The Duchess out of Time

XVII

Hunched over the Captain's desk, every inch of the table was covered in letters; some of them were even littered on the floor around Liz's feet. Her fingers were stained with ink as her it took her a few tries to get used to writing with a quill. What intrigued Liz the most was the seal on the letters. They were matching seals but they weren't of a family crest or a coat of arms. Custom designed seals weren't cheap and the more intricate the design the more expensive it was to make. Finding the creator of the signet would be challenge especially if whoever had this made didn't want to be found. It's not like they could track credit cards or addresses. The maker was probably paid a handsome sum without seeing his employers face, leaving no trace behind.

The design was simple yet intricate. There were three 'X's. They sat side by side, the tails of the letter crossing over each other in a loop. The two 'x's on the side were smaller with the centre 'x' twice the size. Underneath in a half moon shape was one word. The carvings of the letters were in loopy cursive, blending together making it hard to determine what they spelt out. Liz had spent sometime drawing out the seal on a piece of parchment, hoping that by magnifying the image she would be able to understand it better. Unfortunately the more she stared at her drawing and then the wax the more it all burred together.

Hearing a rattle of keys she glanced up only for a moment to see the Captain walk in before he shut the door behind him. The Captain didn't want anyone to know what Liz was doing until he understood what he was potentially getting his crew into. The letters weren't to leave his cabin, not under any circumstances, so he had taken it upon himself to lock Liz inside while she translated. Watching her closely he realised she was holding a candle towards one of the wax seals she had peeled off from the envelope. Holding it at a safe distance so the wax wouldn't melt Liz's eyes narrowed.

"Interested in waxwork?" The Captain huffed as Liz rubbed her tired eyes and massaged the base of her neck.

"Something's not right with this seal. Look." She tiredly spoke to him holding it out for him to have a look. She wasn't in the mood to fight with him as he slowly walked over to the desk.

"It's not a coat of arms....the design doesn't make any sense." Liz let her posture relax as the Captain suddenly became very interested in the wax seal.

"What does it say?" He asked as she sighed shrugging her shoulders.

"I have been trying to figure that out." She answered showing him a piece of parchment that had written columns of the word that is engraved in the wax. Kneeling down beside her, his arm instinctively rested on the back of her chair as he gazed down at the list before back to the wax. They were so close to each other that Liz knew that if she spun her chair in the wrong direction she would practically be pressed against him.

"I just can't make out what it says." Liz had been looking at the single word for hours. The letters were all starting to blur into one.

"What if that is an r instead of an i? and an s on the end?" He questioned pointing to the letters of one of her many combinations she had written. Glancing between the wax and what she had written, Liz re wrote the word, changing the word like the Captain had suggested.

"Argenteos?" Liz spoke out. It didn't sound right on her lips.

"It's Latin." Edward spoke up as they both jumped. They had been so engrossed that they hadn't heard him knock or let himself in to his Captain's cabin. Edward raised an eyebrow at the two as they cursed under their breath.

"Latin?" The Captain looked at him.

"I take it back Edward. Maybe it's not a useless language after all." Liz smiled as he rolled his eyes and joined the two of them, standing by Liz's right shoulder.

"It means silver."

"Silver?" The Captain's ears perked at the sound of the metal.

"That doesn't make any sense." Liz pouted. Maybe there wasn't a point to this seal after all. Which meant she had spent her whole day wasting it away instead of translating the letters as the Captain had initially asked.

"Hang on. That would translate to thirty." Edward pointed out as his fingers pointed to the three 'X's that sat above the cursive writing.

"Thirty silver?"

"No, the translation changes with the number before it. It fully translates to thirty pieces." Edward shook his head to his sister before he explained the new translation. Latin was never precise, it changed depending on its context.

"Thirty pieces. Silver. Thirty pieces of silver." The Captain slowly hissed between his teeth as Liz's mouth opened slightly as she could see his was putting it together.

"I don't get it. What is the significance?"

"You really needed to stop sleeping during Sunday school." Liz teased her brother as he glared in response.

"Shut up. Can someone tell me what it means?"

"Judas." The Captain hissed out as he stood up from kneeling on the ground. His arms crossed over his chest as began to pace slowly, deep in thought.

"Judas?"

"Seriously Ed!" Liz gaped at her brother horrified at his lack of bible knowledge.

"I know who Judas was!" He countered in frustration.

"Thirty pieces of silver was the price for which Judas betrayed Jesus." The Captain told him as realisation flooded Liz. People during this time period took things very literally. Nothing was referenced only to be past off as a coincidence.

"Meaning?"

"Meaning that this seal......is seal literally translates to being a traitor." Liz breathed out uncomfortably as she slowly withdrew her hands from the letters.

"Someone is planning treason." The Captain hissed. Having this letters were dangerous. If they were caught with them and they were translated, depending on their contents, they could be committed for treason and killed. The Captain was torn between two places. He desperately wanted to throw them overboard and be done with. He could be ignorant to their content and go on with his life. Or. He could continue to have Liz translate them.

"Why would someone design that as their wax seal? Are they asking to be caught?" Edward asked his nose crinkling at the realisation that someone could be that stupid.

"It's smart." The Captain pinched his nose. Whoever was behind these letters wasn't stupid. They were educated and wealthy which meant they probably held some element of power.

"Smart?"

"They are hiding their treason in plain sight." Liz softly spoke.

"Not many people know Latin, not unless you're with the church. It's hard enough to decipher the letters but even if they spelt the word correctly, no one would know what it means." The Captain spoke as everyone fell silent.

"The real question is what is in these letters?" Liz voiced the concern that everyone held as they all looked down at the desk that was covered in letters.