Woman Overboard

Chapter 5 : Human (4)

Afiba

August 22nd, 1820

(6:48 PM)

"And deliver us from evil. Amen."

She opened her eyes, sighing at the ring of empty chairs on the other side of the table. Apparently, the whites needed to "freshen up" before dinner. However, hungry and fueled by leftover animosity, Afiba's crew had decided to go ahead and bless it. Why should they wait for the others if they couldn't be bothered to show up on time?

Oni seated himself two seats away from Afiba. "Fish again," he admitted. "But hey, we's got bread, cour'sy o' Jaiye o'er there."

Reece gave him a mock round of applause, reaching for a roll. Afiba glanced at the basket of bread. "I dunno if I'd eat that," she admitted, placing a hand on Reece's arm. "Seems a li'l ha'nted if ye ask me."

He squinted at her. " 'S just bread, Afi."

"Stolen from a sunked, ain't it?"

Ever unquestioningly faithful, Reece withdrew his hand and instead moved to cut himself a piece of fish.

Tonight, Afiba had forfeited her seat at the head of the table to Abigail, who sat with regal posture like a king holding a royal council. Afiba sat where the black chain ended, hoping Alessandra would claim the seat next to her. She felt it was her duty to bridge their two worlds as best she could, especially given what had happened this morning.

To her left sat Reece, who had already begun shoveling food into his mouth. With one eye swollen shut and the other just barely peeking out from a cushion of purple bruising, he made for a rather grotesque sight. Along with this, he had a broken wrist and had dislocated a shoulder. Afiba remembered the sickening pop it had made when Mary Ann pushed it back into place.

Reece himself, however, seemed to have forgotten all his injuries. "Good work, Oni. Man, you gotta know a milli ways to cook a goddamn fish."

Oni shrugged, letting a piece of pink fish slide off his fork. "Eh. 'S a little greasy."

"Ye want some, Afi?"

Afib sighed, contemplating the serving dish in front of Reece. On one hand, she felt too sick to eat. On the other hand, everyone would know something was wrong if she didn't eat. Grimacing to herself, Afiba nodded and let Reece pile a hearty serving onto her plate.

Just then the doors creaked open, a silent brigade of crewmen entering through them. Afiba watched the parade of injuries seat themselves, sending a fusillade of indirect glares toward Afiba's crew. Afiba's crew glared back, but with less subtlety. She patted Reece's thigh, reminding him not to scowl. He drew his lips down, taking a deep breath as Stephen, the man who had first started the fight, took a seat at the far end of the table.

They filed in, each choosing their seats with care until, as always, only two seats remained. Captain Broderick, not understanding Afiba's gesture, took her seat at the foot of the table, flanked by Edward and a blonde man whose name Afiba didn't know.

The first uncoveted seat was relinquished to Jamie, the young cabin boy, who sat on the edge of his chair, trying not to see Hany's shy glances toward him. The other seat, surprisingly, was claimed by none other than Danielle Broderick.

The little girl had walked in and, seeing the seats around her mother taken, sat down beside Afiba with little more than a glance in her direction and an awkward smile in which she drew her mouth to one side of her face and raised her eyebrows as if to say, hello?

Afiba smiled back. Nothing could make her heart buzz with hope more effectively than the sweetness of youthful innocence.

Dinner commenced. As Oni had feared, the white men had to cut themselves smaller and smaller portions as the platter went around, the line ending with Jamie, who ended up with a morsel of fish hardly bigger than his four fingers.