“No one seems to be following,” Click said. “Let’s go!” He took each of their hands and the three ran full tilt for the ship. It didn’t take long for them to reach her. Click pushed Gabriella toward the rope ladder first.
Gabriella scaled the ladder quicker than she’d thought possible, even with the addition of two more bodies rocking the ladder beneath her while she climbed. The moment she crested the side of the railing, Dot greeted her.
“What on earth kept you guys?” Dot asked.
“Not now, Dot!” Jayne snapped when she scrambled onto the deck behind Gabriella.
“Don’t you ‘not now’ me,” Dot said. “Where are you going?”
The young tinker didn’t stop. She kept on running until she disappeared into the bowels of the ship. Click pulled himself onto the deck with a loud grunt.
“Well, how do you like that?” Dot asked. She helped Gabriella to her feet before she wrinkled her nose. “You guys look horrible. What happened?”
Gabriella was too out of breath to answer. She didn’t know where Jayne got her stamina, because even Click was winded despite being in excellent shape.
Dot eyed the ladder expectantly, then looked back to Click. “Where’s the captain? And Jax?”
Click bent double, clutching his knees while he tried to catch his breath. He spoke in short bursts between gasps. “Behind...natives...danger.”
Dot’s eyes widened. “No!”
“’Fraid...so,” Click panted, his eyes watering as he raised a hand to his chest.
“So that’s what all the drumming was about?” Dot asked.
“What...did... you...think it...was?”
“I don’t know. I just supposed you made friends on the island and didn’t want an old woman like me to interrupt your party.” Dot stamped one foot on the deck. “I told the captain Ruby couldn’t be trusted. That woman is trouble with capital whore.”
Gabriella, still too out of breath to comment, turned around and grabbed the railing. She narrowed her eyes, scanning the sand below, watching the beach for any sign of the other three.
All she saw was the trail of her own, hasty retreat.
“We have to go after them,” Jayne said.
Gabriella turned back to see the tinker had reappeared with an armful of homespun weaponry.
She dumped the objects on the deck and rooted through them. “All of these are simple to use. Just point and click.”
From exotic guns to bizarre blades to guns that even launched blades, the bevy of weaponry Jayne possessed was strangely seductive. Gabriella hovered over the pile of iron, copper, and wood, overwhelmed by the variety of choices. Not that she could ever wield one of the things herself.
She wouldn’t know what to do if she did.
“Go on, Guppy,” Jayne said. “Help yourself.”
“The captain ordered us to stay here,” Click reminded them.
Jayne cocked the handle of something that resembled a gun, yet the barrel of which was twice that of any Gabriella had ever seen before. She leveled it at an imaginary target somewhere off the ship. “Tell me you plan on doing that.”
Click cocked his head at Jayne, his eyes dark and brooding. He bent low to snatch one of the weapons from the deck, a complicated affair with three barrels with just as many triggers. Bringing the weapons to his face for inspection, Gabriella saw that his classic wide smile had returned. “No.
But I just wanted to have witnesses that I tried to. Now let’s go and get the rest of our crew back.”
The hollow, triple click of his weapon punctuated his point.
* * * *
While she lay face down in the muck, Rose mulled over her situation, taking stock of her options and decisions.
She was pinned down by wild savages.
She had just, effectively, told her crew to sail away without her.
She had one weapon, and it was attached to a pacifist.
She was insane.
“Captain!” Jax yelled. She scurried to Rose’s side, pushing something into Rose’s palm.
“I’ve collected some of their weapons.”
Rose rolled over and looked at the stout spear Jax had placed in her hand. In the weak moon glow, she could just make out the deadly stingray tails bound to the tip. “Good work, Jax.”
“They shouldn’t give them to us if they don’t want us to use them,” Jax said. She offered Rose a few more of the white tipped weapons.
“Atom?” Rose called out. When she rose to a crouch, she felt someone tug her pants leg.
Looking back, Rose saw the poor boy cringing behind her in the underbrush. He smiled weakly and waved his cannon-arm, as if reminding her he had it.
“Are you prepared to use that thing?” she asked.
“Yes, ma’am.”
Even over the snap and whiz of the spears, she heard the hesitation in his voice. She tried to grin at him. “Maybe you won’t have to.”
Rose was amazed when the big woman offered him a spear. Jax seemed to understand his anxiety. Atom nodded in thanks while clutching the weapon to him.
“Now,” Jax said, “on count of three we scream, stand, and give all we have. They won’t expect us to fight back so while they are stunned by this, we run. Clear?”
Rose agreed, while Atom just stared at the blonde.
“You have problem with plan?” Jax asked.
“Oh no,” Atom said. “I’m just honored to be included.”
“Be honored back at ship,” Jax said. “One, two, three!”
Leaping to her feet, Rose hollered. She ignored the projectiles zipping past her, focusing instead on throwing spears in return. Exactly as Jax had predicted the assault on them came to a sudden halt.
“Go! Go! Go!” Jax yelled.
Before Rose could flee, she heard Atom screaming at the top of his lungs.
“Captain! Look out!” he yelled.
Time slowed to a crawl. Her gaze swept around to land on a single, well-placed spear hurtling toward her. The thing was dead centered, no matter which way she twisted, it would strike her. She closed her eyes, gritted her teeth, and waited for the worst.
Instead of a gut full of spear, she heard a low boom, a soft grunt, then nothing at all. Not even the drums or screams of the natives. All was quiet. Eternal silence. Death hurt a lot less than she thought it would.
“Captain?” Jax asked.
Rose opened her eyes. She patted down her blouse, but the spear wasn’t there. She turned a questioning eye to Jax. “What just happened?”
Jax pointed to the ground between them
Atom lay at Rose’s feet with a spear embedded in his lower part of his left shoulder.
Rose lowered to his side. “What have you done?”
“He took spear for you,” Jax announced.
“I can see that,” Rose snapped. She lifted the young man as gently as she could.
He moaned in response. A dark stain bloomed around the wound.
“He didn’t even know you,” Jax said.
“Get his feet, Jax. We need to get him back to the ship.”
“He didn’t even know you,” Jax repeated. “But he took spear anyway.”
“Jax!” Rose yelled.
Jax started. Back in the moment, she bent over Atom’s still form and grabbed the spear.
“Hold him still.” In one clean movement, Jax snapped the body of the spear away, leaving the head with its handful of bone-white splinters lodged in his chest. “Is best not to remove now.”
Carting Atom between them, they ran through the remainder of the jungle. Rose cast a few looks over her shoulder, but the natives didn’t give chase.
“What happened to the natives?” she asked.
“He happened to them,” Jax said. She nodded to the body between them. “He fired that thing just before he went down. And all went quiet.”
When they exploded onto the beach, Rose nearly cried aloud when she saw her ship still waiting. Somehow she wasn’t surprised to see the remainder of her crew making their way across the beach toward her, brandishing weapons.
“Atom!” Gabriella called out. She ran up and fluttered around Atom like a nervous butterfly.
She was the only one unarmed. “Atom. Oh, Captain, what happened?”
“He took a hit for me,” Rose said. “Now get back to the ship so we can get the hell off of this God forsaken island!”
Click relieved Rose of her end of the load and everyone ran for the ship. Within moments, the crew was aboard. Rose clambered up the ladder behind them.
“Click, take him to my room and make him comfortable,” Rose commanded when she reached the deck. “Everyone else, get the Widow in the air!”
Dot followed Click, helping him carry the wounded young man to Rose’s quarters. Jayne disappeared into the engine room while the others hoisted sandbags and tethers from the beach. The pistons creaked into movement when the engines fired. The props began their familiar vibrating hum. In record time, the Widow rose into the night air. Rose breathed a little easier. The moment she was sure they were clear of the island, she returned to her quarters and the guilt that waited there. The door was closed with Click waiting before it as if standing guard.
“My captain,” Click said. He caught her up in his arms to hold her close. She wanted to collapse then. To cry, to bawl, to lean on his strength, to beg his forgiveness for putting the crew in such danger. Regret could wait until later. Now she had to remain strong and take responsibility for what happened.
Click tightened his grip on her before he said in a low voice, “You couldn’t have known.
She didn’t tell you. None of us knew the island was inhabited.”
“Thank you,” she whispered. She lifted away from him, taking his strength with her. “I see Dot’s kicked you out.”
“She didn’t want my help.” Click shrugged.
“Captain!” Gabriella yelled while she ran up the deck. “How is he? Let me see him.” She pushed past Rose, toward the closed door.
“Hold up, Guppy.” Rose caught the young girl by the arm to hold her back.
Gabriella jerked her arm away. “I want to see him!”
“Please,” Rose begged. “Let Dot do her job.”
Gabriella’s eyes welled up.
“Is he okay?” Jax asked. The blonde joined them with a look of concern.
Gabriella turned to Jax and buried her head in the big woman’s chest. Jax was surprised, but didn’t push the girl away. With a perplexed look, she patted Gabriella on the back gently. Sobbing rose from the girl in Jax’s arms.
Rose didn’t begrudge the young girl one tear.
“Is he okay, Captain?” Jax asked again.
“Stay here,” Rose said. “I’m going to go find out.” She left Gabriella in the care of Jax, and then slipped away into her room where she found Dot standing over Atom. He was motionless on her bed with the many pointed head of the spear still imbedded in his shoulder. A dark pool gathered beneath him, staining her sheets with his very life.
A worried look dressed the elder matron’s face.
“Dot?” Rose asked.
Dot drew a sharp breath before she said, “His heart isn’t beating.”
“Damn it!” Rose yelled. She balled her fist and punched the door behind her. The pain of the blow didn’t take away the ache of Dot’s words. “Why did he do it?”
“Captain,” Dot said.
“Why?” Rose asked again as she stormed across the room to plead with the unconscious man. “Jax was right. You didn’t even know me! Why would you be so stupid?”
“Captain,” Dot tried again.
Rose ignored Dot, instead raging on. She had never been so infuriated by something so selfless. “Atom Loquacious, you are the stupidest, most foolish, dim-witted, thick-headed...” She paused as she sank to her knees over the still form before she added, “Bravest man I ever knew.”
Tears pricked her eyes and stung her nose.
“Captain, please,” Dot said a third time.
Rose looked up at her. “What?”
Dot held out her stethoscope. She nodded to Atom. “His heart isn’t beating.”
Rose furrowed her brow. The woman shook the listening instrument at her again. Growling, she snapped the stethoscope from Dot and put it on. With a trembling hand she placed the cup over Atom’s chest. Her eyes widened as she listened. And as she listened, she understood. She understood everything. Rose got to her feet in a daze, unsure of how to handle this new situation.
She touched the stain on her sheets, then rolled the slick substance between her fingertips.
“Send for Jayne,” Rose said in a calm voice.
“Aye-aye, Captain,” Dot said, and hurried from the room.
Alone for a moment, Rose lowered the stethoscope to Atom’s chest again, and listened to the curious sound within. The hollow sound of steady, rhythmic ticks.
The sound of clockworks.
Origin of the Species
In which we pray for Atom’s recovery, and our captain realizes our mistake.
Click watched the captain’s door with longing. Jax paced the deck like a nervous tiger.
Magpie withdrew to her loft for a rest. Gabriella sat on the deck with her back against the captain’s quarters, wondering what she did wrong.
The captain had sent for Jayne. Out of the whole crew, she’d sent for Jayne.
At first, when Dot came rushing from the room, Gabriella thought it was a joke.
“We need Jayne,” Dot said. Jax ran to fetch the girl.
“Jayne?” Gabriella asked. She tried to get past the doctor. “Surely she wants to talk to—”
Dot pushed her away from the room and shook her head. “Let us take care of him, honey.
He needs Jayne right now.”
The words cut Gabriella like the dullest blade, slow and ragged, tearing a gaping hole in her aching heart.
Jax rushed back with the surprised tinker. Dot disappeared with her into the forbidden room.
That had been almost an hour ago. Gabriella was left to wonder why.
“Penny for your thoughts,” Click said. He sank to the deck beside her.
“Nothing,” Gabriella sulked. “I’m not thinking about anything.”
Click ran an arm around her shoulder before he whispered, “I’m worried about him too.”
She rested her head against him and sighed. She was all out of tears. Besides, she wasn’t sure she wanted to cry for him anymore. Not if he needed Jayne so badly.
“Why would he need Jayne?” she asked.
Click shrugged. “Who knows? He’s a mystery to all of us.”
She knew this was the truth, Atom was a stranger to them all, yet part of her felt like she had known him for years. “Yes, but why her? Jayne. Why would he ask for Jayne instead of... I mean out of all of us?”