Hmmm... I think a few people are still reading this... You'll be glad to know this chapter is much longer than the last, and also much more eventful. :) Enjoy:

Chapter4:

When Jimmy woke up, it was due to the feeling of someone's hand on his arm... his left arm, which was broken. The hand grasping his arm would have normally not been so alarming, but the gentle shaking was causing him pain due to the condition of his arm. He could hear someone saying something, but in his state of half-sleep couldn't make out what the words were.

He opened his eyes and pulled his arm away from whomever was shaking it. Remaining on the floor, he crawled into the furthest corner of the cage and looked up at the large man who was looking down at him. Jimmy didn't know anything about the crew of this ship. He didn't know what sort of business they ran or whether they were generally good people or bad; he certainly didn't know what they might do if they found him sneaking free passage on their ship.

With wide eyes transfixed on the large sailor, Jimmy used his right arm to grasp a bar of the cage and pull himself up so he could be ready to run if he got the chance. Right now, however, the sailor was blocking the only exit of the cage.

"Are you okay?" the sailor asked him.

The boy narrowed his eyes. He could feel himself shaking and knew he probably didn't look 'okay,' but didn't want to show any sort of weakness if he could avoid it.

The large man looked down at him, waiting for an answer Jimmy wasn't going to give. After a moment he tried a different question, "What are you doing down here, kid?" he asked.

Jimmy still didn't answer. Keeping his eyes on the man standing before him, Jimmy released the bar he was gripping with his right hand and used his uninjured arm to hug his other arm, as his shivering was causing his arm to shake, causing the broken bones to hurt more.

"Are you going to answer me?" the sailor asked. Jimmy couldn't tell if the man was angry or not. He shook his head, gesturing he wasn't planning on saying anything. The large man asked again, "Are you hurt?" When Jimmy still didn't answer, the man took a step toward him and was about to say something when Jimmy yelled out.

"Get away from me!" he cried out, attempting to push the man away and hurrying to the opposite side of the cage. The sailor stayed back as Jimmy stared at him with wide eyes and breathed rapidly.

Jimmy inhaled and exhaled shakily as he felt more and more like he was about to pass out. He kept his eyes toward the sailor even when his vision started to fade. Even though he couldn't really see the man anymore, at least maybe the man would think he could and wouldn't try anything. However, Jimmy couldn't hide the fact that he was beginning to fall forward. He grabbed onto the cage to hold himself up, as the large man stepped forward as if in an attempt to steady him or prevent him from falling.

As the sailor gripped his upper arms gently but firmly, Jimmy tried desperately to pull away. He didn't know if he could trust this man. He was so exhausted and frightened; he couldn't think at all. He just wanted everyone to leave him alone.

"Get off me!" he gasped, struggling to get out of the man's grasp. He could hear the man telling him something, but couldn't make out what it was over his own pleas, "Let me go!" he urged. The man's grip on his left arm was beginning to hurt him. He pulled at his left arm, focusing all his energy on just getting his left arm free. In doing so, he made his arm hurt even more. Tears welled up in his eyes as he finally heard what the sailor was saying.

"Calm down!" the sailor advised, "I'm not going to hurt you... Just sit down. If I let go of you now you'll fall."

Shaking, Jimmy allowed the man to lower him back down to a sitting position on the floor. He then let go of Jimmy's arms and took a step back.

Breathing rapidly, Jimmy looked back up at the man.

"I'm sorry if I hurt you," the sailor said, "I didn't want you to hit your head on anything. Now, will you at least tell me your name? Just your first name?"

Jimmy shook his head, still breathing rapidly and feeling as though he was on the verge of fainting. He flinched back as the man suddenly sat down in front of him.

"I guess I'll talk then," he the sailor began, "My name's Ben. You can call me Mr. Hayes if you want," he told the boy, "Do you want to hear some things about this ship?"

Jimmy looked at him skeptically. What was he talking about? How was any of this relevant?

"The ship is called The Venture. We sail to various places around the world and capture animals to be brought to zoos and circuses. That's what the cages are for. We catch all sorts of wild animals and put them in these cages to take them back to the states. You know, not very long ago, there was a tiger in this very cage," Mr. Hayes informed him, "and now you're here... but you won't say why, or who you are... but I know you aren't just some circus animal. You don't belong down here. So why don't you come up on deck with me? And we'll find you a room and something to eat and drink."

Jimmy looked silently at Mr. Hayes. He wanted to trust him. He seemed genuine enough, yet Jimmy was so scared that trusting him would be a bad decision. He wondered if the sailor would just allow him to stay below deck in the cages or if he would force him to go upstairs. Upstairs there would surely be other sailors whom he would encounter. He really didn't want any more people to see him. Surely not all of the sailors were as kind as this one. What if the others were angry with him for sneaking aboard their ship? What would they do to him? Jimmy shook his head. He felt tears welling up in his eyes. He was so scared.

"You can't stay down here," Mr. Hayes said again, "what are you so afraid of? No body's gonna hurt you. Come on then," Hayes said more sternly as though he was the boy's father, giving him an order. His tone was no longer asking the boy to obey, but rather telling him.

Jimmy swallowed hard, looking up at Hayes and wondering what he was going to do.

"I'm not asking you anymore," Hayes informed him, "That's an order. You're on this ship, so you'll do as the first mate tells you. You understand?"

Jimmy nodded, using his uninjured arm to pull himself to his feet as he kept his wide eyes transfixed on the man in front of him. He didn't know if this new more stern tone was a trick to get him to comply, but if it was, it was definitely working. Either this man was trying a new approach to get Jimmy to do as he said, or he was getting angry with him, and Jimmy didn't want this large man to be angry with him.

Jimmy followed Mr. Hayes out of the cage and stood outside of the cage where Mr. Hayes had stopped. The large man put his hand on Jimmy's back, probably to guide him upstairs. Jimmy shrunk away from his hand and continued to follow the man up the stairs. When they made it to the top, Jimmy squinted in the bright sunlight and moved closer to Hayes so none of the other sailors would see him. Hayes led him to a bed room and sat him down on the bed.

"What's your name?" Mr. Hayes asked.

Jimmy didn't like that the man wasn't giving him much of an option anymore. Instead of asking if he would answer questions, he was simply pushing the question at him as though answering it was his only option. He supposed giving his first name would do no harm anyway, so he might as well answer.

"Jimmy," he answered, almost in a whisper. He didn't want anyone outside of the room to hear him. He hoped no one else would learn of his presence aboard the ship.

"Okay, Jimmy," Mr. Hayes began, "can I see your arm?" he asked.

Jimmy frowned. He supposed Mr. Hayes had noticed that his arm was injured. It was covered entirely with the sleeve of his shirt, but perhaps the fact Jimmy refrained from using it indicated that it was injured. He shook his head. It seemed like Hayes wanted to help him, but he had tried himself to fix his arm before, and it didn't work. It hurt just to touch it. Jimmy would rather just leave it alone and hope it healed itself.

"Let me see your arm, Jimmy," Hayes repeated, looking very serious and sounding even more serious.

Jimmy was sitting with his left arm gently resting on his lap. He looked down at it and then back up at Hayes. He tried not to, but he could feel himself shaking again. He didn't make any move to show the first mate his arm. He sat completely still and inhaled a shaky breath.

Hayes slowly reached toward Jimmy's arm. Jimmy contemplated attempting to escape, but he knew there was no where he could go. He tried to steady his breathing as he was nearly panicking.

The sailor gently rolled up the sleeve of Jimmy's shirt, which was much too big for his small frame. Jimmy looked down at his arm as Hayes did this. He saw, again, the large bruises covering his arm, and the spots which looked broken. The bruises were now even darker than they had been before. He bit his lower lip and looked up at Hayes.

When he looked into the sailor's eyes, he saw something he hadn't seen in someone's eyes for a long time. This man looked almost sad, as if he felt empathy toward the boy. Jimmy continued to look into the man's eyes, waiting for him to say something about how they were going to go about fixing his arm.

"Well," Hayes began, gently applying pressure up and down Jimmy's arm as the boy winced at the pain it caused, "your arm is definitely broken, Jimmy... but it's fixable. I can see if we have any sort of pain medication if you'd like, before I set the bones back in place."

Jimmy's eyes grew even wider than they had been. The thought of 'setting the bones back in place' sounded very painful.

"Don't worry. I'm sure we've got something to make it hurt much less," Hayes assured him, "And it will only hurt any more than it does right now for a minute. Then all you'll have to do is leave it alone and let it heal. You don't have to be afraid."

Jimmy scowled, "I ain't afraid," he insisted.

Hayes nodded, "Good," he said after a moment of silence. Jimmy wasn't sure if the sailor really believed him.

"I really ain't afraid," he said again, "I'm not a little kid. I ain't scared."

Jimmy saw the look of sorrow and empathy in Hayes' eyes again, "Okay," the man agreed, "now, I'm going to go get some things to fix your arm. If I leave you here, will you promise to stay put?"

Jimmy nodded and watched Mr. Hayes leave the cabin room.

Now alone in the room, Jimmy looked around the small area. He looked down at the mattress of the bed he was sitting on. He wanted to lay down and go to sleep, as he hadn't slept on a bed in a while, and was very tired, but he was also aware of the fact he was in one of the cabins and anyone on the ship might walk in. If someone were to find him while being previously unaware of his presence on board, he didn't want to be asleep when they did so.

Instead, he stayed sitting on the bed and staring at the door. For a few minutes, he kept his gaze fixed on the door. He hoped no one else would come into the room before Hayes got back. After a few more minutes, Jimmy wondered if Mr. Hayes had forgotten about him. Maybe he had other things he had to do on the ship, and was more focused on getting them done before coming back.

Jimmy sighed. He listened closely when he heard people talking outside of the room. It sounded like Mr. Hayes speaking, though Jimmy couldn't be sure, as he hadn't memorized the man's voice just yet. Then he heard someone else speaking in a strange accent Jimmy hadn't heard before. They seemed to be arguing, but not in a horribly out of control manner. It seemed more like a discussion with a few instances of slightly raised voices than an argument, but Jimmy couldn't make out what the men were saying.

He became tense when the door opened. Hayes walked into the room, followed by another man. Jimmy stood up from the bed.

"It's okay, Jimmy," Hayes told him, "This is Captain Englehorn. He's going to help me fix your arm."

Jimmy shook his head. He didn't know this new man, and though he didn't know Hayes either, at least the first mate didn't look angry like the captain did. He would rather Hayes fix his arm, as the other man didn't seem nearly worthy of his trust.

"The sooner you let me mend your arm, the sooner it will start to heal," the captain said, as though telling him the sooner he accepted his fate, the sooner it would be over, "the longer you wait, also, the more your bones will grow back incorrectly, causing much more pain when they are finally correctly aligned," he added.

Jimmy looked up at Hayes, wondering if what Englehorn said was true.

Hayed nodded at him reassuringly, "you can trust him, Jimmy," Hayes told him, "he knows what he's doing. And I'll be here the whole time, okay?"

Jimmy frowned, "It don't even hurt," he lied.

Hayes gave him a stern look telling him with his eyes to do as he was told. Hayes seemed to want what was best for him, but Jimmy was really not looking forward to the pain which would surely come with the realignment of his bones.

Jimmy remained still as he watched Englehorn and Hayes. Englehorn looked down at Jimmy and then at Hayes. Then he reached slowly toward Jimmy's arm. The second he touched it, Jimmy pulled it away.

Englehorn sighed and looked at Hayes, "Why don't we give him a dose of chloroform then?" he asked, clearly agitated.

Hayes shook his head, "too much could kill him," he said, "I'm not going to risk that."

Jimmy looked from one man to the other. Englehorn turned toward him.

"Listen to me, hm?" he began, "you can let me fix your arm, or just let it stay broken. When you try to move it, does it hurt, I wonder? It will not feel any better until you let me fix it... I am not going to wait all day. I'm here now, and if you'll let me, I'll fix your arm now. This offer expires quite soon. I have other things I need to attend to."

"Okay," Jimmy said, his voice betraying his fear. He really would rather just curl up in a ball and sleep forever, but he knew that wasn't an option. He needed to let Englehorn fix is arm before it grew back the wrong way and was broken forever.

"Alright then," Englehorn began, "It will hurt for a moment, a lot more than now, but then it will begin to heal, okay?"

Jimmy nodded as Mr. Hayes walked over to him and knelt in front of him, looking him in the eyes as Englehorn gently lifted the boy's arm.

"It is broken twice," Englehorn said, "broken in two places..."

Jimmy closed his eyes, "I'm ready," he said, wanting to get this over with as soon as possible.

With his eyes closed, he felt Hayes grip his hand and he squeezed his hand back as Englehorn pushed the bones of both breaks back into their rightful locations. Jimmy winced and intook a sharp breath each time. He felt tears welling in his eyes, but didn't let them fall.

Englehorn splinted his arm as Jimmy opened his eyes and watched, releasing his grip on Hayes's hand. Without a word, Englehorn stood and left the cabin when he was finished.

Jimmy looked up at Mr. Hayes, "Is he mad at me?" he asked. He hoped the captain wasn't angry with him. He hadn't thought about it before, but if that man was the captain of the ship, he could probably make Jimmy leave whenever he wanted to. Jimmy's fate might lay in his hands. He hoped he hadn't made him angry...

"No," Hayes told him, "He's a good guy... just a bit short tempered at times. I'm sure he's not mad at you, Jimmy."

Jimmy nodded and sat still and quietly, looking down at his now splinted arm.

"You're not hurt anywhere else are you?" Hayes asked him.

Jimmy shook his head, "No," he said. He knew he must be covered in bruises, but that was nothing new, and there was nothing to be done to erase bruises.

Hayes sat down next to Jimmy. Jimmy jumped slightly as Hayes reached over and touched his shirt sleeve, "You're shirt's wet," Hayes noted, "you walked through the rain last night, Jimmy?" he asked.

Jimmy stared at him, not answering. Would admitting that give away where he was from? And if so, would the crew of the ship make him go back there?

Hayes hardly seemed to care that Jimmy wasn't answering his questions any longer, "come on," he said, standing from the bed, "we'll find you some dry clothes."

Jimmy stood up and followed close behind Hayes, who led him down a hall until they came in contact with a small Asian man, "Choy," Hayes greeted him, "You have any extra clothing?"

The small man looked up at Hayes and then over at Jimmy who was practically hiding behind the taller man, "Who's that?" he asked, very casually.

"This is Jimmy," Hayes told him, allowing Jimmy to stay hidden. There was a moment of awkward silence and then Hayes spoke again, "he's going to be part of the crew at least for now, though he's got a broken arm, so he won't be doing much work. He needs some dry clothing."

"Aye... Okay. Follow me," he said to Jimmy, walking over to him and taking his uninjured arm, "I get him all fixed up," Choy smiled up at Hayes, "You want me to bring him back to you after?"

"Yes," Hayes said, and then looked down at Jimmy, "I'll see you in a few minutes, okay?" he said, "Choy's gonna find you something dry to wear, and then we can get you something to eat and you can get some rest, okay?"

Jimmy nodded and allowed Choy to lead him off. While they were walking, Choy talked quite a bit. He didn't seem to be very curious as to who Jimmy was and how he ended up on the ship, and for that, Jimmy was grateful.

"You are too short. Pants won't fit, but I might have belt to fix that," he said, "I find shirt for you too. It should fit well enough," Choy told him, "you will look awfully silly with pants dragging under your feet though."

Jimmy didn't know what to say to this man. He hadn't had such a casual conversation about pants and shirts in a while. This guy was completely ignoring what everyone else seemed to want to talk about, which was why was Jimmy here, and what had happened to him. Perhaps Choy already understood that Jimmy wasn't going to answer any of those questions anyway and therefore thought it better not to ask them at all.

"You'll have to buy coat when we dock next. Unless you have one already somewhere. I will let you borrow one of mine for now. I have two coats. One is little smaller than other. I give you that one," Choy continued. Jimmy noticed his English wasn't perfect. He wondered how all of these rather unique people ended up working on this ship together. Englehorn was certainly strange, and while Hayes didn't seem too out of the ordinary, he was much more kind than most men Jimmy had encountered lately. Jimmy wondered who else might comprise the crew of this ship.

"Here is my room," Choy said, opening the door of a rather small room which contained a bed and a small dresser. Choy opened one of the drawers of the dresser and fished around until he found a shirt and pants. He put them on the bed, "Hold on. I know I have belt around here somewhere," Choy said, sifting through the drawers. Finally he found it and put it on the bed as well, "I leave you in here now," Choy said, "You come out when you are done, and I take you back up to Hayes."

Choy closed the door and Jimmy got dressed, having a difficult time maneuvering around his injured arm, but finally managing to get dressed, while he couldn't quite manage to buckle the belt. He opened the door. He didn't want to ask Choy to help him with the belt, but he also didn't want the pants to end up falling down.

"Um," Jimmy began, "Could you... um... help me...?" he asked, gesturing toward the belt.

Choy buckled the belt for him without making fun of him at all. Jimmy half expected he would. He led Jimmy back to the room where he had been with Hayes earlier.

Hayes wasn't there, so Jimmy sat down on the bed while Choy stayed at the door, "I'm sure he will come back soon," Choy assured him, "I have lots to do. I see you later, Jimmy," Choy smiled.

"Good bye," Jimmy said as the cheerful man left the room. When Choy had gone, Jimmy felt guilty for not talking to him more. Choy had spoken a lot and had seemed very friendly, yet Jimmy had hardly said anything. He hadn't even thanked him for letting him borrow his clothing.

Jimmy sighed. His back was starting to hurt from sitting up so long when he was already exhausted. He looked at the door of the room. Maybe Hayes would take a while yet. He laid back on the bed, appreciating how comfortable it was compared to a chair or the floor where he would normally sleep.

He stared up at the ceiling as he laid still on the bed. Without meaning to, again, he fell asleep within a few minutes.

xxxxxx

I feel this was an important chapter, since it's when Jimmy meets most of the crew of The Venture, including Mr. Hayes... so hopefully I wrote it well... I really hope no one is disappointed, but please review and let me know how I'm doing. :)