Although Annie woke up early the next day, Liam had already left the cabin. After using the washbasin and changing her clothes, Annie went to the door and found that it wouldn’t open. When jiggling the door latch didn’t work, she tried to find a way to open the door, but it was definitely locked from the outside. “I’m locked in!” she called, pounding on the door. “Can somebody help me?”
Annie staggered when the ship listed to the side. They were changing course. Clarence must have seen another landmark. She was pounding on the door again when she heard a bang and a crash. A moment later, someone undid the lock. When her door swung open, Audun was there. Annie could still smell the dragon scent as if he had just changed back.
“Are you all right?” he asked.
“I’m fine,” said Annie. “Why was my door locked?”
“I have no idea, but mine was, too. I intend to find out why and who did it,” said Audun. “Millie is feeling better today. I was going to take her up on deck when I discovered that someone had locked us in. I’m afraid we’ll have to pay the captain for the door. I broke it down when I felt the ship change direction.”
“It must have been Clarence again,” Annie said.
“That’s what Millie and I think,” Audun replied as she followed him out the door. “I guess my little talk with him yesterday wasn’t as effective as I’d hoped. I told him I’d rip his head off if he ever again did anything that could hurt my wife. I think locking her in when she needs fresh air qualifies.”
Millie was waiting just inside the remains of the door when they reached the cabin. “This trip hasn’t been at all what I expected,” she said, taking Audun’s hand as she stepped over the splintered wood. “I’ve heard about seasickness, but I never imagined it could be so awful. And Audun told me that Clarence used magic on everyone! I wonder what he’s up to.”
“I hope Liam is all right,” said Annie. “He was gone when I woke up.”
“I heard raised voices earlier,” Audun told her. “I think he was arguing with Clarence.”
Annie and Millie followed him up the steps. When they reached the deck, Annie stopped to look around. Something was different, but she couldn’t tell what until she noticed that the sun was straight ahead and the island was still on their left.
“We’re headed back the way we came,” said Annie. “Do you suppose Clarence is lost?”
“There’s Liam. He looks fine to me,” Millie told her. “It looks like he and Clarence are talking to the captain.”
Annie and her friends hurried over, full of questions. Clarence seemed surprised to see them, but both Liam and Captain Riley wore dazed expressions.
“Who locked us in the cabins?” demanded Audun. “Clarence, was it you?”
“Why would I do that?” Clarence said, trying to look innocent without much success.
“That’s exactly what I want to know,” Audun said, his voice nearly a growl.
“Why did we change direction?” Annie asked Liam. “Did Clarence see the landmark he was trying to find?”
“We didn’t change direction, did we?” Liam asked the captain.
Captain Riley looked just as confused, even though he was standing with his hand on the helm.
“What’s that smell?” Millie asked, sniffing the air. “Do you smell that, Audun?”
Her husband inhaled and nodded. “It’s coming from over here.”
He followed his nose to Clarence. The prince’s hand went to his pocket as if to make sure that something was tucked inside. Clarence tried to fend off Audun, but dragons are stronger than humans, even when in human form. “What is this?” Audun said as he pulled a stoppered vial out of Clarence’s pocket.
“I don’t know,” said Clarence. “I’ve never seen it before.”
“Yeah, right,” Audun said.
Annie reached for the vial, saying, “May I see that?” She shook it and held it up to her ear. “It’s some sort of magic dust. The sound is very faint, but it’s there.” Turning to Liam, she took a step closer to examine his clothes. “You have some on your shirt, Liam. It almost looks as if someone blew it at you.”
“There’s some on the captain’s clothes, too,” said Millie.
Clarence began to back away, but Audun stopped him with a firm grip on his arm. “Any idea what the powder does?” he asked Annie.
“I’m not sure,” she replied. “Liam, what did you say right before you went to sleep last night?”
“Good night?” he asked.
“I think this is magic dust that’s meant to wipe out memories,” said Annie. “It sounds very faint, so I doubt it’s strong enough to last long.”
“What didn’t you want Liam and the captain to remember?” said Annie. “That you had them change direction?”
“Why would I possibly want to do that?” Clarence asked.
“Maybe that ship has something to do with it,” Millie said, pointing out to sea.
“That’s a pirate flag!” said the captain. “What’s a pirate ship doing all the way out here? They usually stay close to the shoreline.”
“I think I can guess,” said Annie. “I don’t think that it’s a coincidence that a pirate ship is headed our way. I bet that ship is here because Clarence told his friends that we’d be near this island on a certain day. I saw Clarence pass something to a barmaid at the tavern when we stopped to get the horseshoe replaced. I bet buying a horse wasn’t the only thing he arranged. My guess is that he bought a horse just to throw us off the track. He was really sending a message to the pirates, telling them where they could find us. I think he passed something to the tavern keeper at the Rusty Nail, too.”
“You were awfully eager to go into the Rusty Nail when Digby wanted to see us, Clarence,” said Liam. “Did you pass the note when you slipped and fell? I bet you sent an update about where we’d be today. You’d know our location because you were the one telling us where to go.”
“That’s why you were so concerned that we were making such good time with the wind behind us!” said Audun. “We reached the island before you said we would.”
“That would explain why we’re going in circles!” said Liam. “You were waiting for the pirates to show up! What were they supposed to do—hold us hostage for ransom or kill us so you could take over Dorinocco? Are these pirates friends of yours or people you hired?”
“Why should I tell you anything?” Clarence said, sneering. “You seem to think you know everything already!”
“Pardon me, Your Highness, but I can see that flag well enough to recognize it now,” said the captain. “That’s the Wandering Tuna, a pirate ship with a very bad reputation. It’s getting a lot closer.”
“Audun, would you mind taking my brother downstairs and locking him in his cabin?” said Liam. “Please remove all of his personal belongings and bring them up here so we can toss them overboard. Who knows what other surprises he brought with him.”
“It would be my pleasure,” said Audun.
“You can’t throw out all my things!” Clarence whined as Audun hustled him toward the stairs. “What will I wear tomorrow?”
“Please check his pockets, too, while you’re at it,” Annie called to Audun. “He might have something he can use against us even now.”
The captain turned the ship away from the pirates just as a bell began to ring. Every sailor on the ship started running. “I’m calling my men to quarters,” the captain told Liam. “We’ll try to outrun the pirates, but their ship is faster than ours. You and your party should go below deck. If the pirates board us, we’ll have to fight. My men are all brave and true, but few of them are seasoned fighters. Hide your belongings and brace yourselves. I cannot guarantee the outcome should the fight become hand to hand.”
“I’m not going to hide in a cabin while you fight for us,” Liam told Captain Riley. “I am going to get my sword, though. I didn’t think I’d need to wear it on the ship. Annie, you and Millie should go to the cabins.”
“I will if I must,” Annie told him. “Just not yet.”
The sails flapped as the ship turned. Sailors rushed about, trimming the lines. Within moments the sails had caught the wind again and were propelling the ship away from the pirates. The sailors who had gone below returned to the deck, bristling with cutlasses and daggers. Liam was back as well, his sword in his hand. Audun joined them a few minutes later.
“I found this hidden among Clarence’s things,” Audun said, handing a medallion to Liam. “Didn’t I see you wearing that?”
Liam glanced at it and laughed. “Look, Annie! Clarence fell for my ruse! I didn’t want him to know about the postcards,” he told Audun, “so I let him think that this held the magic that took us from place to place.”
“No wonder he didn’t want me to throw out his things,” said Audun.
Annie turned to watch the pirate ship. It had changed direction and was already pursuing them. The captain was right. The pirates did have a faster ship.
“This doesn’t look good,” said Millie.
In only minutes the other ship was close enough that Annie could see the pirates lining the railing, preparing to board. They looked like a nasty group with bits of bone tied in their long, filthy hair and knives stuck in their belts and in straps that crisscrossed their chests. Most carried cutlasses, although Annie saw that a few held crossbows with the bolts nocked and ready.
A big man with a bald head and a huge, bristly beard waved a cutlass in the air and shouted, “Stand down and prepare to be boarded!”
“That’s Prickly Beard, one of the nastiest pirates around!” explained the captain. “The man standing beside him is Short Jack, his first mate. He’s just as bad!”
“He doesn’t look short to me,” said Millie. “He’s almost as tall as his captain.”
“Oh, he’s short all right,” said the captain. “He just wears shoes with very thick soles. Well, I’ll be jiggered. The one with red hair behind him is old Snaggle Toes. A cart ran over his toes when he was just a tyke, and they’ve been twisted ever since. They’re so bad he can’t find shoes to fit, so he always goes barefoot. Last I heard he was sailing with Slippery Pete. I guess Snaggle Toes decided to change to a nastier ship. I’ve heard some terrible tales about what the crew of the Wandering Tuna does to their captives. It’s enough to chill your blood and poison your dreams.”
Audun gestured to Annie and Liam, drawing them aside. “I know that Millie and I promised not to reveal our dragon sides, but I think we don’t have any choice now. Those pirates can destroy the Sallie Mae and hurt a lot of people if they get on board, but if I’m a dragon, I can cripple their ship and no one need get hurt. I’m asking you to release Millie and me from our promise.”
Annie and Liam glanced at each other. “He is right, you know,” said Liam. “Dragons could take care of this very quickly.”
Annie sighed. “I was really hoping we could avoid this. All right,” she said to Audun. “Just don’t make a habit of it, please.”
They hurried back to the captain, who was giving orders to some of his men.
“Captain,” Audun told him. “Your men don’t need to fight. Keep your ship on this course and I’ll take care of the pirates.”
“We will, you mean,” said Millie.
The captain shook his head. “If you think you’re going to talk the pirates into leaving, you’re very mistaken. I’ve encountered men like them before and they won’t give up easily.”
“I don’t intend to talk to them,” Audun told him. “Just hold your men back so they don’t get hurt.”
“One man can’t possibly fight them all,” said the captain. “I’m not about to tell my men to stand down so you can get yourself slaughtered.”
“Captain, you need to do as Audun said,” said Liam. “Those pirates will be close enough to board your ship in minutes. If you listen to my friend, your ship and crew will go unharmed.”
“This is absurd! No one can … Oh!” The captain’s jaw dropped as Audun began to change. When a white dragon tinged with blue stood in front of him, the captain backed away until he bumped into the helm. The dragon was nearly three times longer than Captain Riley was tall, and his scales shimmered when he lowered his head to look the captain in the eyes.
“If you won’t leave, at least stay out of my way,” said Audun, the dragon.
“Wait for me!” Millie told her husband. A moment later, a lovely green dragon stood beside him, gently fanning her wings.
The captain turned pale, but he stood his ground when he shouted at his men, “Stand down!”
Some of the men were positioned so that they could see the dragons. As word spread, the men backed away from the railing while lowering their weapons.
Confusion reigned on the Wandering Tuna when the pirates who could see the dragons called out in fear. Their shipmates only saw the sailors on the Sallie Mae retreat, and they shouted in triumph as if they’d already won the battle. Their shouting turned to cries of panic when the dragons took to the air. A few of the braver pirates waved cutlasses above their heads when Audun swooped over the ship. With a powerful swipe of his tail, he cracked a mast, sending it toppling to the deck.
Pirates ran in every direction, but the men armed with crossbows shot one bolt after another at Audun. When Millie saw this, she tucked her wings to her sides and dove toward the ship, breathing a tongue of fire at the bolts. The bolts burst into flame and tumbled from the sky. Some fell into the ocean, hissing when they touched the water. Some landed on the deck, where sailors rushed to put out their flames. But a few fell on the sails, setting them on fire. Within moments the wind carried the flames to other parts of the ship and the fire ate its way across the decks and rigging faster than the pirates could put it out.
The pirate ship started drifting. Captain Riley hurried to steer the Sallie Mae away from the Wandering Tuna. The sailors cheered as they left the other ship behind.
Pirates jumped overboard as fire devoured their ship. Within minutes, their captain was shouting at his men, waving his cutlass in the air. The pirates who were still on board ran to lower the longboat over the side of the Wandering Tuna. While the pirates climbed into the longboat, Millie and Audun returned to the deck of the Sallie Mae.