Chapter 7.

The bed in my cabin was nice and warm enough. It was definitely not the cause for my state of sleeplessness. I just could not get over the fact the captain had been so… determined in his questioning. I also was under no illusion I was off the hook just yet. The intelligent dark eyes haunted me every time I attempted to sleep and closed my eyes. He seemed so keen on finding out everything there was to know about me and that made me wonder why. What exactly was he after? What was he planning on doing with the information he would get from me? Why was it even of interest to him? I had to be very careful and exact in my words if I wanted to keep my story to myself, but somewhere deep inside, I knew he would not rest before he learned what he wanted to know.

I had noticed from the first time I saw him that he was authoritarian and dominant, and he had yet not disappointed me in that regard. I sighed, it was him being a naval captain, complete in uniform with medals of his bravery and with a rapier tied to his waist, that made me even more aware of the potential danger I was in.

He was a skilled swordsman and a captain with experience. Even I had learned about El Matador Del Mar and I was a girl, born and raised in a small town. His name proceeded him. I knew people who would tell stories about him, always did that very silent. Most of the times only whispering, because however people respected him greatly, he also was very intimidating to say the least. And for me, being on his ship and after the opportunity if having dinner with such a legend…. I could only say the same. He could be downright terrifying.

I knew some things about the butcher of the sea. He was born in a family of a wealthy Spanish Royal Navy admiral. And when he grew up, he had joined the Spanish Royal Navy himself, eventually becoming an officer, loyal to his king and country. He was a proud and fearsome soldier and he had quickly rose through the ranks, earning several high military decorations over the years, until he became a captain. For some reason he had vowed to devote his life to hunting down pirates, until he had rid the sea of all of them. He had earned his nickname after killing thousands of pirates, mercilessly. Thinking about what I knew about the captain who now held my life in his hands gave me goosebumps all over. It certainly did not help me sleep at all.

I stared at the ceiling of my cabin for hours before I finally slid in a deep slumber, only to be wakened very early on the day, by the working marines on deck.

Actually, I really wanted to go outside to see what was happening on such an immense warship. But I also wanted to postpone seeing the captain for a while. I had not forgotten the intensity of his gaze and wanted to put off the moment when he would look at me again for as long as possible. He had also told me he would not lock me in my cabin, but he also didn't want me to roam the deck all by myself. Maybe I could ask him at dinner if I could do a daily round on the deck. I swallowed thinking about what he would think of that.

It took a long time before there was a knock on my door and a young boy walked in, a dinner tray in his hand. Something smelling like porridge and water stood on the tray, which the boy carefully set down.

'Thank you.' The boy gave me a smile and hesitated a moment before walking out.

'My name is Diego miss, I hope you are feeling well.' I was momentarily astonished by the boy speaking to me. So far, only the captain and lieutenant Lesaro had spoken with me.

'I am, thank you for enquiring and bringing me food Diego. Please call me Olivia.' The boy could not be much younger than me. And I realised I needed a friend here. Someone who would smile at me and not scare me half to death.

Diego smiled, a genuine smile that reached his eyes.

'De nada, señorita. I have to go now.' And with those words Diego left me, suddenly feeling just that little bit lighter even though my heart was thundering loudly thinking about dinnertime.

The hours went by faster than I expected, making the sun move in the sky. I spend my time watched outside and making efforts to draw more sea creatures, but my mind was not completely in it. I was dreading dinnertime, but I know there would be no way out of it. Before I knew it a firm knocking came to the door and I swallowed painfully, answering.

With a proud stride, captain Salazar entered my cabin and watched me before he extended his arm towards me.

'Time for dinner, miss Gray. You must be hungry. Por favor, toma mi brazo.' I had no clue what he was saying, only now realizing he was a true Spaniard, his accent not just pleasurable, but it was hit native tongue. I swallowed thinking he could make me miserable in more language than one…

With a gentleness I hadn't expected he led me out of my cabin and towards the dining room, where he shoved my chair in, before he sat down himself, but not before closing the door. His eyes instantly locked on mine as he was seated.

'Please enjoy miss Gray, our chef has once again tried his best to make sure we would not go hungry.' I noticed the amusement in his voice as he motioned to all the different dishes set out on the table for just the two of us. It was a lot. Way too much for two people. I nodded once, not sure I liked the silence that now fell upon us, even though the captain easily rectified that.

'Let me tell you about my past and my way into the Navy,' he said as he poured us some wine. I swallowed and tried to seem unaffected by his presence. It was in my defence mechanism to distract my opponent and not let me be caught off guard. And usually, I was only briefly taken by surprise, but this intelligent man was too smart and able to so easily overrule me. It made me reckless. And messy.

'I know about you and I know your story.' He seemed surprised for only a moment. I had no clue he was surprised about my guts to talk back, or that I was already informed about him.

'Very well, then please enlighten me about your story, as I cannot say I already know about you.' I swallowed and looked away. That was not something I wanted to talk about at all. I already hated myself for not just letting him speak. It had not been disinterest, but mere nerves that had made me speak out loud. I dropped my cutlery and shove my chair back a bit, knowing I would not eat another bite if he would make me talk about my family. It was then I almost felt his eyes burn on me. I had to look up and meet his gaze, even while it unnerved me so. His features seemed so sharp, so stern, but after a few seconds his gaze became a little more warm, gentler.

'Maybe after dinner, hmm? You should eat something miss Gray.' He brought a piece of meat to his lips, his eyes never leaving mine. I nodded only, taking my cutlery in hand once again. I hated the silence almost as much as when he would ask me questions and therefore, I heard myself speak after some minutes of that terrifying silence between us.

'Would you tell me something about the Silent Mary?' I dared to try and turn the conversation in another direction and hoped the captain would allow it. I saw him think it over for a moment, his face blank, his eyes stern. But then he nodded. Just like that.

'The Silent Mary is a Spanish Royal Navy galleon. The pride of the Spanish Navy and the most feared pirate hunting ship, carrying one hundred cannons.' I saw him watch at me carefully, as if he was really interested to know what I thought about his words. And the smirk around his lips told me he wasn't disappointed yet.

'There has been one occasion, where the Mary encountered a pirate fleet of ten ships. And even though she was outnumbered, the firepower of the Mary accompanied by the skills of the sailors were far superior to those of the pirate ships and their crews. The ten ships sank all to the bottom of the sea, while the Mary evaded any serious damage.' I listened carefully to his story, genuinely interested in this mighty and beautifully crafted ship, even though the captain was still making me very nervous. His voice was so very easy to listen to, his accent only adding to the amazing story behind the Silent Mary.

'But why would they call her silent, if she has that much armour on her and is so very strong in battle?' I asked. I saw his mouth twitch for a moment, before an amused and proud glance appeared in his eyes.

'The Mary is very powerful, yes. And for such a large ship, she can float so very swiftly and silently in the waters. Most pirates don't even know she is on their tail, until it is too late.' He gave me a knowing look, before he took another sip of his wine. I thought his words over and thought long and hard about what I already knew about the man before me and added the information about the Mary to that knowledge.

'Why do you solely hunt pirates?' The words left my mouth before I could think them over and I froze, hoping to everything I got I had not offended and angered him. This evening was going well so far, and I really wanted to walk out of here in one piece.

'I thought you knew about me and my story already miss Gray, or are you not that informed as you want me to think perhaps, hmm?' His eyes carried a glint to them, a dangerous one. There was a little mirth and amusement written in them, and that kept me on my toes. I adverted my eyes, sure it was the end of that piece of conversation until he cleared his throat.

'My father was an admiral, but a traitor. He before me patrolled these very waters, and took bribes from pirates, gold and silver. He allowed them to sail with impunity.' He looked me straight in the eyes as he spoke and I could not help but feel the anger he seemed to radiate even as he sat perfectly still, his wineglass in hand. But his eyes burnt so deeply.

'He was arrested when I was nothing more than a young boy, and soon after they came to our house and took my mother away as well. They dragged her to a workhouse.' I suddenly felt myself freeze. His story was taking a completely different turn than I could ever had expected, and I felt sorry. For him, but also his mother. He licked at his lips, giving me a moment before he went on.

'The wife of a traitor must pay for his sins. La esposa de un traidor debe pagar por sus pecados. Increíble.' He grinned angrily and I could only think about how hard life must have been on that young boy, losing not only his father, but his mother as well.

'I don't understand- 'He cleared his throat once more, silencing me effectively.

'My mother died not long after she was taken away. The authorities had discovered where my father's wealth came from. And that was the reason to arrest him and that not only ruined his life and my mothers, but mine as well. My family was destroyed by pirates, miss Gray, and therefore I vowed to clear the seas of them, completely. To eliminate them all.' I remained silent after hearing him speak. I was amazed, terrified and a little confused as if to feel sorry for the young boy he had been, or the fearsome man he had become.

'My grandfather was killed by pirates, what makes the deeds of my father even more unforgivable to me.'

'Have you ever seen your father again?' I spoke softly completely in trance, my head in his story, making up all images as he spoke. It made me almost miss that fearsome grin, that appeared on his handsome face.

'We did meet one more time. It was the same day he died.' Something told me his father had not died of old age. His eyes glanced dangerously and that scared me a bit. Making me more scared than I already was. I shifted back and forth in my chair a little, not sure what to answer. The man across from me kind of admitted that he ended his father's life and had the guts to keep looking straight at me afterwards.

'I- thank you for sharing your story with me, captain. I think I'll- 'The look in his eyes told me I was not yet leaving this room, the feeling that accompanied it stilling me instantly.

'Oh no, miss Gray. The evening is far from over just yet. I shared my story with you, and I expect nothing less in return.' I bit my lip, feeling my heart sink in my chest. The pure fear I felt must have been written on my face as I saw his gaze soften a bit.

'If you don't want to start with the story about your family, you could enlighten me on the story of the dress we found you in.' I raised my brows, not sure what he was after. What did he mean?

'The pirates mistaked you for a wealthy girl. It was because of your dress. Where did you get a dress like that, cleaning in a simple store, miss Gray? I would love to know, Por favor.'

I swallowed and felt how warm I suddenly was. Was it because of the wine or him sharing so much about himself with me? I now became aware he had only told me his story, so he could make me spill mine. He would not let me get up before he knew all he wanted to know, I realised. That thought scared me a lot.

Dundundun! Will he let her off the hook eventually? I think not! Please review!

English translations:

Por favor, toma mi brazo.

*Please take my arm

La esposa de un traidor debe pagar por sus pecados. Increíble.'

*The wife of a traitor must pay for his sins. Unbelievable.