by J. B. North
Once she noticed that I was awake, she smiled widely. “Are you feeling any better?”
I nodded. “Yes,” I croaked.
“Well enough to eat something?” she asked.
I looked over at the tray. I didn’t think that I would be able to handle it if it was something big, but luckily, it wasn't.
It was just a bowl of warm chicken broth. The aroma that came from it was mouth-watering.
“I think I could handle that,” I said.
She smiled. “I thought I’d bring it down in case you were hungry,” she said as she shifted in her chair to grab the bowl. “And if you hadn’t woken up just then, I would’ve drank it and left.”
“Well, I’m glad I woke up,” I said as I tried to grasp the bowl in my hands. Sophia seemed to know that I wouldn’t be strong enough to hold it yet because she didn’t let go as I tried to raise it to my mouth.
The delicious broth rolled over my tongue and down my throat. It soothed the soreness there and warmed my body. She pulled the bowl back so I could wait a while before attempting any more.
“It tastes wonderful,” I said. Unlike Elna, Sophia could cook.
Sophia beamed. “Thank you… My mother used to make this recipe for me when I was sick. She used only the freshest herbs, vegetables, and meat to give the broth more flavor and nutrients.”
I reached for the bowl, ready for some more. Sophia helped me drink it down. When the bowl was empty, she stood up. “I’ve got to go finish cooking supper. The crew will be banging at my door before long.”
“Thank you so much,” I said gratefully.
She smiled at me and left.
I stayed up for a long time. The broth had made me feel a little queasy after a while, but it passed shortly after that. I was about to go back to sleep when the door squeaked open and footsteps entered the room.
I opened my eyes to see Roland. His hair was disheveled from wind and his face was sunburned. He smiled at me as if he knew how handsome he looked just then. I sat up straighter in bed and tried to concentrate on anything but that. “It would be you to come in when I’m almost asleep,” I said, trying not to sound tired. Instead my voice sounded whiny.
“I finally got some free-time and figured I’d come see how you were doing.”
“Well, I’m doing a lot better.”
He smiled, his eyes twinkling. “I came before. It’s just that this is the first time that you were awake.”
His words helped me remember how he was the one who had carried me to my bed. “Thank you for bringing me here earlier.”
“No problem,” he said, sitting down on the bunk next to me. “I would do that for anybody.”
We were silent for a few seconds until Roland came up with a new topic.
“We should be able to jump ship in three days if the wind stays on our side,” Roland said.
I smiled at the pun. “So we’re doing good?” I asked.
He nodded. “Remarkably so.”
“Good. I want to get off as soon as possible.”
He raised his eyebrows. “You don’t like it?”
“No. Not if it makes me sick.”
“It won’t always do that. You just have to get used to it. I bet that I got nauseated the first time I was on a boat. I can’t remember it, but I bet I did.”
“How many times have you been on a ship?” I questioned.
“When I was little I went on a few trips with my father, but they were all short so that my mother wouldn’t worry. Because of the quests, though, I’ve lost count. There are a lot of things that we spy on overseas.”
I studied the hem of my blanket. “What are normal quests like?”
There was no reply. I glanced up at him. He stared off in the distance flexing his jaw. Finally, his eyes flicked back to me and he answered. “Some of them are fine. Just gathering information on how the countries are running. Others are…worse. It depends on who your taskmaster is.”
I felt like I might be going too far, but I wanted more information. “What things did you have to do?”
He opened his mouth, and then closed it. He seemed to be contemplating whether or not he should tell me. “I…I think…” He paused to gather his thoughts. “I should go see if Burton needs any help,” he muttered. He stood up and walked quickly to the hatch. Before he left, he turned back. “I’ll tell you before you graduate,” he said, and then he disappeared.
My mind was spinning to think of the possible reasons why Roland wouldn’t tell me. Did he have to kill certain people? Was there something worse that I didn’t know about?
I sunk back down into my bed and laid my head on the pillow. I didn’t sleep for a long time. My mind was too busy picturing Roland killing someone. The same picture played over and over in my mind. I squeezed my eyes shut and tried not to think about it, but if anything, it made it worse. I decided to just let the image stay there until I eventually drifted off.
CHAPTER TWENTY
I woke up flying through the air.
I hit the wall hard just before getting tossed the other way. I scrambled to my feet and lunged for the ladder. I grabbed it just in time. The ship lurched the other way and one of the dressers came away from the wall and barreled straight for me. I had to scurry as fast as I could up the ladder to avoid getting crushed. I pushed through the hatch and was greeted with a face full of sea water.
Some got caught in my lungs, and I tried to cough it out. Roland came out of nowhere and pulled me off the ladder and onto the deck. The ship rocked and I lost my footing and would’ve fallen if Roland hadn’t been grasping my shoulders. He led me up some stairs and into the captain’s compartment, and tossed me in.
“Stay here until the storm ends!” he yelled above the roaring winds. Then he slammed the door shut and was gone. I looked around. It was pitch black. “Hello?” I called.
“Ivy?” someone said back. It was a woman’s voice. The only other woman on board was Sophia.
“I’m so glad you’re here and safe. I was so worried about you.” The ship rocked violently and I was thrown toward her voice.
My head hit the wall hard, sending stars circling through my vision. I reached out for handholds in case the ship rocked the other way. Instead, I found Sophia’s hand. I clasped it tight, wondering if we would make it through this night.
I tried to keep myself pushed against the wall as the storm tossed us around. I would slip a little when a sudden wave would crash against the ship, but my tactic kept me from getting badly injured. Sophia and I were silent, not only because the storm's roar was too loud to talk over, but also because of fear.
The storm raged for hours, and my legs were starting to cramp by the time the waves died down. The darkness was still deep and the storm had left me exhausted. I drifted off as soon as the steady rocking of the boat permitted it.
When I woke up, the first thing I noticed was Sophia. Her face lacked its usual color, and there was a cut above her eyebrow. I thought she was dead, until I noticed her steady breathing.
The light was pale, so it was either early morning, or the storm wasn't quite done with us yet. I stood on unsteady legs to look out the window. The sun had barely risen over the horizon, and the sky was clear of clouds. I smiled. It was over.
The smile faded when I realized that I didn’t know if everyone was all right yet. I stood up on wobbly legs and hurried toward the door, opening it. There was no one. My heart flopped in my chest. Had they fallen into the sea?
I jumped when the hatch suddenly opened up.
The soggy crew poured onto the deck. Some of them were bloodied and limping. I searched through them to find either Roland or Burton, but I didn’t see them. I hurriedly climbed down the steps, leaving Sophia, and confronted one of the crew members.
“Where are the captain and Roland?” I asked anxiously.
The man pointed to the hatch. “Down there. The captain fell into the icy water, and Roland jumped in to save him. I still don’t know how they both got back on deck. A wave must have
tossed them up.”
He might not have known, but I know. Roland was a sea serpent. The only way they both survived was because of Roland’s second form. Thank goodness for him.
I didn’t wait for the man to say anything else before dashing to the hatch and hurrying down the ladder. Burton was covered in blankets, shivering. Roland was dripping wet, but he didn't show any signs of being cold.
Roland looked up at me.
“Is he okay?” I asked.
Roland nodded. “He’ll be fine when the chill passes,” he said.
Burton nodded in agreement, but didn’t bother talking.
I sat on the soggy bunk across from them, and Roland came over to sit next to me, his shoes sloshing against the floor.
We sat silently until Burton's chattering died down. When I was certain he was asleep, I leaned closer to Roland and whispered, “Thank you.”
Roland looked at me, surprised. “For what?”
“For possibly saving my life,” I answered with a sheepish smile.
He shrugged. “I'm sure you would've been fine, but you’re welcome anyway.”
We sat in silence as the ship rocked gently. I stood up and started to leave.
“Wait,” Roland said. I turned back and looked at him inquisitively.
“What happened to the back of your head?”
I remembered slamming it into the wall. I reached up with my hand and felt the tender spot where I had hit it. My hair was clumped with blood. I grimaced. “It probably looks worse than it is,” I said.
He studied it a while longer before saying, “I hear that Sophia knows the basics of healing. You should go to her and ask for help.”
I nodded. “I’ll get her to look at it.”
He smiled. I left, content now that I knew he and Burton were safe.
I looked in the captain's quarters for Sophia, but she wasn't there anymore. I eventually found her in the kitchen, which had become a disastrous mess. There were shards of blue and green glass all over the floor mixed in with pools of wine. Most of the bowls and plates were made out of wood because of this very reason.
Sophia was sweeping it all into a corner, her straw broom dripping and stained with blood-red liquid. She looked pretty put out.
“Is there anything that I can do to help?” I asked her.
She stopped sweeping and turned to me. “No, not really.” She studied the mess, her mouth formed into a deep frown. “Some of the crew will be quite angry about this. I’ll have to have Burton bridle them or they’ll be in here cursing up a storm and tearing my kitchen to pieces.”
“Isn’t there more in barrels?” I questioned. “I've heard mention of them.”
She nodded. “Yes, there is, but it's the cheap stuff. It's just to hold people over until we get to the next stop.”
I stood a chair back up on its four legs and sat down, crossing my arms. “Then they'll just have to survive on that.”
She smiled. “Well, I’m glad to have you on my side anyway, seeing as you come from the Crescent Isle Conservatory.”
I smiled at her. “How did you know that that’s where I came from?”
“Roland told me,” she said. She batted her eyelashes, a knowing smile on her face. “He’s very handsome, don’t you think?”
The very thought of him made me blush and I tried not to seem too obvious. “Um…I guess so,” I said with a shrug. I suddenly became very fascinated with a strand of my hair.
She noticed the strand of hair, which was coincidentally one of the ones caked in blood.
“Oh, how could I not have seen that?” she asked, her eyes wide. “Why haven’t I checked you over already? I should have guessed that you had been hurt after being thrown against the wall like that.” Sophia went to one of the cabinets and untied a piece of twine that she had wrapped around the handles. It opened and she shuffled through the things until she found what she was looking for: a clean cloth and a wooden bowl.
She went to the opposite side of the room where a barrel sat, secured tightly to the wall and unharmed from the storm. She began to talk as she lifted off the lid and scooped some water out. “This ship is lucky that Burton had the foresight that he did. The storm was too unexpected to tie anything else down. Whenever we sail in storm season, the ship is tied up tighter than my uncle’s doublet.”
I smiled as she went behind me, but my smile immediately faded when she started to bathe my wound. I winced every time she dabbed. As she did so, she continued to talk.
“My uncle has had one too many cakes. No, make that several. He has the second form of a salmon, so I don’t know how he got to be a banker. He must have had some important friends, because rightfully, he should be a sailor like all of these men. Anyway, my sister and I always laugh when we picture him flopping around on his trial day. I was so worried that I'd suffer the same fate before my trial, so you can imagine my relief when I just turned into a lop-eared rabbit.”
I knew she was trying to distract me, and I was glad of it. It helped me to concentrate on things other than the pain.
I was surprised when she stopped talking for a moment, but it was only seconds before she started up again. “I was talking about something earlier before you got me sidetracked,” she said. “What was it?”
I shrugged.
“Oh, I remember,” she said suddenly, appearing in front of me with a glint in her eye. “It was about Roland.”
She went back behind me and continued to dab. “I was talking about how handsome he is… And you know what? Seeing as you’re on this long journey together, I would assume a relationship could come naturally.” She waited for me to say something.
I shifted uncomfortably.
She laughed. “If you don’t take him, though, I will.”
I looked back at her with a frown. “Where are you trying to go with this conversation?” I asked.
She smiled and turned my head back around gently. “I’m only trying to find out whether or not you like him. And from what I’ve seen, I think that you do.”
I turned bright red, and I was glad that she'd turned me away from her.
“And if that assumption is true, I think he likes you, too.”
I couldn’t hold back any longer. “Really?” I asked.
She giggled. “I knew I could get something out of you!”
I blushed again, but now that she knew something, I decided to continue. “I...I can't see how it will work out,” I said hesitantly.
She snorted. “Of course it will. If two people love each other, they’ll do anything to be together,” she stated dramatically.
I really didn’t know anything about relationships. In the orphanage, relationships with anyone, let alone between boys and girls, were discouraged. Thinking about that made my thoughts shift to Ayon and how he thought that we could have that sort of a relationship. I was instantly somber. I knew that my denial must have hurt him, but after the changes in my life, that path would've given me more obstacles to go through.
The ship creaked loudly, more loudly than it would have before the storm. Sophia heard it as well. “There is bound to be some damage. I'm sure the crew are trying to fix everything right now.”
“Have you been through other storms?” I asked.
“Many. That’s how I came to be on this ship. The last ship I was working on went through a bad one. Many people I knew died that night.” Her voice cracked, and she cleared her throat. She took in a deep breath before continuing. “Burton found me among the wreckage and brought me on board, along with a handful of others that managed to live.”
Roland had said that many of the quests were overseas, meaning I’d be on a ship more than most people, putting me in the danger of storms like this one.
“Do you ever wish that you were a cook on land? In someone's house or tavern?” I asked her.
She dabbed my head a few more times and then placed the bowl on the counter.
She studied me seriously for a moment as she thought, but then she shook her
head. “If I were a cook on land, I’d have to work every day. When I’m on a ship I get time off when we dock, and I also get to see the world. This is the most adventurous a cook’s life can get, so I’m taking it.”
“Do you think that you’ll ever settle down with someone?” I queried.
She raised her eyebrows, smiling mischievously. “Well, now. That depends on whether or not you take Roland.”
I blushed again, but pretended to be carefree. “If he doesn’t take me, you can have him.”
Sophia laughed and grasped the broom handle once again. I helped her as much as I could while she told more stories about her ridiculous Uncle Gene and her garish Aunt Ruby.
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
That whole day, we worked hard to restore the ship back to normal. Several sails had been ripped to shreds, there was a leak below decks, and the mast was leaning to one side.
I propped my elbows on the rail next to Burton. It was the first time I had seen him taking a break since he'd been well enough to get up. The ocean expanded as far as the eye could see. Icebergs that had only just started to appear were visible here and there.
I looked over at Burton. His face was grim. I’d noticed that he hadn’t smiled the whole day.
“What’s wrong?” I asked.
He glanced at me and I could tell he was trying not to look so forlorn. “We don’t have the money to repair the ship...and we won’t for a long time.”
“We’re trying to fix it up, though,” I said, attempting to be optimistic.
He gave me a half-smile. “We’re doing as much we can, but it won’t be enough to fix her completely. She’ll be slower than she was.”
I frowned. I opened my mouth to say something, but I was cut off from a cry coming from the fore. “Shipwreck!”
The cry startled me and I craned my neck to peer beyond the fore of the ship. Far ahead, I could see something. It was a shadow against the expansion of ice and shimmery water. We slowly got closer, and then, I could see the entire wreckage. The ship was ripped apart, the inside exposed as if the storm had pried it open with its dark claws. The exposed part was tilted upward, so I couldn’t see into it. I didn’t want to. There may be dead bodies. I could see the mast, but it was broken in two. Then I saw something that I recognized. Floating in the water was the carved face of a mermaid, her eyes blankly staring up at the sky.
