Broken - Isadora Quagmire

Chapter Forty Six - Queequeg

"Fiona. Fiona Widdershins. I'm the captain of this sub"

"You?" asked Quigley

"What? Because I'm a girl?"

"Of course a girl can!" said Violet.

"I agree! I completely agree! But it's just you seem quite young" Quigley said

"I'm old enough" Fiona said walking across the room and towards a painting of an old man "I haven't been captain for very long. That's my stepfather, the original Captain Widdershins" she paused "he's gone"

"We're orphans too" Violet said

"My stepfather not dead. He left one day to answer a distress call and never came back. He is out there. He will find me. I know it"

"Well, we're glad you found us" said Klaus.

"We got a message from V. F. D. saying that there was a meeting at the Last Safe Place on Thursday" said Quigley.

"We might be able to find help there" said Klaus.

"Can you take us?" Violet asked.

"No" Fiona answered "I'm already in a mission"

"Can't you just take us to shore?" Violet pleaded

"Are you serious? I can't just change course in the middle of a mission! I've already delayed it by looking for you lot! Sorry. Sorry, its been hard running the Queequeg on my own, but V. F. D. is counting on me"

"Well, what if you weren't on your own? If all of us helped you with your mission, you could take us to the Last Safe Place"

"Klaus, we can't, there's no time"

"The meeting is on Thursday, that's still quite a few days away" said Quigley

"So you'll volunteer?" asked Fiona

"That's what V. F. D. is for" said Klaus.

"We don't even know what this mission is" I said.

"Only the most important meeting in V.F.D. history" Fiona smiled "I'm looking for the Sugar Bowl"

"Wait. You're what?" Duncan said

"I'm looking for the Sugar Bowl" Fiona repeated

"We know about a Sugar Bowl" I said

"Esme has been after it ever since we met her" Duncan said

"I know, she was looking for it at the Heimlich Hospital, but one of our agents, Kit Snicket, got to it first. She was taking it to V.F.D. Headquarters and it fell into Stricken Stream where it was carried out to sea"

"Quigley is particularly talented at cartography and my brother-"

"I know all about your talents, most could be helpful, most not. But right now, we have to get back to sea, which gives you all time to rest. Follow that passage way, go down the stairs, walk forward and enter the second door on your right, there is a sleeping quarters big enough for all of you. I'll come down in a while with your uniforms"

Violet led the way, holding Sunny as she bickered with Klaus and Quigley about if Fiona was trustworthy or not. I never trusted her. Duncan and I walked behind them, not wanting to get involved. We soon found our way to a square room which has three bunk beds pushed against a wall, a bookshelf, and another single bed pushed against another wall.

Quigley started talking about that one time he, Duncan and I went to summer camp. I quickly dragged Duncan to the bunk bed that was furthest away from the others and we sat on the bottom bunk.

"Was it just me or did Fiona say Kit Snicket?"

"She might be the Snicket girl that those horrible people were talking about"

"So she's related to Jacques Snicket somehow right? Maybe his daughter, or his sister"

"Probably his sister. Count Olaf seemed to know her and Jacques wouldn't let Count Olaf near his daughter"

"No one would let Count Olaf near their children"

"True. Very true" he chucked.

"But we know that Count Olaf was a better person before the schism, meaning he probably knew Kit Snicket"

"Exactly"

"Duncan?"

"Yes?"

"They aren't going to find us are they?"

"I honestly don't know..."

"What is it?"

"I just think this is completely ridiculous Isadora. Look at what has happened since the fire. We're dirty, injured, frightened... We just found out that people that we love are alive, yet we're sitting in a corner because we know for sure that there's no point celebrating anything as we so scared that Count Olaf and Esme will find us and make our lives more of a hell then before!"

"Well, that isn't very positive" said a cheerful man at the door with one leg.

Hours later, I sat on the cold floor as I heard Quigley's infamous snoring, I'd missed it. I took out the notebook from my pocket, because Fiona never gave us our uniforms, and tried to decipher some more of it.

I couldn't sleep, of course I couldn't. Every time I closed my eyes, I would remember it all. Every single thing from my home burning down to being kidnapped, from losing my brother to finding out he was alive. Everything. All those horrible memories, horrible times, endlessly played around and around my head like a ferris-wheel.

"Can't sleep?"

"Klaus! Don't sneak up on me like that"

"Sorry. What are you doing?"

"I just can't sleep, like you said" I put the notebook away in my pocket.

He got down and sat next to me. "You can talk to me Isadora or should I say Issy"

"No, you shouldn't. I don't like being called that anymore"

"Look, I know you're scared of Count Olaf and Esme and whoever those other two were, but they aren't here, and they won't find us here"

"You of all people should know that's not true. He's probably on his way now"

He dried the tears falling down my face. "Don't cry, Isadora. Remember that morning at Prufrock Prep? In the bell tower? Forever?"

"Of course I remember Forever, Blaus Kaudelaire"

He helped me up and we sat on the single bed across from the bunk beds.

"Well. If Count Olaf does find us, I'll protect you. Forever"

"Forever?"

"Forever"

We stayed there until I fell asleep. He had his arm awkwardly around me and my head was on his shoulder.