The Village in the Sea

Chapter 13

Chapter 13

Victoria looked over at everyone. Jess had her hand over her mouth and, although in the dim light it was difficult to tell, tears glistening in her eyes. Analeise was biting her lip while Gabriel looked down at the floor solemnly.

To break the silence, she said, "I never knew the mayor had a wife."

"He did. She died in the revolt," whispered Jess.

After, Victoria and Jess silently left to go back home, taking the journal back with them. They ate dinner, and the words of the entries still haunting Victoria as she got ready for bed.

How could the man that wrote such meaningful things in his journal be the same one that knowingly trapped almost a hundred people in a rural village against their will? What had happened to the love-struck man that had made him seem so evil and controlling?

After thinking it through, Victoria decided that the only way she would ever be consoled is by continuing to read the journal. She grabbed the beaten book from its spot on the table and sat down on her bed.

She kept going, even when her eyelids were drooping and she could hardly stay awake. When she finally reached the last page she realized that this journal only reached to twenty years ago, and that there had to be more. It had ended so abruptly when it was halfway through the entry, but there was no more paper to write on.

At the end, the mayor was still the caring person he seemed to be when he was young, not the merciless ruler everyone described him to be. She reasoned that this was still before Rosa's death and the revolt, and that these two occurrences had something to do with the change of personality. Deep in back of her mind, a small voice was comparing the mayor's change to her's after her brother's death. Before it could continue about how she had grown distant from everyone around her, she pushed the voice away and tried to change the subject back to the mayor.

Instead of feeling better after reading it, Victoria was even more confused; although it might just have been that she was so tired. So, instead of thinking any more about the mayor's entries, she pulled the paper-thin blanket to her neck and fell asleep.

 ()()()()()()

"Here," Jess handed Victoria the paddle. "Don't want to be late to school."

They pushed off and rowed slowly, because although Victoria was getting better with the boat she still wasn't very good at controlling it.

A loud commotion caught their attention.

"No! No! Look, we can do anything! James, you can have him! He's very useful!" screamed a woman outside her home. A man was holding her arms behind her, but she wasn't giving up and was struggling to be free. Beside her was a man, presumably her husband, who was putting up an equal fight with another person.

Victoria noticed their neighbor was there, and he looked tired but the scars down his face gave him a fierce glare. He was supporting James, and by the way James was slumped over she could tell he was unconscious.

Jess had also stopped rowing, and she was watching the scene also.

"I'm sorry ma'am, but you know the rules. You're husband's been injured, the mayor's deemed you unhelpful," said their neighbor. His voice was so familiar, but Victoria was also sure she had never heard it before.

She leaned over towards Jess, "Who is he, what's happening?"

Jess was still watching the Prewett's struggle, her face horrified and worried.

"They're- they're banishing them," she whispered. Victoria didn't press on, she had a feeling she knew exactly what was happening.

'Banishment' was simply a kinder way of saying 'execution', because nobody could survive living on a boat by themselves.

I have to stop this.

"Hey! What do you think you're doing?"

Everyone's attention turned towards her - except James, who still was unconscious. The scarred man looked up at her, and he had the look on his face that he always did when he saw her. Somehow it managed to convey anger, fear and curiosity all at once.

"Obeying orders, it has nothing to concern you with," he barked, his voice harsher than it was before.

"Well," shouted Victoria,  "Considering that boy is my friend, I think this does concern me. You have no rights to be kicking that family out of their home."

He glared at her, although for a glimmer of a second she thought she saw a faint grin. "These are the rules here, and nobody cares if a little girl like you disagrees with them."

Victoria would have walked right up to him and punched him if it weren't that she were standing on a boat and he on the dock. Instead, she sat back down and began to row towards him, only to have Jess grab the paddle out of her hands.

"What are you doing?" she screeched.

"I'm going to-"

"No! You're not!" She lowered her voice to a whisper, "They will kill you, or even worse, banish you. Just, trust me, let's go."

"I can't just leave them!"

Jess didn't say anything, only glanced at where James was being held by the scarred man. Victoria resumed paddling towards the Prewett's dock, but the other men had continued working on binding Mr. and Mrs. Prewett's arms and legs together. However, the scarred man still was looking towards Victoria, as she slowly got closer to him.  Anger was still coursing through her veins, and she made sure to send a disgusted glance towards him.

Next to her, Jess was completely tense, and she didn't seem to be dealing with the situation very well. Victoria knew Jess liked James, but she didn't realize how much she actually cared about him.

By the time they made it to the dock, his parents were gagged, tied up and in their boat. James didn't fit in the same boat as them, so the men had to use one of their own boats. They weren't paying any attention to her anymore, and Victoria crawled up and out of the boat. Jess got to work on tying the boat to the dock so she wouldn't float away.

Victoria walked up to the scarred man and tapped him on the shoulder, "You si-"

When she saw him up close to him, she realized that this wasn't a stranger.

He was a nightmare.

He was her brother.

iiiiiiiiii

Is that an upside down exclamation mark or an i? I guess we'll never know!

But, anyways, how'd you like the chapter!!!? Please comment/vote, especially if it's a suggestion or something! They're greatly appreciated! And, I'm also sorry I'm updating pretty late at night, I just finished the chapter and couldn't wait to publish it lol

SO, have a great night and I hope you liked it! Don't forget to tell your friends and add it to your library! If not, just reading this stupid author's note is enough for me!!

-Jay