Avarice of the Sea | | b o o k 1

14: The Key

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:  C H A P T E R  F O U R T E E N : 

 The next morn I woke from a knock sounding on wood, and bolted up in a haste to get off the ground and wake myself up a bit. Around me I was surrounded by thick quilts and massive pillows—I was in Cody's room.

"Wakey-wakey," he mocked from the doorway. He was standing just inside the closed door, hand resting on the cabinets to his left. "Probably not the best wake-up call, but Myron's requested to see ya."

I groaned and fell back against the pillows. I felt so giddy laying on a mattress again, and all I wanted to do was throw the covers over my head and pretend I was back at home under the massive spreads of red feather quilts and pillows. Laying down in the bed, though, I could feel the gentle sway of the ship and the muffled sound of waves. It was much louder here, though, since I could hear the crew members shouting shanties overhead.

"Come on now, he'll just keep sendin' me to get ya all day."

"Then do that all day. Tomorrow he won't care," I told him, only to have the covers torn off of me. I frowned at him, and he simply gave me a cheeky smirk. He grabbed me by my arms and heaved me up and out of the bed.

I sluggishly started towards the door, but he reeled me back and tapped his finger on my nose. "Just one more thing," he told me, and I opened my mouth to ask, but he gave me the answer immediately. He kissed me long and hard, so I could taste the morning wine on his breath that tasted like grapes. After pulling away, he pressed his forehead against mine and smirked, "Don't get too many of those, eh?"

"You or me?" I joked, and he laughed and nudged me playfully in the side.

"Me, obviously. Haven't'chya heard? I'm out at sea all the time. The only person to kiss 'round here is Mhrya, an' trust me, that ain't happenin' anytime soon."

We had a good laugh about that. He told me how back before Avarice took Mhyra onto the ship, she had suitors lined up and down the village. "She was the most beautiful woman you'd've ever seen, but she wasn't a fan of the home life, ya see. She wanted ta see the world beyond the Outer Planes, an' I guess she got what she wanted," he told me, leading the way up the hatch.

"Why would Avarice accept her if he doesn't allow women on the crew?" I asked, and he shrugged.

"She's not really part of the crew, now is she?" he questioned, and I stopped for a moment to assess what he meant. She was not part of the crew, she was a servant of the crew--but to be more specific, the captain. "But never mind that. She's never been all that bothered by it. I think she just wanted out of her old life."

"Was it really that terrible?"

"I dunno," he confessed with a shrug. We approached the captain's door, and he knocked twice before receiving the go to enter.

The two of us stepped inside, and Cody backed away to stand in the living space, leaving me in the junction between the two. My eyes drifted towards the three men in the study, and dreaded the sight of all three of them instantly. I saw Archer standing there, looking as if he hadn't been stabbed at all. He was no longer pale, but instead his normal color of dark, olive skin.

"Say what ya need ta say before we move on, brother," Avarice sneered at Conroy, whose eyes were on me and not moving an inch from my face.

I felt the creepy-crawlies shimmy up my spine as he walked up to me, passing Archer in the process. All I could feel was Conroy's hand on my knee and I had the strong urge to knock him upside the head again. He had a scar where the glass made impact on his temple.