I looked around, momentarily disoriented, then remembered I was on a pirate-hunter ship headed for the Southern Ocean, and had been for two weeks. I tossed the light blanket aside, sat up, and shook my head to clear it.In my half-awake state I’d just realized something that should have been obvious, and I was astounded at my own idiocy. How had I missed that? It was right in front of me, plain as day, and hadn’t registered.I swung my bare feet off the bed. The wooden deck was damp with condensation, as was my skin. The tiny master’s cabin—a closet-sized space located between the much more spacious captain’s quarters and the equally claustrophobic one belonging to the purser—had one round window that was essentially useless unless the door was open to allow a cross breeze. Seated on the edge of the bunk, I could touch my forehead to the opposite wall if I leaned far enough. My saddlebags lay beside the door, and my sword rested under my bunk.I stood, wiped the sweat from my face, and looked around for my tunic.
