When the day was so new it was not yet hatched, and only those who were used to doing their jobs in witching hours and liminal spaces were up and about, Captain Thompson escorted them in a carriage to the docks.

Prin was saved any further tearful goodbyes from Valor by the ungodliness of the hour, and having his permission to take any books he wanted (aside from the witch’s journal, which Valor said he planned on hiring someone to read to him in its entirety, and Prin respected his right to do so), he had taken the book on curses and tucked it safely into his backpack.

He felt very bittersweet about their departure, and knew the others did as well. Elwin stayed close by his side as his security blanket.

Aster stood under the gas lamp that washed a portion of the docks in a murky glow. She was wearing her new boots, with brown pants that puffed out and tucked into the boots, a gauzy white blouse with embroidered flowers at the neckline. Her bright hair was clamped down under a beige cap, and also the hood of her forest green wool cloak that was oversized (perhaps a pass me down from Wrena) but guarded well against the biting wind.

Prin had never seen her dressed in such a subdued fashion, but then again she was supposed to be dead.

Aster was loaded down with a knapsack, shoulder bag and train case and juggled these items awkwardly as the captain gave her a boisterous goodbye hug that lifted her off the ground.

“Come back to me any time.” He said, placing Aster gently back onto the sea salt crusted boards of the dock. “Well . . . maybe wait until it all blows over a bit though.” He waved his hands to indicate the trouble would eventually blow away out into the sea on a sharp wind, like all things did with time. “I’ll be waiting.”

“Don’t wait for me.” Aster said. She looked up at him, not unkindly, but with seriousness in her brown eyes.

“I didn’t mean to put no pressure on you by saying that.” The captain said. “I just wanted you to know how I feel about it, is all. Anyways.” He turned to Elwin and Prin and opened his arms wide. “Bring it in boys!” Elwin tried to hang back but Prin pulled him by the hand forward until they were in hugging range.

The captain hugged them warmly.

Prin wondered if this is what it was like to have a real father. He felt a pang.

When Captain Thompson let them go Prin shivered, pulling his jacket close. The captain pressed a handful of silver coins into each of their hands.

“What’s this?” Prin asked.

“Your pay of course! You didn’t think I forgot did you?” The captain asked.

“This is too much.” Elwin said, knitting his eyebrows together. Perhaps trying to do the math in his head, or working out proper etiquette.

Prin knew enough by now to know they would be needing all the money they could get. “Thank you.” He said firmly, in a way he hoped Elwin understood to mean they would be accepting it without further argument.

“Same goes for you as went for Aster, you are welcome in my home any time.” The captain slapped Elwin’s back and squeezed Prin’s shoulder.

“Oh, I almost forgot.” He turned back to Aster and took her little hand in his, giving it a squeeze. He put a small bundle in her shoulder bag. “Open that later.” And handed her a covered basket and a leather satchel. “Actually, you know what.” He took the satchel back and gave it to Elwin. “You seem like the most responsible one. No offense, my darling.” He said this last to Aster over his shoulder. “You can do the doctoring. And do it well.” He put an admonishing finger in Elwin’s face. “Can you handle it?”

“Of course.” Elwin said smoothly. “If I’m to be the medic on this adventure, I’ll give it my best.”

Prin almost snorted, trying to hold in a laugh. Did Elwin think they were in a grand novel about an epic journey or something? Wait . . . . were they?

“You don’t have to give me anymore gifts, Corny!” Aster said, exasperated. “It’s embarrassing at this point.” She peaked under the cloth covering the basket.

“It’s just breakfast you silly yam.” The captain said playfully. “You’ll be glad of that in an hour or two.”

“Thank you.” Aster said. “If I’ve seemed a little cold it’s because . . . I don’t like to be in a debt I’ll never be able to repay. All I can do is say thanks, and that’s so inadequate that it makes me feel strange and awkward.”

“A debt to me?” Captain Thompson looked genuinely shocked. “It doesn’t work that way honey.” He leaned down so that their faces were close. “I’m not running a loan sharking business. Anything I give you is yours fair an square, even if life hasn’t made it easy for you to understand that. Actually I hope I never do see ya again, and it’s because you’ve found a place for yourself so warm and cozy and free that you settle down there and never leave. And it will make me happy to imagine I’ve helped you with that.” He reached for her face and tugged on a red curl that squiggled its way out from under the cap.

Aster’s lower lip trembled. She leaned forward and kissed his cheek. “You’re a rare man.”

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The captain laughed, straightening up quickly, his eyes wet in the gas light. “We, all of us men are a mess a contradictions.”

He left quickly, probably to avoid any more spilling over of emotions, leaving them to wait in the glomming world for his friend, the captain of a vessel himself, to finish loading or unloading and come to meet them.

When Prin looked again at Aster her tears were spilling down her cheeks.

“Damnit, I’m not a crybaby!” Aster said. She scrubbed at her face with the edge of her cloak. “That stupid lovely man.”

“He really is.” Prin agreed.

Elwin stared at the leather satchel in his hand, looking like he was already fretting over its duties and responsibilities, its burden. Or, not wanting to look at Aster while she was crying and thus further embarrass her.

Prin went to Aster and put his arms around her. “Leavings are always hard.”

Prin heard Elwin say his name in a hushed urgent tone, before he even heard the footsteps coming toward them. Heavy on the old wooden boards.

Why did Elwin sound like that? Surely it was just the boat captain, coming to fetch them as promised?

“So.” A familiar voice said. “I see the rabbits have left their burrow. I thought you had gone into hibernation for the winter.” The mild, almost jovial words, belied a tone of such ice cold menace Prin felt a chill go down his spine that had nothing to do with the temperature of the air.

Prin released Aster and stood up quickly, turning to look at who had walked up next to Elwin.

Crow looked the same as they had last seen him. Rumpled suit, little notebook in the same hand he held his cigarette. He smiled.

“I was looking for you. And here you are leaving town all of a sudden.” Crow smiled, as though to say, just isn’t that something? A funny coincidence, no?

“We don’t actually live here, we were just passing through.” Elwin said, his calm demeaner returning under the pressure of the closeness of the enemy.

“Issat right? Funny it was never mentioned during our interview.” Crow said.

Prin stood between the investigator and Aster, trying to block her from view, but apparently it wasn’t enough. Or he had been watching them for a while.

Crow leaned exaggeratedly to the side as though to peak around Prin at the diminutive cloaked figure behind him. “Ah so you’re not dead, that’s what I thought. That low woman you work for tried to extort me for money, saying my partner killed you and damaged her property with fire. I would expect such a thing from someone like that. But you? What do you know? What have you done?” He took a step toward Aster and Prin.

Elwin glared at Crow. “We don’t know anything, why don’t you leave us alone.”

If you didn’t know any better you would think he was tough. Prin knew Elwin well enough to catch the quiver in his voice. And he hated this man for scaring him. He was about to step towards him, when Aster came out from behind him and threw off her hood dramatically.

“Yes it’s me, what’s it to ya?” She said defiantly.

Prin knew her well enough to know she was no shrinking violet.

“Where is my partner?” Crow asked. “Where’s Hobbs?” His voice was calm, measured, but intense. “He must have been getting close to something, to be disappeared like that.”

“How should I know?” Aster asked.

Elwin moved as though he would get between them, and Aster raised her hand. “No, it’s okay. He should know I guess, what the man he calls “partner” is really like.”

Crow took a drag on his cigarette and nodded at Aster, as if to say, I’m listening but this better be good.

“He tried to rape me.” Aster said bluntly. “And a lot of people think, if you’re in the business, it’s impossible, you know? But if you try to take with force what isn’t offered, and without paying to boot. Well . . . call it what you want but at the very least it’s stealing. And the low woman, as you call her, who is a powerful business owner with her own hired muscle, which is something else I feel you should know, when you decide what to do with this information. She caught him in the act and ran him off, with her men. She doesn’t take kindly to being stolen from.” Aster grimaced. “Ask me how I know.”

“Is that really what happened?” Crow said. “I wonder.” He tossed his cigarette butt down and crushed it under his scuffed leather shoe, then took the notebook and opened it, consulting his writing in the near dark. “That still leaves the question. Which one of you killed the fortune teller?”

“This tired question again?” Prin shook his head, as though annoyed but not surprised it had come back around to that. “Give it up.”

“I have been hired and well paid to not give up.” Crow said.

“If you’ve already got the money, why bother?” Prin asked. “You’re so called partner ran off and abandoned you, half the suspects had already left the island to begin with, there’s at least some evidence the killer wasn’t even human.” Prin tried to channel his best, what would Valor say. An innocent person would be bound to be getting increasingly annoyed at this point. As a non-innocent person he was shaking in his boots, but thought he was doing a pretty good job at not showing it.

Elwin gave him a funny look, but it was fleeting, he quickly schooled his face back into concern and anger. Who did this man think he was anyway?

Crow smiled, wide and slow. “I have a reputation to consider.” He took a step toward Prin, giving him aggressive eye contact all the way. “Why don’t you come with me, and I’ll let your friends continue on their merry way.”

“Keep going like yer going and my foot will see your ass along its MERRY WAY.” A loud voice interrupted them and even louder foot steps came their way from the direction of the ships.

In the glomming darkness the tall figure with his booming voice could have been anything, a man or a monster.

Although when he came to a stop beside Aster and directly in front of Crow, he was a bit different from what Prin was expecting.

The man was much taller than Prin, especially with the addition of his heeled boots. He looked to be young, maybe in his thirties, and his long blond ponytail went well with his dashing pirate costume. Complete with red velvet coat with leather cuffs, and tight pants showing off his muscular form. His eyes were almost too pretty, as he turned his head to Prin and Aster and winked before facing Crow. A sepia brown with absolute herds of eyelashes. The beauty of his face was thankfully mitigated by a series of white scars bisecting one side and contrasting with the sun darkened skin. Prin imagined this lent a lot of street cred as a pirate.

Crow stopped with his hand on his pack of cigarettes, about to get one out, he shoved them back in his pocket. “Is this any of your business?” He asked calmly, as though he wasn’t a bit afraid of this towering pirate.

Prin was a bit afraid himself and he knew (thought he knew?) that they were on the same side at least. Afraid and grateful.

“I’m Captain Lucien of the ship Seahag Lover and anything is my business if I say it is.” Captain Lucien said proudly.

Prin wondered if it was his own ship and if he had personally named it. Prin was betting so.

“Do you want murderers on your ship? I would think it something to be avoided.” Crow said cooly.

Captain Lucien burst out laughing. “Are you hired entertainment? Who put you up to this?” He looked around exaggeratedly. Then said in a loud stage whisper. “We’re all murderers on my ship.”