Burnt Sea: A Seabound Prequel (Seabound Chronicles Book 0) (19 page)

As he walked toward his cabin, he ran into Michael. The seaman was
limping, and he seemed to have some sort of hand towel bound tightly around one
foot. But he straightened to attention when he saw Simon.

“Sir,” the younger man said, nodding at him. They stopped on the grand
staircase for a moment.

“Hello, Michael. Did you find somewhere to stay last night?” Simon
asked.

“Temporarily. But I might need more permanent quarters, sir. Are there
any spare crew cabins available?”

“I can find out where Nora was staying. That will probably have to do
for now.”

Michael made an odd face that Simon couldn’t read.

“That might not . . . Thank you, sir,” he said. “Can I take clothes
from one of the shops? I can’t pay for them now but—”

“Yes, of course,” Simon said. “I should have offered sooner. We’ve been
using whatever we need.”

“Do you have a system for it, sir? Like a rationing station, so that
everyone gets an equal share.”

“Not an official one yet, but that’s a good idea,” Simon said. “We may
need to rotate through what we have here. Some people have their own luggage.”

“Some of you came on with nothing, right?” Michael asked. “Judith said
. . . Never mind.”

Simon raised an eyebrow. “Yes. I’ve been wearing the same thing for a
week and a half, and so has my daughter.” His navy-blue trousers were looking
quite washed out from their repeated
drenchings
in
salt water. “Let me show you the shops. They’re a mess, but you should be able
to find a few things that fit.”

“Thank you, sir.”

“Please call me Simon. And I’ll keep calling you Michael instead of
Seaman Williams if that’s okay.”

They walked together along the second level of the plaza. Simon was
still trying to get a read on Michael. He treated Simon like a superior officer
and on the surface showed the disciplined carriage you’d expect from an
enlisted sailor. He seemed like a navy man through and through. And yet he had
deserted on the off chance it might help him get home to his family sooner. Perhaps
it was a sign of how much the world had changed.

Simon and Michael went into a boutique filled with stylish patio
clothes. Simon figured he’d pick up a few things for himself and Esther while
he was at it.

“How old is your daughter?” Michael asked.

“Six,” Simon said. “She’s a wild one. She loves the ship. She keeps
pestering the engine crew, trying to get them to teach her things.” He picked
up a pair of green board shorts that would fit Esther nicely.

“It’s not that safe for a little kid in an engine room,” Michael said.

“Nowhere is safe,” Simon said. “But she’s smart, and she knows not to
get into anything that’ll hurt her.”

“That’s great that you have her here with you,” Michael said.

He had gone straight to the women’s clothing section. Simon didn’t
comment on it as Michael sorted through a stack of sweaters, holding them up to
compare the sizes.

After a while Michael asked, “Where’s her mother?”

“She was in San Diego with my other daughter, Naomi.”

“I’m sorry.”

“I don’t know whether I should assume they’re dead or hold out hope
that they’re alive,” Simon said. “Neither perspective is helpful right now.”

“You don’t think anyone survived in San Diego at all?”

“I don’t see how they could have,” Simon said. “There was so much ash.
It may look light and fluffy, but it would cling to the insides of your lungs
and throat. Anyone who breathed it in wouldn’t stand a chance. And if they’ve
had any rain, the weight of the mud would collapse the roofs of the buildings.
I can’t imagine they could have lasted long.”

“What about hiding in basements?”

“Wouldn’t have made the air any cleaner,” Simon said.

He had gone through these arguments before. Each time he ruled out a
possibility, it felt like a tiny betrayal of Nina and Naomi. He wanted to keep
hoping, but how could they possibly have made it?

“Does your daughter know?” Michael asked.

“Not sure she grasps it,” Simon said, “but I’m trying to make her
understand. The sooner she can accept it, the better.”

“I don’t grasp it myself,” Michael said.

He had selected two piles of clothing. One would fit him; the other was
obviously for a woman. A small puzzle piece clicked into place. Perhaps he had
found somewhere to stay after all.

Simon and Michael shook hands at the door.

“I’m calling a meeting this afternoon to discuss our next course of
action,” Simon said. “We’ll gather in the Mermaid Lounge on the ninth deck, if
you’d like to join us.”

“I’ll be there,” Michael said.

“Good. And would you please make sure Judith comes too?” Simon said.

The look of surprise on Michael’s face confirmed Simon’s suspicions. He
smiled and clapped the younger man on the shoulder, leaving him gaping as he
headed back up the stairs.

Chapter 17—Decisions

Judith

Judith arrived in the
Mermaid Lounge wearing the
outfit Michael had brought for her. He had simply knocked, called to her
through the door about the meeting, and left the clothes on her doorstep. She
had been more than ready to apologize for snapping and invite him back inside,
but he just left, making her angry all over again. She should have pulled him
straight back into her room.

The slim-fit trousers were exactly the right size, and he had also
brought her a gray sweater that might have been cashmere. She was lucky it was
soft because her side and arm still burned from the rope. She’d only managed to
make it through an early lunch before she had to return to her room to clean
her wounds again.

Now she joined the other members of the informal leadership council to
hear what Simon thought they should do now that Guam was no longer an option.
There were about forty people there already, more than usually attended the
meetings. The lounge was somewhat the worse for
wear
after the storm, and everyone pitched in to pick up broken glasses and
overturned chairs before the meeting.

Judith tried to help, but her injured skin still pulled at her. She
went over to the bar overlooking the ocean and leaned on her good side. The sea
outside was remarkably calm, but the sky was much darker than it should be.
Would they ever see the sun again?

There was no point thinking like that. They’d press on and be back on
land soon. This couldn’t last much longer.

Judith scanned the small crowd for Michael but spotted
Ren
instead. She was sitting in a corner of the lounge, her
face withdrawn and her eyes red. Judith knew she should go over, but she didn’t
want to talk about Nora. She hadn’t been to see
Ren
at all today. She couldn’t face her friend’s grief as she tried to stamp down
her own. She kept trying to remind herself that she’d only known Nora for a
little while and they probably wouldn’t have met or become friends in other
circumstances, but it didn’t matter. She felt her loss like the cut of a razor.

Michael arrived, limping, with Reggie and a handful of men from the crew,
many of them carrying leftovers from lunch. They were laughing and shoving each
other jovially. They chose a booth on the far side of the lounge. Michael sat
in the outermost seat and put his elbows on the table. He’d obviously gotten
his clothes from the same shop as hers. He wore white linen trousers and a polo
shirt underneath a navy-blue sweater, like a banker on his way to the Bahamas.
It was an illusion, though. There was something homegrown about him. He fit in
better with Reggie and the crew than he would have with the guys from her
university.

Michael glanced up and spotted Judith. He looked her up and down and
gave a thumbs-up. She folded her arms—or tried to, until it made her rope
burn hurt—and stuck her tongue out at him. She regretted it instantly.
Ugh. Why can’t I just act like a normal
person?
But Michael just laughed and pretended to take a picture with an
imaginary camera. Judith giggled in spite of herself.

Reggie noticed the exchange between Michael and Judith. He said
something that made the whole table laugh. Michael chucked a bit of a roll at
him. Judith scowled at Reggie and scooted further around the bar toward the
sea, her face reddening.

When she peeked at the group of men again, Reggie held everyone’s
attention. The conversation had turned serious, and the men were leaning in to
listen. People were really beginning to look up to Reggie, especially after his
efforts on the beach. He was becoming more and more of a leader each day. If
Judith wanted that for herself, she couldn’t have Reggie catching her flirting.

But no one was more in charge than Simon. He worked the crowd, speaking
softly, patting backs and pressing hands. That’s what Judith aspired to. She
would never command the sort of respect Simon got if she allowed herself to be
distracted by a guy. Maybe she shouldn’t open herself up to another friendship
anyway. Losing Nora was too recent, too raw. And it would never last.

“
Whatcha
doin
’,
Judy?” said a voice near waist level.

“Oh, nothing. Hi, Esther,” Judith said.

The little girl had come up beside her.

“Are you hiding?” Esther asked.

“No.”

“Then why are you standing over here?”

“I’m just . . . I thought it would be easier to see from over here.”

“Me too,” Esther said. “But I’m short.” She climbed up onto a
bar stool
. She had a clump of seaweed in her hand, and she
was pulling pieces off and chewing them thoughtfully. “You look pretty, Judy.
Where’d you get those clothes?”

“A friend got them for me.”

“What friend?”

“Oh, no one. You’re wearing new clothes too, aren’t you? Where’s your
Thomas shirt?”

“Daddy said we had to wash it again,” Esther said. “
I
didn’t think it smelled like fish, but
he got me this
Catalina
shirt to wear
instead.”

“I like it,” Judith said.

Esther crossed her legs so she was perched like a little genie on the
bar stool
.

“What’s Daddy going to talk to everyone about?” she asked.

“I don’t know.”

“Doesn’t he tell you things? I thought you were his assistant or
something.”

“I guess I sort of am. He hasn’t told me, though.”

It made Judith smile to hear that Simon apparently thought of her as
his assistant.

Across the bar, Simon stepped to the middle of the room. There were
about fifty people here now, and they all quieted immediately.

“Good evening, everyone,” Simon said. “I hope you all came through the
storm all right. You’ve all been doing a lot to keep the ship in order. I think
it’s really helpful and a great habit to get into.” Simon scanned the room,
stopping often to look individuals in the eyes. He smiled at Judith when he saw
her standing by the bar. Then his eyes landed on Esther and he smiled wider. “I
think it’s time that we talked through our options and decide our next course
of action,” Simon continued. “
Ren
tells me we’re
about three days out from Southeast Asia in one direction and four days from
Hawaii in the other. We’ve already established that Hawaii has its own
problems. It may not be the best place to go. We just don’t know if Asia will
be any better. If we go back to Hawaii, we’ll be in a disaster zone, but we’ll
be in our own country. If we make landfall in Indonesia, for example, we may be
better off, but we’ll be foreigners. We’ll just have to hope they’ll help us.”

“So you want us to pick a direction?” Reggie asked.

“Unfortunately, we don’t have enough fuel to sail for more than four or
five days, though yesterday’s salvage expedition helped a lot,” Simon said. He
hesitated for a moment. “I’ll be honest with you,” he said. “I think we should
keep moving forward. We’ll have lots of options to disembark somewhere in Asia.
We’ll likely reach the Philippines in a few days, but if we end up with more
weather problems we could try Japan or Indonesia or even China. If we sail back
to Hawaii, we may overshoot, just like last time. And we’ll be out of luck if
they still can’t help us. I say we go west—to the East.”

“I agree!” said someone sitting at the table nearest to Simon.
“Hawaii’s a bust.”

“The further away we get from the volcano, the better.”

“Simon’s right. I say we do whatever Simon thinks is best!”

“Hear! Hear!”
        

Simon waited until everyone had voiced their opinions and then took a
vote. Sailing west toward Asia won by a significant margin. No one wanted to
sail back the way they’d come from. It was too late to go back.

“Thank you for voting, everyone,” Simon said. “Now there’s another
issue I want to raise. We don’t have visas obviously, and we have no idea how
welcoming of refugees whatever country we end up in will be. I think we should
prepare for a longer time living on the ship, just in case we need to use it as
a floating hotel offshore for a little while. Let’s fish. Let’s make better use
of the cruise stuff and divide up clothes and personal items so everyone has a
fair share. Let’s salvage whatever we can find floating on the water.
Anything at all.
We never know when we’ll be able to use
it.”

“What about water? And electricity?”

“Good point. We should conserve as much as possible.”

“I just want to get off this godforsaken boat,” Horace said from one of
the tables.

“So do I. But let’s take these precautions just in case. It’ll give us
something to do over the next few days while we’re on our way.”

Most people seemed to think Simon was overly cautious, but he
persisted. It was getting late, and they were growing restless and hungry. Finally,
they agreed to indulge him. By the time the council meeting broke up, it was
past dinnertime. Judith wondered if Simon held the meeting late so that people
would be eager to agree with him so they could head to dinner. Could Simon be
that shrewd? If not, it was certainly a tactic he should make use of in the
future. She made a note to remind him.

Judith stood up from the bar, the pull of her skin reminding her of her
injury. She scowled at the pain and then glanced up to see a look of surprise
on Michael’s face. He’d been limping toward her, but he turned around again at
the sight of her scowl. It hadn’t been directed at him! Judith started to go
after him, but Simon was heading her way.

“How are you feeling, Judith?” he asked. “Manny told me you had a rough
time in the storm.”

“My arm and side got scraped up and I pulled a muscle or two, but I’ll
be fine. It just hurts to move too much.”

“I’m sorry about Nora,” Simon said quietly. “I know she was your
friend.

“Thanks,” Judith said. “It’s harder on
Ren
than on me.” She looked over at her other friend. She should go and console
her, but she felt a fierce flash of panic at having to confront
Ren’s
pain directly.

Simon just nodded and offered his arm to help her toward the door. He
seemed to sense that she needed assistance without her having to say so. His
presence was comforting, as always. Why couldn’t her father have been more like
him? Judith had tried so hard to get him to recognize her capabilities, and he
had barely noticed. But Simon took her seriously.

“What did you think of the meeting?” Simon asked as they walked.

Esther had hopped off her stool and darted ahead to pester Frank with
questions.

 
“You’re obviously right
about Asia being the only sensible choice,” Judith said. “But you don’t think
we’ll be getting off the boat anytime soon, do you?”

Simon was silent for a moment. They ambled along, Judith unable to move
too fast. A few people skirted them in the corridor as they headed for the
dining hall.

“That’s partially it,” he said.

“You want everyone to get used to following a system, just in case the
worst happens,” Judith guessed.

“People need to stay busy,”
Simon
said. “If we
follow a routine every day, they will already be in the habit, and they’ll have
something to look forward to each day. I’m concerned about what will happen to
this group if their hopes are dashed yet again and they don’t have anything to
do on top of it. Better to get some routines going first.”

“That’s smart,” Judith said.

“It’s necessary, unfortunately. Do you think it’s too calculating?”

“Even if it is, it’s for everyone’s good,” Judith said.

Simon gave her a cautious look. “Perhaps.”

If she was honest, Judith thought he was probably worrying too much.
Someone
would
help them. Basic human
decency had to prevail eventually.

When they reached the dining hall, they joined Esther and Frank at
their usual table. Judith was easing herself into her chair when Michael walked
up, managing to saunter despite his limp. He addressed himself directly to
Simon.

“Is it okay if I sit with you and your family, sir?”

“Of course, Michael. You know Judith,” Simon said.
What’s that grin
on his face about?
“And this is our resident engineer, Frank Fordham, and
Esther, my daughter.”

Simon

Simon
wondered if he’d misjudged whether something was going on between Judith and
Michael after all. They looked like a couple, both young and
good
looking
, wearing clothes borrowed from the same plaza shop. Michael
angled himself toward Judith and looked over at her often as he chatted with
Frank about his engineering work.

But Judith barely said a word, answering Michael’s questions with
one-word answers whenever possible. Her natural confidence that had first
caught Simon’s attention was temporarily suspended. Simon had rather liked the
prospect of young love amid these circumstances, but it didn’t look like that
was on Judith’s mind. Maybe her injuries were distracting her. Or perhaps she
was shy.