Ciel woke with a cold and shaky breath.
The room was freezing and so was the empty side of the bed to his right. He blinked drowsily, reaching out to feel for warmth. Cold. He narrowed his eyes and sat up abruptly as his eyes widened, hair matted in a mess of a bed head.
Isabelle hasn't come back yet he thought, looking around for the maid.
They were nowhere in sight.
Ciel threw his legs out of the warmth of the covers and panted lightly with harsh shivers. Sebastian was immediately at his side, wrapping him in a blanket. Glancing at the window, Ciel could make out frost coating the glass and a fresh blanket of snow on the streets.
He scowled, turning to his butler, "did you hear them come back last night?" he asked, voice quivering as he tightened the blanket around his body. Sebastian simply shook his head, eyes narrowed.
Then Ciel stood up, "dress me Sebastian. We must go look for them." he ordered, moving his bangs from his left eye.
Sebastian smirked subtly, and with his hand over his heart he cooed, "yes, my Lord."
As the sun began to rise, Ciel was dressed and ready, bundled up in his coat, hat, and snow boots. Sebastian had woken Snake as well who was attempting to warm his freezing friends.
"We can't take much more of thiiis… says Wadsworth."
Sebastian patted the man's shoulder gently with a reassuring smirk, "do not worry. I fear this may be over more quickly than we may expect." he chimed.
Snake blinked slowly in surprise, "Black…" he mumbled, eyebrows furrowed as Sebastian returned to Ciel's waiting side, opening the door for his Young Lord. Ciel yelped in surprise when he came face to face with the maid.
But before he could speak, she interrupted him.
"Lady Isabelle is in trouble. Come."
… … … … … … … … … … … … …. …. … …. …. …. …. … … … … … … … … … … …
Isabelle groaned softly before letting out a shaky breath. She opened her mouth, prying her frozen, blue lips apart. She seized with a vicious wave of shivers, curling up before noticing she couldn't move her hands.
Chains. She was restrained, back to the freezing steel wall. The cold was biting at her bare skin. She had been stripped down to her dress slip and her original garb lay agonizingly close, but out of reach. She let out a weak sigh, glancing up as the door opened and several crew men funneled in.
"I-I knew it…" she growled, voice trembling, "...B-Beth Halligan."
The redhead grinned as she twirled the key around her index finger, looking down on the trembling earl before her smirk turned, almost on a dime, to a scowl, "you're the one who killed my man," she scoffed, eyes narrowed dangerously, "you saw everything didn't you."
Beth knelt down in front of Isabelle, peering into her deep blue eyes as she waited for an answer from her helpless prisoner. Instead, Isabelle spit in her face.
Beth scowled as she stood, slamming the steel toe of her boot into Isabelle's side, throwing the girl aside. Isabelle glanced up shakily while lying on the ground, jaw clenched. At this rate, she would freeze to death.
The crew members thrust her to her feet and she stumbled forward helplessly, losing her balance on weak legs. Beth lifted her chin roughly with the muzzle of a rifle and smirked.
"Take her topside. We've got some business to take care of."
… … … … … … … … … … … … …. …. … …. …. …. …. … … … … … … … … … … …
Ciel panted harshly as he half sprinted half lept through the snow drifts concealing the dirt path. He took deep breaths, exhaling shaky clouds of ice as his eyes narrowed. Sebastian and Enobria kept behind him, Snake struggling to resist the sink of the snow as it came up past his calves as he also juggled his multiple snakes while stuffing them in his warm coat.
The docks were ahead. The scent of the sea lingered in the cold air and it only caused Ciel to quicken his pace. That was when Sebastian called out, scooping Ciel up from his feet.
"The boat is leaving, Young Master!"
Ciel tensed with a yelp and clutched Sebastian as he looked on. The boat, cargo and all, was setting sail in the storm, chunks of ice bobbing in the ebbing grey.
Enobria narrowed her eyes, ready to take a rowboat secured to the dock until Ciel stopped her. He yanked her back and she pushed him off with a harsh glare, "Lady Isabelle is aboard that boat."
Ciel froze.
"No…" he breathed, forcing Sebastian to release him once on the docks, "no! Sebastian we must catch that boat!"
Sebastian scowled, "Young Master-" he began, before Ciel cut him off, discarding his eyepatch into the snow.
"Sebastian," he called, his voice desperate as he uncovered his eye, "this is an order. Help us catch that boat!"
… … … … … … … … … … … … …. …. … …. …. …. …. … … … … … … … … … … …
Isabelle panted weakly. The desolate cold earned her exposed skin a subtle blue tint and all she could do was await for hypothermia to take her.
The frozen wood below her on the deck was filling with snow as crew members meandered around, watching the open water with hearty chuckles while others teased and pulled at her, Beth watching from the quarter deck.
She eventually approached the shivering mass and stood before her once more, glancing at her surrounding crew as they came to her side, encircling Isabelle.
She grinned, hands on her hips till she threw them out.
" 'Ave at 'er boys!" she cheered.
Isabelle's eyes widened as hands came at her, grabbing at her dress slip, her hair, her limbs. They yanked her up like a doll and ran their hands over everything they could like mad men. She clenched her jaw before muttering under her breath with a weak, barely audible, voice.
"I-I have had enough of this…"
Several of the men stopped and removed their hands however some continued their play. At least, until one brushed her hair from her neck.
".. 'E-ey Miss Halligan… Ya may wanna look at this 'ear…" he called hesitantly as the crew all grouped behind Isabelle, looking at the odd marking, "looks like a tattoo'er somethin'."
"The hell are ya talkin' about?" Beth scoffed, walking over before glancing at the base of Isabelle's neck. Against the pale skin was the red, seven-pointed star. Beth curiously yet cautiously lay a hand against it.
"... I-it's warm."
"Don't touch me so indecently." Isabelle scolded, pulling away with narrowed eyes.
"How dare you!" Beth roared, yanking her hair back with brute force, popping Isabelle's neck and back with sickening cracks. She, once again, brought Isabelle to her feet and threw her into the crew members spectating.
"Throw her over!" she crowed, raising her rifle to the sky as her crew cheered wildly, hoisting Isabelle up as she screamed. Isabelle then silenced herself, and with jaw clenched, she cried out toward the monochromatic sky above.
"Enobria! Come to me NOW!"
Suddenly, the ship split.
The center of the ship was lifted out of the water as a sudden wave pulsed below and, with no support, split in half. The ship broke into two pieces, like a rotten mass of drift wood striking a rock.
Wood from the supports split like toothpicks, masts like twigs, and cannon sized splinters of wood sped out through the air and into the ocean. The two pieces, with an eardrum-shattering CRACK and POP, split and rose skyward.
Men screamed as they were thrown unwillingly into the icy graves awaiting below and many tried to hold on for dear life, counting their blessings as the front of the boat gave way to the encompassing and powerful ocean waters.
Beth clung to Isabelle's leg with wide eyes, gagging for words as she stared up into the cold, cat like eyes of Isabelle Tonnerre's loyal maid.
She opened her mouth, to beg for mercy, but instead retched, gagging up a chunky mouthful of blood that spilled into the dyed waters beneath her.
Enobria held Isabelle bridal style, her mistress wrapped tight in a blanket as the wind carried Enobria's black hair off her back and flowing in a gale. Beth begged through sobs for the maid to rescue her as well, but Isabelle silenced her as she held the lifeline that was Isabelle's boot.
The quarter deck was beginning to sink.
Enobria waited patiently, perched atop a remaining beam that once held the two pieces of ship together, as Isabelle cleared her throat dryly, looking down on the captain.
"I do have one question before I drop you." she demanded.
Beth froze as Isabelle continued, almost causally, "why did you kill all those men? And proclaim them as missing?" she asked coldly, eyes narrowed.
Ciel and Sebastian could only watch from the rowboat as the Arista sank, the mighty jetty claiming it in a frozen tomb as men grabbed wildly at the air with screams that eventually fell into a deathly silence.
They could only watch as Isabelle quietly threw the captain from her lifeline and could only watch as she joined her men below.
That's the first case completed! Nice happy ending huh. Nah, people are dead XD Anyways I hope y'all enjoyed this chapter!
Stay creative my friends~