Chapter 34: The Finest Lady

Miss Smith refused to continue teaching me for a few more months. I heard her and Mum argue over the matter in the living room, and I couldn't help but eavesdrop. Miss Smith had called me a load of indecent things, which only made Mum shout all the more. My mother had forgiven me for spooning with Griffith, but it took her a while to. More than a month. Roland had forgiven me first, just three weeks after the embarrassing incident. It was Daddy who had not forgiven me yet. He, like Adam, must have been most disappointed in me after warning me several times of such a thing. Again, a birthday ended on a bad note, and no one made it end badly. It was through my own fault that my glorious fifteenth year began so terribly.

At last, Miss Smith agreed to teach me only for three months, and she demanded that her pay be increased. Mum reluctantly accepted, but added that Miss Smith had to stay and teach me well into the afternoon instead of ending my lessons before noon. I'd miss my fencing lessons with Daddy, and I was forbidden to step foot out into town by myself… even with Roland. Terrible punishment, yes, but it was worth everything. After Adam left me, I was determined to get him back. Astrid Turner would not rest until she was the finest lady that ever lived.

Needless to say, as soon as word got out that Adam and I were finished, there came a revolution. Roland informed me that girls would stop by the Locke residence to try and win his heart, and I gagged at each story. He spoke of one girl, Meredith, who happened to catch Adam's eye. I did not know who she was, but I later found out that she was the same lass who had exchanged friendly greetings with Adam at my party. I was not surprised. She was pretty, polite, and probably the finest and smartest young woman in town. Who was I to compete with her? I was but a stupid and wild bonnie lass who had nothing to look forward to but an old rich man to marry.

Stephanie had fallen for another lad, and Roland was back to square one, as was I. He didn't mind though. He told me that he had planned on letting her go a while back, and his verdict was that she was too prudent for him. Therefore, the Turners had absolutely no romantic relationship with the Locke's anymore. I wished that Roland would remain good friends with Adam, and he did. That way, I could always get information about Adam's whereabouts from him.

Adam was not the only one who had new possible spouses knocking on his door. Men came by nearly every day to speak with me, and I was glad that Mum, or any other person in the house had told them that I was too occupied with my governess lessons to see them. It was a blessing to have a family that knew what you wanted and didn't want. Some of the people they allowed to pass through were none other than Stephen, and surprisingly, Kenneth Murray made a visit one time.

When Murray had stopped by, he arrived with the same woman that had caught Adam's interest. "Who is your friend?" I asked, hoping not to seem rude. Kenneth laughed and nudged the young lady with his elbow.

"She's my sister. Meredith Guinevere Murray," he said proudly. Meredith rolled her eyes and fanned herself delicately before returning a small nudge to her brother.

"How many times must I tell you not to introduce me with my middle name, Kenny?" she said, but it was not intended to be crude. She was smiling when she said it.

"It slipped, Meredith," he replied and she only walked off to the parlor with a laugh and toss of her head. So that is what Adam has left me for?

"What brings you by, Murray?" I asked. My only intent at that time was to speak with him for a while and tell him I had to go. Honestly, I did not want another suitor. I wanted my Adam, of course, he was not really mine anymore but I loved him and no other.

"I was just stopping by to see how you were fairing after… well, I think you know." I nodded sullenly and he took off his hat as he walked further towards me.

"I'm quite well, if you want to know." I always had to lie. Always. I could never tell the truth. "Would you like to talk with Roland? He's home. I think he is out in the gardens practicing his fencing."

"Actually, Astrid," he said, forgetting to be formal. After being drilled by Miss Smith to address everyone as Miss, Missus, or Mister, I began to get irked when titles were not used. "I came by to see you, not Roland." I peered at him and placed my hands on my hips. Sucking in a breath, I put forth the question I had asked every man that stopped by to see me.

"Why are you here and what do you hope to come out of this conversation, Murray?" I demanded. Astrid Turner refused to be a fool now. She asked questions whenever she had the chance, even if it made me seem intolerably brutal.

I had put Murray at a loss for words and he stood there looking at me, mouth a-gaping. "Because if you intend to court me, then I tell you this now, I—"

"Miss Turner, your guests have a visitor," said our doorman. I turned to him, brows knitted with confusion and followed him to the main entrance again. Waiting in the hall lobby was Adam.

Suddenly, my tongue was frozen. I couldn't speak, or move my feet any closer to him. To see him standing there and smiling only made me want to rush at him and hug him, but that would only be good if he had stopped by to see me. He was here to retrieve Meredith. "Good day, Miss Turner," he said, nodding at me. His voice sounded so confident, as if he had never had a relationship with me before and that I was just another woman he had exchanged greetings with in the past.

His greeting forced me to speak, but it was awkwardly difficult. My brain told my mouth to open, but my heart sealed it shut. "Good day to you as well, Adam—I mean, Mister Locke…I mean…I don't even know what I mean!" My face was red from embarrassment, and I heard Adam snickering lightly at me. For a moment, I believed that he was laughing at me for my idiocy and inability to greet him properly and I replied with bitterness. "Do what you came here to do and leave me out of it," I said before turning around and marching somewhere… anywhere… just away from him.

For once, I had thought correctly, and Adam had indeed dropped by to be with his darling Meredith. Kenneth, seeing how aggrieved I was, had smartly decided to leave me be and went off with Adam to the gardens with Meredith to find Roland. All the while, I was trapped in my room, glowering outside of my window.

Amidst the thin clouds that hovered in the blue sky were the sails and masts of incoming and departing ships. They stuck out like sore thumbs, their flags waving excitedly in the breeze. White seagulls cried out every now and then, swooping over the fishing vessels for any stray sea creature the fishermen left behind. Just looking at the leaving ships made me want to jump out of my window and run to the harbor, but that would be impossible. In addition, the fall from my window would most likely kill me.

In the end, I resolved to emerge from my bedroom and to ask Roland if he would escort me into town, but for some odd reason, I had a feeling Murray, Adam and Meredith would come along as well. I stepped out of my room, chin held up high, back straight, eyes expressionless, mouth taut, and a false pride barely holding me together. Keeping that stance, I carefully walked down the stairs, apparently too self-conscious for my own good. All I could think about as I walked down was what Adam would think of me. Would I still be a fool in his eyes? A whore? A child? Would I even be anything in his eyes after what I had done?

"Sister!" came a welcoming call. "What brings you down here? I thought you were up in your room, brooding." By then, I stood at the door that led into the gardens, and I watched Roland leave his laughing guests to fetch me, but I had hardly seen him. My eyes were on Adam. He was laughing gaily with his new found love, and he never looked so happy in his life. I felt burdened again. My mind was beckoning me to turn and go back, but then I'd just move backwards. I would never move forward, and that troubled me, for if I always looked back, what would I gain?

"Brother," I answered, happily accepting the arm he offered me. Thank you, Roland, for being so kind a brother. "Am I interrupting your conversation with these fine people?"

"Of course not, Astrid. You know these people as well as I do. Join us." He pulled me forward and I stumbled forward. My feet would not move me closer to Adam.

"Actually," I began, freeing my arm from Roland, "I came by to ask if you would escort me into town. I'd like to visit the harbor." Roland quirked his brows at me. I knew what he was thinking. He must have thought me mad to request to go outside when I had the opportunity to be with my one true love again, but the lad knew nothing about what was taking place in my swirling mind.

"Would it be all right if I leave you three here for just a moment?" said Roland, addressing our guests. I saw Adam grin and he left Meredith's side and walked up to Roland. As soon as he was standing beside my brother, he looked down at me, and I expected his grin to fade, but it did not.

"I think a trip out to the harbor would do us all well, Roland," said Adam. "Meredith and I already planned on going there. That was why I came by." Wonderful. Adam was going to spend the day with this woman at the harbor, and I would have to watch them. Now I knew why he was grinning. He wanted to prove something to me. "What do you say, Miss Turner?" he asked, looking at me directly for the first time since our argument. I held his glance for less than a second and changed my mind.

"Perhaps I'd better focus on my studies," I said softly, aiming the statement at Roland. Adam, though, must have thought I was speaking with him and quickly replied.

"You have worked hard from early morning till well after noon, Miss. I believe you deserve a small trip to the sea." How would you know that I worked hard? You don't care about me, remember? Don't forget that, Adam. You don't love me anymore.

"I am sorry, Lieutenant," I replied, my voice firm. "But I tell you now that there are many things I do not deserve, and I do not deserve to be in your company nor do I deserve to spend time with you at the harbor. I shall not go."

"But you requested it, Astrid," said Roland. The poor boy was too intent on returning me to Adam. But Adam did not want me anymore.

"I am a foolish and very careless girl, brother," I said. "Sometimes I say things I do not mean."

"You are never uncertain when you mention the sea, Astrid," said Adam, becoming informal. "I want you to come." My eyes burned and I looked at him fiercely, wondering how he could be so cruel to me by inviting me to go with him. He was showing simple friendly affection, but it was enough to make me remember what we used to share.

"When will you accept the fact that I will never give you what you want? That time has passed. Do not cling so uselessly to it now." I wasn't sure how I presented the words to him. I did not know if I said them harshly, coldly or understandingly. All I knew was that I said them, and as soon as I did, I marched back into the house, my mind focused on going upstairs, but I never made it there. Instead, I stumbled into the living room, and collapsed onto a couch, muffling my sobs with a pillow.

From that moment on, I made it clear in my empty head that Astrid Turner would not rest until she was the finest of ladies. Despite the extreme difficulty I would have to endure in order to get there, I would reach it. Adam would witness the terrible transformation of his past beloved from a wild, untamable wench to the image of beautiful and respected elegance.

Three months passed, the last three months Miss Smith would teach me, and I did not waste them. For all the hours I spent learning how to dance, sing, sew and speak as a lady should, I had one thing on my mind. Adam would realize what he had lost when he would see me at the welcoming celebration for his father at the Fort. Perhaps then he would know how to let go of me, for I had certainly let go of him.

No other man had managed to capture my heart and actually begin a courtship with me. Stephen would pass by often, but I always made excuses to make his visits short. As much as I admired his fervor, I would not fall for another man until Adam saw me as a fine lady. I was determined for the young lieutenant who had seized my adoration so quickly to observe how composed and proper Lady Astrid could be.

Needless to say, I attended more social gatherings, mainly balls and extended dinners where many a man requested a private moment from me. I did not honor them with such a request. Some of the men were quite charming, but I declined them all. I'd wait forever for Adam to finally look at me and say aloud, "I was wrong." I must have been quite a brute to wish such a thing, but I wanted to prove something so badly to him and to everyone else. I would not be seen as a coquette, or the town idiot. I absolutely forbade accepting such a thought. If I wanted something badly, I would get it and positively nothing would stand in my way. It was definitely a selfish assumption, but if one was never driven to seek what they truly desired, one would never gain anything and they would achieve not a drop of accomplishment.

For weeks whenever I emerged from my house and ambled about the town with my mother or Roland or Daddy, the townsfolk would always point and whisper amongst themselves about me. It was all vividly clear that the whole port knew what I had done at that party, and they weren't about to forgive me so soon. Young lads would kick dirt at my feet, spit, curse, and laugh at my disgraceful aura. Sometimes they'd chuck mud at my head for being such a strange amusement, and, if Roland was with me, he'd curse back and chase them about with raised fists. They'd scatter and scream, while I'd say nothing and just continue doing what I was doing. I knew what awaited me when I stepped out of my house, and therefore, I was not so deeply pained when I saw the glares my neighbors were sending me. Think what you'd like, everyone. Astrid Turner will be the finest lady that ever lived. Perhaps then will you re-think your opinions.

Apart from the apparent shunning that the whole town was giving me, the more disfavored men of the lowly would wink when I passed by or holler and hoot at my sight. It was all a very embarrassing ordeal, but I'd defeat them one day. I was not and would never be a disgrace or a prostitute. I'd show them that not with my fists, but with my poise and grace as a fine lady. They never dared to get too close to me, for I always had my escort around, but if I came out alone, I knew what would happen, and I was not going to let anything of that sort happen either.

And so came the day when I would prove my worth, and it was the day where the festivity celebrating Captain Locke's return would take place. By the end of the celebration at the Fort, all the men would gawk with amazement at my transformation. Miss Smith was well-pleased with my improvement. She even applauded me after I danced a whole gavotte with Roland without looking at my feet, laughing loudly, or hurting my partner in any way.

My manners had also improved. I could not speak with anyone I was not familiar with without curtsying smoothly every five minutes and to address them with their proper title. My mouth was now accustomed to saying, "Good day, Sir. Welcome, Miss. How do you do, Madame?" and all the other possible introductions a lady could spill from her ever-smiling mouth. I did not argue. I agreed with everything anyone said. I never raised my voice. I never insulted anyone, although at times I was very tempted to. And I obediently tended to all my guests needs. Yes, it was certain. I had become the finest of ladies.

Maggie dressed me in one of my mother's older dresses that she wore when she was just a little older than me. It was beautiful, I had to admit, glowing with an aura of pure magnificence. I felt honored that Mum had allowed me to wear such an elegant thing, but she said I had earned it, and so, trapped in a dress that shined pure brilliance, I walked out of the house with Mum, Dad, and Roland and took a coach to the Fort, where almost everyone who had attended my party three months ago would be waiting.

There were already quite a lot of people already gathered at the Fort when we arrived. The scene was similar to one I could barely remember some nine years ago, but unlike back then, I didn't weave myself through the maze of puffy dresses and sparkling white trousers. Daddy was my escort now, and Roland would tarry alongside our mother, and therefore we walked steadily into the throng, nodding our heads and exchanging smiles with the heads that turned our way. I knew I caught some less than friendly looks from some of the older and more traditional folk, but I kept my head high.

Following Dad's lead, we managed to break through the increasing mass of people and managed to find the entire Locke family standing at the heart of the Fort, conversing with guests who happened to pass by. Ian and Natalie were not there, and I was sad to realize that the chance to say goodbye to such a lovely couple had passed me because of the disagreements between Adam and me.

"Mister Turner!" came a call. It came from Captain Locke who was very happy to see us. He summoned us over with a wave of his hand, and I took it that Daddy must have felt my body tense as he held my arm because before we were ten feet from the Lockes, he told me that things would be just fine.

"How are you sure about that, Dad?" I whispered in reply.

"I am very proud of you, Astrid. I know that you have worked very hard to become as refined as you are now, while still keeping up with your fencing lessons. You have endured through many a painful task and this one shall be very easy compared to them all. Picture it that way if it will help you relax." I smiled weakly in reply and gripped his arm all the tighter. I was glad I had my dad right beside me to prop me back up if I indeed failed to hold my ground.

"Good day, Mister Turner," said Captain Locke approaching Daddy and me. I knew Roland and Mum would not be far behind, but Mum was more popular with the ladies and would therefore be stopped by sudden greetings from people she had grown up with.

"Good Day to you as well, Captain Locke," replied Daddy, bowing his head a bit. "How was your voyage?"

"It went very well. Very well. Managed to stop a small pirate band that has been causing some trouble around the area. We brought the captives all back to Port, and they shall be hanged soon." I grew alarmed at the news about pirates. I loved pirates. After all, Jack was a pirate and although I did not know who he was, his life was enchanting. Now a whole group of pirates would be surrendered to the gallows in a couple of days.

"Dad," I whispered, tugging slightly on his arm. He sent me a slightly worried look himself but turned back to Captain Locke.

"Any famous pirates in the group? I still hear about the dastardly raids conducted by the Black Pearl in these waters." Black Pearl? Jack! Jack's ship! I began to get very excited and my frown became a smile of pure thrill. Daddy noticed my excitement and gave me a wink, and I understood that he knew who was captaining the Pearl.

"We've been looking for that ship for ages, Mister Turner," replied Captain Locke. "Still haven't found it. Some even say it doesn't exist, but I know very well it does. Spotted it once in the fog, but never saw it since. If anyone manages to find that ship, well, I'll tell you now that they shall receive a promotion immediately." The two men laughed lightly, while I was a bit disappointed in the news. At least Jack was still around and that was good to know. I would be able to find him one day then.

"And what about you, Miss Turner?" said Captain Locke, looking at me with eyes identical to Adam's. "You look absolutely beautiful. You are without doubt getting married soon, correct?" I blushed and curtsied low for him.

"Your compliments are still charming enough to make a girl like me quake with embarrassment, Captain Locke," I laughed. "It is good to see you back in Port Royal."

"You have become quite a lady, Miss Turner," he smiled. "I would have loved to have you for a daughter-in-law, but alas, Adam has taken a fancy to another fine lady, hasn't he?"

"Indeed he has, and a smart match he has made, sir. But I am not so fortunate in my relationships. I am not getting married any time soon, Captain." Captain Locke raised his eyebrows at me and looked at Daddy, bewildered at the confession.

"Your daughter is not going to wed soon? I could have sworn that my son told me she was paired with another man." So Adam is lying now, is he? I burned at the thought. Adam was spreading false information about me. He did not have any idea of what I went through and here he was telling his father that I was about to get married. The bastard!

"Astrid is more concerned with her studies nowadays than young men," said Daddy. "Elizabeth finds her too young to wed anyway."

"Pity," murmured Captain Locke. "But I am sure she will find her future spouse sooner or later, am I correct?" he asked, turning his attention back to me. I smiled in return.

"Of course, Captain Locke. No girl is a woman until she has entered the world of married life." I had learned that from Miss Smith, who continuously spoke of married life to me during my lessons. I always wondered how she knew so much about married life, for it was clear that she had never ever been married herself to tell accurate observations.

"Well, I shall see you and your family back at my residence after this gathering at the Fort is over. I invite you all to dine with us this evening, and so I bid you good day until next we meet." Daddy bowed and I curtsied as Captain Locke took his leave and my father and I were left to wander about and converse with other lords and ladies.

It was close to sunset, and I had wandered away from Daddy's secure arm and strolled about by myself. I knew I was safe, for I was at a fort and no dignified lord would dare do anything less than polite to any woman here. I was never able to find Roland or any face that I knew, and so I contented myself by leaning on the edge of the stone wall of the fort that lied close to the fort bell. It faced the ocean and setting sun and served as a good picture of serenity to calm my unsettling thoughts. "We extort, we pilfer, we rifle and loot. Drink up me hearties yo ho. We—"

"May I have a moment?" said a voice. I turned around and found Adam standing not too far away from me. His face was not tight from anger, but he was not entirely happy to see me either. Surprisingly, he arrived alone, and dear perfect Meredith was not standing beside him.

"Of course, Lieutenant," I said, though the words were forced from my mouth. Out of all people, he had to come and request a private moment with me. I looked away from him and set my eyes on the horizon, and listening to his footsteps get louder, I waited for him to speak.

"How are you?" he asked plainly, appearing as if he had no interest in me. He stood beside me now, arms neatly behind his back, eyes not on me, but on the sea.

"Very well, I suppose, sir," I answered, refusing to look at him. I continued to lean on the stones, facing the sea, as did he. "And you?"

"Good. Very good. It is nice to hear that you have moved on. I heard that you are engaged." My lips were pressed into a hard line that would break under extreme pressure, and my mouth went dry. Did he not know me well enough to know I would never get engaged to someone else in three months? What did he take me for?

"Where… Where did you hear that, Lieutenant?" I asked feebly, casting my stare away from the sea and into my fidgeting hands. "Anyone I know, perhaps?"

"You don't know her, I don't think," he replied, and I only tensed all the more.

"Miss Meredith Murray?" I mumbled loud enough for him to hear, but too soft to be taken kindly.

Silence came after that. I didn't hear it though. My heartbeat echoed in my ears, but amidst the constant thump, I heard Adam turn his head around in an aggravated sigh and grind his foot onto the stone surface of the fort. "Astrid!" he yelled at last, forcing me to finally lay my eyes on him. He was just as angry as I was, but he expressed it better. After all, I was a lady, and ladies were not supposed to show their emotions.

"Yes, Lieutenant?" I answered. It was weak, but at least I still remained formal.

"Stop it! Stop calling me sir, or lieutenant! You know me well enough to address me by my name, Astrid. Why won't you?" His eyes locked on mine in a very passionate but furious glare. His hands were balled into fists that lied frozen by his side, and his face was tight as that of a freshly carved statue. If I knew anything, I knew that Adam was fuming at me.

"Because when I called you Adam, I disappointed you." My body was betraying me. It would not hold my emotions as I wanted it to, and my eyes were swelling with the stinging hotness of tears. "And I don't want to disappoint you anymore." I would not look at him. I couldn't, and so I turned swiftly around and tried to escape him, though I knew very well he would be following me.

"Astrid!" he yelled, the constant tap of his feet rising in tempo. "Come back!" No. I won't, and you can't make me.

A hand grabbed my shoulder and whirled me about, but I kept my head low. I was already on the verge of spilling rivers from my eyes and if I took another look at Adam's face, the whole fort would be flooded. "Look at me, Astrid," he demanded. No. "Look at me!" I jerked my shoulder away from him and stomped over to the edge of the fort again. The wall was much shorter where I stood; it only reached halfway up my calves.

"I am sorry, Lieutenant. But you are mistaken if you think I shall talk with you any further," I said, my back facing him.

"What?" he screeched. "Why! Astrid, I know you. If you would but—"

"Adam!" I shrilled, whisking my head wrathfully in his direction. "You know nothing about what I have gone through these past few months! I danced for hours on end until my feet were sore and my toes bruised! I sang from day until night until my throat was dry and I could not speak for days! I sewed until my stitches were invisible and my fingers were bleeding! I practically killed myself trying to become a wretched fine lady!"

"But for what? Why? Why did you do all of those things, Astrid? Was it to impress another lad? Hmm? To get them flocking back to you instead of insulting you on the streets? To—"

"I did those things for you!" I screamed. "I wanted to show you that I could change!" My eyes could not control the water gathering in them and they leaked from my eyes and ran down my face in invisible wet lines. "Ever since you left me I was determined to prove myself to you! I wanted to prove myself to everyone, for God's sake! No one would ever see me and think, 'Oh, there is the bloody little whore,' or, 'She'll be nothing more than a goddamn weasel working at a low-life tavern!' They would look at me and be proud!"

"But that's not who you are! Why are you forcing yourself to be someone you know you can't be?"

"Because I lost myself, Adam. When you left me, I… I began to question whether I'd ever amount to anything. You made me realize how stupid I was! What good was I if I'd never please the people I loved?"

"Astrid…" His voice trailed off, never finishing his original thought. He paced about, thinking to himself, and I took the time to look back out to the ocean. The sky was being invaded by a wave of purple and glittering stars and the sun was going to sleep beneath the horizon. "You could have told me," he said at last, and I only turned my head towards him, angry and confused.

"You wouldn't have listened and you know it," I shot back.

"What makes you think that?"

"Because you don't love me anymore, Adam. How many times must I say that?"

"You've said it only once," he said matter-of-factly.

"Must you always be technical?" I snorted, looking back at the sea with a huff. He grabbed my arm, and I spun around, ready to hit him if need be.

"Tell me your reasoning behind this drastic change of yours. It can't just be me, Astrid, unless…"

"Unless what?" I growled.

"Unless you still love me." He had said the words so fearlessly, as if he was so confident that I'd say yes, but his pride only made me boil all the more. I would not give in to his wishes yet.

"I don't love you," I murmured, looking away from him and snatching my arm back.

"By the way you said it, I'm not convinced," he replied, grinning from his clear progress. Damn him for seeing the truth and being brave enough to support it. "If you don't love me, then say it to me—"

"I already—"

"To my face. Look directly at me when you say it. My eyes on your own." I gulped and faced him, knees bending, heart about to burst from my chest and eyes misting again. No one every told me loving someone would be so difficult. Bracing myself, I turned my face towards his, and I found that his face was very close to mine, and his blue eyes were wide and shining in the last rays of light the poor sun was releasing.

"I… do not…l-love you." I could not do what Adam had asked me to. I turned my head to the side and began to weep again, and he was triumphant as one would be after winning a critical sea battle.

"Why do you always lie about the most important things?" he asked, perhaps to joyfully for my own comfort.

"It's the truth! I don't love you!" I shouted in reply, still refusing to look at him.

"Must you always conceal things that way? Just as I had done so long ago when Roland first came home and I asked about your argument with him, you hid things from me. It took forever to get you to say things to me." He approached me eagerly, a grin on his face for some unknown reason. "If that is the truth, Astrid, then why are you in denial?"

"I am not!" I cried, but he hushed my anger with a finger to my lips.

"Yes, you are. If you did not love me, if you could care less about me, then why can you not look at me straight in the eye? Why won't you hit me? Why won't you beat me to the ground as you did with the other lads?"

"Do you want me to hurt you?" I asked.

"You have proven yourself a fine lady. Now prove that you don't have feelings for me anymore." I narrowed my eyes on him. Grief had fled from me and now I was affixed to pure irritation.

"You still don't trust what I tell you, do you?" I hissed. "Always must you question if what I say is sincere and genuine. Adam," I began, so fumed from anger that I was backing away from him and straight for the edge of the fort. "You are nothing but a—" Stupidly, I had taken one last step back, and my foot ran into the small little wall around the edge of the fort and I toppled over, having lost balance from the sudden interruption in my plan to get away from Adam. But indeed I got away from him. I just fell into the ocean and narrowly missed being skewered by sharp rocks in order to do so.