Working for Demetrious is like running headfirst into a brick wall. Repeatedly. They could never be friends, but that doesn't mean the pirate can't teach Edward something before he finds a way to escape. He has to find a way back home. Back to Kalypso. Back to her. Whatever it takes, whatever evils he has to commit, Edward is coming home. He is going to hold Mercedes in his arms again, and this time he will never leave.
Big brother is out of the picture, and that spells opportunity. There will never be a better time for Christian to win over his father. Edward is finally gone. This time maybe for good. Who would have thought that Holston Zakarian had the stones to sacrifice one of his own children to save face? Christian vows to remember the lesson. The next one getting led to the slaughter won't be him.
Mercedes is a ticking time bomb, and the clock is running down. Edward is the love of her life. There is no scenario where Mercedes wouldn't choose him above everything else. Now he is gone again. She knows Edward hasn't been captured by pirates. He was offered to them like a sacrificial goat in exchange for additional support for the war effort. She doesn't care about any of that. All Mercedes wants is Edward, and she'll burn everything to ashes if that's what it takes to find him.
