Triton's Destiny

Part Sixteen

Maki pulled the brim of his hat low over his eyes as he glanced toward the lighthouse on his way into town. It was late enough in the morning that he knew Tristan was already out, but that didn't stop his thoughts from wandering in his direction anyway. His fingers lifted to his hat band and gently stroked the soft white feather stuck in it. A warm smile curved his lips. It was sweet of Tristan to bring the dropped feather to him. Even though it resulted in Maki's secret being revealed, he wasn't angry about it. In fact, Maki was relieved that Tristan knew. He'd agonized over being dishonest with him and now there was no need to be. Tristan knew what he was and hadn't rejected him. And that was a very good thing, because Maki liked him too much to let him go now.

But he was also a triton of his word. He'd agreed to let Tristan determine when he was ready to move forward and no matter how impatient Maki was to have more, he'd honor that decision. That's why he was carefully avoiding the lighthouse and any other place Tristan might be. As much as he'd love to spontaneously encounter his crush, he didn't want Tristan to think Maki was stalking him. He was committed to giving Tristan the space he'd asked for, so Maki did what he was good at–blending into the background and stealthily gathering the information he was looking for.

He'd had an epiphany that morning. As Maki swam his rounds through the kelp forest, Tristan's upsetting story about being robbed of his only precious item turned around and around in his mind. The incident only happened a few days ago. The sailors were likely still in Vollendale. If Maki could find them and get Tristan's watch back, then he could prove he was trustworthy and cared about Tristan's happiness. Because he did care. He cared very much. And no one should have to suffer further indignity after mourning the loss of their family. If the sailors were still in town, then Tristan's watch was too. So Maki was on a mission to get it back.

He ran into the same problem he'd always had before, though. If he wanted to avoid attracting attention, that meant he needed to keep to himself and speak to as few people as possible. And that didn't offer him much opportunity to discover where Tristan's adversaries might be located. He was looking for the proverbial needle in a haystack, and the lack of information needed to find it did not leave him optimistic about his success.

By mid-afternoon, he was downright discouraged. He had no leads, he couldn't get help from the few people in town he knew, lest someone tell Tristan what he was doing, and sailors appeared to be an endangered species with how few of them he'd seen around town. Frustrated, impatient, and reaching the frayed end of his protective risk aversion, he headed to the one place in Vollendale where he knew for certain he could find sailors–the docks.

The air above the boardwalk shimmered in the heat of the day, sun-baked wood reflecting warmth up Maki's legs, making him yearn for a cool dip in the water. He could feel the ends of his short hair dripping sweat down his shirt collar and the uncomfortable dampness made him cringe, but he wasn't giving up now, not even when he found the docks just as devoid of sailors as the town had been. Huffing an exasperated sigh, he stalked down the pier to a small building that looked like an information office. Maybe someone there could at least point him in the right direction.

Finding a window but no one at it, he knocked lightly on the wooden frame. "Hello?" There was no answer, so he knocked again. He didn't see anything saying the office was closed. "Is anyone here?"

"Aye!" someone finally responded. "Hang on!" Several seconds later, a tall, muscular man with red hair clomped through the room behind the window, shoving the tail of his shirt into his breeches. "Sorry, mate. You caught me at just the wrong moment. Had to take a–" He blinked at Maki. "Whoa. Anyone ever tell you your eyes are mesmerizing as hell?"

Maki ducked his head. "Good afternoon, sir. I was wondering if you could help me with something."

"If it's got anything to do with the docks or the pier, then you may have found your man."