are the most striking. Thick gold gauges stretch a woman’s earlobes. Silver studs pierce delicate nostrils, even the skin below their clavicles. One of the boys wears a copper choker that looks like a strip of chain mail around his throat.

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