The Desired Victim

***Chapter 21: This Crow Becomes Caged***

(Emory's Point of View)

I managed to make my way to the inside of the ship without being discovered, thankfully. But not before I watched my ship get set on fire. My chest turned cold knowing that the burning of my ship meant the pirates had finished taking everything they needed. Which meant that Evelyn was somewhere around.

And then I had a horrifying thought.

I could just imagine Evelyn trying to hide. She's smart that way, she would've most definitely hid from the pirates. What if they never found her? What if she burned alive?

I wiped the cold sweat from my forehead, and convinced myself that it wasn't true. I would've known if she were dead, I would've felt it somehow. She's alive.

 I had to hurry and find somewhere to hide for the night, the hallways will be crawling with pirates soon. I quickly moved through the halls of the ship trying to be as silent as possible. I noticed that the interior of this ship is sickeningly beautiful. After being on my ship, this felt like walking through a small palace. I can only imagine how the captain keeps everything so clean and good-conditioned.

I finally come across a door that's slightly open. Maybe it's the captain's? It's dark inside and I can't hear anyone moving around or talking in there. I dare to open the door a little bit wider and see that it's empty. Even though it's dark, I can still tell that the room is extensively furnished. I go inside the room and shut the door quietly behind me.

I hold my knife out, prepared for any attack. There's always the possibility of someone hiding in here. I cautiously check everything, and it seems like the room is completely empty. I put my knife away and relax a little. Maybe I can hide in here for the night until I can figure out how I'm going to find the captain of this ship. The longer I stay hidden the better.

I lock the door to ease my paranoia. I'm not sure what I'll do if someone shows up in here, and I don't want to think about it. Lighting up the room seemed to calm me down as well, and then I pace the floor trying to think of a plan.

My main priority right now is to get to the captain. But how? There will be pirates littered all over the hallways, and all over the upper and lower decks soon, if they aren't there already. There's no way in hell I'd be able to get past them all. And I have no idea where the captain's cabin could possibly be, even if I could somehow sneak past them all. And even if I do make it to the captain, how do I know that he won't kill me before I can get a word out? I've made bargains with pirate captains before, and they usually go for it. But by the looks of this ship, it seems like the captain has everything he could possibly need.

The anxiety in my chest rises rapidly as I brainstorm. My mind keeps flashing to Evelyn, being beaten and mistreated somewhere around here, and I can't do a damn thing about it. 

I tell myself that finding her first won't do either of us any good. I have to figure out how to get to the captain and get Evelyn and the rest of my crew back first. I feel like I've already lost such precious time.

As I stand there thinking, I hear a murmured voice from the hallway outside. The voice gets louder and I start to panic. Shit. This isn't good. 

Completely frozen in fear, I watch the doorknob jiggle. Someone would be in here any second. Should I fight them off? It sounds like only one person. But it would probably cause a racket, and other pirates would probably show up to kill me. Should I just turn myself in and give up my plan completely? I thought of Evelyn's small body wrapped around mine, her warm breath on my chest, and her saying my name.

No. I'm not giving up.

My eyes dart to a closet full of clothes, and I realize what I must do. Snapping out of my frozen state, I desperately throw myself into the back of the closet, and try to cover myself up with as many clothes as I can. I hear the door finally open and I stand completely still and hold my breath.

"You are permitted to stay in this room at all times," a man with a thick Spanish accent said. Who was he talking to? Was there someone else there too? I couldn't see anything but dresses and shirts and I didn't want to risk looking. 

"I've been ordered to isolate you from the others, out of sight." There was a pause. "There won't be any need for this, sí?" 

Any need for what? What the hell is going on?

Apparently the other person had responded, since the man continued saying, "Excelente. You have permission to change into whatever clothes you can find in that closet there, and you are welcome to bathe in the powder room."

Shit. I really hoped he wouldn't start snooping around the closet. I felt sick to my stomach, and it was getting harder to breathe. But I remained perfectly still, fear coursing through my entire body.

"You're worth many fortunes, princesa. You should be treated as such."

My stomach dropped. My entire body felt numb and the realization struck me like a blade.

I'm going to be trapped in this room, and so is Evelyn.  

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