Lost at Sea Bk. 02 Ch. 27

Caine pulled on his trousers in a rush. He'd started moving before the pounding on the door had stopped, swearing under his breath the entire time. Tonya grabbed Caine's tunic off the floor just in time for him to snatch it out of her hands and start running down the stairs.

The two naked women just stood there, wide eyed and wondering what to do. Janie was Magistrate, so getting a visit from them wasn't unreasonable. All the yelling was making the young witch nervous though. "What do we do?' Tonya asked.

"We get dressed," Janie said, standing up and gathering her wits.

Tonya rifled through the pile of clothes they'd left on the bed. "Here's your schoolmarm skirt," she said, passing Janie her long pleated dress.

Janie scrambled into her skirt, wincing as the cuts on her back protested the bending and quick motions. "It is not a schoolmarm skirt. It's perfectly sensible."

"For a schoolmarm," Tonya agreed. She held Janie's blouse out and waited for her to finish with the buttons of her skirt.

"I don't have any bandages," Janie said. "If I put a blouse on, these cuts will ruin it."

Another round of pounding on the door echoed from downstairs, followed by Caine bellowing "Hold on," through the door.

"Yeah, he's already pissed. Sticking a shirt to all the wounds we just cleaned would tip him right off the edge." Tonya said, starting to paw through one of her many bags. "I have a halter you can wear, hold on."

Janie's expression wrinkled in confusion. "Like... for a horse?"

Tonya snorted. "No. Like a top without a back."

Janie's eyes widened. "Oh, I couldn't wear-"

"What do you want?!" they heard Caine snarl from downstairs.

"Here," Tonya said as she thrust a scrap of purple cloth into Janie's hands. "We don't have time for modesty. Tie the narrow part around your neck, and I'll do the rest."

"OPEN THE DOOR IN THE NAME OF THE HOLY INQUISITION," the voice boomed again from outside.

Tonya went white. "Fuck."

Janie's heart started pounding, but she kept calm. "It's fine. They're here for me, not you."

"What if they think I'm a Witch!" Tonya stammered.

"You are a witch," Janie reminded her. "You're registered and sanctioned, don't worry."

"What if they think I'm a bad one now? Or an evoker?! I blew up Mary's! Twice!" Tonya said quickly. She was shaking, completely unable to remember what she'd been doing.

"You've done nothing wrong! If there is any doubts, I will vouch for you," Janie tried to reassure her. She turned around and started to loop the halter's ties around her neck. "Here, just help me into this thing, and I'll take care of it. You don't even need to come downstairs."

Tonya nodded shakily and reached for the lower strings. "They, uh-" she cleared her throat. Her mouth was suddenly very dry. "It wraps around your waist in back, and ties in front like an apron. Here." She wrapped them and passed them to Janie's front.

"Thank you," Janie said over her shoulder. "Stay up here."

She headed down the stairs as she finished tying the halter around her waist. Just as she rounded the corner around the bookcase in front of the stairs, she saw Caine finish unlatching Will's many locks. He left the last chain in place and opened the door a crack and glared at whoever was outside. "Think you could be any louder? I don't know if the whole damn island heard you or not."

"We are looking for Evangelina Castilian," came a woman's voice from outside. "We have good information that she is here. Open the door."

"You got no authority here," Caine snapped back. "Fuck off." He started to close the door, but whoever was outside blocked it with their foot.

"If this door shuts, two of us will stay here, and the third will return with as many soldiers as it takes to get inside," the woman threatened.

"You do that," Caine said, clearly unimpressed.

"Please," another voice said. "We have no quarrel with you. We only want to speak with Acolyte Castilian about William Sterling."

"Will Sterling ain't here," Caine said. "We don't know where he is. Fuck off."

"Let them in," Janie said calmly.

Caine glanced over his shoulder, his expression surprised and concerned. "Bad idea. They just-"

"Would you rather I spoke with them outside?" Janie asked archly.

Caine sighed and turned back to the crack in the door. "She says she'll talk to you. Move your fucking hoof."

After a moment, the boot moved. Caine shut the door, unchained it, and opened it again just enough for their visitors to enter.

Two women in ornate magistrate robes, and a man in fearsome looking gold and red armor came into the lighthouse. Caine quickly shut the door behind them, secured the chain and started reaching for the latches.

The man in the armor quickly turned and took hold of the door handle, pulling it open again before Caine could throw the first latch. The chain caught, and the two men locked eyes.

"I can't have you locking us inside," the armored man said.

"I couldn't give a shit less," Caine said flatly.

"Hector," one of the robes women said calmly.

"Caine," Janie said in a nearly identical tone.

"What could possibly be so important that so many locks are needed to protect the door to a broken down lighthouse?" the second robed woman demanded. "All this defiance hardly seems worth the effort."

"Yeah, it's almost like there's people we want to keep out, isn't it?" Caine said venomously. "Now move your fucking hand."

The armored man glanced at the pair of women. The one in white-trimmed robes nodded, and the golden soldier let go of the door. Caine glanced outside, then started locking the lighthouse down as quickly as he could.

"I feel like there's been some kind of misunderstanding," Janie said gently.

"You are Evangelina Castilian?" the woman in red trimmed robes asked, looking Janie up and down like a hawk and raising an eyebrow doubtfully.

There was something in the way she did it that set Janie's teeth on edge. "I am," she answered.

"We were told you were an acolyte," the Inquisitor in red continued.

Janie hesitated, but nodded after a moment. "I am."

The sister in red trimmed robes looked Janie over slowly, pursing her lips in judgement. "I did not realize your local sect abandoned traditional robes in favor of harlotry," she said after a moment. Her eyes lingered on the thin halter that did nothing to cover her midriff and barely contained her breasts.

There it was. Janie had recognized that barely-hidden contempt as soon as the Sister had seen at her. When the Inquisitors had announced themselves, her first instinct had been to be helpful, but now all the doubts and frustrations Janie had about the church came rushing forth in her mind. If they were looking for Evangelina, that's who they would get.

The change in her demeanor was instant. The well-practiced professional demeanor Will had jokingly referred to as 'The Battleaxe' snapped into place, turning her eyes to flint. She said nothing. She didn't need to. Her flat expression and slowly lifting eyebrow expressed how she felt about the Sister's question with perfect clarity. The silence hung in the air like a headsman's blade.

The Sister in white cleared her throat, hoping to pull attention away from her partner and diffuse the tension. It didn't work. The two continued to stare at each other. The Sister in white looked pained. "My partner isn't known for her diplomacy, but her curiosity is understandable. You certainly aren't dressed in a manner becoming an acolyte. It raises doubts about your identity."

Evangelina slowly started turning around, but turned her neck to keep her gaze locked on the Sister in red. Both the Sisters gasped.

Sister in white raised a hand to her mouth. "What happened?"

Evangelina turned to face them again. "I fell into a great deal of glass. I was in the middle of having my bandages changed when you arrived, so my clothing options were limited," she said tersely. "Now then, why is the Holy Inquisition concerned about my employer?"

"We'll be asking the questions," the sister in red-trimmed robes said flatly.

"Fuck that," Caine said as he finished the last latch. "You don't get to barge into people's homes and demand answers. This isn't the mainland."

"Acolyte Castillian is a member of the Holy Magistrate, and has sworn an oath to her Order to adhere to the Warden's Doctrine," the sister in red said sternly. "That includes Inquisitorial purview."

Evangelina shook her head firmly. "I am afraid you are mistaken."

"How so?" the sister in white asked, surprised.

"I passed my Acolyte testing, but I have not yet sworn," she explained. Her stony mask remained in place, but inside she was surprised at herself. It had never occurred to her that the pesona she'd created for the brothel was built so much from the professional demeanor she'd practiced as Will's assistant. Without the complexities of maintaining her anonymity and dealing with such a sexually charged atmosphere, she found it shockingly easy to be Evangelina.

"Well that is irregular," the red Sister said disdainfully.

"It is," Evangelina agreed. "I am in an irregular situation, and the Prelate has been gracious enough to grant me time to sort it out before I make my decision."

"How kind of her," the Sister in white said, trying to be reassuring amid all the tension.

"Given the irregularity of the situation, it is important to your investigation that understand I am under no obligation to answer or cooperate. I am choosing to," Evangelina explained. "I am, of course, predisposed towards courtesy to any agent of the Church, but I would prefer that courtesy I am extending be reciprocated. Please. I would very much like to know what is going on."

Caine gave her an approving half-smile and leaned against the door.

The Sister in red closed her eyes in frustration. The sister in white put a hand on her arm to calm her and took a step towards the formidable acolyte. "I am Sister Mercy of the Order of the Chalice. This is Sister Victoria of the Order of the Hammer. Our guardian is Sir Hector, of the Imperial Centurions."

Caine snorted derisively.

The trio of inquisitors looked at him with various expressions of disapproval and confusion on their faces. Hector kept watching him, but the others went back to their conversation with Janie.

"We are looking for information regarding William Sterling's curse," Sister Mercy explained.

"Oh, I see," Evangelina said, relaxing slightly. Her straight and rigid posture did not change, but the flint left her eyes. "Did you speak with Prelate Alexandra already?"

"Yes," Victoria said with a nod. "She was the one who told us you were the person to speak to."

"Of fucking course," Caine muttered, looking pained.

Sister Victoria rounded on Caine. "You are not needed for this conversation, and are lucky we let you stay at all. Keep your tongue civil or leave."

Caine laughed. "Didn't you just show up uninvited and call the person you came to talk to a harlot?"

"Your interruptions are hindering an Inquisitorial investigation. If you persist, you will be removed," Sister Victoria said angrily.

"You two are fucking terrible at this," Caine chuckled. Sir Hector began to move, but Sister Mercy held up a hand. The Centurion stopped.

"Are you finished?" Sister Victoria asked Caine.

He sarcastically gestured for them to continue.

"Can you help us?' Sister Mercy asked Evangelina, ignoring the small battle of wills happening between her partner and the disheveled man guarding the door.

"Everything I know about Mister Sterling's curse is in my reports in the Archives," Evangelina said. "If you have read them, you know as much as I do."

"We've read them," Sister Victoria said, turning back from glaring at Caine. "The last one is dated more than six months ago. A short annual report saying little."

"There had not been any new developments until just recently," Evangelina explained. "Circumstances have prevented me from filing new reports."

"So you do have new information." Victoria said excitedly.

Sister Mercy looked towards the door. "These circumstances are regarding why you are locking yourself inside an old lighthouse?"

"Indirectly, yes," Evangelina nodded. "I doubt that hearing the tale will help your investigation into the nature of Mister Sterling's curse. It did not help me."

"You are not an Inquisitor," Sister Victoria said pointedly.

"We'd like to hear it regardless," Sister Mercy said with a frustrated sidelong look towards her partner.

Evangelina let out a breath that let the Inquisitors know she was humoring them, but not happy about doing so. "Are you familiar with the Teach family?'

"Somewhat," Mercy said.

"They call themselves merchants, but they're actually a pirate fleet loosely organized by familial ties. Their patriarch lives here. If rumors are to be believed, he has been in ailing health for years. His family is vying for power among themselves. The shifting power dynamics among the criminal element are destabilizing the region, which is why finishing Fort Deliverance has become such a high priority," Victoria said quickly. She was clearly eager to get on with the answers she sought.

"Yes. A short time ago they kidnapped me," Evangelina said bluntly.

Victoria looked shocked at that. Compassion seeped through her fierce demeanor. Mercy clasped both her hands together in front of her chest. "That's dreadful!"

"The culmination of that experience was a standoff on the docks. The Teach gang was threatening to kill me, but the Prelate sent in soldiers. I was spared because the Teach gang did not want to risk open war with the Magistrate," Evangelina continued.

"Smart of them," Victoria said.

"So why are you here, and not at the Fort where you can be better protected?" Mercy asked.

"At the time, the Teach gang was disorganized. I was captured by one crew. Their leader may have been ignoring the Old Man's orders. In the aftermath of the standoff, the Teach gang has become more unified. The Magistrate's efforts to protect me had the consequence of escalating the conflict," Evangelina explained. "After being publicly embarrassed, they have become far more volatile. I am aware of two more Teach ships that have arrived recently. They are still looking for me, though I suspect their true goal is a show of force against the Magistrate."

"Oh no," Victoria groaned, looking pained as she realized the extent of the problem.

"I don't understand," Mercy said, confused.

"The new Fort isn't capable of repelling a coordinated assault from a whole pirate fleet. They don't have enough soldiers to control the harbor, and a single gunship off shore could ruin years of work."

Mercy's face grew slowly despondent as the implications set it. "So the Prelate is keeping you in exile. If she protects you, she gives them a target. It becomes a siege."

"She offered to protect me, even knowing what it may cause," Evangelina corrected her. "I declined. Going to Fort Deliverance would trap me there. My best option is to get off the island."

"Brave," Mercy said quietly.

"Even for pirates, this seems excessive for one woman. What did you do to make them so angry?" Victoria asked.

"Nothing," Evangelina said simply. "Mister Sterling was involved in a fight that badly injured the man who kidnapped me. They want revenge, and learned that I matter to him."

"Of course," Victoria sighed as a piece of the puzzle snapped into place. "It comes back to Sterling."

"I do not think my situation can be credibly connected to Mister Sterling's curse," Janie disagreed.

"We have reason to suspect his curse has a much broader effect than you originally surmised," Sister Victoria said firmly. "We are trying to establish a pattern, and your situation fits."

"How?" Janie asked, confused and defensive.

"The escalation of the conflict," Sister Victoria explained.

"This is Prince's Cove," Janie said doubtfully. "Conflicts happen every day."

"And Sterling makes them worse," Sister Victoria said firmly. "He is a spark who seems drawn to powderkegs. It's possible his mere presence creates them."

Janie's skepticism was plain on her face. "Mister Sterling has a fierce aversion to conflict. That's why he lives like a hermit."

"She's right," Caine added from the door. "Will won't even argue unless he's cornered into it."

Sister Victoria glared over her shoulder at Caine, warning him with her eyes.

"The full details of the pattern are still emerging, but your story does fit, Acolyte Castilian. Though, I can see how everything you've been through recently would make filing a report difficult," Sister Mercy said with a sympathetic smile.

"If you can help us, perhaps we can help you," Victoria offered.

"I would welcome it, but I will not do anything that puts Mister Sterling at risk," Evangelina said. "You'll need to more clearly explain the nature of your investigation."

Victoria looked frustrated. Mercy pursed her lips and thought for a moment. "We suspect that his curse may be demonic."

"That was investigated when he submitted himself to an Exorcism. Twice," Evangelina said with a shake of his head.

"So we've read," Mercy continued. "We think further scrutiny is necessary."

"We want to know where it came from," Victoria butted in. "If the reports we've read are correct, it is unlike any ever studied before. Subtle, powerful, unbreakable. Even if it isn't demonic in nature, it may be demonic in origin."

"I fail to see the difference," Evangelina said flatly.

"We think it came from a place of power," Mercy said slowly. "Curses are often left as defenses. The strength of the curse generally correlates to the potency of whatever the site is for."

"If that place is sealing away something unholy, the Magistrate needs to find it before anyone else does," Victoria finished.

"I see," Evangelina said, narrowing her eyes in thought. "I want your word, you'll do no harm to him."

"We cannot give that," Victoria said firmly. "If his curse is a force of evil, it must be destroyed. That may require harming him."

"Oh, we're at step two already?" Caine muttered.

"You were told to be silent," Sister Victoria snapped, whirling to face Caine.

"Even if the nature of Mister Sterling's curse is evil, he is not. I will not be party to any action that isn't intended to protect him," Evangelina said. "If you cannot make that promise, this conversation is over."

Victoria's eyes hardened again, but Mercy held up a hand diplomatically. "We can promise that we will do everything in our power to end the curse without harming Mister Sterling."

"Make it Binding," Caine said from the door.

The Sisters' gaze swung to him in tandem, matched expressions of surprise on their faces.

"How do you know about that?" Mercy asked.

"It's not a fucking secret. You know how to do it?" Caine asked.

"Of course," Victoria said, sounding a bit insulted. "That is a sacred rite of courtesy between sworn and anointed officers of the church. It's hardly appropriate regarding an acolyte and the subject of an inquisitorial investigation."

"Then leave," Caine shrugged. "We have more important shit to deal with."

"If you're going to hinder our investigation, perhaps we should leave you to the Teach gang?" Victoria said haughtily.

"There's three," Caine said. "Intimidation didn't work. Negotiating failed. We're at coercion now."

"You could just cooperate," Victoria said flatly.

"You just said you were willing to hurt our friend to find out where his curse came from," Caine reminded her. "Why would we want to help you?"

"Because the threat of this curse, and it's origins, are more important than the safety of one man!" Victoria said angrily.

"To you," Evangelina said sternly.

"If our concerns are correct, Mister Sterling's curse twists fate itself!" Mercy blurted out, hoping desperately they'd see reason. "It robs others of their own place in the divine plan, and makes them pawns in it's unnatural machinations!"