The Attainment of Evangeline

Chapter 25

The apothecary's name was Kippler, he was an older man with short graying hair and glasses that stayed at the tip of his nose. Jack sat beside Evangeline while being tended to, his wound was more important.

"Good job back there, luv," he said, wincing as the man dug the bullet out of his arm.

"Thank you for saving me, Alexander would have surely killed me," she said quietly, her fingers feeling her sore neck where hand shaped bruises began to surface.

Jack yelped and pulled his arm back, giving Kippler a nasty look.

"Easy, mate," he hissed, before allowing him to touch his arm again.

"Nathaniel must be so worried," she whispered, playing with the ring around her finger.

"Write to him," Jack said, nonchalantly.

"But how is he to know to check for a letter?"

Jack stopped and thought about it for a moment.

"Have it delivered straight to him. I can arrange that."

"Really?"

He nodded as his upper arm was being bandaged.

"Oh, thank you, Jack!" she said.

"Don't mention it," he mumbled.

Kippler announced that he was through with Jack, who nodded and left.

"Now, let's have a look at your leg," Kippler said.

Evangeline lifted her pant-leg and revealed the nasty looking bruise. The doctor nodded and turned around, grabbing a few things.

"How did this happen?" he asked.

"I fell from high up; I must have hit it pretty hard."

He opened a jar and took a glob of cream from it. It was thick and white and smelled of pine needles.

"I'm going to put this topical cream over it, my own invention, and then bandage it, that's about all I can do," he said, beginning to apply it.

Evangeline took a sharp intake of breath as he touched the bruise. He tried to be gentle but some pain could not be avoided. She grit her teeth until he was done and she looked down to see the once purple surface covered in white. He began to wrap it up carefully and finished.

"Wait here," he said to her.

She patiently waited as Kippler left, looking around the galley where she was seated on top of a table. It was fairly small, crates here and there, a barrel of something. She was suddenly aware of how exhausted she was, her eyes became heavy and she struggled to keep them open. She was startled when she heard heavy boots coming down the stairs and a tall, skinny man with an odd looking eye stood before her.

"'Ello, miss," he said, one eye looking straight at her; the other one, which was wooden she decided, looked off to the side.

"Hello," she replied sleepily.

"Capt'n has told me ter show ye ter yer sleeping quarters. 'E says ya might be wantin' of some sleep."

Evangeline nodded her head, thankfully as she helped herself off the table and limped behind the wooden eyed man.

"What's your name?" she asked him, as they went down some stairs to a lower part of the ship.

"Ragetti, miss," he mumbled.

"I'm Evangeline," she said as they passed hammocks where the crew slept.

Ragetti came to a stop on front of a door and opened it to reveal a small, poorly lit area. It couldn't really be called a room, but it was big enough to fit a bed and a chair.