I was so angry that I could feel it in my blood. “You’re the helmsman, West. It’s not the same.”

West looked as if he was measuring his words. “Paj is going to take over as helmsman.”

“What?” I was shouting now, and the people on the street were stopping to stare. I didn’t care.

“The crew will set up trade just the way we said. It’ll be waiting for me when I get back to the Narrows.”

I wanted to scream. I wanted to hit him. “Why is my name on the deed?”

West sighed, exasperated. “I don’t want it in my name if…” He didn’t finish.

“If what?” I leveled my eyes at him.

“If something happens to me and the ship is in my name, ownership would fall to the Trade Council until the crew could pay to have the ownership transferred. If you own it, that won’t happen.”

Tears burned behind my eyes until the sight of him wavered. “So you’re just going to go work for Holland. Do whatever she tells you.”

“I’ll do what I have to do.” He gave me the words I’d made him promise the night before.

“That’s not what I meant. You know that’s not what I meant.”

He had no reply to that.

“How could you do this?” I said hoarsely.

I started walking, but West’s heavy footsteps echoed behind me. He caught my arm, pulling me back. “I’m not going back to the Narrows without you.”

I could see that he wasn’t going to concede. And he couldn’t now, anyway. He’d signed the contract. But West was already haunted. His soul was dark. And I didn’t want to know who he would be if he spent two more years doing someone else’s dirty work.

I could feel it. If I lost to Holland at the Trade Council meeting, I would lose West.

“You won’t have to. Neither will I,” I said, a tear falling down my cheek.

“What?”

“I signed one, too.”

“Why? How?”

“For Saint.” I stared at him. “Now we all get what we want. You, me. Holland.” I almost laughed at how ridiculous it all was.

West let out a heavy breath, looking past me. His mind was reeling. Looking for a way out.

“You can’t keep trying to take control of everything. You can’t save everyone, West.”

But he didn’t know how to stay out of it.

I shook my head, starting down the hill without him.

Now it wasn’t just my fate in Henrik’s hands. It was West’s, too.

THIRTY-SIX

Leith Tavern sat at the end of Linden Street, bustling with people coming and going from the merchant’s house before the closing bell rang out over the village.