The Pirate and The Assassin

Chapter Seven

She didn't sleep, just stayed up all night, associating the poisons with their names and colors and smells. Some smelled. Some didn't. It was hard to figure out which one would be less painless for the man tomorrow. It came between a few of them. Oleander, Belladonna,Hemslock and the daphne berry extract. Both were liquids meaning it would go down smoothly but it was hard to figure out which would be less painful. Her eyes scanned the books to find what she was looking for.

Oleander

Oleander plants contain several toxic elements, including cardiac glycosides, saponins, digitoxigenin, oleandrin, oleondroside, nerioside and other unknown toxins. These poisons are found in all parts of the oleander plant and are toxic whether the plant parts are dried or green. Ingestion of any part of the oleander plant can lead to serious illness and possibly death.

Hmm, MAY cause death. That ruled out that one. It couldn't be something that would make the man be in pain, had to be quick. Now onto belladonna, a common poison, A few pages more until the next one.

Belladonna

The symptoms of belladonna poisoning include dilated pupils, sensitivity to light, blurred vision, tachycardia, loss of balance, staggering, headache, rash, flushing, severely dry mouth and throat, slurred speech, urinary retention, constipation, confusion, hallucinations, delirium, and convulsions.

Nothing about death, however, and yet all of the symptoms seemed very painful. So that wouldn't work at all. Kenna crossed Belladonna off her list and continued onto her next poison. She flipped through a few more pages until she found the one she wanted.

Hemlock

Several poisonous plants in the , two species, one formerly used as a method of execution, or poison hemlock (water hemlock) Oenanthe crocata () , a genus of coniferous trees which resemble the poisonous plant, but are unrelated.

Her eyes re-read the paragraph just to make sure that she read it correctly. That was it! Hemlock was the correct answer. She closes her book and grabbed the small vial of hemlock extract and went up the stairs to Grimms office. She knocked and he opened it slowly.

"Hemlock. That is the poison to use." She said hastily and handed him the bottle. He took it and looked at the content.

"Well shall we see if you are right little miss?" He suggested and they both headed out on dec, where the crew was waiting with a man who was on his knees. His eyes widened as he saw the captain walked down the stairs, dressed in his fine coat and hat. He was confused as to why there was a little girl trailing behind him with a book and a vial.

"My men! This man here has been accused of attempted murder! What is the punishemnt?" His voice echoed loudly across the ship as the men responded.

"Death!" They cheered back. Grimm smiled and ushered Kenna forward.

"And since we are not cruel, he shall die quickly and painlessly. Our young protege Kenna here, has done us the favor of picking the poison. Shall we see if she got the right one?" He said maliciously and held out a silver cup. The men cheered and Kenna pulled the cork from the bottle, but before she poured it into the cup, she looked around. The men were all waiting for her to pour it in. But this wasn't any better than the man who had asked her to kill the person before and she had refused. This man's life was in her hands, she decided if he lived or died. She wanted to be here and be part of the crew. This was a test. Her heart beat fast as she decided. The liquid fell out of the vial and into the cup. Grimm held the cup out to the man.

"You can die a coward or die brave. Your choice." At least he was giving the man a chance, it was fair of him to allow the man to choose how he died. Kenna looked into the eyes of the man and she saw the courage and bravery. He took the cup, stared right at the captain, and downed the toxic liquid in one swift swig. The metal cup clattered to the wooden floor and everyone watched and waited for him to die. His eyes rolled to the back of his head and he fell. The man did not get back up once he fell. Grimm clapped Kenna on the back and smiled.

"Well done Girl. You chose the right one. Graves!" He called over to a tall, bulky man with one eye.

" It's your turn to swab the deck., Kenna has earned a break for now." Grimm took off his hat and placed it on her head. She adjusted the red hat as it slipped past her eyes. She smiled back at him and felt something new inside her. Not guilt, no it was something powerful. Taking a life was not as bad if they deserved it. A new confidence had taken root in her and she planned on letting it grow. As Grimm walked up the stairs, he turned to her and spoke.

"Scarlet looks good on you......" His brows fuddled, as if he was thinking about something.

"Scarlet.....Kenna Scarlet."

He had found her a last name.