Originally posted by Renee Scattergood:
Continued from Desperate Times Call for Desperate Measures…
Tiyana waited until the coast was clear. There weren’t many people around the dock, but a few people seemed to be finishing up last minute work before heading home for the night. One ship caught her attention. It wasn’t the biggest, but it seemed to be less rundown than the others. She hoped a better-quality ship held better-quality sailors.
A lone man stood at the top of the gangplank. Likely he was the watchman to protect the ship from stowaways and thieves. She scanned the area, looking for the best way to get on board without being spotted.
When the watchman wasn’t looking, Tiyana ran toward the ship, then quickly hid behind a small nearby crate. She waited a moment, listening. After a moment, she peeked around the side of the crate. The watchman continued his pacing. She let out a breath and considered her next move.
She waited until he turned then ran the rest of the way toward a wider gangplank that connected with a lower deck. Then quickly hid beneath it. This must be the one they used to load and unload cargo. It might be her best option.
When she heard no alarm sounded, she breathed a sigh of relief, then peaked from under the gangplank. She could only see the top of the watchman’s head from where she hid. When he marched in the opposite direction, he disappeared altogether.
She used that moment to make her way up the gangplank. She had to keep herself from running to keep from making any noise that would alert the watchman to an intruder. When she got to the top of the gangplank, she found the door locked.
Of course, it would be locked. Tiyana didn’t know why she thought it wouldn’t be. She huffed as she sat and surveyed the area to find another way onto the ship. At the bottom of the gangplank were several crates that she could only assume were awaiting loading onto the ship. If she could get herself into one of the crates, she’d be loaded onto the ship with the cargo.
As she slowly made her way back down the gangplank, she glanced up towards the watchman every few seconds to make sure she wouldn’t be spotted. When she saw the top of his head, she stopped moving, hoping he wouldn’t sense movement and spot her. When he disappeared again, she continued down the gangplank.
Finally, she reached the bottom and hid under the gangplank while she worked out her next move. All the crates seemed tightly sealed, but a few of them had buckle-like clasps instead of being nailed shut. Maybe she’d be able to get herself into one of those.
The moment the watchman was gone from view again, she headed towards the largest one. As soon as she got there, she hid again, checking to see if the coast was clear. She was in full view of the watchman again, but as long as she only worked while he headed away from her, she would be okay.
Tiyana slowly unlatched the lid and lifted it slightly to see inside. It was loaded with various citrus fruit. Her body would take up at least half of the space in the crate, so she’d have to remove some of it before she could slip inside.
Whenever the watchman faced the other direction, she took some of the fruit and rolled it towards the edge of the dock. Thankfully, the wind and other sounds were enough to drown out the soft splashes the fruit made when it hit the water. The moment he turned, she hid and waited.
The process was going slower than she anticipated. The sky was beginning to glow with first light. The sailors and deckhands would be arriving soon to begin their work. The crate wasn’t quite half empty, but it would have to do. She was running out of time.
She got into the crate and worked her way under the fruit. Since she couldn’t refasten the latches from inside the crate, she knew it might draw suspicion.
“This one is open,” a man called out.
He opened the crate. Light peeked through the fruit. Tiyana held her breath.
“It’s all here,” he said.
“Well let’s just get it on board. We’re running late.”
The men jostled the crate as they hefted it into the air. Tiyana let out the breath she’d been holding, relieved that her plan had worked. She would have to wait until nightfall to get out of the crate, but she was so exhausted, she fell asleep and didn’t wake again until someone opened the crate.
“How many lemons do you need?” a man called out.
“Just grab three or four,” another said.
When he got the fruit he needed, he dropped the lid but didn’t bother locking the latches. That worked out in her favor when the men settled for the night. She wasn’t sure how she’d get out of it if it were locked. She slipped out of the crate once she was sure no one would return.
She was in the ship’s galley, which was lucky for her. She hadn’t eaten in nearly two days and she was starved. After going through the stores, she found bread, cheese and more fruit to eat. After eating her fill, she found a new hiding place. She had to make sure she stayed hidden until they reached the next port.
Each night she would sneak out again for food, then hide again. She hadn’t counted on them noticing the missing food though.
“From this day forward, the night patrols will be doubled, and no one is permitted to go around the ship alone,” she heard a muffled voice say.
That night, Tiyana was extra careful when she went to the galley for food. She kept an ear out for the patrols, but she heard no one. She also decided it would be best if she ate less. Maybe they’d relax if they felt the thief had been stopped.
She took a bit of dried meat and a small piece of bread, then turned to go back to her hiding spot.
“Well, well, what do we have here?” said one of the men, blocking her way.
“I…I…”
“Save it for the captain,” his gaze drifted up and down her body as he spoke, “dearie.”
He grabbed her arm and pulled her along the corridor. They went deeper into the ship where he locked her in a cage.
“Get some sleep, dearie. You’ll want to be your best for the captain,” he said as he slammed the cell door closed. He chuckled as he strolled off.
“Wait, you don’t understand.”
He laughed louder and kept going.
The following morning, they came for her. They took her to the captain’s quarters, pushed her through the door and closed it. The captain sat at the table, a plate of food in front of him. He motioned to her to have a seat, then took a bite of her food.
Tiyana licked her lips as she sat across from him and held her hand over her growling belly.
“Who are you?
“Tiyana. I—”
“Just answer my questions.” He took another bite of food and chewed it slowly. “What are you doing on my ship?”
Tiyana relayed her story about how she’d been taken by the Edonists and how she was just trying to get home. “They were waiting for me at the shuttleport, so the only way off the island was to sneak onto a ship.”
The captain took a deep breath and nodded. “I see.”
“Will you help me?” When he didn’t answer, she added. “Please.”
“Christov,” the captain called out. When the man entered he saluted the captain. “Get her something to eat, then find her some appropriate clothing.”
Tiyana thought it was weird how he put emphasis on the word appropriate, but the thought of food made her stomach rumble again. It probably wasn’t important. He seemed to want to help her, otherwise he wouldn’t have cared whether she ate.
She was so hungry she finished off two plates of food, much to Christov’s amusement. Then he handed her some rumpled-up fabric he held in his hand. When she held it out, it was clear it wouldn’t hide much more than the wrappings she already wore.
Christov shrugged. “It’s all we have that is suitable for a woman.”
She doubted that was true, but what other choice did she have. “Is there somewhere I can change?”
He took her to what he referred to as the “head”. The strong smell of urine told her it probably hadn’t been cleaned in months. She changed as quickly as she could, so she could get out of there as fast as she could and resolved herself to only using it once a day.
Tiyana ignored Christov’s leering glances as he led her back to the top deck where the captain waited for them. The rest of the sailors had been gathered.
“You look lovely, my dear,” the captain said then motioned to a couple of men standing near him.
They grabbed her and tied her to a wooden post so that her arms and feet were pulled behind her. The only thing keeping her from sliding down the post were two metal stakes that had been driven into the wood, which rested in her armpits.
“What are you doing? I thought—”
“Shut her up,” the captain ordered.
One of the men shoved a bit of fabric into her mouth, then used another strip of fabric to secure it firmly. She tried speaking, which only made the men laugh.
“You have stowed away on my ship, my dear, which is a great offense. We usually throw stowaways overboard, but it would be a shame to throw away something so beautiful. Especially when there is a profit to be made. There is a thriving slave trade where we’re going. You’ll be sold there, but in the meantime, you will serve me and my men,” he said then turned to his men. “We will get a lot of money for this one, so tonight we celebrate.”
The men cheered. Tiyana tried screaming through the gag, but all she did was exhaust herself. She must have passed out because when she opened her eyes again, the sun was setting. Then men were all on deck drinking and eating.
“She’s awake,” someone called out.
“Bring her to me,” the captain said.
Two of the men untied her and dragged her to the captain. As much as she tried, she couldn’t get her legs to work and her body ached from being tied to the post all day.
The captain pulled her into his lap and rubbed the inside of her thigh while nuzzling her neck.
“Don’t,” Tiyana said, attempting to worm her way out of his grasp.
“A virgin, huh?”
Tiyana didn’t answer.
“Don’t worry, my dear. No one here will touch you. Virgins are worth three times as much. You’re going to make us wealthy men.”
Tiyana whimpered as she fell to the ground when he pushed her off his lap.
“You’re not getting a free ride, however. You see those barrels of ale over there?”
She nodded.
“Keep my men’s mugs full.”
Tiyana struggled to her feet to grab a mug being held up by one of the sailors.
“Hurry, girl.”
Then men drank too fast, which made keeping up with their demands difficult. Occasionally, one of them would throw food to the deck as a “reward”. At first, she refused to eat it, but when she was threatened with punishment, she knew she had no choice. Her tear-filled eyes made it hard to see what she was doing half the time. One of the men slapped her when she spilled a bit of ale on his plate.
Why was this happening to her? First the Edonists, and now this. All because she tried to help a friend.
After the celebration ended, Tiyana was taken back to the brig. The following morning, they put her to work scrubbing the ship. She was forced to work all day without a break. That evening, back in the brig, a meal consisting of stew and bread was brought to her by a boy not much older than she was. She winced when she saw the whip scars on his back.
“Thank you,” she said.
He didn’t answer, he didn’t even look at her. After delivering her meal, he promptly left. The next night it was the same.
“I’m Tiyana. What’s your name?”
Still, no answer. A week passed before he even looked at her, but he still didn’t speak. She started telling him her story during every visit, hoping it might get his attention. Then one night, she gave up. He’d obviously been so badly abused that he wouldn’t do anything these men didn’t want him to do.
That night, she woke to someone whispering her name. It was too dark to see. She waited, but when she didn’t hear anything, she decided she must have been dreaming. She closed her eyes to try and get back to sleep.
“Tiyana, are you awake?”
“Who is that?” she said, sitting up.
“It’s Jace.”
“Who?”
“I’ve been bringing your food.”
“Oh. Oh!”
“I haven’t been trying to ignore you. If they caught me talking to you, I’d be punished.”
Judging from the scars on his back, she knew their punishments were harsh. She understood why he didn’t want to defy them.
“Won’t you get in trouble for being here now?”
“They really don’t pay much attention to me at night. They lock me in one of the storerooms, but I found another way out of there three years ago.”
“How long have you been with them?”
“Since I was about five. They raided my village. They made me watch as they killed my parents. My sisters were sold into slavery with the other girls. I don’t know what they did with the other boys in the village, but I never saw any of them again. The captain decided to keep me as a servant for the men on the ship.”
Tiyana couldn’t imagine being forced into slavery at such a young age. “Jace, is there a way we can get off this ship? If we could get to Dokuka, I’m sure my parents would help you.”
“You want me…No we can’t. They’d catch us.”
“If we don’t leave now, we’ll both be slaves for the rest of our lives. I don’t want to be a slave.” She choked on the last word as the reality of her situation sank in. “Please, Jace.”
Jace was quiet for a moment, then he sighed. “Maybe we can get away on a lifeboat, but not now. It’s too close to dawn. I’ll come for you tonight.”
“Okay, just be careful.” For the first time since they locked her up over a week before, Tiyana had some hope.
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