The Ocean's Thief

Chapter 1

"Bella!" I heard a voice call from around the corner in an accent I knew all too well.

"What, Cleo?" I called back as my best friend appeared around the corner of a shipping container.

"Captain said lights out, looks like a storms hittin'." She said, coming to lean against the rails next to me, looking out into the sea.

"Does it ever disturb you not being able to see any land?" I asked abruptly. Cleo shrugged,

"Nah, I've been doing this for years. At this point I'm more comfortable over sea than on land." She joked.

"Listen, you'll get used to it, it's only been a year with the crew, would you rather be back scrounging the streets for food in Europe?" She continued when she saw I wasn't in a joking mood.

"No." I sighed, pushing off the rail and flinging my arm over her shoulder, "Thanks for basically trampling me while running from coppers." I said sarcastically as we began to walk below deck to our shared bedroom.

"Don't throw up all over the boat tonight Bella, it's a rough one." Terrence said as we passed him and Stubby on the stairs. Stubbs let out a chuckle as I rolled my eyes.

"I got over that a while ago Terrence." I sighed.

"Sure." He winked.

Cleo and I continued downstairs and entered our room. I sat down on my bed and picked up my book, getting ready for bed. Cleo laid down on her bed across the room and started sharpening her prized knife. It had been her mother's and was the only thing she had left of her. I understood why she took such good care of it. The only thing I had of my parent's was a silver soda tab necklace with their initials carved into it. AR + KC. I didn't know what the initials stood for. I didn't even know my last name. I had no memory of my parents and frankly, no clue if they were even alive.

I spent my childhood on the streets of Italy, occasionally staying with my parents' friend Evelisa when she was in town. She was the best known smuggler in San De Donato. She refused to give me any information about my parents and would randomly show up several times a year and stay for a couple weeks.

As a teenager I got to know the town and the people there better. Most of them hated me because Evelisa had taught me her smuggling skills. It was such a thrill to steal. I loved the feeling of escaping with a new prize. I had a big box filled with all the knick-knacks I had stolen over the past years. I didn't steal big things. Only small things that can fit in my pocket. It calmed me for some reason, knowing I had control over something. I didn't have much, but the things I steal become mine. And I don't need anyone else to give them to me, I take them myself. The only people I haven't snatched something from in all my years are Evelisa and Cleo.

I met Cleo and Stubbs when they almost trampled me rounding a corner in the streets of my hometown. I had been looking around for a dollar bill I had dropped on the ground, when I heard yelling. I had started to lift my head when two people came crashing around the corner. I didn't have time to see their faces before they both came tumbling on top of me, knocking the wind out of me. The smaller figure immediately got up, pulling the other one to his feet.

"Keep going!" She yelled in a thick accent.

"Hold on!" The other one said. The next thing I knew he had pulled me up by my armpits. I didn't have time to get a good look at the pair before I heard police sirens.

"Shit!" The girl exclaimed. I had been in this position before and knew they needed help.

"Follow me." I said quickly. The girl looked skeptical.

"It's this or jail." The boy said, running after me. The girl reluctantly followed. I led them down the street and into an old shop I knew wouldn't be occupied. We all slid to the floor panting, out of view of the windows. The noise of the sirens got distant, and we all let out a sigh of relief.

"Thanks for that." The girl said, getting to her feet. "I'm Cleo and this is Stubbs." She said motioning to the boy. She was medium height, with black hair in many braids down to her hips. It was hard to see her dark-skinned face in the dim light but her brown eyes shone clearly, meeting my own.

Stubbs looked to be well over 6 feet tall but had a happy look to him.

"I'm Bella." I smiled, standing up as well, "why were the coppers after you?"

"We were just trying to get ourselves a filling dinner but the guy at the butcher shop clearly had no sympathy for some poor hungry kids." She smirked.

"Ohh yeah, his shop's one of the hardest shops to steal from around here. He calls the coppers every time, like, it's not that deep." I joked, rolling my eyes. She laughed and we smiled at each other.

"Cleo we gotta get back to Terrence." Stubbs interrupted.

"Wait!" I said quickly, not wanting them to leave, "Where did you guys come from? I haven't seen you around here before."

"We're on a cargo ship headed to Nassau. We have many stops along the way though." Cleo explained.

"I've lived on there almost my whole life." Stubbs said.

"We're always in need of more hands to help." Cleo winked at me. I sighed.

"Well, we better get going." She said, and squeezed my shoulder before exiting the shop. Stubbs clapped me on the back and followed her. I stood in place for several seconds. I had nothing in San De Donato anymore. It had been almost a year since I had last seen Evelisa and I just spent my days pickpocketing and exploring. I could barely feed myself.

"Wait!" I yelled running out of the shop, "Cleo! Stubbs! Wait!" The pair turned as I ran down the street to catch up to them.

"I'm coming with you." I panted, "on your ship. I mean if you'll accept me as a crewmate." Cleo was grinning.

"Of course girl! You're one of us now." she said, linking her arm through mine. 

She had introduced me to Terrence and he had accepted me after I had revealed his watch in my hands less than a minute after meeting him.

I looked over at my best friend across from me on her bed. I couldn't thank her enough for finding me that day. I was happy here with her. I missed my home of course. And I always wondered what had happened to Evelisa, but maybe I'll find out someday.

I felt the boat rock and put my book down.

"I'm gonna go to bed so I can hopefully sleep through the worst of the storm." I said to Cleo, and she nodded.

I fell asleep not long after my head hit the pillow. 

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This is my first story so i'm kinda nervous but i hope you like it.