Chapter3:

Rain was pouring down by the time Jimmy reached the docks. He was completely drenched. As he shivered and held his left arm as gently as he could with his right hand, he quietly watched sailors unloading or loading crates into the ships. He wasn't sure where he planned on going, but he couldn't live in New York anymore. He had endured enough over the years, and this was the last straw. Standing in the shadows so none of the nearby sailors could see him and question why he was there all alone at such a young age, Jimmy watched for the opportune moment to sneak aboard one of the ships.

Presently, there were three ships at the dock. He hoped he would be able to find the right time to sneak onto the one closest to his hiding place, so he wouldn't have to walk far enough in plain view to be caught. He wasn't sure what he would do once on the ship either. He would hide, of course, but he didn't know where any of them were going, and knew the sailors would most surely not let him stay aboard if they found him. Ordinarily a child his age might have thought better than to follow through with this plan, but he didn't have a choice. Life in New York was too difficult. He barely survived off food he stole, and definately didn't have any parental figure. Surely wherever the ships were going couldn't be any worse.

Jimmy waited until all of the sailors loading crates into the nearest ship were gone. They had probably gone off to drink somewhere before taking off. Or perhaps they were going to wait until morning before sailing off. At any rate, Jimmy knew there was likely at least one sailor left on board to guard the ship, so he would have to be quiet and quick so to not be caught.

As quickly and silently as he could manage, he climbed aboard the vessel and quickly made his way down the stairs, below deck. It didn't seem like anyone had seen him. He hadn't seen anyone else on the ship either. He looked around below the deck. It was a rather large area full of large cages. Jimmy wasn't sure what the cages were used for, but assumed some kind of animals would reside in them, unless the ship transported cages to people wanting to buy cages, which might seem odd, but to his young mind seemed possible. At any rate, he assumed he could hide in one of the cages and probably not be seen for a while. If the cages were being transported somewhere, the sailors wouldn't be down here until they reached their destination.

Jimmy made his way to the back of the room and climbed into one of the cages. He sat down and sighed. He knew he wasn't completely safe just yet, but somehow being in this cage where no one else was around made him feel safer. It would take stealthy work to avoid being caught later, but he figured he was safe for at least the moment.

The air in the cage was cold, and his clothing was wet. He knew he wouldn't be getting any warmer if he was still all wet. As best as he could, he rung out his pants, keeping them on. He didn't want to not be wearing pants if someone happened to come down and find him. They weren't completely soaked through anyway. He could, however, risk being caught without a shirt on. That wouldn't be nearly as embarrassing. The boy took off his shirt and wrung it out, hanging it on the bars of the cage and then looking down at his left arm.

His arm was covered in bruises. Jimmy didn't know much about health related topics, but he could make an educated guess that his arm was probably broken. It hurt horribly every time he touched it, and didn't look as straight as he felt it probably should. He shivered in the cold. Would his arm heal on it's own? He wasn't really sure. He has sustained injuries before, and they always healed, but he hadn't ever had a broken bone. What if it wouldn't heal on it's own? Maybe he could fix it himself. Jimmy took his left arm in his right hand, wincing at the pain he felt as he touched the bruises. He began to try to straighten his arm back to normal, but it hurt so much he couldn't stand it. With tears in his eyes, he gave up, leaning back against the back wall of the cage.

He shivered again. He was so tired of being cold. He stood up. Perhaps there was some sort of clothing or blankets around. He slowly walked about below the deck of the ship. He was feeling more and more exhausted by the minute. He couldn't remember the last time he had a decent meal or full night's sleep. In fact, he figured the last time he had eaten at all was two days ago, and even that was just an apple he had stolen. He continued walking until he found a few crates sitting next to each other beside one of the cages. He tried to pull the lid off of one, but it was nailed shut, and there was no way he was going to be able to open it with his bare hands. The other crate was sealed in the same fashion.

Jimmy exhaled tiredly, looking around one last time before returning to the cage he had originally chosen. He laid down in the corner of the cage and closed his eyes. He didn't mean to fall asleep of course. He needed to be aware of his surroundings in case someone decided to go below deck, so he could be sure to hide as best as possible. Standing, however, and even sitting up was making him feel like he might pass out, so he needed to lay down. As he lay there, shivering, he tried to keep himself awake. However, he was unsuccessful, and fell asleep within minutes.

Jimmy woke up with a gasp. He had forgotten where he was. He forced himself to sit up, though his body ached. He didn't remember if he had been dreaming, but his rapid breathing made him guess he might have been having some sort of nightmare, even though he couldn't remember it now. He felt more frightened than he had before he had fallen asleep. Then he noticed the floor seemed to be moving slightly. In fact, the entire cage did. He quickly realized the ship was moving because it had probably taken off while he was asleep and was now rocking back and forth on the sea. Jimmy wanted to see if it was morning now, but there were no windows below deck, and he was not about to risk being caught above deck. He supposed it didn't matter. What was important was that he was now out of New York. He was going someplace new, and hopefully better.

He reached up and felt his shirt which was still hanging on the bars of the cage. It was virtually dry, still somewhat damp, but not nearly as bad as it had been earlier. His pants were nearly dry as well. He figured the shirt was dry enough and put it back on; it would have to finish drying while he was wearing it.

He wondered how long the ship would sail before reaching it's destination. He might have to sneak up and steal something to eat. Had he thought of it, he would have stolen something from a vendor before sneaking aboard, but he was in too much of a hurry to even think of it. He didn't really have a strong desire to eat right now, but he knew it was only because he had been going so long without food, his body was getting used to it. He knew he would feel less tired if he ate something, but also knew getting ahold of food wasn't going to be an easy task, and he might be better off just waiting. Surely the ship wouldn't take that long to get where it was going...

What was he supposed to do now? Jimmy wondered. Looking around, Jimmy noticed the two crates he had found the previous night, or whenever it was before he had fallen asleep. Perhaps he would be able to find something to open them with... Their contents might be anything. If they contained food or dry clothing, it would be very convenient for him to be able to open them.

Jimmy stood up, regretting this move when his vision clouded over. He supposed he had stood up too fast. He sank back down, closing his eyes for a moment and then opening them again. He could see again. He decided to stand more slowly this time. As he stood, his vision remained as normal, but his head still swam. He knew he might faint if he tried walking around, but if the crates contained something which would help him, he needed to open them.

Bracing himself by holding onto one of the cages, Jimmy scanned the area with his eyes. He couldn't see anything which would loosen the nails from the crates, and he was beginning to feel more and more like he should sit back down before his body made him on its own. He inhaled as deeply as he could and made his way out of the cage, looking around as he slowly walked along the rows of cages. He hadn't made it very far when he decided to go back to the cage he had been in originally. If he was going to faint, he didn't want to do so right in the middle of the floor where someone would find him.

When he made it back to the cage, he sat down in the corner and closed his eyes. Maybe after resting for a bit longer he would find moving about to be easier. He didn't want to fall asleep again, but thought he could just sit with his eyes closed for a few minutes. Breathing rapidly, he stayed leaning against the bars until he finally gave up trying to stay awake and let himself slide down onto the floor, quickly falling into an uncomfortable sleep.

A few notes: First off, I'm sorry this chapter was a bit shorter than the last two... But don't worry. The next one is longer (and has Mr. Hayes in it.) :) Also, I'm sorry it is taking me so long to update. The semester is nearing an end, and I've got tons of exams and papers due... I promise I will finish this though, maybe not quickly, but eventually. I already have some of the next chapters written, but I need to proof-read them, which requires time and desire, and sometimes I really don't feel like proof-reading, so I don't, because I don't want to make mistakes and publish something crappy just because I was in a bad mood...

Another note... if you are interested, this was originally the first chapter of this story. I wasn't going to have the background for it at all, but then thought I probably should explain what happened to Jimmy before The Venture. Just a little bit of info... :)