The Hunt

Chapter 7

Dedicated to @MickyNeilson. Thanks for all the support :)

Lydia was being carried. She hadn't felt it at first; her body too tired to think about the world around her. But then, the yelling started and the footsteps began moving faster, each step landing violently on the ground. Her body was jerked up and down repeatedly as the uneven running continued.

Her bones were still aching and the fast tempo was only hurting her but she decided to stay silent. She remembered the man from yesterday, the pirate. He'd helped her. Hope built up inside of her as she started to think of how this man could possibly be the key to her freedom.

Captain Bellamy Davis. The man who'd told her stories last night. For some foreign reason, Lydia instantly trusted him. Yes, he would get her back to the ocean, where she would be reunited with the freedom to roam the sea.

But right now, the yelling was only getting louder. "I'll kill ye, Davis!" Lydia's eyes snapped open. Captain Raven was shouting, waving his sword violently from left to right, taking down every man in his sight.

Bellamy was laughing. He didn't seem to feel the fear Lydia felt as she watched the blind rage overcome Captain Raven. "I'll slit yer throat and hang yer head on me ship!"

"Better luck next time capt'n!" Bellamy held Lydia firmly to his body and jumped of the ship. His other hand held on to a thick rope as they landed on a smaller boat, filled with men Lydia had never seen.

"What are ye waitin' for? Get to it!" the men started rowing the ship with force, the small wooden boat menaced by Captain Raven's gunshots and the violent waves. The loud shots echoed as one man was hit. Blood started gushing down his shirt as he held onto his chest, trying to slow down the bleeding. Bellamy sighed, before taking over.

He didn't even so much as blink while the man bled out, his soul leaving him, his eyes widening and his throat closing. Some men pushed him into the ocean without a word as Lydia sat there, shocked and unable to form a relevant thought.

They were soon enough back on a different ship, the sudden death forgotten. Lydia sighed in relief as Bellamy let her go and her feet touched the wooden floor.

She started taking off the heavy leather coat. "Thank you." She was free! A weight had been lifted off her chest as she gave the coat to Bellamy who was looking at her as though she'd grown a second head.

"Don't be thankin' me just yet, lass." Her brows furrowed in confusion. What was he saying?

Her hand was still holding onto the coat. "But, you said you'd help me..." Bellamy laughed as he stood right in front of her, a crooked smile and dangerous eyes upon his features. He didn't look anything like the kind stranger from last night. He gently took the coat and wrapped it back around her body before smiling once more.

"I lied."

Her first instinct was to run. Without hesitation, Lydia pushed herself away from the pirate and ran near the edge of the ship. Her body was only stopped by a man who was twice as tall as her and had a golden shiny object in his ear.

"What is this?" the man was looking at Bellamy, who shrugged, playing with a dagger as he replied in an uninterested tone, "A mermaid."

The man sighed. "Seriously Bel, where'd ye find her and why'd ye bring her on the ship?" Lydia was still staring at the golden piece of jewelry hanging from the man's ear. How had it gotten there? The sun was reflecting off of it as Lydia tilted her head from side to side, hypnotized by the bright golden band.

"She be a mermaid Finicky, I'm not playin' tricks on ye." He came closer to Lydia, who was too engrossed in the gold hoop to pay attention to him or anything else for that matter. "By the looks of it, I'd say she be liking yer earring."