Page 57 of Ship Happens
“She’s a touch competitive,” Eve whispers beside my ear.
Despite Kindra folding her arms over her chest and refusing to help, her team pulls their Cattle onto the deck next. Unsurprisingly, he’s also very dead.
“Five points to Ezra’s team!” Jim yells.
A team of unfamiliar people come in third, followed by Grim’s team in fourth. The last two teams are eliminated when they can’t get their Cattle above the waterline by the game’s end.
“Better luck next time,” Jim says as they’re ushered to a waiting area below deck.
The dead bodies are removed from sight as servers piddle around the tables on the island. I know this because Jim left the spyglass in my care. Its strap currently hangs around my neck asI stare through the eyepiece and wish I was eating whatever the fuck sort of meat that is.
The pirate music blasts from the speakers again, followed by Jim’s voice. “Looks like those soldiers paid dearly for stepping in harrrm’s way. Let this be a lesson to ye. When you mess with Blackbeard, you’ll get very familiar with the briny deep. Please enjoy your next course, a plank of beef served with a side of soldier-shaped mashed potatoes.”
I turn to Maverick. “Planks...like walk the plank? What the fuck will we have to do this time?”
Maverick looks around, as curious as I am, though for a very different reason. I see the excitement in their eyes. All of them. They’re practically frothing at the mouth for what comes next.
Jim motions us closer as the crew starts setting up actual fucking planks off the side of the ship. Four of them, to be exact. Yet again, this is something that is survivable, so I’m not sure what sort of wicked twist Jim has up his sleeve.
And I don’t want to find out.
Before everyone else reaches him, I hurry toward Jim. “Hey, Ireallyneed to use the restroom, if you catch my drift. Lunch isn’t sitting so well in my stomach.”
“We can’t stop the show now,” Jim whines. “What about all the guests? They’ll be so disappointed if we take an intermission, and their next course might get cold.”
Is he fucking pouting?
No matter. I have to get out of this.
“Yeah, I understand if you need to keep going. I’ll be back before the next game.” I raise two fingers. “Scouts honor.”
He doesn’t need to know that two more fingers are crossed behind my back. After all, diarrhea can be very unpredictable, especially when it’s fake.
Jim sighs and clenches his fists at his sides. “If you must, but please return by the final game. I wouldn’t want you to miss the special guest.”
“Wouldn’t dream of it,” I say with a wink.
He shouts something at my retreating back about staying away from the brig, but he doesn’t have to worry about that. I have zero desire to go anywhere near the criminals.
I hurry to the staircase before Maverick realizes what’s happening. If he follows me, Jim will surely halt the games before I return. I can only hope that Maverick didn’t spot me wandering off in all the hubbub.
Shadows linger below deck. Glass lanterns along the wall provide the only light as I hurry down a long corridor until I reach the bathroom at the end. Whoever designed it did their best to make it look like it belongs in the same time period as the ship, so I’m grateful when the toilet flushes after I step into the small space and try the handle. Not that I actually need to use it. I close the lid and sit down.
Almost instantly, the door springs open and a man backs inside, completely oblivious to my presence. My fear is quickly replaced by relief when I realize I could overpower this man with my pinky. He’s quite short.
I clear my throat, and he whips around with wide, bulging eyes. It takes a second to realize that his appearance isn’t due to shock. This is just how he looks.
“Oh, so sorry,” he says as he hurries to avert his eyes. “I didn’t realize this one was in use. Um...can you give me just a second?”
I stand and smooth the front of my corset. “You can turn around. I wasn’t using the facilities, just...taking a break.”
“I’m hiding, but please don’t tell Jim.”
I glance at his wrist, where an orange band circles his skin.
He holds out his hand. “I’m Gary, by the way. Some guys brought me to an island by mistake, so Jim lets me work for him now. If he finds out I snuck aboard...” He looks to the side and shakes his head, and his smile finally breaks. “I’m grateful for Jim. We travel a lot, and I have food and a bed. As long as I stay out of Chef Maurice’s way, I do fine. I wasn’t supposed to be on the pirate ship today, but the crew was short due to seasickness, so I volunteered. If Jim knew, he’d be upset.”
“He doesn’t normally assign you to the games?”
