“Captain,” interjected Rio quietly.
“Naitlya Taimi,” I said roughly, eyeing both men cautiously. “What business do you have with me?”
“Our business is simple, Miss Taimi.” Bolivar leaned back onto the large desk behind him. “We have lost something of quite high value, and in order to get it back we must encounter some particularly hazardous situations…”
“Make your point, please.” I set my jaw.
“Of course,” he said courteously.
This guy knew how to speak nicely, but the more I heard the more it annoyed me. I was not going to be blinded by fancy words.
“Let me start again. We are currently about one hundred and fifty miles south of Bain Port, on course to a small island that we have been unable to find on any map. The first time we set foot on this island was just over a week ago, and it appeared to have been untouched by outsiders for over a thousand years.”
“Really. What makes you think that?” I asked, suspiciously. This was beginning to sound like a ghost story or a treasure hunt.
Rio spoke this time, holding something flat and round in his palm.
“We have our evidence,” he said, tucking the item away. “In any case, the object we need is guarded by a formidable foe. We found this out in time to see the thing swallow the person that had stolen our most valuable belonging, in fact.”
Bolivar smiled knowingly, letting the words settle in the air for a moment.
My eyes darted between the two men. They could not be serious.
“So, let me get this straight. You want me to help you kill some giant beast that has the capability of swallowing people for the sake of some treasure?”
“Of course not,” Bolivar said.
“That’s what the dragon-kin’s for,” said Rio. “You’re just here to make sure that if anyone important gets impaled, they don’t die.”
The blood ran from my face. Something told me Levent would not be included in that ‘important’. I frowned. Whatever faun decided to tell all the humans in the world about our healing ability was making life much more difficult for me.
“I see,” I said dully.
“And, if we all survive, we’ll transport you wherever you need to go, free of