Broken Soldier ~ Assassin's Creed 4

Chapter Eight

The rain began to set in this morning. Funny it should as my mood matched the weather. It was still hot, yet the rain beat against the windows with such force I was surprised they didn't break. However, there wasn't any way to cool ourselves down, so we each took to our own separate section of the house. Mother stayed within the library, only a candle to see through the bleakness. My sisters all were in their toy room with one maid per child. My step-father stayed shut in his office, though refused to light any candles. And I, as usual, sat at my desk to write letters or entries for my journal.

Something about the afternoon seemed to cheer me up. Dave had gone into town to collect our letters, as is his job on rainy days, and brought back nothing. That was, until, he came to my room and pulled a stack of letters from inside his waistcoat. They were all tied together with string, addressed to 'Miss Elisa Dawson'. All were written in the same, scribbly handwriting, though it was unfamiliar to me. I thanked Dave and began to tear them open.

The first was a simple, torn scrap, with three words on which were smudged with water. Why it had been sent like that, I'm not sure. The words were just strung together, making no sense; 'dock, sails, rope'. It was as if this had been a list before being sent to me. The next letter had a full sentence on. 'Do not worry about me.'. The rest were little torn off pieces of a map. I wondered if the envelopes had been mixed up with someone else's, but my name was scrawled on the back of each scrap of map.

"This is no good. What if the girls can't make it because of the weather?" I heard mother mutter as I strolled past the library and into the kitchen.

"I'm not sure, ma'am. I am certain they wouldn't miss it for anything." Her maid replied. I scoffed, the little pieces of map tucked into my purse.

I was on my way to find the new tutor my step-father had hired. He liked to drink tea in the kitchen with the other people who worked for us. Of course, I didn't know him very well, as he was tutoring my sisters, since my tutor was far too old to do that now. There were the few odd moments when he caught me up on some of my studies, and he knew a lot about geography. So, I took the map pieces to him.

"What are these?" He asked.

"I'm not sure who sent them, but I would like to know where they point to." He began arranging the pieces until they all resembled just one map. A small circle was used to point out a building.

"This isn't from England. Perhaps the Americas. Do you have any idea as to who may have sent them?" I shook my head. "I wouldn't look further into it. There is something on here about the docks. Perhaps you could check there."

"Thank you. I think mother is organising for me to meet a group of girls today. I should go tomorrow."

"Well, good luck for today." I smiled and made my way back towards my room. I hoped to hear something extra from mother, to no avail, and entered my room silently.

The rain was beginning to subside, just as there was a knock on the door. I heard the sound of maybe five or six pairs of shoes on the hall floor. They entered the room opposite mine - my step-father used it for informal meetings. The smell of tea and cakes flooded into my room as mother entered.

"Elisa, come into the meeting room, please. Quickly, and smarten yourself up a bit. I'll give you twenty minutes."

It was true, I wasn't exactly smart. My dress was slightly creased, since I had worn it the day before, and I had no shoes on. My hair was in a messy plait, which I refused to change since it took me at least an hour to get it as it was. So, I simply changed into a dress with no creases and slid on a pair of boots. Nothing went together, but I wore it all nonetheless.

I opened the door of the meeting room. Four girls sat around the middle table, giggling and scoffing sandwiches. A boy, who looked more my age than the girls, was sitting alone on a small wooden stool in the corner with a tiny plate with crumbs on it. I gave a smile, more directed at the boy than anyone else, and took my own seat.

"Elisa, these girls currently go to the school we are enrolling you in. Charlotte, Jade, Julia and Tessa." I nodded to them.

"And who is that in the corner?" The boy looked over, blushing and giving a little smile.

"I'm Kennard. It's a pleasure to meet you."

"Yes, well, I will leave you girls alone. Help yourself to tea, sandwiches and cakes. If you need anything, have Elisa call for Edith." Mother left the room, and once the door was closed, the girls acted as if I wasn't there and carried on gossiping. They all wore the same grey dress. It hung loosely on their frames, with a white ribbon around their waists. Their hair was neatly curled and hung no further than their shoulders. I wondered if I would have to cut my hair shorter, and my chest grew cold just at the thought of it.

"Oh, and Eleanor was given lashings again. She was caught stealing supplies from the kitchen." I frowned.

"Why did she have to steal?" They turned their heads with disgusted looks. Charlotte, the girl furthest to the right, exhaled deeply.

"She was refused any food for three days because she was defiant."

"Yes, and our head mistress wished to leave her off of water as well, but she is far too young for that. In my opinion, I think she should have to go without water." Jade chuckled. She took pleasure in her own views. I scoffed.

"That seems a little harsh, doesn't it?"

"No. She should know better than to steal. No better than a common thief." Julia chimed in. I stood from my seat without the others paying much mind and sat by the window in the corner. Kennard smiled, removing his fist from his cheek and sitting properly upright.

"Would you believe they are fifteen? They gossip like children." He spoke in a hushed tone.

"I know. I've never met anyone so...vile."

"Well, I am nothing like them. I'm just the boy who gets to parade them to and from their carriage." His eyes connected with mine. "I suppose I shouldn't even be speaking with you, on account of your—"

"Kennard, please." I chuckled. "You sound just like my friend Edward." His green eyes shone as lightning tore through the sky. After a few moments of silence, I spoke again. "Dear God, I hope he's okay."

"Where is he?"

"He is in Jamaica, I believe."

"Isn't that place crawling with criminals?"

"Yes, but Edward knows how to keep himself safe, or so I have heard from letters. He is a pirate, so he has the training." Kennard raised an eyebrow.

"Edward is a pirate? I thought only beggars took to the seas, or the King's navy."

"He was a privateer, but British privateers were no longer needed in the West Indies, so Edward stayed in Jamaica for a while, before joining the crew aboard a pirate ship called the Jacobite. Edward wants money for his wife and parents and, once his privateering job was over, he didn't want to come back a poor man." Kennard nodded.

"It does sound exciting. I would love to do something like that. But, here I am, leading rich girls to horses and carrying their luggage."

"How long have you worked for them?"

"Worked? Oh, no. I was an orphan, taken in by their father. However, I was more seen as a favourite servant - maybe just a servant who was actually good at doing their job. They trusted me, since I showed no signs of being reckless, and I got the chore of looking after their precious daughters. Well, their ages range from twelve to fifteen and they are a right handful." I nodded. "It isn't as bad as a job could be, but it's still pretty awful. But I was the oldest child around so I have to traipse them about wherever they want or have to go."

"How old are you, exactly?"

"Nineteen. And you?"

"Eighteen. I'll be nineteen when I go to the school." I looked around a little. "Do you want to take a walk about the grounds? These four aren't interested in speaking to me and me them." He grinned.

"Alright, let's go."