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Chapter 7~ Cape Verde
The air was damp and dark when I woke. My muscles ached and my head pain had dulled to a tender stinging. Looking around, I could tell I was back in my original room. It was quiet outside, and the ship was again moving. Part of my insides shriveled up in sadness. My only means of escape had slipped through my fingers in a matter of minutes. I tried to stand, but as I did, the motion rocked me about more than the ship could ever do. As quickly as I’d gotten up, I toppled back down.
Is this it? I thought. Are my remaining days going to be limited to captivity and the occasional tortures Tew has in store for me?
I certainly couldn’t imagine anything else. Though my mind continued to race with what the evil man had said about my father. I couldn’t believe it. I didn’t believe it.
“He wouldn’t leave me here,” I told myself. “He’s coming to save me. And when he saves me, I’ll do the honors of the sending the bloody ship down in flames.” Half of me was very pleased with the plan. The other half knew I was too naive to think any differently.
The light was just fading from the earth when the Cabin Boy returned. The door was slammed open, and the Cabin Boy was tossed inside. The bucket of water and tray of food he’d been carrying spilled everywhere. The door crashed closed, and it was only us. I was terrified to look at him. My hands shook as he lifted his head. In the last remains of sunlight, I saw everything. One of his eyes was black. His nose was broken. Many parts of his face were bruised and cut. His lip bled and the bruises trailed down to grip marks around his neck. His shirt was torn, and his chest had been beaten and sliced up. He looked at me for a few moments before scrounging up the fallen food.
Disregarding everything, I rushed over to Edmund and pulled him away from the floor.
“I’m so sorry…sorry…” he babbled.
“Jesus, Edmund. You look terrible. He did this to you?”
“I shouldn’t have done that, Constantine. I’m so sorry.”
“You kicked over the bucket, didn’t you? You saved my life. Why did you do that?”
He sat there, not meeting my eyes, and shook his head.
“I…I don’t know. You were drownin’. He was going to kill you. I just knew he was.”
“But why do you care? That way you wouldn’t have had to clean up my blood--just like you said.”
Edmund picked up the bucket and set it aside, saving the last bit of water. He finally looked at me but a piece of sweaty blonde hair had fallen in his face.
“I guess…You’re the only person on this ship who's ever cared about what I had to say. That was nice for a change, and I couldn’t just watch you die. I guess I think of you as a…friend. I don't know.”
It was an uncomfortable thing at first, hugging him. I pulled Edmund in close, so fast that I barely remembered thinking about doing it. He grew stiff but soon relaxed under my touch and hugged me back.
“Thank you,” I whispered. We pulled away and Edmund gave me a last glance.
“I’m not sure you should be thankin’ me for giving you a concussion.”
“No, not for that.” Edmund hesitated then gave me the smallest of smiles. I reached to his ankles and untied the strips of cloth. He pulled away at first, confused.
“What are you doing?” he asked.
“You’ve been healing me for all this while. The least I can do is return the favor.” He let me untie and soak the rags. Carefully, I cleaned each wound. Admittedly, I was a little nervous. The whole time, Edmund’s eyes searched my face like it was an inescapable maze. He radiated a certain heat that shielded me away from the cold of the ship.
Though I didn’t know exactly why I felt safer around Edmund, safety was my main priority at the time.
My father would have to cover the rest.
The red damp cloth fell back into the bucket and Edmund checked my ribs once again, diagnosing them as disturbed. I pulled my shirt back down afterward.
“Are they going to hurt you again?” I asked.
“Likely not. But it’d be wise to remain silent for the next couple of days just in case. Don’t sleep on the side with your injured ribs, but I bet you already knew that.”
“Of course,” I replied, giving him a smile, “Thank you, Edmund.” 482Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKA6nVjB9MP
Then he did something that would keep me dazed for hours. He lifted a calloused hand up and gently tucked my curls behind my ear, lingering there for a few seconds more. I watched his eyes flicker a little like open flames, and he sort of smiled too. But then, he quickly pulled his hand back.
“No, thank you.” Then, he took the bucket and left the room. 482Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNkeJlkH9ah
I held my hand where his own used to be and tried to think of something other than what had just happened.
I had a friend. For maybe the first time in my life, I had a person whom I trusted and who didn’t judge me on the way I looked or the parents I came from or even that he was my first friend. Compared to the moderate hell I’d been enduring, this was more than relief. We ported the next day and someone had even convinced Tew to let me get a few minutes of sunlight and fresh air. Although the question of whom the mystery well-wisher was wasn’t too mysterious at all. I was pulled out onto the deck, but this time, there was no gathering crowd awaiting my torture. The ship was almost empty. I was even made to wear an old brown cloak to disguise locals from recognizing me. But I was let off to roam free on the ship. There wasn’t much freedom considering there were pirates posted at almost every corner to keep me from jumping off. However, I took my time and breathed in the warm fresh air. It almost made me want to cry. I sat on the rail and watched the island and the waves. The sounds were crisp and melodic—the beating of the seagull’s wings, the sway of the palm trees, and the distant music of the island’s pub band. It certainly wasn’t Dover, England but it was nice. The next thing I heard was footsteps and soon the Cabin Boy was there, nodding to the pirate next to me who left to take another position. He leaned on the railing and gazed out across the green, luscious island. I watched him and was able to really comprehend how Edmund Hemingway looked in the light. His hair shined like gold and he was taller than I’d seen him. Even through his thin shirt, I could see the cuts from the events of yesterday.
“Beautiful, hm?”
“Excuse me?”
“The island is beautiful, innit?” he laughed.
“Oh, yes. Where are we?”
“Cape Verde. An island off the coast of Africa. If you look off in the distance, you can see the volcanoes.” He pointed to verdured mountainous peaks some ways away.
“Have you ever been here?” I insisted.
“Once as a child with my mum. She’d take me out into the coast sometimes. I would play in the sand and hunt crabs, and afterward, she’d swim with me in the shallow waters.” Edmund’s head fell a little. I climbed off the railing and stood next to him.
“My mother used to take me swimming too. Your mother and mine would’ve liked each other, I’m sure.”
He chuckled and kept his gaze on the island shore. “I don’t think my father would like your father at all.”
“What about me?”
Then, he looked at me. “I think he would've like you very much. You…You remind me of him. ”
Something about it made me smile, almost proudly. What was there to be proud of? I left the railing and walked the quarter-deck, Edmund behind me. The water was white and tumbled against the ship. I felt the railing—the old wood that may have traveled everywhere. I imagined myself leaping off the deck into those waves. It would only lead to disastrous consequences. Either I’d somehow reach shore only to be caught by pirates or I’d be shot before I even broke the surface of the sea.
“My father is a very different man now. Without my mother, his heart has filled with greed. Yet, the thing he truly longs for, he shall never have,” I lamented softly.
“You still care for your father?” Edmund inquired.482Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLeG9e6XiCz
I pulled the cloak a little tighter around my chest, watching the horizon as if the Fancy would sail across it any second. I nodded. 482Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡM0kgRCBvD0
“Then why are you afraid?” he continued.
I’m afraid…
“I always had this fantasy of what it’d be like when I met him again. He’d take me into his arms and both of us would be the happiest in all our lives. There’d be nothing in the world to tear us apart. I’m just not ready for the fantasy to crumble like I know it will.”
We were silent, and I finally realized there were wet tears on my cheeks. “I fought off his enemies. I lived alone for so long with a single dream. I sent him letters whenever I could. I dedicated my days to finding my father. But he hasn’t written to me in three years.” I scrubbed the tears away and kept my fists tight at my sides.
My eyes met his patient gaze. He wasn’t pitying me—he was only listening. The boy’s eyes reassured me without words.482Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJJoIqK3kZ5
“It’s time to go back, Constantine.”482Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQ9l5h10rlL
I hesitated but nodded and followed him back to the dim room that I was becoming so acquainted with.
Edmund stopped in the doorway and kept an irritating smile on his face.
“You wish to know what I think?” he disclosed.
“Yes.” He gripped the door handle.
“You’re the bravest girl I’ve ever met.”
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