Read Online Seaswept (Seabound Chronicles Book 2) by Jordan Rivet - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Jordan Rivet
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a pungent
curry. Esther traded a spare gear for the meal. She had no qualms about giving
away a bit of metal in exchange for the wondrous burning sensation on her
tongue. She had hoped to share this experience with Cally. That’s what she got
for running off into the bazaar with Dax.
Esther leaned
against the food stall and tuned in to the big-nosed curry vendor’s
conversation with the next customer, a man with leathery skin and ears like
razor clams.
“The Harvesters
have their work cut out for them with Calderon. Don’t I know it.”
“They gonna come
to a fight?” asked the leather-faced customer.
“Not likely.” The
curry vendor continued to stir the vat of sauce as he spoke. “Them’s cowards,
if you ask me. No way Calderon will want to deal with the Harvesters head-on.”
“Don’t know who
made them the arbiters o’ justice anyway.”
“Better’n nothing.
No one else can do anything about the sneaky bastards. They come at you from
all sides and melt away into the waves. Colin thinks they have a sub, but I say
that’s whaleshit. Anyway, the Harvesters have got an aggressive recruiting campaign
going. They want a fair fight, but them Calderons is anything but fair.”
“You think they’re
pirates? That’s what Hugh was saying last time he was in port.”
“No skin off my
nose if they are. Both of them buy my fish balls and leave the Amsterdam alone. That’s all that matters
to me.”
“Ain’t that the
truth!” The man raised his half-eaten fish ball in the air.
Esther finished
her snack and left the vendor to his conversation. She wondered about all this
piracy talk. Rachel had mentioned the Calderon Group and the Harvesters too.
The Amsterdam was a good place to
have rumors fleshed out, but it was hard to tell what was true and what was exaggerated.
She bought a small
bag of chocolate-covered squid from another stall. Anything made with chocolate
was exceptionally expensive; cocoa was rarer than oil in their world. She would
save them for Cally and Dax in case they didn’t find their way to this part of
the bazaar. She hoped they hadn’t gotten themselves into trouble. She felt
responsible for Cally, mostly because her mother would string Esther up by a
length of durable denim if anything happened to her daughter. After a moment’s
hesitation, Esther bought a second bag for David.
She explored the
familiar corners of the bazaar alone that afternoon. The Amsterdam had been her primary source of contact with other
survivors through much of her life. She tried reliving those wide-eyed days,
but some of the magic was missing and she wasn’t sure why.
Eventually, Esther pushed her way back out of the short corridor to the
outer platform. The sun sat low on the horizon, and the sea was restless. Back
at the Catalina , a sulky Gracie
Cordova had replaced Judith at the shell station. Whenever someone came aboard,
she moved their shell from one bucket to another with a petulant clink. She
informed Esther that Cally and Dax had not yet returned. Esther settled down
cross-legged beside the gangway to wait for them.
Chapter 9—Night
Esther hung out by the platform as the sun went down and the other
Catalinans made their way back to the ship. They chattered animatedly, their
arms filled with purchases: colorful scarves, books, cigarettes and soap,
teacups marred with shatter patterns. Judith’s arms were empty. Apparently, she
had taken David’s advice to delay any major transactions. Dirk stuck doggedly
to her heels.
Zoe and the others
returned promptly at sunset, when the last rays were setting the oil rig
alight. Esther promised to meet them in the Mermaid Lounge after Cally was
safely on board. She kept an eye on the gangway to the Lucinda as she waited. David was also late returning home.
Eventually, Gracie
got fed up.
“You can keep
track of the stragglers if you’re going to hang out here anyway,” she said.
“It’s bad enough I only got a short visit to the bazaar
curry. Esther traded a spare gear for the meal. She had no qualms about giving
away a bit of metal in exchange for the wondrous burning sensation on her
tongue. She had hoped to share this experience with Cally. That’s what she got
for running off into the bazaar with Dax.
Esther leaned
against the food stall and tuned in to the big-nosed curry vendor’s
conversation with the next customer, a man with leathery skin and ears like
razor clams.
“The Harvesters
have their work cut out for them with Calderon. Don’t I know it.”
“They gonna come
to a fight?” asked the leather-faced customer.
“Not likely.” The
curry vendor continued to stir the vat of sauce as he spoke. “Them’s cowards,
if you ask me. No way Calderon will want to deal with the Harvesters head-on.”
“Don’t know who
made them the arbiters o’ justice anyway.”
“Better’n nothing.
No one else can do anything about the sneaky bastards. They come at you from
all sides and melt away into the waves. Colin thinks they have a sub, but I say
that’s whaleshit. Anyway, the Harvesters have got an aggressive recruiting campaign
going. They want a fair fight, but them Calderons is anything but fair.”
“You think they’re
pirates? That’s what Hugh was saying last time he was in port.”
“No skin off my
nose if they are. Both of them buy my fish balls and leave the Amsterdam alone. That’s all that matters
to me.”
“Ain’t that the
truth!” The man raised his half-eaten fish ball in the air.
Esther finished
her snack and left the vendor to his conversation. She wondered about all this
piracy talk. Rachel had mentioned the Calderon Group and the Harvesters too.
The Amsterdam was a good place to
have rumors fleshed out, but it was hard to tell what was true and what was exaggerated.
She bought a small
bag of chocolate-covered squid from another stall. Anything made with chocolate
was exceptionally expensive; cocoa was rarer than oil in their world. She would
save them for Cally and Dax in case they didn’t find their way to this part of
the bazaar. She hoped they hadn’t gotten themselves into trouble. She felt
responsible for Cally, mostly because her mother would string Esther up by a
length of durable denim if anything happened to her daughter. After a moment’s
hesitation, Esther bought a second bag for David.
She explored the
familiar corners of the bazaar alone that afternoon. The Amsterdam had been her primary source of contact with other
survivors through much of her life. She tried reliving those wide-eyed days,
but some of the magic was missing and she wasn’t sure why.
Eventually, Esther pushed her way back out of the short corridor to the
outer platform. The sun sat low on the horizon, and the sea was restless. Back
at the Catalina , a sulky Gracie
Cordova had replaced Judith at the shell station. Whenever someone came aboard,
she moved their shell from one bucket to another with a petulant clink. She
informed Esther that Cally and Dax had not yet returned. Esther settled down
cross-legged beside the gangway to wait for them.
Chapter 9—Night
Esther hung out by the platform as the sun went down and the other
Catalinans made their way back to the ship. They chattered animatedly, their
arms filled with purchases: colorful scarves, books, cigarettes and soap,
teacups marred with shatter patterns. Judith’s arms were empty. Apparently, she
had taken David’s advice to delay any major transactions. Dirk stuck doggedly
to her heels.
Zoe and the others
returned promptly at sunset, when the last rays were setting the oil rig
alight. Esther promised to meet them in the Mermaid Lounge after Cally was
safely on board. She kept an eye on the gangway to the Lucinda as she waited. David was also late returning home.
Eventually, Gracie
got fed up.
“You can keep
track of the stragglers if you’re going to hang out here anyway,” she said.
“It’s bad enough I only got a short visit to the bazaar
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