The Starling Vigilante [Watty's 2015 Award Winner]

Chapter 64

'They're coming,' Sara told us as she looked through her binoculars to the freighter. 'Two men, armed.'

Oliver had shot a flaming arrow into the massive pile of wood I had set up near the shore to distract Ivo and his men from seeing Sara, and Slade board the freighter while Oliver and I would get caught.

'I hope everything turns out okay,' Sara said as we waited for Slade and Oliver to finish talking.

'It will,' I nodded definitely. 'I know we can do it.'

'So, are you ready?' I asked Oliver as we waited for Ivo's men.

'As ready as I'll ever be,' Oliver gulped. 'I'm not scared.'

'Truthfully,' I added. 'I don't believe that you're not scared one little bit.'

'Truthfully? Yeah, I am a... Little scared,' Oliver quivered. 'But I think telling myself that there's nothing to be afraid of kinda helps.'

'I'll try to the do the same then,' I commented. 'In my head, I'll just think I've got it all under control. Like, escaping a cell isn't hard, is it? I've done it before.'

'How did you escape?' Oliver asked curiously.

'I stole the key to my cell,' I lied. 'Well, before Ivo locked me away and took all the other keys away from me. I guess I was one step ahead of him.'

'They're nearly here,' Oliver said quickly. 'Remember, follow me.'

As we got into our positions, the two men ran ashore, guns at hand. As they got a little closer, Oliver held my hand and we ran into the forest, and over a loose tree root.

'Dammit!' I shouted as we fell to the ground.

'You're lucky Ivo wants you alive,' one of the men said, slapping Oliver.

They both took us to their boat as we pretended to struggle, put plan seeming to work. We were going on the freighter.

---

I groaned in pain as I was chucked onto the cold, hard floor of a cell, making me feel dizzy. I opened my eyes to find that Oliver also was in the same cell as me.

'They mustn't have had enough cells,' I smiled, Oliver and I being able to keep each other company in this hellhole of a ship being a small triumph amidst all the bad things that were happening.

'Im glad too,' Oliver smiled, before turning to the cell beside us, Anatoly's cell. 'I told you I'd come back.'

'Fantastic,' Anatoly said sarcastically. 'We're saved.'

'Reunion?' I added, trying to lighten the mood. 'At least we're... all together!'

'But we're still stuck here,' Anatoly complained. 'I thought you were the special saviour, Aria, whatever Hendrick told us all.'

'Well, at least we can all suffer together,' Oliver added optimistically.

'Seriously?' I asked sarcastically. 'Suffer together? More like rot in our cells together.'

'Welcome back to hell,' Anatoly commented.

If there was one thing I had missed from this boat, it was Anatoly's sense of humour.

---

As soon as Oliver fell asleep, I heard Hendrick's voice from his cell.

'Congratulations, Aria,' Hendrick clapped his hands humorously. 'You unsuccessfully saved me.'

'I'm sorry, Hendrick,' I apologised. 'I didn't want this to happen!'

'So now you've been locked down here three times?' Hendrick asked rhetorically. 'I think that's a record!'