“We could have handled it,” John eventually starts. Yes, they could have. But not in the way the fucker deserved. Then, my first mate makes a mistake and continues, “Though, getting your hands dirty always did help you de-stress, Hook.”

“Who says I’m fucking stressed?” I hiss as I wipe the bastard’s blood off my favorite weapon and stash it back on my belt. The hook’s weight sits heavy on my side, just like the thought of Wendy laying in my bed after all this time sits heavy in my gut.

Or is that my heart?

Shaking my head, I glance up and wait for John to answer. The stand-off between me and my first mate intensifies the longer he takes to answer my fucking question. The others in the room sense it and back into the shadows. Hell, she may be his sister, but I’ll be damned if he tells me what’s what. Especially when he has no fucking clue what really went down between us.

“You just gutted one of your own men for no reason…”

“There was a damn good reason.”

“Telling Tink that Wendy is back on the Jolly Roger is no reason to…”

“Keep running your fucking mouth, Smee, and you’ll be next.”

His jaw ticks as a few of my men quickly clear out of the room. They’re obviously worried I’ll start a killing spree that they won’t have the chance to escape with their life once I get started. Wouldn’t be the first time. And shit, it damn sure won’t be the last if John keeps pushing his luck.

“Tink forgot about Wendy long ago, Hook,” he grits out as he takes a step towards me. But that’s not true. John doesn’t know all he thinks he does, seeing as Tink was the one who tipped me off to her living alone. “Honestly, I think she’s more pissed at who has been warming your bed since Wendy, than a ghost from your past.”

“Tink warms it often enough herself, when she’s in the right mood to share.”

“But not as often as Tiger Lily.”

“Speaking of which,” I hiss out, annoyed with the conversation. I glance out the window and see the sun setting, “It’s about her time too, and fuck if I don’t still need another damn release.”