Page 73 of Found at Sea
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“Is the name of the town really Bone Bay?” I asked Alek as theCrimsonneared the harbor.
“It is now,” he answered, leaning forward on the rail and staring ahead. “Once, I believe it was called Beckinsdale, but one night many, many years ago, a band of pilfers raided the town and killed dozens of people. They tossed the dead bodies into the sea, and afterward, people started calling it Bone Bay.”
“That’s horrible.”
Alek nodded and continued staring at the approaching land. He’d been quiet the past few days, and I wondered if he’d had any more odd dreams. When I asked him about it, he’d brushed it off.
“Should I be worried?” I asked, stepping a bit closer to him. “Is it a town like Stonebridge? Full of drunkards, thieves, murderers, and whores?”
We’d been sailing for a little over two weeks, and I was eager to feel the land beneath my feet once more. But not if it meant potentially getting stabbed or beaten to a bloody pulp.
“No, it’s not like Stonebridge,” Alek answered. I was about to breathe a sigh of relief when he added, “It’s much worse.”
“Lovely.”
Once we were close enough to the dock, some of the crew threw the ropes off the ship and began securing it.
I took the moment to study Bone Bay.
People near the shore regarded us and they didn’t look friendly in the slightest. The men were big and burly, and the ones who weren’t seemed to make up for it in their snarling faces and with the weapons they carried. The dreary sky made the town appear even more sinister, with the overhanging dark gray clouds and slight chill in the air.
We’d travelled far in the two weeks, and we were definitely not in the beautiful southern waters any longer. It wasn’t cold, but the tropical breeze I’d grown accustomed to was gone. I already missed it.
“Why can’t we ever port in a nice town?” I asked as dread sank into my bones.
“Because we’re pirates, Fletch,” Alek answered, moving his eyes to me. They were a darker blue that day. “Who do you think makes these towns so awful?”
“But we aren’t like that.” I faced him, resting my arm on the rail. “I’ve never seen us raid a village or harm anyone.”
“Correct. You haven’tseen.” Alek watched me carefully. “What do you think happened in Stonebridge? After the incident at the brothel, you came aboard the ship and didn’t leave it much after that. All the while, men in our crew raided a few nearby houses, thieving from the people who dwelled there, and some of them started fights in the tavern and killed men to steal their coin.”
My face paled. “I…I didn’t know.”
“The captain didn’twantyou to know,” he responded. “I kept you distracted on the ship and the times we went swimming.”
Something about his words registered in my head, and I scrunched my brow. “You distracted me? As in…what, an order?” The tops of my ears prickled as something suddenly became all too clear. “Were you ordered to be my friend?”
Alek clenched his jaw as a spark of silver flashed in his eyes. “Yes.”
Feeling a level of betrayal I’d never before known, I shoved against his chest. My vision blurred with tears, and when he reached out for me, I jerked out of his hold.
“Do not touch me, Alek! I…” A lump wedged in my throat. “I thought you were my friend.”
“I am!” he exclaimed, grabbing my arms, despite my attempts to push him away. His eyes glistened too. “Our friendship might’ve started that way, but I’ve never lied to you. Captain Flynn only wanted me to make you feel comfortable when you first arrived, which is why he told me to befriend you. Not for any other reason. It might’ve started as an order, but it didn’t stay one. Please do not be angry with me. I…I love you, Fletch.”
Too livid to deal with him in that moment, I gave another forceful shove against his chest to break free from him.
“Don’t feel as if you have to watch over me like I’m some child while we’re here,” I said, glaring at him. “I do not need a keeper. So go and be a despicable person like the rest of the crew and leave me be.”
I stormed away after that, and only once I was in mine and Kellan’s cabin did I allow myself to cry. Perhaps I was overreacting, but the betrayal hurt. All that time, I’d believed Alek had actually wanted to be my friend. To discover he’d only become close to me because Kellan ordered him to was a hard blow to take.
“Boy?”
Hearing Kellan’s voice, I pressed my face more into the pillow and ignored him. The bed dipped as he sat, and he placed his hand on my hip.
“I do not wish to see you right now,” I said in between small gasps. I hated crying. “I want to be alone.”
