“What do you think? About shipping it,” Amanda asked Benny as she sipped some more of the free beer. They’d finished their first jugs and had each just been handed a second free one.

He took another swig of his own. “It’s pretty good actually. And the mead too. Just think how much that stuff would sell for in the tundras if you warmed it up.”

Amanda nodded in agreement. She knew a few merchants who would be interested. It would just depend on price.

The kids returned, just on the cusp of dusk, all together, except for Sasha. Those that were wet changed out of their damp clothes quickly. Then they all joined their mother and Benny at the table where menus were being silently passed out.

“Where’s Sasha?” Amanda whispered to Bobby. As dusk had fallen, almost all talk and sound had as well. Everything apart from their quiet whispers.

He shook his head and shrugged. “I don’t know. Gemma said she saw her near the hot spring just before we got there. She was heading back toward town. I showed her where some cats were earlier, Maybe she went to look at them?”

“Nah,” Gemma butted in. “She said she was going to get something. Plus she found some other animal out near the canyons, but I don’t think she would’ve gone back out there.”

“The canyons?” Amanda frowned, and with a glance toward the darkening sky, contemplated going out to look. It would be hard to find her if she couldn’t shout her name though. Why hadn’t she thought of that earlier? It seemed like it had been afternoon only a moment ago though. The same had probably happened to Sasha. The kids sometimes stayed out after dark back in Little Rock. And this lot had only just returned. Sasha probably would soon as well. And yet...

Gemma interrupted her thoughts as she pulled a glass from the fresh pile in the middle of the table. "Can I have a beer?" She tilted her glass toward her mum, and eyed the jug of honey beer that Amanda had been nursing.

Amanda’s frown deepened. "No."

“Can I?” Bobby inquired eagerly, grabbing his own empty glass. “Just to taste.”

Amanda sighed and rubbed her forehead. “Fine.” She poured him half a glass from the jug.

Bobby grinned and his eyes widened at the amount.

"Why don't I get one?" Gemma complained.

“Shh, keep your voice low. Fine you can have some too.” Amanda poured her half a glass as well.

"How come you gave Bobby some when he asked but not me?" Gemma wanted to know.

"Cause Bobby never asks for anything," Amanda replied simply. She glanced at Katrina. “Do you want some?”

Katrina shook her head. She didn’t particularly like the taste of alcohol, not even those sickly sweet pop drinks that some kids were starting to bring to sleepovers. A year ago, no one her age had really touched alcohol, but now there was that one new girl at school who had easy access and Katrina knew it was only a matter of time. Kids were curious, and refusing to drink when others were was uncool. But there was no one here to judge her here, so for once, Katrina could do what she wanted. Katrina had seen her mother drink far too much on more than one occasion and so she was wary. She also thought of her aunt, her dad’s sister, who wore fantastic clothes, and had a sassy attitude that Katrina admired. The aunt who drove fast, and who rarely drank. Somehow her aunt made not drinking the cool option. Katrina wondered if she could pull it off herself. She was sure, if one played their social cards just right it would be possible to transform the perspective of everyone in her year at school but it would take a lot, cost a lot of social credit. She wasn’t sure she had the clout, besides there were other things she liked to buck the trend on, and there were only so many ways you could be weird before you weren’t cool anymore.

“What about me?” Salem asked.

Seeing an easy out, Amanda replied, “You can have one when Katrina does."

Katrina gave Salem a gloating grin at the power that had suddenly been placed in her hands.

Salem just slumped in his stool and poked out his tongue at her.

Just when Amanda was considering leaving to find her youngest, the inn door pushed open, and in walked Sirius.

He walked up to the table and eyed the array of drinks. “Is that beer the kids are drinking?” he whispered as he took a seat.

Amanda shrugged. “I just gave them a taste.” Then she held up the jug. “It’s honey beer. First one’s free.”

Sirius rubbed the rough stubble on his chin. “That’s how they get you,” he quipped back.

“More like first three,” Benny said quietly. He was further into his second jug than Amanda, and both of them had drunk the mead as well.

Amanda kicked him under the table. “Actually the inn keep was wondering if we wanted to buy a shipment of the stuff.”

Sirius narrowed his eyes but a self-satisfied smile played on his lips. “I told you.”

“It’s pretty good beer.”

“Hmm.” He took the jug Amanda offered, cautiously sniffed it, and then took a sip. “I suppose. What are they selling it for?”

“Didn’t ask. They’ve got mead as well.”

“Hmm. Might sell well in the tundras.”

“I know a few merchants.”

“So do I. But no negotiating while you’re drunk. Speaking of, we're in a strange new town. Better to keep our wits about us don't you think?"

"Better not to refuse too many offers of hospitality," she retorted with a sly smile.

“Hmm,” was all Sirius said. His gaze swept the room. A serious expression on his face.

The tone did make Amanda hesitate, and she was reminded momentarily of the other night and how she’d almost lost her son to the sirens. It had been a stressful few days though, and the beer was calming. It took the edge off. Besides, there were no sirens here, and the people seemed friendly enough. A little weird sure but not dangerous.

Sirius didn’t say much more. Sirius was a man of few words and when he felt like he’d said his piece, he would leave it at that. He never nagged. In a way the silence was more compelling.

As she noticed his gaze sweep over the kids, who were eyeing menus and whispering among themselves, she admitted, “I’m not sure where Sasha is. I was about to go look for her.”

“Mmm,” Sirius bent low and eyed up the sky outside. “No, I’ll go. You’ve been drinking. Stay here and watch the rest of them.”

Amanda nodded.

Sirius slipped outside. The wind had picked up in the last hour and it whipped at his dark coat. But what he wore made for good protection, from both heat and cold and Sirius barely noticed the temperature. The moon was high in the sky now and almost full. The sun was gone but streaks of dark blue could still be seen along the horizon behind the inn. Even with the streetlights, the moon, and the last remnants of sun, the shadows still played havoc with one’s ability to see clearly.

Sirius could just make out two figures coming up the street toward him. One short and one tall.

As they got closer he was surprised but happy to see that he recognised them both. It was Shiv and Sasha. The young girl carried a book under one arm.

“Evening?” Sirius grunted with light inflection.

Shiv gave a nod. “Evening. I found this one back on the ship, going through your books. I thought I’d walk her back to town.”

The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.

“I just wanted check something,” Sasha explained. She held up the book so he could see what it was.

“Scales, Other Slippery Things, and Such,” he read. “What did you want that one for?”

“Just some research. I’m planning something for a school project,” Sasha lied.

“Oh.” He relaxed. “Well you’re mother’s missing you and we’re about to have dinner, so go on and get inside.”

Sasha did as she was told, which left Sirius and Shiv alone in the street.

“There’s one other thing,” Shiv said once Sasha had gone inside.

Sirius frowned.

Shiv continued. “I saw some of the crew, leaving that other ship. Just a handful, like what we did. They passed by our ship and they’re not far behind. I recognised one.”

“A pirate?”

Shiv shook his head. “Not exactly, but I wouldn’t put it past him. He wasn’t what I’d call a trustworthy man. It’s been a few years since I last saw him though. Who knows, maybe he’s grown. Best keep our guard up either way. I doubt he’ll bother us if we don’t bother him. He wasn’t one to seek out trouble, but somehow he always seems to end up in it.”

Sirius grunted in agreement and both men retreated back into the warmth of the inn. Sirius collected menus and orders from the kids and went to let the innkeeper know what they would like.

“Shiv!” Amanda smiled at him as the quartermaster joined their table. “Thank you for bringing Sasha back.”

“No problem.” He started to pull out the bar stool on the other side of Sirius’s empty one. It scraped along the floor causing several eyes to fall on him, from their table and other patrons alike.

Amanda held a finger to her lips in warning.

Shiv stopped what he was doing and looked around warily. Then he continued to move the stool but this time he did so by lifting it instead. With a confused look he took his seat and then leaned across to speak to Amanda. "I thought I'd come see the town with no music. You sure about this following along with it thing? The crew's been playing half the day and nothing’s happened, and,” He glanced warily around the room again. “It's a bit creepy in here."

"Yeah I'm sure. I'm not singing for you tonight Shiv."

He stretched his arms up. “Ah well, more’s the pity. What’s the food like?”

Sirius returned, and not long after him came the food much to Shiv’s delight. They ate quietly, not a scrape of a knife or fork, although it took Shiv a few tries to get it right and the silence obviously unsettled him. Occasionally they whispered among themselves. Amanda asked the kids about their day. Sirius and Shiv chatted business. Salem tried to explain to Benny how his gameboy worked.

They were half way through their meal when the door flew open with a loud crash.

Into the room walked a man with one leg. He had wild dark hair and full grown beard. Attached to the stump of his missing leg was a wooden peg. It thumped loudly on the floor as he walked. Behind him followed a second shorter man, with oily white hair that lay slick against his head. Across one sky blue eye ran a jagged scar.

One man at a nearby table got up and started making some signs with his hands.

The one-legged man looked at him as if he were mad.

A moment later Mary appeared. She reassured the other patron and sent him back to his seat.

“What is this place?” the one legged man asked with a baffled snarl. “Why is it so quiet here?”

Mary opened her mouth to talk to him but she never got the chance.

“It’s quiet so the monsters don’t eat us,” Shiv replied in an even toned voice, that carried across the room.

The one-legged man saw Shiv and he smiled, revealing that he hadn’t seen a dentist in quite some time. His teeth were yellow and pointed out at odd angles. In contrast, the man behind him had teeth that were pearly white and very straight, almost unnaturally so. They could see, when he licked his lips, as he seemed to be in the habit of doing often.

“Ah, Shiv, old friend,” pegleg replied with a twisted grin. “It’s been a long time.”

The shorter man nodded in agreement. Shiv knew them both and they both knew him.

“Be quiet and come sit,” Shiv commanded, “Unless you want my sword in your gullet.” The jab was good natured in tone but layered beneath it there was an element of a real threat.

Pegleg smiled. His eyes twinkled and danced. The threat of violence seemed to please him.

While pegleg considered his options, Sirius got to his feet, and walked toward them. He touched Mary’s shoulders and gently turned her toward the kitchen.

Pegleg’s gaze attached itself instantly to Sirius when the man stood, and it never left him. The curve at the edge of his lips dropped away.

Sirius was a tall man in comparison to almost every other man in the room. Intimidating even when seated. Pegleg wondered how he had not noticed him at first. What ever fighting thoughts pegleg had been entertaining were quickly chased from his mind.

Sirius gave a light bow and gestured politely toward the end of their table at the empty space between Benny and Shiv. An invitation, rather than an order.

The polite offer to join them appeared to appease pegleg and he took a seat, quietly.

Shiv spent the next hour telling pegleg of the town and it’s strange customs. Pegleg’s companion never spoke a word but he eyed up every one of them at the table with a fox-like look. In the seat next to him, Benny kept shooting him nervous glances.

Eventually, Amanda sent the kids off to bed. Pegleg and his companion departed not long after that, having decided to return to their ship for the night. Benny too disappeared into his own room. One he would now share with Shiv instead of Griff.

“So that’s your friend then? The one with the peg leg?” Sirius asked Shiv. They were now the only two left in the tavern.

Shiv nodded. “That’s Felix. It’s not him you need to watch out for though. The man with him, Pete, he may look unassuming but he’s as vicious as they come, and quick with a knife. If I had a choice, It’s Felix I’d much rather fight. He said they’re trade shipping like we are. On their way east, to Calvara.”

“You believe him?”

Shiv returned a grimace. “Hard to say. It’s an odd route. One someone might take if they wanted to keep a low profile between bounties.”

“Maybe they’re wreck robbing?”

Shiv shook his head. “More likely they’re robbing the wreck robbers. Felix was never one for too much hard work. Didn’t seem to like the look of you too much though so hopefully they’ll stay off our backs.”

“Who’d you leave in charge back on the ship?”

“Griff for the time being. They won’t try anything tonight. They’re as beached as we are for now. We need to get her back in the water tomorrow though, otherwise we’re a sitting ducks.”

Sirius nodded.

A little earlier, in the kids room, Gemma switched out the lights. “Bed time,” she told the others.”

“Aw, I was reading,” Sasha complained. She slid her father’s beast book under her pillow then turned and stared up at the ceiling. “I miss music.”

“Yeah, so do we all,” Gemma said as she climbed into her own bed.

Sasha rolled over and poked her head off the edge of the top bunk. “Maybe you could still sing a song but do it really quiet? Something to help us sleep.”

“Mum and dad will hear,” Gemma replied softly as she lay down. “Besides we’re not allowed remember.”

“Salem said you spoke a poem at the hot springs you guys found,” Katrina noted as she sat back up in the bed below Sasha’s.

“That was in the middle of the day,” Salem whispered from a top his own bunk.

“We’re not even supposed to be talking,” Gemma added, eyes already shut.

Katrina climbed up and stood on the edge of bed so her head was up near Sasha’s. “Alright, I’ve got a short poem for you okay,” she whispered.

Sasha nodded.

Down in her own bed, Gemma opened her eyes, then propped herself up on one elbow to listen.

Katrina’s whisper travelled through the room,

“One night down south,

There was a bear.

He was stark white,

But he didn’t care.

He got it in his mind,

To travel somewhere.

But to where, could a bear, so fair, really go?

He thought so long it began to snow.

It snowed and it snowed, and it snowed, and it snowed.

It snowed so much, he lost sight of the road.

In a raging blizzard the bear was lost.

Then he stumbled upon a friendly fox,

The fox said hello, where do you go?

The bear simply replied, ‘Well I don’t know.’

‘Well they why don’t you come on this road with me,

And we will see all that we can see.

And then when we finally get to the end,

We can come all the way back, to where we begin.”

The bear replied ‘yes, of course my new friend,

We’ll travel together. Quite a pair don’t you say?’

The fox smiled wide. ‘Why, yes I think so,

And you know, now this snow, is starting to go,

Up ahead, near that bend, if my eyes don’t deceive,

I think I can finally see the start of the road.’”

Sasha smiled then lay back on her pillow. “Perfect,’ she whispered.

Katrina and Gemma shared a knowing smile. Sasha was happy and no howls had sounded in reply.

Suddenly there came a tapping at the window. Both girls jumped in surprise.

“There’s a girl out there!” Salem remarked in a hushed voice.

“A girl?” Bobby scooted to the edge of his bed then darted around to the window. He opened it to find Seraphina outside, holding the white cat. “Hi.” He smiled happily at her, forgetting completely that he was wearing his stripy pyjama bottoms and no top. None of that mattered.

Seraphina smiled back up at him. “He always escapes just before bed.” She nodded at the cat. “Then I have to catch him and bring him back in. Anyway,” She dropped her eyes and scratched the ground nervously with one toe. The white cat struggled. She ignored it and raised her eyes again. “I was wondering, because I forgot to ask before, when I ran off to dinner, if you want to hang out again tomorrow?”

Bobby felt like he could fly. “Absolutely.”

She grinned, and if it weren’t for the fact that Bobby had never kissed a girl before, he would have leaned out and done so right there. As it was, he didn’t want his first kiss to be with his siblings all watching from the room behind him.

“Good, well, I’ll meet you outside, first thing in the morning.” Seraphina pointed toward the front of the inn.

“It’s a date,” Bobby replied without thinking through the words. He might have regretted being so bold if it weren’t for the light that lit up in Seraphina’s hazel eyes.

“Good night,” she whispered before she ran off into the night.

“Good night,” he whispered back after her.

“Bobby’s got a girlfriend,” Gemma teased, as he climbed back into bed.

“Shut up,” Bobby replied. But he couldn’t stop grinning.

“Soo romantic,” Katrina grinned.

Above her, Sasha frowned.

“Blugh,” Salem made a face like he was going to be sick.

One by one they lay their heads back down. It couldn’t have been more than 10 minutes later that the howling started up. Closer this time than it had been the night before. It lasted longer too, hours in fact. Salem stayed awake the whole time, wondering what could be out there. It’s call reminded him of the sirens, only instead of drawing him in, it made him feel sad. There was emotion in that music. He could feel it, and it wasn’t just the music itself. There was a magic.

The howls continued on, lonesome and longing. They filled the night, washed over the town. Outside in the dark, a shadow moved. It slipped through the streets, unheard and unseen. And somewhere nearby came a muffled a scream, that nobody noticed.