The Child That Never Was (NaNoWriMo 2014)

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Thirteen

“It’s not that simple,” I countered, sitting on a barrel underneath the upper deck.  This is where all of the crews men stay while on board.  They sleep on hammocks and sit on barrels, drinking away their lives when not needed to do work.  Bethany sat on the barrel behind me, playing with the threads on her sleeves, nervous about the whole event.  She was skeptical about whether or not we should be telling these men about what was going on, but at this point, I was desperate enough to trust them.

It’s interesting to see me take the role of being leader, considering who I was prior to this whole journey.  Had it not been for Bethany being so timid and nervous, I would never have taken the initiative to become the leader between us, the one always speaking out.  Then again, I never thought that I would be sucked into my own paintings, burned to death on a stake, only to be brought back to life.  It just wasn’t adding up why Kairi was sending us to my paintings, and what we were supposed to be witnessing in each.  What secret was she trying to lead us to?

“Well, then, tell us,” the man in the corner pleaded, raising his mug of beer.

“I’ve told you the story, but you are just not comprehending it, which makes sense, honestly.  I mean, it’s an incomprehensible story, you know.  Two girls being sucked into different worlds that the one girl had painted, and being threatened by some mysterious voice…  Yeah, that’s a bit incomprehensible, I know.”  I sighed and blew the hairs out of my face.  Why couldn’t anything ever be easy for Bethany and me?  Or for me alone?  All my life I dealt with insecurities and harsh circumstances.  Where’s my break?

The guys mumbled in response, “Yeah, its queer.”  Recalling these memories must have given Bethany a horrible taste in her mouth for she stood up and walked to the other side of the room, biting away at her finger nails.  For a moment I considered walking over to comfort her, but decided that this moment was what she needed to be alone and recuperate.  All she need was a little time to gather her mind; I had no doubt that she would soon be fine.

“She wants us to discover some secret, and the only thing is that I have no idea what this secret is,” I sighed.

“Secret of the sea!” someone yelled out with a cheery expression.  I laughed slowly.  If only that were it.  I had a feeling that this secret was far more treacherous than some old sailor’s story that was once lost at sea.  I felt my face sadden at this thought, desperately wanting this secret to be something petty that I would be safe with.  However, the more I knew about who I was dealing with, the less safe I felt in the situation.

“We could all force her to tell us!”

“Threaten her with weapons!”

“Kill her!”

I watched as they kept coming up with “solutions” as to how to make this whole situation go away.  I admit, if she were dead, it would make our lives quite easier.  However, it is against my moral beliefs to wish death upon someone, no matter what they have done to you to deserve such treatment.  It was just something that shouldn’t happen to anyone.

“Kaylie…” Bethany said softly, looking at me with horror struck eyes.  I spun around to see what she was looking at and saw Kairi standing on the stairs behind me with a look of grimace plastered upon her.  My heart sped up.  How much had she heard?

“Well,” she fake laughed.  “How nice it is of you, Kaylie, to spread all of my little secrets to everyone.  When I chose you and Bethany, I thought that you would be the stronger one and that Bethany would crack first, telling people about what was happening.  I guess that I stand corrected.”  A look of amusement went through her as she walked down the stairs, sending chills up my sign.  The closer she approached, the more nervous I felt.  Before I knew it, she was directly on the step above and behind me, breathing on my neck.