"Good. My men and I have had too many long voyages recently."
"Well, I hope Lucia can keep you entertained on the return journey at least. Rumor has it she's gotten plenty of attention from suitors," he added pointedly.
The pirate rubbed his hands together in anticipation. "Then I look forward to seeing her, my friend."
Vallese smirked. "Good." He turned on his heel and headed back down the corridor to the dining hall.
The meal was wrapping up - a minstrel now stood between the two main tables, singing and playing a lute. The castlefolk seemed entertained, and Barone was pleased to see his men behaving themselves as well. The guests listened as the minstrel continued through his repertoire. They applauded heartily when he was finished, and Barone rose to toss a few coins in the musician's shapeless hat.
The pirates were grateful to be provided beds at the end of the night - even if it was just an unused barracks detached from the castle. No matter how grizzled the pirate, they could all appreciate the chance for a comfortable night's sleep.
—
A shadowy figure moved swiftly along the dock after midnight. There was only a sliver of the moon out. The only light was provided by two torches at the front of the guardhouse nearest the dock, but the figure stayed well clear of it. The figure paused briefly as they took stock of the ships moored, delicately vaulting aboard the
Notturno.
Slowly and carefully, the newcomer lifted up the small entrance in the deck that led to the cargo hold and slipped inside.
As the trapdoor was closed again, the figure finally sighed in relief. She threw the hood of her cloak back and tried to take a better stock of her surroundings. She smiled wryly to herself - it had been dark enough outside. In the cramped cargo hold of the ship, she would be unable to see anything at all. Tentatively, the stowaway felt around for the wall of the cargo hold, lying down next to it, rearranging her cloak around her to hide any of her features. She didn't expect the crew to come back anytime soon, so she took the chance to doze off for a few hours at least. She was confident her instincts would wake her up as soon as she heard the commotion of a crew boarding the ship.
She wasn't sure how long she had been asleep, but she woke suddenly to the sound of voices. The ship started to rock gently as footsteps appeared on board. She didn't move, only pivoting enough so she could look up at the deck and the few streams of light that had started to come in between the planks.
A voice was barking commands. She hoped to get a peek through the planks, but the gap was not nearly large enough to see details. The woman could only guess the voice belonged to Captain Barone. She nodded to herself, now confident that she was in the right place. There was nothing else to do for now besides wait. A few times the cargo hold was opened and men brought supplies in, but they weren't looking for stowaways, so she went unnoticed beneath her cloak.
A few more minutes passed and she felt the ship start to lurch and sway a little more. She closed her eyes to steady herself - it took her a little bit of time to get accustomed to a moving ship, and she did her best to keep the queasiness from growing. The woman did, much to her relief. She didn't have an idea how long the
Notturno
would be at sea, but she had to know she was ready to be here for a few days. Food and water would be tricky, but she kept a small pack of rations and waterskin beneath her cloak that would hopefully last her.
The steady rhythm of the oars in the water began to lull her to sleep - after all, she had relaxed, knowing that she would likely be undiscovered here in the hold.
—
It was a little past noon when the lookout called down to Barone from the crow's nest. "Cap'n! I see the forest you wanted to find."
The pirate captain nodded and looked back at the map the Duke gave him. There was a forest noted as a landmark - on the northern edge of the forest the home of Lucia was marked. Barone smiled. "Thank you, Nigel," he called up to the lookout. "We're less than an hour away, men. Good work. If we do this quickly, we should be able to be back by nightfall," he called to the rest of his crew.
There were murmurs of understanding. The usual boarding party members were busying themselves with their weapons. Vallese hadn't told them to expect guards, but only fools would go unarmed. They would be ready for whoever was in the cottage.
The rowers kept their pace, their usual chanting quieted as they got closer to land. Everyone aboard knew that surprise would be important. The sail was brought in, making the ship harder to spot from shore.
It wasn't much longer before they passed by the outskirts of the forest. Barone was standing at the bow, squinting his eyes to catch his first glimpse of the cottage. A smile crept across his face - the little home was there, just as the Duke had said. Barone studied it quickly for signs of movement, either inside or outside. There was a small stable to one side of the house, and Barone saw that there was only one horse. There wasn't any sign of movement in the house from what he could tell, but the windows were small.
He nodded slowly to himself. That made it seem more likely that Lucia would be alone there. There was a chance that there were guards who kept their horses separately, but he doubted that. The pirate touched the thin sword sheathed at his side - he and his men would be ready regardless.
The captain turned back to the ship, nodding his approval at the three men who had armed and readied themselves. "Remember, the Duke doesn't want to hurt her... too much," he added with a mischievous smile. "But if she's alone, I don't suspect there will be much of a fight." His men nodded their understanding. As far as some of their missions went, this would not be their toughest.
The ship had since come to a standstill a few meters offshore and dropped anchor. Any closer, and it would be slower to get the ship out in a hurry. And Barone was willing to trade wading through a foot or two of water for a few extra minutes, if needed.
Barone was the first man off the ship, vaulting lightly into water and clambering ashore, alert and ready now that he was in 'enemy territory'. The three warriors followed him. They didn't run towards the house, walking calmly, staggered a few feet apart in case of a guard or someone else with a bow.
The pirate captain was the first to reach the cottage and stepped up onto the small verandah. Once his comrades were behind him, Barone knocked on the door. He motioned to one of his men to go around back should Lucia have some notion to make a run for it.
He knocked again, louder this time. A few seconds later he heard footsteps. A soft voice called from the other side of the door. "Who is it?"
"We're on official business from the Duke. Open your door." Barone said, hiding a smirk. His men chuckled softly behind him - 'official business' never really described what they did. But this wasn't a complete lie this time either.
Barone was surprised when the door opened in front of him. The woman stood almost a full head shorter than the lanky Barone. Her darker blonde hair was combed back, not quite reaching her shoulders. She was dressed simply, but the clothing was good quality. Barone noticed she carried a heavy-looking rolling pin in her right hand.
"Are you Lucia?"
Her eyes flicked between the three men in front of her. She tightened her grip on the rolling pin. "I am. You said you were on official business. I do not see your men dressed in that fool Vallese's colors," she sneered. "Why are you here?"
Lucia's voice was deep for a woman, and she spoke with confidence. Barone was almost taken aback. "Come with us, madam," Barone held out his hand and smiled at her.
Lucia didn't buy it. Her nostrils flared and anger flashed in her eyes. She moved to slam the door. The pirate had been ready and pressed his foot against the door to hold it open. Lucia wasn't giving up so quickly. She raised the rolling pin and swung it at Barone. He threw up his hand quickly, snatching her wrist and turning her swing into a half-hearted blow that landed on his shoulder.
Barone pushed back against her wrist, forcing it against the door frame. Lucia gasped, her fingers loosening from the brief pain of being slammed against the door frame. Barone rammed her hand against the door frame one more time and the rolling pin clattered to the floor.
The blow to his shoulder certainly didn't hurt much at all, but something about her attack angered him more than it should have. The pirate drew back his hand and slapped Lucia across her face.
