“It’s not that simple.” He looked away.
I supposed maybe he felt he owed Bastian something for giving him this position on his ship. I was about to tell him he didn’t owe the pirate anything when Bartholomew said, “I suspect you know what it’s like to feel trapped.”
I pushed a few stray wisps out of my eyes. “What do you mean?”
“When you and Bastian were together, he told us a little about you, about your predicament.”
Bartholomew was full of surprises today. It didn’t shock me that Bastian talked about me with his crew, but it was surprising he’d told them such specific things about me.
“Yes, that’s true. I did—do—feel trapped sometimes. Trapped in a role I don’t want.”
“I see the way you light up on this ship,” Bartholomew said. “Despite the circumstances you’ve seemed happy these last few days.”
I was. And the weight of that guilt was so heavy it would sink me straight to the bottom of the ocean. Feeling happy here, of all places, felt like a betrayal to my mother, my brothers, my father—to everyone. I felt more alive on this pirate ship than I ever had in Apolis.
I didn’t want to talk about it, think about it, so I steered the conversation in a different direction. “Can you tell me more about the ship? I’d like to help out some, pull my weight, but I don’t know most of the terms you all use, the jobs necessary to sail this ship, keep it running.”
Bartholomew’s lips stretched into a smile. “Ah, I’m happy to tell you anything you want to know.”
I shrugged helplessly. “Everything?”
Bartholomew laughed. “Well, Bastian is our captain.”
I rolled my eyes. “I do know that much, at least.”
“Mia is his quartermaster.” He pointed to the opposite side of the stairs that were across the main deck. “She gets her own cabin and shares with Kara, since they’re the only females on the ship.”
“So what does the quartermaster do?” I asked.
“She makes sure Bastian’s orders are carried out.”
That surprised me. Mia was more soft spoken, whereas Kara was so commanding, a force to be reckoned with. I said as much to Bartholomew and he laughed.
“There’s power in a gentle hand. The men respect Mia because she doesn’t try to control them, to micromanage their every move. Kara would probably have someone walking the plank every other day.”
He made a good point. “So what does Kara do?”
“Well, she’s our carpenter.” He nodded to her as she sat across the deck, carving out a piece of wood. “She helps keep damage to a minimum, keeps our ship afloat. She knows this vessel inside and out.”
He pointed to a man who was walking toward Bastian’s cabin with a long rolled piece of parchment. “That’s our navigator there.” He nodded toward the helm. “Our helmsman, though during storms or attacks, Bastian likes to take the helm.”
I remembered that first night on the ship, Bastian at the wheel while the rain battered him.
Bartholomew pointed at a man whose name I thought was Ollie, his red hair frizzier than ever today. “Ollie, there, is our boatswain. He’s in charge of getting supplies for us when on land. Making sure we have fresh water, that our food isn’t spoiled, that we have the right amount of supplies for our upcoming journey.”
This took so much organization, and it surprised me. I’d never known much about it. “I always thought pirates were just a bunch of criminals who got together and terrorized others,” I said to Bartholomew. “This seems very... structured.”
Bartholomew stroked his chin. “Well, it has to be for us to survive.”
My eyes trailed back to Bastian’s cabin, where the man had disappeared inside with what I assumed was a map. I loved looking at maps, at all the possibilities that lay before me, so many places to see, to explore. If I had the freedom to do so, that was. “So what is the navigator talking with Bastian about right now?” I asked.
“Oh, probably updating him on our route, talking about possible places to dock once we get to Elwen, places we can stop on the way to replenish supplies.” Bartholomew lifted his bandana and scratched his head. “I think I overheard him telling Bastian yesterday that we could stop in Porth, which is where we found your father’s ship.”
I straightened at that, and Bartholomew must’ve realized his mistake immediately. “I didn’t just say that.”
“My father’s ship?” I grasped his arm. “You found it in Porth?”
A human town. A well-known stopping place between Apolis and Elwen.
