The Dark Maiden

Chapter 5

When Carmen woke up again in the morning, it was to Iz bustling around her room. She was carrying another tray, this one containing a glass of the sweet smoothie and another glass of the green concoction she had the day before, and a large pitcher of water with a small cup beside it.

"Morning," Carmen greeted her.

"Good morning," Iz chirped. "How did you sleep?"

She hadn't slept well the past night, her head still throbbing. She felt all knotted up inside too, like the pain of missing home was turning her insides to rope and was tying them together in intricate chains. There were a few moments that last night that it felt like her throat was closing up and someone was sitting on her chest, she missed home so bad. But Carmen didn't tell her that. She didn't tell her about the dream and how the remnants of her cracked and useless phone were sitting on the floor only a few feet from the door. "Okay."

"I never sleep well the first time I'm in a new place." Iz explained. "Tonight will be better."

She just nodded as Iz placed the tray down for her. "This isn't breakfast, just medicine. Real breakfast will be soon." Iz sat down on the edge of Carmen's bed this time, and watched her eat. Carmen finished within a few minutes, even managing to quickly gulp down the awful tasting seaweed medicine. But it helped her head, the throbbing of which already diminishing moments after drinking it. When she was done, Iz got off her bed and went to the door. "I have a surprise for you." She opened the door, "Wait right here. I'll be back in a second."

Carmen didn't imagine there was anywhere she could go, but she didn't say anything. When Iz came back, she was steering around an old wheelchair. It looked dusty and at least twenty years old. And all Iz said was, "Come on. We've been sitting for hours. Let's go explore the ship!"

"In that?" Carmen pointed to the wheelchair.

"Why not?" Iz looked at it. "It's old. I found it last night while looking through the room with all the medical stuff. But it should do the trick, right?"

Carmen shrugged. She felt bitter inside, but she tried to squash that feeling down"Why not?"

Iz helped her into the wheelchair, which took a few minutes as Carmen tried to move slowly and not jostle her head. But then, as soon as she was settled, Iz took off- thankfully at a slow pace. She navigated the halls with ease, completely comfortable in the ship she had spent the last year in. Iz stopped at a door. "This is my bedroom."

She opened the door and led the way into a small cabin. There was a single window across from the door, a porthole that looked out into the ocean. The walls were all wood and a narrow and neatly made bed jutted out from the wall in the center of the room. Two nightstands stood on either side of it, a lamp on one and a stack of books on the other. There were built in bookcases on both the left and the right walls, books filling them. Her bed was in an iron frame, but above the head of the bed, there was the porthole. On the wall around the porthole, a few dozen photographs were tacked up on the wall, the tacks leaving small holes in the wood.

"I'll show you it more later," Iz moved on to another door and knocked on it.

"Sidi?" Iz asked. "Can we come in?"

A second passed and then the door opened. Sidi stood there, his black hair slightly disheveled. He rubbed the sleep from his eyes. "Yeah, Iz?"

"Were you sleeping?" Iz asked, pushing past him to walk into his room, still pushing Carmen's wheelchair.

His room was similar to Iz's, but there were maps taped up all over the walls where she had photos. He must have had a dozen maps- ones that were specific to Europe, to the British Isles, and some of the whole world.