CHAPTER 20: [20] ENSIGN RIVERS REPORTING FOR DUTY

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One Hour Earlier...

Raven adjusted the crisp white collar of her stolen Navy uniform, the fabric stiff against her neck. The jacket fit her perfectly—almost suspiciously so—while Pierre’s sailor outfit looked like he’d raided a child’s dress-up box.

"Alright, genius." She turned to face him, hands on her hips. "One more time. What’s your job?"

Pierre tugged at the too-short sleeves of his uniform shirt. "Go to the library. Look for maritime maps. Steal whatever I can find."

"And?"

"Don’t get caught."

"Good." Raven spun around to grab her bag and immediately pressed her lips together, shoulders shaking with suppressed laughter.

"What?" Pierre’s voice carried a dangerous edge.

"Pfft—" The sound escaped before she could stop it. She clamped both hands over her mouth.

"You’re laughing at me."

"I’m not—pfft—I’m really not—" Another snort of laughter broke free. "Oh god, Pierre, you look..."

"I look what?"

"Adorable!" The word burst out of her like a confession. "

Pierre’s face darkened. "You’re the one who grabbed this from the washroom!"

"I know! I didn’t realize Navy sailors were apparently built like twelve-year-olds!" Raven wiped tears from the corners of her eyes. "The sleeves don’t even reach your wrists!"

"This isn’t funny."

"It’s a little funny." She grinned, reaching out to straighten his crooked collar. "There. Now you look like a very tall, very grumpy chore boy."

Pierre swatted her hands away. "I hate you."

"No you don’t." Raven’s smile turned wicked. "Now go on. Be a good little Naval chore boy, okay? Make sure you salute properly when the officers walk by."

Pierre made a sound somewhere between a growl and a sigh. He grabbed the handle of the cleaning cart, its wheels protesting with a rusty squeak.

"I’ll be cashing in on that favor," he whispered as he passed her. "So keep laughing while you still can."

Heat bloomed across Raven’s cheeks, unexpected and unwelcome. The promise in his tone made something flutter low in her stomach—anticipation mixed with nervous energy that she didn’t want to examine too closely.

Pierre headed toward the corridor, cart rattling behind him.

"Hey, genius!" Raven called out. "It’s the other way!"

He stopped, shoulders rigid with embarrassment, then turned and stalked past her in the opposite direction. The cleaning cart’s wheels squeaked even louder, as if protesting his wounded dignity.

Raven watched him disappear around the corner, that strange flutter still dancing in her chest. She caught herself smiling—actually smiling.

She forced the expression off her face.

That’s not good.

Not good at all, considering what was waiting for her. Considering she’d have to leave him eventually. Considering he had no idea she was using him as bait while she went after the real prize.

The map of the Elysian Sea wasn’t in the library. Pierre would waste time searching through dusty atlases and outdated charts while she broke into Captain Hardy’s private office to steal the one document that mattered. The map that would buy her sister’s freedom, finally, after all these years.

But first, she had a role to play.

Raven straightened her stolen uniform and checked her reflection in a grimy window. The Navy jacket hugged her curves in all the right places, the modified cut she’d made with her dagger giving her the appearance of authority while maintaining just enough impropriety to catch attention. Her half-red, half-white hair was tucked under a regulation cap, though a few strategic strands had been allowed to escape.

Perfect.

This was what Raven did best—stealing. Pierre might be able to fight three pirates, but infiltration? That was her domain.

She just hoped he wouldn’t be too mad when he realized she’d used him as a distraction.

The thought made her chest tighten again. Pierre had stood up for her in that restaurant. Called her someone he cared about. Protected her without asking for anything in return.

Focus,

she told herself. Mika’s father is rotting in a cell because of the Hardys. This isn’t just about the money anymore.

Though the money still mattered. Twenty-five million Cori, accumulated interest and all, was what it would take to buy her sister back from that bastard nobleman. Every day she delayed was another day her sister suffered.

Raven pulled out a small mirror and applied a touch of stolen lipstick—Navy regulation red, of course. She’d learned long ago that men in positions of power had predictable weaknesses. Captain Hardy would be no different.

Her fingers traced the outline of the dagger hidden beneath her jacket. If charm failed, she had other options.

But first, she needed to get close to Hardy. Close enough to study his routines, his security, his private office where the real treasures were kept. The map was just the beginning.

Raven tucked the mirror away and strode toward the main building, her boots clicking against the stone with practiced confidence. She’d worn a dozen different faces, played a hundred different roles. Today, she was Ensign Rivers, newly transferred from the Coral Bay station, eager to serve under the legendary Captain Hardy.

Her hips swayed just enough to catch attention as she approached the front desk. The young clerk looked up, his eyes widening slightly at her appearance.

"Ensign Rivers reporting for duty," she said, her voice pitched slightly higher than usual, with just a hint of breathless enthusiasm. "I’m supposed to meet with Captain Hardy about my new assignment?"

The clerk fumbled with his papers. "I... I don’t have any record of—"

"Oh no!" Raven’s eyes widened in perfectly feigned distress. "They told me at Coral Bay that everything was arranged! Captain Hardy specifically requested me for his special operations unit!"

She leaned forward slightly, letting the clerk catch a glimpse of the curves barely contained by her uniform jacket. "I’ve sailed all this way. Surely there’s been some mistake with the paperwork?"

The young man’s Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed hard. "I... let me check with Lieutenant Commander Reynolds..."

"That would be wonderful!" Raven beamed at him. "You’re so helpful. I just know Captain Hardy will want to hear how accommodating his staff has been."

While the clerk hurried away to find Reynolds, Raven let her gaze wander across the lobby. Stone walls lined with portraits of stern-faced Naval officers stared down at her. A large map of the Dawn Sea dominated one wall, marked with shipping lanes and patrol routes. But what caught her attention was a more detailed chart partially visible through an open door—Captain Hardy’s office.

Bingo.

Now she just had to get inside without arousing suspicion. And if Pierre’s little performance at the restaurant had done its job, half the base would be out hunting for a red-haired menace while she worked.

Raven touched the stolen lipstick in her pocket and smiled.

Time to remind Captain Hardy why sailors had always been weak for a pretty face and a sad story.