Welcome to the unedited, exclusive short story. In case you missed it, here are links to parts 1, 2, and 3 below.
Last Time: Liana Tylor found that the pirates were the crew of her older brother, Ian. When all hope is lost, Ian promised he would never betray his family, and Liana trusted his word. But Ian is not honorable, and told his authority exactly where the passengers were hidden.
Oceans Far: “The Truth”
It took a moment for Liana to understand what had just happened. Her skin was cold, and her heart thudded wildly. But with her brother Ian distracted with the first mate, she quickly turned and ran, vanishing into the hold before anyone even had a chance to stop her. She heard Ian’s angry voice as he started after her, but she then made her way to one side of the hold where the trapdoor to the passengers was hidden. She had to protect them somehow. But Ian barreled down at her, his sword drawn and anger pure on his face. “Listen to me, girl, show me the entrance to where the passengers are, or I will cut you down right here!” His blade was inches from her neck. Carefully Liana backed up and was forced to sit on the very crates that hid the secret space below. “I’d rather die,” she muttered. With those words she noticed a pinkie sized knothole between the floorboards, allowing just a shimmer from someone’s lantern to shine up. She covered it with her foot. “Tell me,” he growled. He used his sword to push her to her knees on the ground. Liana carefully kept the hole covered. “Never.” “You really were better as a pirate, you know that?” She tried to block his words out, but it was no use. “You try to pretend your family’s past didn’t exist. You probably tell people that your mother and brother died when you were young, is that it? No. The cruel truth is that she died a pirate’s death. And as for me, I’m still here. And you can’t run from our past forever. I fought it for a long time. But eventually, we all break. And you will again.”
Liana? A pirate? Is it true? Find out in the next mini segment of Oceans Far, “The Brave”, the fifth and final mini segment written up to date. Make sure to subscribe so you don’t miss it!