by Clark, Lydia
Dale sat across from his Mum at the table. He leaned back and crossed his arms. “The Duke is the one who took her Pop prisoner.”
“Who’s Pop is that?” His mom asked while reaching across the table in hopes of touching her son’s arm in forgiveness.
“Treea Pellesi.”
“Why does that name seem familiar?”
“I’m sure you have heard of Captain Pellesi?”
His mum’s hand shot to her mouth. “The pirate? He has a daughter?”
“She captured me, with the intention of holding me for ransom for the release of her Pop.”
“How did you get away?”
“Mum, do you remember how you always told me a man’s downfall is through jealousy?”
“Aye.”
“Well, that is exactly what I did. You see the first mate, he has a strong heart for Captain Pellesi’s daughter and she showed an eye for me. So I took advantage of his weakness and used it against him. I merely told him I would steal his woman from him. This irked him and he challenged me to a duel, not to the death mind you, but to submission of will. The years of living among the street urchins taught me well in hand to hand combat. I overpowered him and knocked him out. Then I switched places with him and left the ship by jumping to the water. Good thing I learned to swim.” The thought of swimming in the cold water brought a short chuckle from is throat. “I left in time to hear the Dukes men board the ship.”
The old woman slapped her hands on the table, the gesture almost caused Dale to lose his composure. She had a way of doing that from time to time to make a point. “He sent them to kill you. You do know that right? The Duke wants you dead.”
“But why would he want that Mum? It isn’t even proven that I am of any importance.”
“Dale, the Duke of all people knows of your importance if he knows you are still alive he will send others until you and I are dead.”
“There has to be something I can do.”
His mum sat silent, deep in thought. Suddenly she reached out and put her hand upon his arm. “There is only one thing you can do. You must possess that diary and take it to the king personally and make him look at it. He must read it if he is to believe that you exist. The queen died a few months ago without ever presenting him an heir of any kind. Now is the time for you to come forward, but you must be careful that the Duke does not find out that you still exist before you can prove who you are to the king. Everything that is in that diary is only known to the King or myself. When he reads it, he will know.”
“Then I must get back on board Captain Pellesi’s ship. That is where the diary is. Treea has it.”
Chapter 13
Dale waited until nightfall before leaving the safety of his home. Dressing in dark clothes to help him hide in the shadows while he stole his way to the ship. But when he arrived at the dock the ship was no longer there. It had been moved to a safe distance from the shore, preventing any more attacks from the Duke’s men. Now there was only one way to board the ship. He would have to swim for it and climb up the ship’s flank where the chain hung from the weight of the anchor.
The cold water bit at his body. He was determined to get that book, drove himself on swimming quietly. Climbing the ships chain was difficult. His hand over hand motion went progressively well until he found the section slimed with algae growth. It was slippery and he nearly lost his hold. Quickly he brought his legs up and wrapped them about the chain, shimmying past the tricky area.
With a soft grunt, he rolled over the side of the ship and onto the deck, rolling near a canvas covered crate where he took cover briefly while a deck hand walked by while on watch. When the sailor was out of sight, Dale slipped out from underneath the cover and went in search of Treea’s cabin. He had a vague idea of the layout of the ship from visiting similar ships in the past for a quick card game where he would allow the other player to win on purpose. It was his way of securing a future partner who would set him up with a wealthy female client as he had done with Hurley. In fact, he had been on this ship once before, but not for Hurley but for Captain Pellesi, who Dale had allowed to win not just one hand but two.
The captain had laughed heartily that night. “I know you let me win,” he said to Dale, “I never gamble, me and card games do not belong together.”
After the game, the captain had sent Dale home with a small bolt of silk fabric for his Mum as his way of thanking Dale for entertaining his pride by letting him win a couple hands of cards.
Dale never told his Mum where that bolt of silk had come from. He only told her his client had paid him well that night allowing him to afford such a luxury. In turn, she had made dresses for her clients to buy at a hefty price making her able to pay off a debt or two she had acquired over the years.
He quietly made his way about the ship in search of Treea’s room. When he found it, he almost was caught by another sailor passing by on his way to take over the next watch. Dale had avoided being found by ducking into a dark alcove and holding his breath until the Sailor was well up the stairwell.
It was dark inside Treea’s cabin. He had brought a small candle to use in order to search her room. But the swim to the ship had made the wick of the candle very damp and hard to light. It had taken a few tries with the flintstone before it took. Almost immediately, he found the diary sitting on the table on the other side of the room. While Treea slept in a hammock hanging from the ceiling in the middle, swaying back and forth with the motion of the ship, he crossed the room.
She looked beautiful, by the way, her hair framed her face. The sight of her made him yearn to touch her, kiss her, be with her the way they were the first night they had met. Her face showed sorrow and pain as though she were having a very troubled dream. Was she dreaming of her Pop?
Dale walked softly across the room to where the book sat. He reached out to pick it up off the table expecting to feel the cold steel on the back of his neck. The cold hard blade pressed against his skin in a warning that never came. He couldn’t believe it. She never once woke.
Treea moved once in her sleep while Dale waited to make sure she did not wake before he stole away into the dark waters. His stealth he attributed to his elven heritage. Keeping in the shadows when a deck hand passed close by before he dove off the side of the boat.
Come morning when Treea awoke, she found the diary gone. She questioned every hand on deck. No one had seen or heard a thing during the night. There were only three people beside the one who had given the book to Hurley, who knew she had this book. That would have been Hurley, herself, and the heir. Since the heir was still missing and she knew for a fact that Hurley was dead there was only one possibility, maybe two. It was either the person who had given the book to Hurley or the Heir who had taken the book.
Since Hurley had died knowing who had given him the book this other unknown identity bothered her. Could they have been in cahoots with the heir all along? Maybe this was some kind of revenge against Hurley to see him find his death. He did have a few enemies that even Treea knew about. There was even a couple of the deck hands who didn’t like Hurley enough to see him find his end. But, did they dislike their captain just as much?
Treea didn’t think this last was such. They had always seemed pretty loyal to her Pop. Only Hurley used to try and override his orders from time to time. It was one of the causes for arguments that would break out between her and Hurley. Sometimes he wouldn’t talk to her for days afterwards until he calmed down.
Not knowing if there were a traitor on deck, Treea decided it would be best that she went in search of clues to who had taken the book. And, if she could find Dale Montey if he were still alive.
She didn’t give any of the hands an explanation as to why she was going ashore. Treea didn’t need to. They knew she was trying to find a way to get her pop released from prison. Hurley was no longer around to do her leg work. Any one of the men would have gladly tried to help her. She only told them that they needed to stay on board and guard the ship while
she was gone in search of answers and the missing prisoner.
The men grinned at her knowingly. They knew what Dale did for a living.
One of the men decided to shout a hint while she rowed the dinghy boat toward the shore. “Check the tavern where you found him last. I’m sure someone will be able to point you in the right direction.”
She knew he was right. Where else would one look? It made sense to go back to the beginning. Maybe there she would learn something else useful. That was what a tavern was good for, gossip.
Outside the tavern, Treea straightened her dress and smoothed the lace about her bosom. A quick touch up of the scarf wrapped about her head allowed her large hoop earrings to hang loosely above her shoulders. Black pearls hung about her neck with a matching bracelet. Any other woman would have been overdressed. But being a pirate’s daughter, this was the way Treea liked to appear. They were also gifts from her Pop.
As soon as she entered the inn, everyone, guests including knew who she was. No one could miss a pirate’s daughter dressing like a pirate’s daughter. Frankly, Treea didn’t care if they did know. She was there on business.
A bar maid hurried over to her and looked about for a free table for this important guest. There was not one table available. The barmaid looked frantically about, “I can’t seem to find you a table.”
Treea waved her off. “I’m not here to eat. I’m looking for someone.”
“I’m not sure if I can help you then,” the barmaid replied.
“Dale, where is Dale. I know you know who I am talking about.”
The barmaid’s eyes went wide in astonishment. “Dale?” She looked about the room once again. “He does not seem to be here. Did you have an appointment with him?”
“No, but I want to make one. How do I do that?”
“The cost is up front, two gold pieces. I hear his price has gone up since he was last here.” The barmaid grinned.
“That is robbery.” Treea fished about the inside of a money pouch she had tied to her waist, even though that was less money than Hurley had paid previously. “Here, when can I expect to see him?”
Chapter 14
Treea couldn’t wait another minute. She needed to find that book. It was her ticket to getting her Pop out of the dungeon. Sometimes you just needed to do some things by yourself.
Since most of the crew was fast asleep, Treea departed the ship, quietly taking the smallest boat that she could manage with the oars by herself. The waters were slightly choppy from the strong south wind. But, it was by the help of the wind that she was able to use the tide to bring her to shore unnoticed by any of the town’s people. She was able to tie it securely to a small dock and left a gold coin for the fish merchant who kept the dock
Most of the people were still asleep or just waking. Wisps of smoke rose from chimneys of the homes of those who could afford coal.
Where was she to begin her search? Who would know Dale Montey? How shall she find him in such a large city? And, did he have the diary?
Why not start where she had first met him? The Black Line Tavern as the deckhand had suggested while she parted the ship.
She had been there two days prior with not one sign of him. The barmaid had agreed to set up a meeting with him, telling her to give her time to find him. Treea waited those few days for the waitress to make an arrangement, hoping to meet with him in the early morning hours.
There should have been barely a soul sitting in the big room of the Tavern when she let the door creak closed behind her. The barmaid was the one who greeted her with surprisingly, no hopes of acquiring a table. She was forced to remain standing by the fire in waits of a seat.
“What can I get fer ye, young lassie?” When the table became free, the barmaid ushered her to the seat.
“I’ll take a mug of your morning hot brew and a plate of eggs with fruit if you have it.” Treea set a coin on the table before her. “Apples are my favorite.”
“Aye, we have a few of them.” She swiftly scooped up the coin and pocketed it, returning soon after with the breakfast and a hot brew.”
Treea ate slowly, watching the comings and goings of the people at the Tavern. Dale was not to be seen. Could he be peering around the corner watching her, waiting for her to leave?
A crew of merchants she had never met before took over the table next to hers. She couldn’t help but overhear their conversation. At first their talk was just ship talk but then it slowly became gossip of a sort. Just the mention of her Pop’s name made her tune her ear carefully on to their conversation.
“Aye, did you hear that Captain Pellesi was arrested by the King’s men the other day?”
“That will teach that scoundrel not to deliver rat poop to the merchants. To think that he told them it was worth two-hundred silver. They should hang him for such a shipment.”
Treea’s face grew red. She knew they didn’t know what they were talking about. That shipment of the so-called rat poop was cocoa beans. It was a highly prized commodity in other countries.
“I heard they burned the shipment for fear that it would bring the plague down on them.”
Burned? Treea couldn’t believe her ears. No wonder her pop hadn’t received payment for that cargo. She just thought the merchant was dragging out his payment schedule. It was funny that her pop never made an issue out of not receiving payment right away. She wondered if he knew all along that the cocoa had been burned. Even Hurley never mentioned a thing about the fate of the cargo.
“I’m glad they arrested him. I hope it sends a strong message to anyone else who wants to try to con the King into thinking that garbage is a prized commodity.”
All the talk got to Treea. She couldn’t take it anymore. She just so happened to have a small bag of the so-called rat poop on her. With a quick yank of its strings, she had the pouch off her waist sash and open. Taking a small handful of the so described beans from it and placed them down on the table before the men. “That rat poop, was cocoa beans. Put one in your mouth like this,” she demonstrated, “and suck on it. It is a delicacy. They make hot chocolate from it. It is the drink of the Gods in the other lands.”
One of the men raised his hand ready to swipe the rat poop off his table. Treea put her hand in the way, stopping him. Dale scoffed up a bean from behind Treea’s hand and popped it into his mouth to the horror of the men sitting at the table. She had been so upset by the talk of the cocoa beans she had never seen Dale come into the tavern.
“You should know,” Dale said with the bean pocketed in the side of his mouth, “that the beans do have an aphrodisiac effect. You want more sex with your women, then feed them handfuls of these.”
One by one, each of the men at the table took a bean and placed it in their mouths. If Dale hadn’t been there to show it was edible, then they would never have believed a word Treea had said. Instead, they would have continued to scoff at her, not only because she was a woman, but also because she was the daughter of the imprisoned pirate Captain Pellesi. Each of the men’s faces responded to the taste of the beans, surprised to learn that what was thought to be rat poop was not that.
“You know about cocoa beans?” Treea asked, surprised by Dale’s sudden interest.
He laughed. “I’ve used them many times. Most often I can only acquire them through the black market, which is where I think your beans were initially headed to before the Duke got a hold of the shipment.”
“How is it that you know of our shipment?”
“The Captain told me about it. He was - is - a friend, acquaintance of mine.”
“He was falsely imprisoned.” Treea responded. “I need to find a way to make the king release him. There is no reason for him to be arrested.”
The men looked about them for answers agreeing with her that there must be a way to rectify his arrest. “Maybe if we each go to the king and vouch for him and tell the king that the shipment wasn’t rat poop as was suspected.” Each man continued to toss ideas out into the open, but none that cou
ld be agreed on. The fact that they would have to face the Duke first put a damper on any formidable plan. Not one of the men dared to face the Duke.
“We will find a way. Come with me.” Dale took Treea by the hand and led her away, up the stairs and down the hallway, out the doorway into a back alley. Nightfall hid their movement. How long had she been at the tavern trying to form some kind of plan to rescue her Pop?
Treea did not question Dale when he led her away. She was happy that she had found him, even if she has wasted a few too many coins on him. She could take him prisoner once again or she could allow him to find a different approach to the King and freeing her pop. She was sure he had to have the diary. Maybe he already had a plan too.
They wove their way through the back alleyways until they came to stop before a rotten plank door. It led up two flights of stairs above a tailor shop. Treea took in the sight of the hard living conditions. Two wooden chairs accompanied a makeshift table made out of an old stump and a small plank of wood. The beds were of straw and old ratty blankets. An old woman was sound asleep in one of the beds.
Dale put a finger to his lips. She knew he didn’t want her to wake the sleeping woman.
A dark woolen cloth was wrapped about an object on the table. He snatched it up and led Treea back out into the alleyway, into the dark of the night. “I know where we can go,” he said. Taking her back to the tavern, they did not enter, but instead entered the stable that only held the riderless horses of the tavern’s guests who were spending the night. Another doorway inside led to the basement where the grain was stored. “No one will bother us in here.”