Page 72 of Viktor at Sea

CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE

The only way today could have gone better was if Astrid was with me.

Minus the part where some of them were sick while gutting the fish, all the teenagers enjoyed themselves, and overall, it was a splendid day. They may not have enjoyed gutting and cooking the fish, but they enjoyed eating it, and many of them even asked for a second helping which, thanks to Jerrik, was possible. In fact, we caught enough fish to bring some back to Jorvik to split between us.

Once we docked at the shore, everyone lined up to get off the ship.

“It’s a little later than we planned to be back, so make sure you all head straight home,” I said to the teenagers. “We don’t want your parents to worry.”

I was the last person off The Serpent and was surprised to find Barden waiting for me.

“What are you doing out here this late, Barden?” I asked curiously, coming to a stop in front of him. “Can’t sleep?”

“No,” Barden released a long breath and shook his head. “There’s something I wanted to speak to you about.”

“And it couldn’t wait till the morning?” I asked, surprised by how conflicted he looked.

“No.” He shook his head. “I’ve been meaning to speak to you about this for a few days now. I just haven’t found the right moment to–I’m guessing that today’s trip was a success?” He asked, skilfully changing the subject when he noticed more than a couple of listening ears around us.

Whatever Barden had to say that he didn’t want others to overhear piqued my interest. Enough so that I was actually contemplating waiting around to listen to what he had to say instead of rushing home to my wife. She was probably asleep, but I wanted nothing more than to crawl into bed behind her and bury my face in her hair.

“Yes. Today’s trip was great.” I nodded and glanced around at all the smiling, albeit tired, faces. “We did a lot of swimming, fishing and cooking. A few of them even got to steer the ship.”

“Sounds like you had an exciting day,” he chuckled. “Do you think we’ll be able to turn a few of them into crew members?”

“I’ve definitely got my eye on a few,” I murmured lowly, and my eyes subconsciously drifted over to Roscoe.

Roscoe didn’t even bother hiding that he was hanging onto our every word. When he caught my eye, I winked and gestured for him to head home. While I wasn’t making any promises, I recognised talent when I saw it. It would be a mistake on my part not to help shape it into what it could be. The only thing making me hesitate was his age. I started as part of the crew when I was about a year or two younger than Roscoe, and while I loved every single moment of the sea life, it forced me to grow up quickly. I wasn’t sure if I wanted that for someone else. Especially a teenager as talented yet impressionable as Roscoe.

“You think the crew could see these kids home?” Barden asked, starting to look a little agitated. I didn’t know whether it had something to do with it being so late or how long he hadbeen waiting to talk to me, but whatever was on his mind seemed to be significantly weighing him down.

“We can handle it, Chief,” Garth answered for me, and I turned to thank him.

Once it was just Barden and me on the shore, my gaze turned questioning.

“What’s on your mind, Barden?” I asked.

“Let’s talk and walk,” he said. “It’s already pretty late, and I don’t want to keep you longer than I need to.”

“Sure.”

“I’ve been meaning to speak to you about this for quite a few days now,” Barden told me.

“You’ve already told me that.”

“Yes,” he chuckled, the sound a little strained. “Please excuse me for dancing around the topic, but it’s because I know you won’t like what I have to say.”

“Tell me, and I’ll be the judge of that,” I joked, trying to lighten the mood, but it didn’t work very well.

“I actually have a request from you. The kind that you can’t say no to.”

“That sounds more like an order.”

“Perhaps it is.” Barden shrugged. “I want you to go out on another mission, Viktor,” he told me as we came to a stop in front of my hut. Astrid was on the other side of the door, probably fast asleep in our bed, but all thoughts of going in there and curling up behind her vanished from my mind after what Barden had just said.

“How long will this mission be for?” I asked, not in the mood to beat around the bush.

If Barden had asked me earlier, before I concluded that I was in love with Astrid and proposed to her, I would have jumped at the opportunity to get out on the sea again for months on end. I would been excited to be back on the sea with my crew, withnothing but the wind and deep blue surrounding us from every angle, but right now, all I could think about was Astrid.

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