2.
The captain of the Luxatus did not dare step off his boat, so Mailio went to see him instead, which did not broker a better mood. Sailors, the mollies, scattered all across the decks, getting out of their way. He found his way to the stateroom and threw open the door.
“I have demanded–”
The captain was slumped over the books, a widening pool of blood coming from his mouth, spilling onto the books.
“Ugh!” Mailio swore, and slammed shut the door. “Where’s the first mate?”
“Aeo!” called a voice at the bottom of the gangway. “Permission to come aboard.”
Mailio looked down at the sleek red tiger on shore. “I guess you can come aboard. Who the hell are you?”
“Captain Sheen of the Aestures, at your service.”
“You’re damned right you’re at my service,” Mailio said, recognizing one of the names of his ships. “Where are my ships?”
“I’m sure Captain Kisven will explain.”
“Captain Kisven is dead.” Ses’ cousin, once removed. Kisven came with good references, and of course Ses spoke for him two years ago when he started this excursion to the Black Salt Islands. He couldn’t blame his wife for things a separate branch of the family did.
“I thought as much,” said Sheen, rocking back and forth on his heels. “I guess it falls to me to tell you about his treachery?”
“Treachery?”
“First, Master, I beg an indulgence that I be allowed to unload my stock and crew, since this one, I’m sure, has already been unloaded. And I need to pay the crew or there will not only be a mutiny, but they will destroy what little stock you have.”
“Do what you will,” Mailio said, stunned a bit at the tiger’s brashness.
“Excuse me, then…” And he went into the stateroom. The sailors gathered now, watching the stateroom door. It opened, and he carried a bag and a book, bloodstained on its cover. He flipped open the cover on top of the railing and called out names. Sailors came, and he asked if they wanted to get a full day’s work for doing some cleanup and rigging, they could stay on. Some agreed. Most jumped ship. Mailio debated on going with them, but he wanted the story, and he wanted it now.
He had a small enough crew that he could move the ship out of the dock themselves. They did so, and Sheen used flags to wave the Aestures into port. Meanwhile, three men wrapped the old captain’s body in some rigging and sail and lay it gently on a lifeboat. The rest of the crew, with their full day’s wages, rowed back to shore, leaving Mailio and Sheen alone on the boat.
“I apologize, Master, but these things needed to be done.”
Mailio, meanwhile, had busied himself looking at the register and diary. The diary was bloodsoaked, but he could still read what happened for himself.
They had gone to the Black Salt Islands and traded well with the natives there, for a large amount of spices. They lost one ship in a storm on the way to the Slave Isles. One boat took all the slaves. That was a bad idea, because within a week, the boat had been taken over by slaves, and they attempted to go after the Aestures. If not for the intervention of the Luxatus and the Sapienta, they would have lost the Aestures as well.
“So far, I see no treachery.”
Sheen shook his head. “You believe that? Look at the ink, it is not even dry. He threw his true diary overboard and instead wrote this one over the last week while we were at sea.”
“Then tell me what happened.”
“First, the part of the Salt Islands was true. Then we did go to the Slave Islands, and it was there that he wanted to take a woman on board and bring her as his slave. The men grumbled, and said that they should be allowed slaves with their money. So he allowed the men to go ashore and pick out slaves, then took men from –my– ship and left the men from his ship there.
Sheen glared at the book, accusingly. “I took what I could to get back on my boat, but by then, the slaves had taken over my boat and were throwing all the spices overboard.”
“You said you had stock on your boat.”
“I wasn’t originally the captain of the Aestures. I was the captain of the Sapienta.”
“There were five ships, what happened to the other two?”
“Sine Passer was caught in a storm. Aquamar tried to give chase but was blown out of the water by the Aestures. I chased after the two, and after some fighting, boarded the Aestures and claimed it for you, Master. Then we chased the Luxatus, getting her caught in a shaol, and commanded the captain to surrender, which he did. We locked the captain in his stateroom and I directed this ship here by flags.”
“Who is in charge at the Sapienta?”
“My first mate, Sreena.”
“A female?”
“A male panther of the old country.”
“So of all the ships, only yours and the Sapienta have cargo?”
“Yes, Master.” He looked around at the ship they were on. “I wanted this ship offloaded and those traitors out of my sight before I did anything to regret.”
“Do you want this ship?” With a story like that, the tiger deserved a large ship such as this.
“No, it is cursed. A dead captain roams its boards.” He said, “I would sell it, if I were you.” He stopped, looked up across the bay and saw flags waving in the wind. “The Aestures is finished unloading and the Sapienta will now go in.”
“I wish to go back to see what stock I do have left.”
“Of course, Master.”
3.
Mailio saw that his cargo was being delivered directly to his warehouse, so he went there as soon as his foot touched ground. It was getting dark, and he was hungry and thirsty. He thumped on the carriage. “Find me some food and drink now.”
The carriage stopped, probably in the middle of the road, and Mailio parted open the window to get some air. That tiger was definitely not a scholar or a clerk; he hoped to keep the creature’s employ after all this was settled. He stuck his head out and looked for a cougar, or even a cheetah, though those were unreliable thieves.
“Where is there a cougar when you need one?” he muttered, and the door opened. The driver handed over a box, which had the most delicious smell of seasoned raw meat. “Food and drink, master.”
“Drive on, and be slow until I finish eating.”
“Yes, Master.” The door closed.
The driver was indeed careful – he didn’t pay the upper families plenty of money for sub-standard servants – and by the time Mailio was finished, he was near the warehouse enough so that the slow speed wasn’t a hindrance.