Mariana licked her lips, scaling the chair with her eyes.
The hardest part would be getting the chair to an antique dealer.
On the other hand, this was the hour of the nearby brothels closing their doors. There would be plenty of rentable horse carriages, most of which also transported furniture for a small extra fee.
She took everything she could carry in her bag and started to carry the chair out of the house.
She managed to get to the front door before she heard the wet, sloppy noises of someone getting out of a bath.
She fingered the lock open with all the professional haste of a great pirate.
She didn't bother to close the door behind her. That could either bite her after some time had passed, or then it would convince Sam that his future bride had been robbed.
She didn't want to wear his ring on her finger, but she didn't feel like she had a whole lot of options. Wearable currency was the best currency.
After catching a ride towards the lair of a real furniture freak, she took a long, deep breath in the foggy morning air - petrichor and the joyful scent of greasy pastries filled up her lungs - and dived into what was basically a business apartment turned into a cave of a hoarding dragon.
The man was not too far from a gold-loving magical reptile, himself, but Manny was easy to get along with.
"My, he loved making these tasteless pieces," he muttered. "Everything is here. From the demons that look more like pigs than gallant fallen gods…down to the brushwork, the very last hm, breast with some questionable anatomy, this is definitely his making. I won't ask you how this came to you, I will sell it as quickly as I can on the black market, but you won't get the full price right now. I could give you six thousand now and the rest as a provision of the final selling price."
"My gods, you are a good negotiator," Mariana giggled, hoping that her cute demeanor would make the dealer give her more.
"Then it is six and a half and that's it, no provisions. Someone's up to some mischief, I see."
Mariana didn't reply. She let Manny think whatever he wanted to think about her.
Nothing in Neul would matter to her for too long.
She went around bribing people and paying off several debts. Then it was time to set sail. She just needed to find Wolfe, who was searching for a decent cook.
Apparently it was nearly impossible to find a sailor or other seafaring individual who could also do things to pork that made the stuff edible, but Mariana herself was a captain, the captain. She didn't need to bother herself with those details.
She didn't find Wolfe.
Daniel found her.
He was enraged, pacing around in the White Horse like a madman.
This was the most blatant display of emotion that she had seen from him in years. It wasn't the indifference of momentary lust any longer. His eyes were burning again, and when he spoke, his motive became frighteningly clear.
"You have promised to marry him," he growled, capturing her between his strong body and the wall of the tavern. "You have broken your promise to me."
"I haven't kept any of the promises I made." She raised her eyebrows, trying to look brave and belligerent.
She wanted to provoke him.
"Because you were willing to let me die," she hissed. "Has it escaped your mind? That I was nothing to you, nothing at all except just a potential little housewife. You talked about star-crossed lovers and meant for me to stay ashore and cook and get old and bitter while YOU enjoy your damn legacy."
She had fully intended to kill him on the high seas, but mother of worms, this was a perfect opportunity to do it on land. She would be executed, that much was for certain. Right now that didn't matter. She did not fear death as much as she feared living her life as an empty shell of a person.
No, she was not devoid of will or strength! She pulled out her gun, but he whipped put his strong right hand and slapped the firearm away, sending it clanking dangerously across the tavern floor. In a fistfight or any situation like a duel with pistols or swords, the pirate king was too strong and fast for her.
"You didn't listen to me and you thought I was that evil?" He snarled as she spoke, looking like a beast. "You really projected all of your worst traits onto me and you thought I was like you."
"But…you loved me and you wanted to take the risk."
"The risk? Drink bilge water and die, you stupid cow. I hate you."
He turned and walked away before she could safely reach for a knife.
She cursed herself for being so easily stupefied by his presence. No one would know that she was this weak if it was up to her.
She proceeded to threaten the entire White Horse into complete silence about the encounter.
Wolfe had been settling his own matters so that he could sail with a nice sense of catharsis. He was a bit too much of a mystery for Mariana's liking, but she was still glad to list him among the men she had chosen for her mission.
First mate, Wolfe, the man with only a single name.
Boatswain, the Wizard, the title of gunmaster was given to his brother. Then there was Warly, a man who was good in a fistfight, a master rigger called John Bells, two overgrown cabin boys who were - unfortunately enough - both called Timothy, and a great number of men who had already done the Devil's Hundred and lived. Most of them had all of their limbs in the right places.
That was a great advantage when it came to hunting pirates.
The sea was foaming with anger when they departed from Neul. The wind was reasonably cool, but it was not treating Mariana's dress too well.
Still, she couldn't help but smile as the waves rocked the ship.
She had named her beautiful vessel the Good Wife.
How original! She felt at home again.