Treasure of the sea |Lesbian story|

CHAPTER XXIV

Nassau was a den of pirates of various nations and ethnicities. The population was mostly made up of bandits, deserters, escaped slaves, prostitutes and criminals. The whole place survived on the pirates' raids. Everyone worked for them; gunsmiths and arms merchants were always ready to fill the arsenals of pirate ships, prostitutes lured newly landed pirates into their beds, there were many who manufactured and sold bullets, gunpowder and swords of all kinds. There were those who repaired ships, those who sold groceries, those who bought loot, those who got rich by selling rum and gong. In short, there was nothing that didn't revolve around piracy.

Nassau was also teeming with inns, taverns, brothels, markets and gambling houses. The hubbub of children playing in the streets was very reassuring, as was the smell of fried food from the frying houses. The stalls were overflowing with all sorts of goodies and tents of all colours sheltered customers from the scorching sun.

I lingered and looked at the beautiful silk and linen fabrics, so soft to the touch that I kept running my fingers over them.

"They came straight from the hold of a merchant who traded in China," the seller told me.

"Traded? He doesn't trade anymore?"

"Unfortunately not."

I pressed my lips together.

"So, do you want to buy something?"

I shook my head and walked away.

Quinn accompanied me. He was cheerful company. He never stopped talking. He had grown up on those streets and it seemed as if he wanted to show me everything. Arenis wouldn't let me wander around alone, this was because she feared I might run away or hide somewhere. However, no matter how much I wanted to, my mind couldn't formulate any escape plan. I was so many miles away from Charlestown; I was in Nassau, the Republic of Pirates, with no money and wearing men's clothes. I felt completely out of touch with the world.

For a brief moment, I considered the idea of sneaking into Arenis's cabin and regaining possession of the chest that contained all my family's money, but it was reckless action and there was a high risk of being caught; I had no desire to find out what Arenis did to those caught stealing. Moreover, I was under constant surveillance, which didn't make things any easier for me.

Arenis hadn't set a departure date. For now, we were stationed in Nassau. We'd been there for three days, and I was doing nothing but loitering in the seedy alleys of the city. The heat was oppressive and the humidity so high that a veil of sweat covered my back and arms. I was constantly searching for shade, for a cool place to spend the day, but it seemed impossible to find it. My throat was constantly dry and I could not quench my thirst, no matter how much I drank. I stopped at every fountain I could find to refresh myself. There was always a long line of people waiting their turn to fill zinc and copper buckets and basins. There were many who would duck and put their heads under the stream of water, and I did the same; I could feel the icy water stinging my hot, sunburnt skin. My clothes got soaked, but it was so hot that after half an hour they were already completely dry.

Arenis always came to wake me up an hour before dawn. She wouldn't leave me alone; she insisted we continue with our combat lessons. We held them on land, on the beach, with the foamy waves tickling our toes and the sand sticking everywhere. She would throw me to the ground, practicing moves that pinned me down and wouldn't allow me to move a single muscle. The sand got into my eyes, my ears, even my throat. My tongue was perpetually kneaded. She showed me new ways to wield a sabre, how to dodge and counter-attack. We duelled at a rapid pace. Arenis's blows were tremendously fast and precise, and I struggled to follow her rapid moves. I was defending myself as best I could, parrying the blows, with bated breath.