Chapter 117-The only law that mattered

Chapter 117: 117-The only law that mattered

"I’ve never been more serious in my life."

Aymara ended the transmission and then she turned toward the system display.

"Continue monitoring the fleet. If anyone crosses the perimeter, eliminate the threat."

[Command acknowledged. Defensive protocols remain active.]

Aymara exhaled and turned toward Nathaniel. "Now, where were we?"

But Nathaniel wasn’t looking at her. He was staring down at his hands, his face unusually quiet.

The rejection had been clear. Aymara had not hesitated, nor had she shown the slightest trace of longing when Dylan offered to take her back.

Yet Nathaniel’s fear had not disappeared because Dylan had once been the center of Aymara’s world. Nathaniel knew how easily old attachments could return, especially when memories of happier days resurfaced.

He had no idea what tomorrow would bring. Perhaps Aymara would continue to reject Dylan and she would never look at him with affection again.

Or perhaps one day, Nathaniel would wake to find that the woman who had finally returned to his life had decided that her first love deserved another chance.

And Nathaniel would be left behind once more.

"Nate?" Aymara asked.

He forced himself to look up. "Yes?"

"You’re quiet."

"I’m tired."

She studied him for a moment, unconvinced. She reached for his hand. "Nathaniel, look at me."

He obeyed reluctantly and met her eyes with a heaviness she couldn’t quiet name. "I meant what I said to Dylan. I don’t want him back."

"I heard you."

"Did you?"

She worried that he heard the words she spoke but didn’t register the truth behind them.

His lips parted, but he couldn’t bring himself to explain the fear that had been eating away at him. He didn’t want to sound possessive. He didn’t want to make demands when they hadn’t even decided what they were to each other.

Most of all, he didn’t want to ask her to choose him and discover that he had misunderstood everything. So he simply nodded.

"I did."

Aymara’s expression softened. She shifted closer until their shoulders touched, then threaded her fingers through his.

"You don’t have to compete with Dylan," she said quietly. "Whatever happened between him and me belongs to the past."

Nathaniel swallowed. "And what about us?"

The question escaped before he could stop himself. Aymara went still.

For a moment, she looked at him with an expression he couldn’t read. Then her fingers tightened around his.

"We’re still figuring that out," she answered honestly. "I won’t make promises just to soothe your fears. But I won’t let Dylan decide my future, either."

Nathaniel lowered his eyes to their joined hands. It wasn’t a declaration of love or a promise that she would never leave him but it was honest, and perhaps that was more than he had dared to hope for.

Outside, Captain Rourke’s fleet remained gathered around the cruise ship, searching desperately for a weakness in its defenses.

They had come expecting an easy victory. Instead, they had discovered that the woman they intended to rob was far more dangerous than they had imagined.

And aboard the pirate flagship, Sarah watched Aymara’s impenetrable vessel with growing dread.

She had wanted Aymara to lose everything.

Now she was beginning to understand that she might have led the pirates straight toward the one person in the apocalypse who could destroy them all.

However, Captain Rourke had never been a patient man. He had survived the early days of the apocalypse by taking what others possessed and killing anyone foolish enough to resist.

In his eyes, strength was the only law that mattered, and the ocean belonged to whoever had the courage to claim it. Yet the cruise ship before him had refused to bow.

His men had failed to board it. Their weapons had been disabled, their small boats damaged, and several of his strongest fighters had been eliminated before they could even touch its hull.

Worse, the woman commanding the ship had mocked him. Rourke stood at the railing, watching the magnificent vessel with bloodshot eyes.

He could almost taste the wealth hidden behind its walls: food, medicine, fuel, advanced technology, and perhaps enough resources to make him the undisputed ruler of the ocean.

He refused to leave empty-handed.

"Captain, we should withdraw," one of his subordinates suggested cautiously. "That ship’s defenses are beyond anything we’ve encountered. If we keep attacking, we’ll lose more men."

Rourke turned slowly. "Withdraw?" The question sounded like a threat.

The man lowered his head. He shrank in cowardice. "Perhaps we could follow it and wait for an opportunity. When its weapons run out of energy or its owner becomes careless..."

"Do you think I survived this long by waiting for other people to become careless?" Rourke snapped.

"No, Captain."

"Then stop talking nonsense!"

He paced across the deck, his boots striking the metal floor. His gaze shifted toward the water surrounding Aymara’s cruise ship, and suddenly, an idea came to him.

The ship had formidable weapons, but it still relied on its engines to move. Every vessel did and even the most advanced fortress couldn’t escape if it couldn’t move.

Rourke’s lips slowly curved into a cruel smile. "Bring me the heavy chains."

His men exchanged uncertain glances. "The chains, Captain?"

"Yes! The thickest ones we have. The ones we use to secure captured vessels." He pointed toward the cruise ship. "We’ll send divers beneath that monster and wrap the chains around its propellers. Once they’re caught, those engines won’t turn again."

A subordinate stared at him in disbelief. "Under the ship? Captain, the water is full of mutated creatures. We’ve already lost men to the things lurking beneath the surface."

Rourke’s expression darkened. "And what do you suggest? That we swim away with our tails between our legs?"

"No, but..."

"Listen carefully." His voice rose until everyone on the nearby deck could hear him. "Whoever successfully secures those chains will receive a share of the supplies we take from that cruise ship. A large share. Food, medicine, weapons, fuel...whatever you want, you’ll have it. Anyone who completes the mission will be rewarded handsomely!"

The promise stirred the exhausted pirates. They were hungry, tired, and increasingly desperate.

Many had spent days surviving on scraps while watching other vessels sink beneath the waves. The thought of unlimited food and medicine was enough to weaken even their fear.

One man stepped forward. "How much are we talking about?"

Rourke grinned. "Enough to make you forget how miserable you’ve been in the past few days."

"And if we succeed in capturing the ship?"

"You’ll never have to beg for another meal again."

That did it. Greed began to overpower caution. The pirates gathered the heavy chains and prepared their diving equipment.

Some carried underwater lights, while others armed themselves with harpoons and short blades, though everyone knew those weapons might be useless against the mutated creatures.

Sarah watched the preparations from a distance, her face growing pale.

"Captain, is this really necessary?" she asked. "We’ve already seen what her ship can do. Perhaps we should find another way."

Rourke looked at her with contempt. "You were the one who told me about this ship. Now that we’re here, you want me to leave?"