Chapter Two

Reign of Fire

 

The next morning arrived quickly for the exhausted crew. The fires that had remained strong over the night had finally died down, and Xavier’s crew had just finished their investigations. Unfortunately, they had found no survivors in the area, and what made it worse were their own small casualties. There was a fight between the two crews at first, but as Zaine and Claire joined the fray with their reclaimed ship Autumn Lily, they disappeared without a trace. His ship remained elusive, and it easily outflanked the Division. 

They set camp up for the time being. The people of the Division searched for any supplies. Xavier rested on a burned seat trying to figure out why they were two steps behind, and he fumed at the thought of not being able to help.

“Damn it all!” he replied, whacking the chair he sat under. His strength was enough to turn the charred chair into a mess of ash, and he dropped to the ground.

Sarah stood right beside him as if to make sure he didn’t do anything rash. Gesturing with her hand, she offered her assistance, but he measly waved her concern elsewhere. Pretending to brush off some dust, Xavier had pulled himself up. “Thanks, but I’m fine.”

Sarah snapped at his comment. “How dare you! That’s the last time I’ll be helpful to you!”

He just crossed his arms and let one of his hands touch the hilt of his sword. “Who cares, Sarah? Give it a rest.”

This time, Sarah felt the vein pop from her temple as she clenched her fists. “Oh, you jerk! This is one of the many reasons why I hate men!”

Something stirred behind Xavier. It caught his attention as he went to shush the girl. Leaping in front of her, he tried to sense what was there. Was it a foe? A friend? Xavier drew his sword and called out.

“Who’s there? Come out!”

The thing threw something at him. It bounced right off his forehead and onto the ground.

“Ow! What the hell was that?” Sarah saw a wooden box and nothing more.

“It’s a wooden box. If it was a pirate lingering around, wouldn’t it have thrown a real dagger?” Xavier, who rubbed his forehead, crouched down to pick it up. It was small, with mismatched colors on all six sides.

“Who’s there?” Sarah said as she looked into the bushes.

From behind them, a young sixteen-to-seventeen-year-old male came out. His face was disheveled, and he had a small frame. His glasses were cracked, and his sandy blond hair was caked with dirt and blood. He looked like he had seen better days.

“A kid?”

The male looked scared as Xavier looked him up.

“I’m Tyler Marklin,” the boy said with a stutter.

Before Xavier and Sarah could ask the boy what exactly happened, there was rustling coming from the south. Turning to their new guest, they noticed that it was their water-drenched captain and a mysterious young lady. The two crewmen that were assisting him had started making their rounds on the land to help salvage.

“Friend or foe?” Aden asked while he closed the distance in four quick strides to them. He easily kept an even pace, even with a waterlogged auburn beauty slung over his shoulder. There, he knelt on the ground and carefully laid out the woman. She was indeed quite a beauty.

“It’s a friend, Captain,” Sarah replied with a flick of her manicured hand.

Glaring at the girl, Xavier gave a retort, “He chucked a box at my head. How is that a friend?” Continuing to complain, he rubbed his aforementioned head.

Aden looked at the boy before smirking. “And you probably deserved it, Xav.”

“It’s not a box.” The boy stuttered once more. When all three turned to him, he went crimson. “Ah, sorry. It’s a puzzle cube.”

Xavier tossed the cube over to the nervous boy and crossed his arms.

Sarah directed her attention to the girl, and while she was slightly jealous of her looks, she knew this girl was in for far worse. Her blood oozed from the wounds she received. There were also heavy red imprints on her neck. Sarah couldn’t even tell if she was unconscious or just dead.

Xavier grimaced. “Zaine and Claire must have cornered her. I’m surprised she wasn’t sliced up more.”

“Don’t forget about that third person.” Aden ripped off his sleeve to make a bondage over her wounds. “Where’s Damien?”

“Behind you.” Xavier pointed to Damien running with several things in hand. One of which happened to be a medical kit. Aden beckoned for his blonde half brother to come over. “And I didn’t forget about that mystery person. The investigation hasn’t progressed much. We’re to wait until the Admiral Chief arrives.”

“Damien, will she be all right?” Sarah wondered, staring down between the unconscious girl and the blond.

“She has a weak pulse,” the blond started, and the one known as Tyler approached the girl. Placing his two forefingers on the jugular of the girl’s throat, Marklin began counting the beats. “Indeed. She needs medical attention immediately.”

Damien looked to the newcomer. “She had a nasty impact with a branch to her midabdomen. Possibility of broken ribs?” Tyler assessed her with a critical eye while Aden pulled out a pocketknife from his utility belt.

“Move.” Aden expertly cut along the side of her corset, the fabric easily cutting away by the sharp blade. When the piece was removed, he then started to cut apart the side of her soaked dress. Sarah went to object about his removing the cloth, but Damien stopped her.

While he cut her dress apart, he still managed to keep her clothed in the appropriate places. Underneath, they found the bruises supporting their first claim. Tyler examined her sides carefully, his timid persona from before disappeared as he began his assessment. When he finished, he moved his hands delicately over to her left side. He was done checking, and then looked to Aden.

Without a word, Aden shrugged his jacket off to cover her. “Bruised ribcage on the left-hand side. Bones feel like they’re in place. She does need medical attention to survive.” Xavier and Sarah both sighed in relief, but the new girl was not in the clear just yet.

Damien turned his attention at Sarah. “Once we’re on the ship, could you properly clean and dress the wounds? It would not bode well if she died from infections.”

Sarah nodded. “Yeah, no problem.”

Tyler stared unbelievably at the waterlogged mistress, unsure if she was truly all right. Her chest was slowly rising and falling, and she looked extremely exhausted even in her sleep.

“I had the misfortune to arrive in town ten minutes before the pirates showed up. I was running some errands near the ports when all these gruff men brandished their swords and knives. I was lucky to escape from harm.” He continued off until only silence met them all.

“I heard that Zaine slayed the fleet admiral here in a battle,” Damien said, bringing the attention from the girl to him. Aden easily guessed what happened next.

“The rumor is that the fleet admiral and Zaine crossed blades.” Something did not match up though. What did it have to do with this girl?

Xavier was thinking along the same lines, bringing his hand up to his chin. “There was a lot of collateral damage just to kill one person. Perhaps this girl knows something?”

Aden nodded in agreement. For once, he and Xavier agreed on something. “Perhaps. We need to wait for her to wake up.”

Sarah sadly peered down at the waterlogged girl. “Zaine’s wrath has affected us all, our towns attacked and mercilessly slain for reasons beyond our understanding. When will these senseless fights end?”

Damien, the quietest of them all, lightly traced his fingers over her pale cheek. She looked so fragile but at the same time strong. He knew of those pirate’s fighting habits. He knew that these particular men attacked from the shadows and planted traps. They toyed with their prey, but they don’t fling them off cliffs.

Aden thought along the same lines. “I don’t think Zaine threw her off. It had to be that third person.”

“Does that mean she’s related to the Estate?”

Tyler continued staring at the unconscious girl. “She’s familiar. I’ve seen her before. I think she went to the academy in Chiariotti.” This new information led Damien and Aden to look at him.

“Do you have a name for Miss Doe?”

He shook his head. His cracked glasses glimmered as the fires around them died down. “Sorry, it’s been more than four to five years. I don’t remember since she stopped coming. She was friends with my employer if I remember.”   

Tyler Marklin looked to the now-barren lands. His grey-blue eyes still wide from shock and despair at such destruction. He couldn’t stand the sight of death, and now he was in the middle of it. How was he ever going to report back to his own lady-in-waiting that he could not fulfill his task?

Xavier looked down at the two sole survivors of the attack and frowned. It would be bad to leave them here, but it may be disadvantageous to bring them on board. He did not want to bring any more harm down upon any more people. “Well, I know Damien mentioned taking her aboard to clean her wounds, but don’t you guys think we should wait to hand them over to Julian?”

Aden’s green eyes turned over to his crew before laying upon the two new additions in the group. It was true what Xavier was saying, but at the same time, it did not seem wise to leave such a valuable piece of information behind. Crossing his arms, he started walking toward the ship.

“Let the boy decide for himself if he wants to come or go to the Admiral. We’re taking the girl. Gather the others so we can leave as soon as the reinforcements arrive.”

Xavier and Damien shrugged before they walked over to the unconscious girl. Damien grabbed hold of her body but had difficulty pulling her up into a bridal style. Xavier laughed at his brother’s attempt.

The blond boy was flustered but regained his composure. “Just help me lift her so that she doesn’t hurt her ribcage!”

Xavier couldn’t help it as he roared some more. “Sure, sure. I forgot how you are the princess of the group, beside Sarah of course.”

“Shut up!” Damien yelled, trying hard to hide his flush red cheeks.

Marklin stood up behind them to help with the girl. He had made his decision. “I’ll help too!”

 

۞ ۞ ۞ ۞ ۞ ۞ ۞ ۞

           

“Let her rest. She needs it,” said a female.

“Since the attack, I’m pretty positive she’ll need more than a few days to recuperate her strength.” This time it was a male.

“Admiral Julian is requesting your reports before we set sail.”

“It’s sitting on the desk.”

These voices kept coming in and out of her senses.

 

۞ ۞ ۞ ۞ ۞ ۞ ۞ ۞

 

The next time she came back to consciousness, a strong masculine voice pierced through the empty quiet, “Aden, you better not do anything unnecessary.” The other thing she noticed was the swish and pull of motion. She wasn’t moving, but she could feel something. Like waves.

“Aden would never do that.”

Was that a concerned male?

“What? You guys are all at that age, you know. A beautiful lady lies asleep in your bed. What man wouldn’t give into his hormones?”

“As if I’d touch a kid like her.”

Kid?

Charlotte shook her head then. Perhaps she was dreaming it. Needless to say, she bounded back to the land of dreams and darkness.

 

۞ ۞ ۞ ۞ ۞ ۞ ۞ ۞

“Of course, she’ll be fine. Damien, don’t worry so much.” This time it was a feminine voice that perked up beside her.

“She’s been out for two days now. Did her wound get infected, Marklin? Did one of her ribs puncture a lung?”

“Not that I am aware of.” This was a soft tenor voice coming from in front of her. “According to the tests I ran, she just has multiple abrasions upon her abdomen. Her corset managed to save her ribs from breaking.”

Where am I? These voices must be from someone nearby, but I don’t have the strength to move. My body’s gone numb. Did I drown? What’s going on? I feel the constant surge of movement. I’m on a boat?

Mumbling in her sleep, Charlotte attempted to roll over to her side, only she realized that she couldn’t. A hand held a firm grasp on her shoulder. She could tell that the owner had been holding her down for quite some time because of the sweat accumulating between their skins.

“Miss, are you all right?” These people must not know who she was.

Groaning in protest, Charlotte forced her body and mind to rouse herself. She was not going to succumb to the darkness the third time. If she did, there was no telling when she might wake up next.

“Where am I?” she mumbled, hoping that a conversation would keep her awake. Using her other hand, she kneaded her temples to stop the headache she had.

“You’re on the Division, miss. I’m Damien Drummond, the lieutenant commander and navigator. The young lady next to me is Sarah Moreno. Tyler Marklin is in front of you. He helped tend to your wounds.”

She shook her head, attempting to process the information. Where had she heard of the Division before? She remembered her father stating that some vessels that roamed the sea were mercenaries and pirates alike.

The Division does belong to the Drummond clan, a well-known merchant liaison for the state. If I remember correctly, there were two heirs to the clan.

“Who are you? Are you more of those pirate scumbags.” she cried out, plucking her hand away from the mysterious male with the azure eyes. She raised both her hands up in a defensive stance. “Why are you so touchy-feely?”

Sarah, the one who knew this would happen, grew tired of her loud voice. “Hey, lady, shut the hell up. We saved your sorry ass while it was sinking to the seafloor.”

Damien took this time to reach for Charlotte’s hand again, showing intent of not harming her. “Miss, calm down. We’re mercenaries and naval officers working together. We apologize for the contact, but you are in good hands. Sarah, please be mindful of your words. She’s scared.”

Charlotte didn’t believe him necessarily. His choice of words was that of a merchant. Most pirates had that accent, which was easily picked up by the ear. They were not dressed slovenly or smelled of the typical alcoholic booze, and they were relatively clean and spoke warmly. Still unsure, she was pondering whether she should accept their story or not. This could be another ploy those pirates to get her to drop her defenses.

“You could be lying to me. I will not lower my defenses from such sweet talk from you, no matter how you cajole me.”

Damien sighed and turned to the girl with the green eyes. “Get some food prepared for our guest. She must be hungry from all the bantering.”

Charlotte revolted at the idea, “I am not hungry!” But before she could say another word, her stomach growled.

“See, ’told ya.” A smile played across Damien’s lips as he took up the stereotypical pirate slang. Her face flushed, and her ears were tinged with red. It was both from embarrassment and anger.

That was when the door burst open to reveal two more people to the room. Aden and Xavier meandered their way in before stopping at the foot of the bed.

“Took her long enough,” the green-eyed one said with a scoff before turning to Damien. “What did she say?”

Sarah piped in from her spot, “The disgraceful git hates pirates, whoopee-do. We save her sorry ass and look what we get? You should have let her drown.”

Charlotte, who didn’t take well to name-calling, retorted back, “Takes one to know one, you permed midget!”

“Oh, hell, no!” Sarah practically lunged at the girl.

Before things could get worse between the two of them, Damien intervened by capturing Sarah’s writhing form within his arms and stepped away from the bed. Aden gave a dark look to the young maiden in bed while Damien pulled Sarah away to the doorway.

“All right, that’s enough. You two need to stop.” Damien spoke in a controlled voice as Sarah tried to claw out from his restraint.

“Are you trying to aggravate your injuries?” Aden directed his question with some authority to the girl in bed. When she did not have an answer, he turned to Sarah.

“Sarah, go and cool down. Anna should have some food prepared in the caboose.”

Sarah began to protest, but Aden gave her the same dark glare. “Go. Now.” Without batting a lash, she left the room, muttering that the hazel-eyed girl should have been left for dead.

The auburn-haired girl muttered into her blanket that she wasn’t hungry, and the guy with the beanie stated with some satisfaction, “Lady, your stomach says otherwise. Fill ’er up. You ’ave a long journey ahead of ya.”

His blatant statement made her pout. “You can take your food and shov’ it.” Charlotte resorted to using her own version of the pirate slang. She had seen enough pirates banter for an evening to imitate it quite well.

Damien gave a reassuring smile to Aden and Xavier, glad to see that the girl was raring for a fight already. He knew Charlotte would fit right in once she was better.

“Feisty one, ain’t cha? Good enough, Aden?” The man with the moon-and-stars tattoo turned to the girl in question.

The male in question was still staring at her. “She’ll suffice,” Aden replied before turning to Damien. “Come to the hallway.” Directing him to the hall, the two left the room while Xavier stayed behind with the girl.

“My tone was that of an insult,” Charlotte said. Indignantly, she continued, “It was not meant as a teasing affection for invoking a friendship.”

The commander known as Xavier smirked before going forward to her side and grasping her hand, which Charlotte was abhorrent about. “I figured, but I tend to look at the brighter side of things. You’ll warm up to us. I think you’ll like the foods that Anna had prepared. Wouldn’t that be good?”

Then he looked in the corner of the room to see a humble boy with gauze wrapped around his forehead and arms. His glasses were still cracked, and he was sitting with a hunched back. “Why don’t you console the young lady, Marklin?” Xavier smiled.

Surprised, Charlotte peered at him. “I’ve been wondering for some time now, but why does your name sound familiar?”

Tyler mumbled something before getting up from his spot. “I’m Tyler Marklin, and I believe we were classmates in Chiariotti before? My employer might know who you are.”

Charlotte was puzzled, piecing together what he said. “Was it the Academy? I believe I do know you, but I do not know your employer. If I had a name, it would definitely help.” Tyler smiled at her.

“Her name is Lady Oli—” Xavier interrupted him with the screech of his chair.

“There’s enough time to catch up later. Ty, can you explain to the miss that we’re not as bad as she claims we are?” The man with the tattoo smiled uncomfortably as the girl with the hazel eyes narrowed her eyes in suspicion.

“We were actually saved by these men, and I give my gratitude to them for allowing me sanction. I hope you may find it in your heart to do the same, miss?” Tyler Marklin paused, unsure of her name.

“Right, I’m Ch—Lottie . . . Lionsheart.” She had paused, and quickly changed her name. She knew that her stutter was caught, but she would not allow them time to doubt her. She looked at the man with the beanie. “You are?”

“My name is Xavier Drummond. I used to be the captain but lost my seat due to political reasons. Anyway I’m now the commander on this fine vessel. The girl who was just in here is called Sarah Moreno. Be wary, she can be very waspish.”

Charlotte nodded. She didn’t really like her that much as of yet. “She was a bit much, but I can see from her perspective too. Wait, did you say Moreno? We’re talking about the clan Moreno from the Trading Company Moreno, correct?”

Xavier nodded before continuing, “The very same, and the blond Demeuillieun is my younger brother, Damien Drummond. He’s a bit of a pansy, but he has a heart of gold. The guy with the green eyes is a Bherghen, Aden Summerfeld. He’s also my younger half brother who took up my seat after I resigned it. He can be a prick, but he has his moments of—”

Charlotte had tried to warn him about the foot rising up to his back but did not know when to say so. Especially since the ones named Aden and Damien icily glared at their so-called brother.

“What was that, Xav? You want to die that badly?” The one with emerald eyes leered.

Damien pounded a fist into his open palm. “And I’m not a pansy either, brother.”

Charlotte giggled. They all turned their attention to her even with a beaten Xavier beneath their feet. “Thank you.”

Aden disregarded the guy at his feet before shrugging. Charlotte already began to think that this crew maybe wasn’t bad after all.

“All in the day’s work, Pink.” He smirked his trademark expression right back at her, and Charlotte paused. Pink?

She looked down at herself in confusion before looking back up at him. “Pink?”

He gave a smirk before pointing at the blanket she was lying under. Removing the said blanket, she saw a huge square cut out from her dress and how it ran down to the front of her skirt showing her pink undergarments for the world to see. Damien and Tyler flushed a deep red before swiftly turning away, and Aden just crossed his arms with smug continence. “You would think you’d have worn sexier lingerie or something. What are you, ten?”

Charlotte twitched her eye in irritation before swiftly grabbing the blanket to cover the said underwear. When covered, she shrieked, “You pervert!”

On second thought, I don’t like them.

 

۞ ۞ ۞ ۞ ۞ ۞ ۞ ۞

 

Xavier tried to nicely bring up a conversation after all the ruckus Aden had caused. “Before you rest, Lionsheart, you need to tell us what exactly happened that night.” After ten pillows chucked in their direction, they desperately needed to think of a better way to approach her. “Whenever you’re ready to talk, I mean. No rush or anything.”

The blond brother continued to follow his older brother’s last suggestion, “You can choose to sleep for a night beforehand. It’s really up to you, Miss Lionsheart.”

Charlotte shook her head. “It’s all right. It’s still fresh in my mind, so it’ll be easier to remember it. Thank you for your concern though.”

“Do you remember anything past dinner?” Xavier asked when he knew they got the ball rolling. Aden knew to keep his mouth shut in these types of situations.

The auburn closed her eyes. She pictured everything that she could remember. “I don’t recall anything of that day at all. My unc—” Charlotte paused, her eyes opened, and her face flushed. She almost revealed that her uncle was the fleet admiral, which she didn’t deem appropriate given her current situation. She couldn’t trust these people with everything. It was unfortunate for the girl that the black-haired captain caught the stutter and pounced the instant she paused.

“Your unc—? If you’re lying, I’m throwing you off this ship.” Damien gave a shocked look to his captain while Charlotte shook her head. She had to convince them that it was merely a slipup and not important to discuss.

“Sorry, I was thinking about my uncle who works in the kitchen. I was going to recite everything then realized that it was irrelevant. What was relevant is that the fleet admiral called me to see him.” She let her excuse settle before she gauged their responses. It appeared she won over Xavier, but the other two looked like they needed more clarification. Or they flat out did not believe her. “He sent me to eat dinner, and then I’m being violently awoken by the maids of the estate.”

She twisted the story around to fit her alibi, but it still did not look like she won over the brothers. Xavier grasped his chin with his hand and looked lost in thought. Damien continued pressing for details. “Do you know if the estate hired any new help? Like a man or chef or maid-in-waiting?”

Charlotte raised her brow in surprise. “Yes. A couple of days prior, a woman was hired. She was hired to watch the fleet admiral’s nephew because the servants watching him mysteriously disappeared.”

“Did this woman have medium length curly hair and blue eyes?” Damien asked Charlotte immediately. She nodded. “That would be Claire. She works for Zaine.”

Aden scoffed, not exactly happy to let her story off without a hitch. “What about a man?”

Charlotte thought hard about this. She could only think of the whispers from the maids earlier that week. “Yes, a mercenary was hired, but my uncle didn’t hire him. I remember he walked the courtyard one day. He talked with that Claire person once before.” She paused to think of how a mercenary was able to convince the guard. What she did not take into account were the three siblings staring at her for her slipup again.

Finally, it was Damien who inquired about her previous statement. “Your uncle has the power to hire people at the estate?” He was more curious to see why a mere chef would have such control over personnel. The auburn knew then that she messed up and began to violently cough.

Aden sighed. He knew that something did not add up. He ignored his gut feeling and continued his questions, “Didn’t the fleet admiral sense there was something off within his own estate?”

Charlotte’s cough died away as she flattened her hands on the sheets. She looked straight to him as she answered his question, “I realized at the last moment that Claire was indeed the same woman the fleet admiral hired.”

“Zaine is the other man you saw. Did they ask anything out of the ordinary? Maybe they mentioned something about stones or the whereabouts of one?”

“I don’t remember.” Charlotte gripped the sheets tightly enough to turn her hands pale white.

“So we can assume she was hired for a small boy’s aid as a means to get closer to the family. He was probably hired by one of the guardsmen patrolling the area. Everyone has been running around due to lack of personnel. The state is also suffering from cuts to financial budgeting.” Xavier probed lightly, hoping not to entice the injured lass to further misery. Charlotte nodded grimly just as Damien started up again.

“If these two were there at the estate before the attack, they must have slipped a heavy dose of sleeping potion into everyone’s food. They were hoping to catch the family and staff off guard with the attack. That would explain also why your memory is full of holes of the evening.”

The tapping of the Aden’s foot brought the attention back to the door. “You know Zaine and Claire are not the types to innocently plant sleeping potion in their food. I feel that there’s more to this than meets the eye, and our only clue is this hapless girl.”

“Yet this hapless girl is here providing provincial information,” Charlotte lashed right back. She was sick and tired of Aden’s nicknames. “He was looking for something from the fleet admiral, killed him, and exacted his revenge for something.”

Aden answered just as fiercely, “Was he looking for stones?”

“I don’t know!” She yelled back. The tears started to flow down her cheeks. “That man decimated my family and home in a matter of hours. How would I know if he was looking for stones? If I did not know any better, he was looking for slaughter!”

Damien jumped in, concerned that this may turn into another pillow fight. “What my brother intends to say is perhaps we should let you think on it some more. Sleep for now, and we’ll have Sarah come in later to help you into clean clothes.” Xavier and Damien ushered themselves to the door.

“Good night, Lionsheart. You’re safe with us. No need to worry.” Xavier winked over his shoulder before leaving her alone, with Damien following suit. The only one left in the room was Aden, but he was staring at her with intensity.

“Interesting ring,” he replied, and she pulled her hands into her chest. “What family lineage is that from?”

The girl just fumbled with her ring before mumbling, “It was a gift—I mean it’s the Lionshearts’ family ring.”

“If you’re hiding anything, just be out with it. It’ll save us all the problems later.”

 Charlotte scoffed at his rudeness. “I told you it was my family ring. What more do you want from me, you—you—nasty jerk!” She had hoped her own derogatory comment to his character would draw attention away from her ring. If they were who they claimed to be, it would not take them long if they studied it more carefully. Given the time and chance, they would be able to determine the insignia as the Rothschild clan. And even if her uncle told her that she could present her ring to those who work for the state to help her—like she thought earlier—she wasn’t ready to trust anyone with her life.

Aden’s eyebrows shot up at her attempt to challenge him before he narrowed his eyes. “I ought to tie you to the mast and let you starve outside, you stupid girl.”

“Oh yeah? Then why don’t you, pointy eyebrows?” she huffed in anger. The auburn didn’t think he’d actually follow through. In those situations, she assumed that any man would have given up and slammed the door behind him. That would not be Aden Summerfeld though.

Aden twitched his eyes in irritation. “You asked for it.” He stalked over to the bed, grabbed the girl within her blankets and all, and threw her over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. She shrieked in surprise and pain, kicking and scratching where she could. Xavier came back into the room at this time with a smirk that meant only trouble for the captain.

“Addie, if you guys wanted to play love games, you should probably wait until she’s healed up. Poor thing looks pale in pain.” The older Drummond had a strange feeling that his younger brother took longer than needed, so he went back. Fortunately, he seemed to have saved the auburn from a brutal punishment.

Between the two of the evils presented before him, Aden decided that the worse one was probably Charlotte’s prolonged pain. He dropped the girl unceremoniously on the bed and walked away. “Be grateful you survived from Zaine. I won’t be so forgiving the next time you decide to bad-mouth me.” Xavier offered a quick smile and wave before he and Aden were separated by a wooden oak door. She wasn’t surprised by them leaving, but the loudness of the door closing did rattle her nerves.

Charlotte rubbed the comforter between her fingers before she broke down into tears. She somehow was able to convince them that she was just some girl on the estate. Though it didn’t change the fact that her uncle was dead, and her brother was probably in a similar situation. She was alone in an unknown area on some boat heading to who knew where with a jerk as a captain. How could she not worry? She couldn’t remember anything of importance, only that the day was fairly normal. Her uncle did call her, but that ended like any conversation did. Or was it? She was perplexed by the way her uncle told her to be strong.

“Did he know his death was coming?” She looked up at the ceiling, looking at nothing in particular.

“Why did he tell me to be strong? Why couldn’t it have been Skylar, or did he know that this would happen too? Wait, what happened to Skylar? Is he onboard as well?” She grasped her head in pain, letting a groan out. “I don’t understand. I just don’t understand. I need to find him.” She let her exhaustion take her into dreams unknown, unsure of what the future held for her.

What she wasn’t expecting had been Aden, Xavier, and Damien listening outside the door.

“It appears there is more than meets the eye, Aden. You need to keep an eye on her because this could be a trap.”

“Hmm.” Aden gravely looked at the wood separating them from the lonely girl.

“I think we need to gain her trust before arbitrarily deciding if she’s a threat. Don’t you agree?”

“She definitely high class.” Aden determined, and pointed to Xavier’s ring finger. They laid on the finger was a ring that held the insignia of his husband’s family. “Middle and high class families recognize their families with clan rings.”

“The way she talks is stuffy.” Damien surmised. “I agree with Aden.”

Xavier merely rubbed his chest in an older brotherly way. While he wanted to avoid spoiling the girl, he did want her to warm up to them. Hoping that this would ease Aden’s concerns, Xavier waved his hand to the direction of the stairwell. “I’ll send a telegram to look into the Lionsheart clan. No use worrying about things that have yet to happen. Let’s relieve Leo from his helm duties.”

Damien grumbled before following suit after Aden who had begun his trek up the staircase. Xavier walked slowly behind him. “I hope you’re right. I wonder who she really is.”

Aden grunted in his typical fashion. “I knew she was spewing lies the instant she stuttered. She’s hiding something, and we will find out what it is.”

 

۞ ۞ ۞ ۞ ۞ ۞ ۞ ۞

 

Aden sighed heavily into his hand. The last few days had been pretty hectic as they tried to piece together the girl’s story and chase after the pirates’ trail. Nothing ever seemed to work in his interest as one errand led to another and another. This was supposed to be a simple trip, dropping off goods to the estate and meeting the acting fleet admiral. Now everything was for naught.

“Is your head still bothering you?” Damien drummed his fingers on his thigh in a light fashion. Unfortunately, he did not know what to do for his younger sibling. 

The raven-haired captain pinched the bridge of his nose. He hoped it would relieve the headache he had for the past two hours. “Yeah, I’m just tired. It’ll clear when I close my eyes.”

Damien narrowed his eyes in concern. “I can always have Lionsheart stay in the barracks with Anna. You haven’t slept in your own quarters since she came.” 

“I thought of that, but when I went to check on the occupancy, Anna said we have no more cots available.” Aden shook his head. “She’d have to sleep on the floor, and that wouldn’t be good for her injuries.” 

Damien frowned. While the Division was a great transport ship, it did have its problems. Theirs was a lack of space. 

A knock aroused their attention to the door. Aden moved his hands from his face so he didn’t look as tired. “Come in.”

The oak frame pulled out to reveal his older brother, Xavier. He was holding in his hand the finished reports that he had been assigned. “Here’s the last-minute updates you wanted.” Xavier walked over to the desk and handed the packet over to him. Aden glanced down at the new edits while Xavier reached to play with one of the paperweights on the desk.

“Oh yeah!” Xavier fiddled with the paperweight that looked like pebbles floating in frozen molasses. It seemed like a light bulb had gone on in his head. “Leo said that they’ve spotted Na Luna. It’s your call whether or not to land, but I know we’ll be welcomed if I send a telegram now.”

Damien smiled at this new information. “That means we can get some more supplies, and you can finally get rest. Any news on Lionsheart?”

Xavier frowned. “Lionsheart does not appear in the registry. At least, that’s what my informant said.”

“Hmm.” Aden looked up to his brothers. It seemed he made a decision. “Head to Na Luna province.”

Xavier smirked and jumped into his next line of conversation, “I also put Tyler Marklin in the kitchen. I didn’t know where else to put him. He looks to be the scholarly type than a worker.”

Damien grabbed his chin as he considered the new addition working with Anna. In the mornings, he recalled seeing Tyler working in the caboose. “As long as he isn’t in the way, he should be fine down there.”

Aden shook his head as he reached for the quill. He signed his initials on the report and placed it into the completed report pile. They had accumulated quite a few documents over the past year travelling.

“I think Damien fits that role in the caboose the best, don’t you think?” Xavier went around the desk to nudge his youngest sibling, and Aden waved the quill back and forth to deflect his brother’s advances. The older Drummond male easily dodged the quill as if they were playing around. Since his quill didn’t stop him, the youngest sibling decided to glare. “Enough from the peanut gallery.”

“You know you love me, little bruva.”

Damien shook his head before turning to the window. It was beginning to darken from the clouds that were slowly starting to billow. They had seen the approaching storm a couple of days ago, but they hoped to make it to port before then. “Hey, we should bring the sails up pretty soon. This looks like it might be a bad storm.”

Aden let Xavier go from his stare and stretched his arms in front of his torso. Sitting at his oak desk was something that he didn’t like doing, but he knew the paperwork wouldn’t get done if he was on deck all day. “Xav, consider yourself lucky the storm came in. Help man the galley and deck below and make sure the remaining amount of our supplies are secured. If we lose any more of our supplies, I won’t be stopped from tossing you overboard. Damien, follow me up desk. Xavier, when you are done, meet me up by the steering wheel.”

Two new singsong voices popped in from the door. These voices belonged to the elusive Leo and Jakob as they cheerfully came to report the drizzle of rain. “Rain, rain comes again. Come and wash ’way Xavier’s silly name!”

It took Xavier a few seconds to realize they were making fun of him. He looked over to the open door where the two guys were leaning over each other. Their smiles were obvious on their faces. “Get back here and take this knuckle sandwich!” Xavier was fast enough to catch Leo in his grasp, but Jakob had sprinted off into the hall.

Aden stretched as he stood up. His head was already beginning to feel like it would burst from the pressure forming near his forehead. Everything he had seen the past week had slowly begun to regurgitate into some monster in his head. Or maybe it was the churning weather. In either event, his head hurt from dealing with the aftermath of the estate. 

But he did learn two things from the girl.

“What are you thinking, Aden?” Damien followed as instructed, a tiny fraction of concern ebbed on his face. The weather concerned him a bit, but not as much as Aden’s deteriorated health. 

“Damien,” Aden said, “this stays between the two of us.” Damien nodded. “Given the amount of time she’d been with us, I think she is warming up. There is more to her than what she’s telling us,  but I feel that once she does reveal herself, it’s not going to be in our favor.”

He thought that he would admit he wasn’t feeling well, but that was not something Aden would do. It was Aden-like to talk about the girl though. “So keep someone posted on her? What about Marklin? She took a liking to him quick enough?”

Aden shook his head. They were already climbing the companionway stairs to the deck. The latch on the door in front of him popped open as the wind carried the door and slammed it on the wall next to them. It was blustery already with leaves and rain splattering down. Aden stood under the protection of the doorway with his brother looking at the disastrous weather.

“To be honest, I don’t want one of the Gizmo Queen’s pawns watching over her. Last thing I need is her getting involved.” Damien gave him an alarmed look. He obviously had not known what he had.

“You mean he’s Lady Olivia Cheric’s servant? What did she send him to the estate for? You don’t think she’d find out he’s with us, do you?”

Aden remained poignant. He had told Xavier to make their report as blatantly as possible without the information leak about their two new additions. Thus, the reason why he needed to make the quick adjustments. “I don’t know, but I specifically told Xavier to not allow them to talk for long periods. If Cheric get’s involved, I’ll have to listen. She does have the state tied around her goggles.”

Damien laughed. “Lady Cheric is a scary individual to deal with, especially from that one time in the academy.”

Aden grunted, “It’s one thing to gain favor from her. It’s completely another to make an enemy of her. The best course of action is to appear ignorant of those on our ships. Especially concerning Marklin. As for Lionsheart, I’m willing to give her more time. To be honest, I don’t think she’s a spy for Zaine.”

Damien gave him a confused look. “Why would you think she’d be a spy?”

Aden smirked at his first mate but kept an eye on his crew that buzzed around in the rainy conditions. “Didn’t you find it odd that she claimed to be just some girl in that estate? And something striked me odd about this uncle of hers. If she was just some girl, why would Claire and Zaine toy with her the way they did? Why would the fleet admiral call upon her out of all the servants? Also, we can’t forget about there being that third mysterious person. Who was that person retreating?” Aden grimaced, not enjoying the small chunks of puzzle pieces that were scattered in his mind to assemble. “That isn’t their style. They toy with those who could offer them entertainment.”

“You’re telling me she’s someone important in the scheme of it all?” Damien asked.

“More than that. I think she’s probably a key to the treasured Relic stones.” He paused before he looked back to his blond brother. 

“Relic stones? I thought we all agreed that it was a fable.”

Aden narrowed his eyes. He didn’t know if the state really did have a hand in the Relic stones, but he knew that those powers existed. The captain just never confirmed or denied the presence of the stones to his crewmates. “The state seems doubly interested in finding these stones before they can be used, and Lionsheart is somehow related to the fleet admiral who was rumored to be in possession of some. What is even more intriguing is that he is highly implemented within the state as the reigning fleet admiral.”

Damien thought briefly on what Aden had spoken of. Although it seemed kind of far-fetched.

“Perhaps,” Damien started with some reluctance. He hated to doubt, but what else could he do? Lottie Lionsheart was nothing but a girl, probably even younger than they were. How could she be related to the fleet admiral? How could she be related to the fabled stones? Of course, that didn’t stop Damien from agreeing that Aden was correct. After all, it just proved that this incident needed to be investigated.

Aden turned his head up to the rain that poured heavier onto their ship. The rocking of the waves forced the ship to shift to the port and starboard sides. “Unfortunately, we don’t have any allowances for her to give her time. We need to hurry to the wheel, Damien.” He moved so Damien could move on ahead while Aden causally walked down the portside stair unit to the alcove entrance into the main cabin. Damien was already heading up to the wheel as he parted with his brother.

“Where are you going, Aden?”

The emerald-eyed male looked up from the bottom of the staircase. “This doesn’t seem like the type of weather I should wear a white shirt in. I would hate to see half the crew drop from being too glorious.”

Damien laughed at his brother’s expense. “While you’re getting that shirt, don’t agitate the girl, Aden.”

“I can’t make any guarantees.” He waved his hand up over his head before finally disappearing from view. The rain had already soaked through his clothing as it stuck to his skin. 

The blond knew his hair would be matted to his head and his clothing just as wet and sticking to his skin as his brothers’. While all his shipmates ran around securing the supplies on deck, he had wished Xavier would put a maintenance order for an awning to cover the wheelhouse. The rain had already begun a thick sleet with miniature pebbles of hail hitting down on the floor. A continuous melody of the hail smashed itself against the wood that did not ease their minds. “I just hope this storm passes smoothly.”