The DeCadia Code (The DeCadia Series Book 1) by Apryl Baker, Jonathan Yanez Read Free Book Online

beating at her body, and the sting of the burn on her back. Val did what she always did; she let herself become an extension of the ship. She let the vibrations soak in, the feel of the wood mold to her hands, and her feet braced, anchoring to the wood of the deck. It was when she was here, at the helm of the ship, that Val truly felt alive. She was Valeria, Captain of The Emerald Queen , and terror of the skies. She would not die today. She knew it.
    The wheel tried to force itself to the right, then the left, but Val held it steady, sweat beading her brow. Arms aching from the force required to hold the wheel steady, she refused to give into the burn of her screaming muscles. They were nearing land and she scanned for a relatively flat place to put down the vessel—all she could see were the tops of trees. She’d landed in worse places upon occasion.
    Val fought the wheel when the entire ship shook from the force of the mast finally snapping in two and falling. Val’s legs buckled and she went down to one knee. Despite this, she held on tight to the wheel and forced her legs to move. She clung to the helm and pulled herself up. They were falling now. Val used every ounce of strength she had to keep the wheel steady. She dared not take even one hand off the wheel to adjust the levers for their descent. Not that it mattered at this speed, though. Instead, she concentrated on trying to steer the ship away from the densest part of the forest they were falling into.
    When they hit the tops of the trees, the entire ship shuddered. Val winced and held on for dear life. Dense foliage broke and bent as they dived, which left a clear path for the pirates to follow. She could hear the screaming below her; could see people flying off the ship. She blocked it from her mind. She’d told everyone to strap themselves in, ordered crewmembers to warn others. Their deaths were not her fault. She’d done all she could.
    A couple hundred yards from the ground, Val gave up the fight and wrapped her arms as tight as she could around the spokes of the wheel. When the bottom of the ship hit the ground it bounced a little and then skidded. Val’s head connected with the wheel and her vision went blurry. The ship smashed into a thick band of trees and Val’s head again collided with the wheel.
    Val’s blurry vision went dark just as the ship stopped and the last thing she saw was the pirate ship barreling toward them.
     
    ***
     
    It was clear that someone experienced had maneuvered the wheel of the merchant ship. The way the craft cut through the sky had been amazing. Even its spiraled descent, chased by the smaller, faster pirate ship, spoke of true talent behind the helm.
    Nine out of ten ships, when critically damaged the way the merchant ship was, would lose altitude in an instant. It would fall from the sky like a comet, and depending on the terrain below, decimate its sailors. Stephen had seen it a dozen times before. This ship seemed to be the exception to the rule.  
    Furthermore, the merchant ship actually returned fire. Cannons roared through sky in response to the attacking pirate vessel defiantly yelling at the pirates.
    The thunder of cannons and the acrid smoke assailed his senses as he stood near the helm of his ship. Stephen shouted orders to the men and woman of the Royal Navy like he was born for the role. “Cannons fire at the pirate ship. Keep the lead pouring on them. We need to stop them before they destroy what’s left of the merchant ship.”
    Amil ran back and forth across the deck. As first sergeant he was responsible for the cannons in the event of an attack. Stephen was more than confident of his friend’s ability to handle the role.
    “Steady, Marm,” Stephen shouted to be heard over the cannon fire and the clamor of his own sailors.
    “Steady yourself. I know what I’m doing…Captain Cross.”
    Stephen bit back a smile. Despite the nervous energy tingling up and down his body from the fight, the woman