The Virgin Whore (An Erotic Novel)

Chapter 6 - The Three Amigos

CHAPTER 6

After we'd got back onto the ship, Leonardo asked the captain where we'd be sleeping. As it turned out, he had already arranged us our own cabin on the ship.

I wondered what kind of payment he would want for his generosity. A man like that never does anything out of good will.

While the majority of the men from the ship were out, we decided to use that time to explore the ship and get to know where everything was, even though due to Leonardo's time on a ship before, he ended up showing me the main points of interest.

He showed me places like where the cannons are and explained how and when they are used. That knowledge didn't sit well, to know that we could come under attack at any time on our long journey across the ocean by a ship of dirty, ravaging men far worse than even the occupants of this ship.

He then took me right down into the depths of the ship, where there was currently no light. The further down we got, the louder and more ominous the creaking got as the ship swayed gently over the slight currents. As we got down further, it became apparent that most of the rooms and corridors below decks stank like a sickening mixture of stale salt water, human sweat, urine and rotting wood.

"This is where the cook is," Leonardo informed me. "Every day, you'll line up here to get a bowl full of the foulest food you'll ever have the misfortune of eating. And if you don't eat it, you'll starve because this is all there is."

He took me down one final floor. "This is where the stores are. Don't get caught in here as it's where all the supplies are kept. Only the officers and cooks are allowed in here."

He then took me back up to the top deck, much to my relief. My lungs were screaming for fresh air by the time we got up.

"This is where the officers usually are. From my experience, it's usually better to stay out of their way."

We stood on the top deck for a little while and enjoyed the sun, though there was a cold breeze that warned us that winter was just around the corner.

Leonardo had been acting strange since that incident on the train that morning. I was so close to just asking him what had happened. But I didn't want to give him the satisfaction.

He was probably moping because the girl had rejected him. That thought gave me some satisfaction, but then it didn't make sense why their clothes were all disarrayed when they came back.

Ugh! There was no point in stressing over it. As soon as we got to Italy, I'd finally get my fresh start and leave him for dirt. I would be better off without all these strange feelings anyway that I had regarding him.

I was getting thirsty and wandered over to a big wooden barrel in the corner of the deck, hoping that there'd be water.

I took off the lid and reached inside for the tankard. Goodness knew how many men had drank out of this mug before me, but I would have to get used to it.

The barrel was nearly empty, so I assumed that they'd be refilling it and the rest of the stores before they set sail again. I reached down until I was almost inside it and scooped out some of the water, brought it to my mouth and took a huge swig... then spat it straight back out.

This muck tasted disgusting. It was slimy, acidic and tasted foul.

Leonardo began laughing from where he was standing across from me. "It's called grog," he said between laughing. "Don't you like it?"

"What's grog?" I demanded, still trying to spit out as much of the liquid as possible.

"They use it on big ships like this when travelling long distances. If they use water, it just goes slimy with algae over time and starts to taste pungent. So they mix water with rum and lime. The rum improves the taste, while also keeping the men happy and preventing the growth of algae, the water rehydrates, and the lime is to prevent scurvy which is common amongst sailors due to the lack of fruit on long trips."