Treasure of the sea |Lesbian story|

CHAPTER XXVIII

If I hadn't known Arenis was my accomplice, I would have been scared to death.

It was a strange realization, that one. The fact that Arenis had helped me still sounded bizarre in my head. Why on earth had she done that? Why had she changed her mind? Was it possible that she felt pity for me?

When I stood before her and they told her what I had tried to do, she pretended to be angry; she acted so badly that she seemed almost sorry that I had not succeeded. I was left in her hands, and when we were alone, she gave me a strange look.

"They noticed," I spoke.

"Noticed what?"

"Your leniency towards me."

"No, they haven't. And if they really have any doubts, they'll reconsider before long."

I backed away from her a step, trying not to let my fear show. "What are you going to do?"

Arenis just stared at me, taking on that typical unreadable expression of hers, so blank she looked like a statue.

"No food for five days. Also, you are no longer allowed to disembark from the ship."

I blanched. "Weren't you on my side?"

Why had she suddenly taken on that expression? She seemed almost... amused. "Do not fear. Among my crew I have noticed that you have friends. I am sure they will take pity on you enough to bring you food, without being seen by me, of course."

"You really enjoy playing this little games, don't you?"

"I don't know what you mean."

"You love manipulating us, watching us do what you predicted we would do. We're not puppets to be used at your will, you know."

"I'm only trying to help you, Miss Adler. Why on earth are you picking on me? Do you rather wish me to have you whipped? Have you keelhauled?"

I sighed, uncomfortably, resting my weight from one leg to the other. "Forgive me," I said. "I'm just... angry. And disappointed, mostly."

"Return to your cabin now. I suggest you at least pretend to be desperate for this punishment."

I nodded, not too convinced.

Arenis had been right. Dinnington was the first to disobey the Captain's orders. He knocked on the door of my cabin in the middle of the night. I'd gone the whole day without eating anything, and though by lunchtime I'd felt my stomach gurgling and irritation growing, I wasn't doing too badly. As soon as the feeling of hunger presented itself, I filled my stomach with water and after a while the feeling disappeared. However, I was craving something fresh. Fruit. Bananas. Pineapples and coconuts. I was suffering from the heat on the ship, because during the day the interiors became as hot as an oven. Being on deck was unwise; there was no shade and burning your skin under the sun was not at all pleasant.

"Eat," Dinnington said, handing me a bowl full of porridge and a spoon.

"...Dinnington, thank you."

Feeling my stomach fill with something solid was very pleasant. I ate eagerly, afraid that someone might discover us and snatch the spoon out of my mouth, but no one came.

"I'm so sorry."

"Don't worry about me."

"But I do worry. You see, one way or another, I've grown fond of you. You've had bad luck. Very bad luck, alas. How hard it must be for you to live each day with the incessant desire to escape. It is a pity that you were not successful. You'd be much better off now."

Next was Jackie Jay who, as I walked past him, pretended to collide with me and shoved a piece of bread into my trouser pockets.

Naade helped me too. He managed to pass me some biscuits and some beef jerky.

Then it was Quinn's turn, but he got caught by Eddie who went to report it to the Captain, thus earning him three lashes.

On the afternoon of the third day, it was Arenis herself who came. She handed me some fruit and a loaf of bread through the doorway, then she disappeared, quickly; it all happened in a few seconds.

All in all, I spent those five days of 'forced fasting' quite peacefully.

I was confined on the Black Star another five days before departure. The disappointment of being discovered, the dwindling hope of escape, and the sweltering heat made me a shell of self-pity, which I hid from the eyes of anyone to avoid appearing weak. The monotony on the ship didn't make things any better. I envied the people who got off the ship, suspending their sense of tedious boredom by wandering the streets of Nassau.

One morning I woke up with a start. It wasn't dawn yet, but there was a lot of noise outside my cabin. Soon after, someone knocked insistently on my door.

"Adler, there is an assembly." It was Quinn's voice.

"I'm coming."

They were all outside, yawning and crinkling their eyes from sleep. Arenis came on the bridge and announced that we would be leaving that very day, at nine o'clock. She had discovered the course of a large merchant ship carrying tobacco, tea, and silk, and there was no more time to lose if we were to capture her. The crew got busy loading the hold with provisions, doing maintenance and making sure everything was in order before taking the Black Star back out to sea.

Arenis made sure there was enough ammunition, weapons, and gunpowder, and when she was satisfied, she retreated to her cabin, plotting the best course to poach the other ship.

I was assigned to the group that tidied up the rigging and checked the condition of the various ropes, shrouds and anchor lines. If they were frayed it was our job to repair them. Then I was given into my hand a tub of soapy water and a large brush.

"Clean the deck."

"Uh," I huffed. "Why does it always have to be me?"

But I dared not complain further. I bent over the floor and began to scrub energetically, my back bent and my knees starting to ache after a few minutes. It wasn't exactly one of the most aberrant jobs on that ship, however, that strong smelling soap was drying my hands out terribly. In all my life I'd never had such bad hands. They were cracked, hardened, ruined by work. I always tried to soften them by massaging them with apple cider vinegar at the end of the day, but the next day they got worse again.

At nine o'clock, we left Nassau. I watched as it grew smaller and smaller until it disappeared over the horizon. Going to sea again after all that time on land made me feel nauseous.

There was no escape route left, no plan to devise, no one left to be able to help me. I was trapped again. And I felt so damn lonely.