Sea Of Seagulls: A Pirate and Fae Tale

Chapter 21

Theodosia looked down at the corpse of Kai. She couldn't tell how long he had been dead but it was long enough to smell the body and know something had died. Theodosia knew Shaye's concerns weren't specifically about the body. Her concerns were more about why he died. What message had the murderer been trying to send? Theodosia wondered the same thing. Someone had to have the ability to sneak into their room, kill Kai, and leave without waking any of them up.

Theodosia pondered on their current situation trying to decide how to move forward. Shaye was still flustered and trying to clean the blood off of the room's floor.

"We need to move the body," Theodosia informed.

"How will we walk out of here with a dead body and not have anyone notice," Shaye asked.

"It is still early. I say we just go out the back door and bury the body. Not many people are awake yet," Noelle suggested.

Oh, this better work Theodosia thought. If they were caught, they would have more setbacks.

Noelle and Shaye grabbed Kai's body and carried it out the back. A few people were awake working early shifts but none paid any attention to them. Shaye grabbed a shovel that leaned against the in and started digging. The sand was hard to dig in but she made it work. They were almost done before someone came and disrupted everything.

A scream came from a small girl's mouth. She stood in front of them eying the body still covered in blood. The shirt soaked red.

Theodosia thought about just covering the girl's mouth in hopes that no one heard her but some people did. An old woman and a boy approached the girl. It took them a second to see the hole. The body lying inside.

A gasp escaped the woman's mouth.

"Ja-Jack!" The woman yelled, in a frantic way.

Theodosia knew they were in trouble now.

A young man ran grabbing the woman's hands.

"Mabel, what's wrong?" He had a concerning face as he asked,

"I-It's Kai," the woman stuttered.

Jack turned and peered at the hole that was filling in already from the wind. He looked up at Shaye, Noelle, and Theodosia.

"You did this, didn't you," he accused, anger spread across his face.

Noelle backed up, her hands raised in the air. Jack looked as if he was about to charge at Noelle. As if he was about to kill her. Noelle must have guessed the same thing because she acted first.

Noelle gripped an arrow out of her quiver and strung it on her bow. She shot the woman in the leg. She cried out in pain. Jack looked back at the woman eager to help. Without waiting another moment, Noelle ran.

Shaye and Theodosia followed without questions. They untied their horses and rode away. Theodosia had no idea where they would go. Shaye and Theodosia followed Noelle's horse. They ran along the outskirts of town. After at least 3 miles, Noelle stopped. They all retired their horses onto a post.

"What now?" Shaye asked, her heartbeat slowing down.

"Now, we come up with a new plan," Noelle responded.

+++++++++

Noelle was so calm. Shaye wished she could be so calm in intense situations. They made their way into a market. They were far enough where the word of Kai's death would take time to spread. Hopefully, they would be gone before the news reached them. Noelle bought some fruits in the market. They shared a quick meal before deciding what to do next.

"I think we should find someone who knows where Ansel is," Theodosia suggested.

"I knew Kai wasn't a good idea," Theodosia added.

"What if the same thing happens again," Shaye wondered.

"We still have no clue who killed Kai," Noelle reminded them.

The three of them exchanged looks. They all knew that something was happening. It could have been one of her mom's men. Maybe they thought Kai was putting them in danger. Either way, someone was watching them. They would need to be more careful if they were going to get through this alive.

"All I know is that I for sure didn't kill him," Theodosia spoke leaning back in her chair.

"Each time you say that It makes me not trust you more and more," Shaye replied.

"We could do Theodosia's plan. Let's stick together this time though," Noelle cut in returning to the important topic.

They decided they would rest in one of the abandoned houses. This time, one person would be keeping watch. They wouldn't risk losing another person.

Shaye took the first shift. It was a calm night. A cool breeze blew through the broken windows. There were no disturbances or anything. After a few hours, Theodosia took the next shift. Shaye closed her eyes after she woke Theodosia and prayed she would make it through the night.

Shaye saw no light when she opened her eyes. It was still night she realized. The sound of rukas woke her up. Where could it be coming from? Shaye scanned the room and didn't see Theodosia. Noelle was asleep meaning that it was Theodosia's shift to watch for problems. Shaye made her way outside. She made sure to bring her dagger just in case. The noise became louder as she made her way around the broken-down building. In the alley, banging and crashing noises were echoing. Shaye readied herself for whatever happened next. She turned the corner to see Theodosia. Shaye let out a sigh of relief.

She had wiped the blood off her cheek made by a slight cut. A man's body was on the ground. He was groaning in pain so definitely not dead. Theodosia kicked the body over. Jack. Shaye's first thought was how he found them. How had he known where they were?

"Tell me! Tell me what happened!" Jack cried out.

"Why did you do it?" He roared, getting to his feet.

"We didn't," Shaye muttered softly.

"Oh, and don't lie," he remarked.

"You were burning his body!"

"If we did kill him, we wouldn't have made such a sloppy mess, and we would surely have not buried the body," Theodosia added, retracting her sword.

Shaye eyed Theodosia as if to say that's not helping. Theodosia returned the look with a slight grin.

"Then who did it?" Jack pleaded.

"We aren't sure," Theodosia claimed uneasily

Jack cried out in pain. Shaye realized why a moment later.

A piece of metal scraps was stuck in his abdomen. Shaye knew Theodosia likely caused it unintentionally. Well, maybe not unintentionally. Despite what he did, they couldn't leave him there in the alley to die.

Theodosia and Shaye carried Jack back to their room.

"He's committed, for sure," Shaye commented.

"He should know better than to try to fight me. If you hadn't come, he would not have won that battle."

"He started it so I would gladly end it," Theodosia added.

"Jack is just trying to get some answers about Kai," Shaye explained.

Theodosia sighed.

"You would do the same thing. I know you would. Being a pirate does not mean you are heartless," Shaye spoke.

He did not fight it as Noelle helped remove the metal and bandage it. He yelped as she disinfected the wound with some leftover ale Theodosia brought with her. After his wounds were clean, they let him rest on a blanket on Noelle's bed.

Noelle started her shift as Shaye and Theodosia fell to sleep.

Shaye wasn't sure exactly but she heard slight rustling sounds before she blacked out.