We leave for Italy on the following day. Mitch says that we're near Portugal, which, in all honesty, is a country that I had never heard of. But the point is that we're on our way to find the Alvarados.
"How long do you think it will take us to get to Venice?" I ask the captain as he stands behind the wheel.
"Under normal circumstances, probably close to a month," he reports.
"A month?" Kirstin asks, her eyes wide.
"But these aren't normal circumstances. The Alvarados will help us, and with any luck, it'll take only a few days to get there," Mitch explains.
"I still can't tell if you like these people or not," I tell him.
Mitch shrugs. "It's a love-hate relationship."
"If they are able to get you to Venice in a few days and help you find a lot about Princess Rose, they can't be too bad, can they?" asks Kirstin.
"Last time I saw them they were pretty useless. They didn't give me much information at all," Mitch says.
"When was that?" I inquire.
"Well, about a year ago, I found the map on my ship, followed it, and found them in the cave. I asked them if they could help me find the Sapphire. They said that they could. Anyway, it ended with a wild-goose chase that lasted for months, and eventually my only lead was the orphanage, which I quickly found out was not Rose's place of residence anymore. So I got mad, called them pointless, and burned the map. Then, a few months later, I found a single note, kind of like the one we found yesterday. And all it said was 1184."
"That's the number that's carved above my window," I explain.
"Exactly. That's what led me to find you. I thought you knew something," Mitch sighs.
"Why would the Alvarados lead you to me if they knew that I didn't know anything about Princess Rose?" I ask.
"See?" Mitch says. "Useless."
"They're helpful in other ways, though," Kirstin chimes in.
"Yeah, when they want to be," states Mitch.
"Well, maybe this time they will be," I say hopefully. Maybe they can tell us more about Rose. Maybe they can confirm or deny my theory that Lindsey is the princess. Maybe, if Lindsey isn't Rose, they can point us in the right direction of the princess so we can go rescue her. Maybe she's in Captain Lewis's possession, just as Mitch had predicted. Maybe they can restore Lindsey's mind, and maybe they can help her remember about her past.
"Yeah, I hope so," Mitch sighs. "They owe me an explanation and a Sapphire."
Sapphire? Is that what he's still focused on? "Are you kidding?" I say, scoffing.
"What?" Mitch asks innocently.
"This is still about the Sapphire for you? Even after all we've learned about Rose and how badly we -- well, I guess I -- want to help Lindsey?" I exclaim.
"Blondie, just--" Mitch sighs, trying to calm me down, but I'm having none of it.
"No! This is stupid. You don't even care about Rose or Lindsey, do you? You don't care about anyone! You don't care about Avi and K.O.'s feelings. You treat them like garbage, making them slave away and fulfill your every whim."
"Because I'm the captain. I'm in charge of them," Mitch hisses.
"It doesn't matter! You can still treat them like people rather than property. And what about Lindsey's feelings? You don't care about her, no way. You hit her, and she's probably still terrified of you."
YOU ARE READING
The Clockmaker and the Pirate - EVERMORE BOOK 1
Fanfiction"The only thing I've wanted my entire life was to die, to die, to die. But then -- by a twist of fate you found yourself onboard my dinky little ship and you flashed your stupid smile and you gave me the opposite," he tells me. "What's that?" I...
