Ethereal

Jealousy and Liquor

I had never been to a tavern before, and whatever I had expected it be like was nowhere near the real deal.

Beyond the marketplace there was an open courtyard with long, sun bleached tree logs set out around metal barrels with contents that had been set aflame to help light up the open area once the sun set and the darkness closed in.

Men and women alike either crowded around the barrels or were stayed close to a cloth tent where a group of people rushed back and forth pouring drinks into clay cups, taking coins and accepting food in exchange for the liquor.

I spotted Stew waving at me from the far side of the courtyard, sitting next to Carlo on a log as they stared into the fire. The rest of the crew were scattered around the courtyard. Some of them were drinking heavily, their voices loud bellows that mixed in with the other drunk Camper’s as they began their nights early. Others proved to be more reserved, like Stew and Carlo, and lingered on the edges of the courtyard, speaking only to people they already knew.

“How was ya day of explorin’?” Stew asked once I sat down.

I shrugged, trying not to let my disappointment and frustration show as I was no closer to finding my family. There was also the matter of Jax and the child he was with, and I couldn’t even begin to think about what all of that could mean. I couldn’t even sort out my own emotions – was I still upset with Jax? Had I forgiven him? Was I jealous of the idea of him having a secret lover here at Camp? I wanted to say yes to all of it.

“Camp is just as gross as I remember it.” I said finally after a moment of careful deliberation.

Stew laughed heartily, tilting his head back as he took a shot of something in his cup. I watched as his throat bobbed up and down as he swallowed, then he shook his head as though he were trying to rid the taste out of his mouth. He looked back at me, his eyes brighter than they were before, and offered me a cup. I shook my head and gave him a weak chuckle.

The Matrons had never allowed the orphanage to keep alcohol, besides a few wines that they used to cook with. When I was younger, there were rumors that the older girls would sneak out at night and go to one of the neighboring villages to drink and would return to the orphanage the next morning, slurring their words and tripping over their feet. I needed to stay sharp if I was going to find my family.

“Ah, come on now.” Stew said, holding out the cup again. I peered into the cup and saw it filled with a clear liquid that smelled like rubbing alcohol. I wrinkled my nose, and Stew laughed again.

“You don’t drink it for the smell, miss.” He said.

“You don’t drink it for the taste either,” said Carlo, tipping back his own drink as his eyes swiveled over to me. “just try a sip there, Nor, and he won’t bug you for the rest of the night. Unless they start playing music, then he’ll never leave you alone.” He groaned as though he had all too much experience in that area.

I looked from the clay cup to Stew’s expectant face, hesitating before taking the cup out of his hands. Stew hollered loudly in victory, drawing several pairs of eyes onto us. I tried not to pay attention.

Before I could chicken out and try to hand the drink back, I plugged my nose and threw my head backwards as I downed the shot of liquor. It sparked a trail of fire that started from the back of my throat and didn’t stop until it settled into my stomach, where the heat paused before slowly seeped through the rest of my body. I felt my muscles relax and my skin tingle from the rush – I was starting to understand why people drank this stuff.

“Atta girl!” Stew said, clapping me on the back so hard I nearly fell off the log. Carlo raised his cup to me as a salute before he swallowed another shot himself. The sun had set fully by now, making the firelight glow brightly in the air around us. There were enough barrels in the courtyard to make out the faces of the crew even from a distance.

Stew and Carlo got up from the log to buy another bottle of gin and tonic when Eli suddenly materialized in front of me, holding out a small bundle of leather in his hand.

“Your reward fee,” he said. I grabbed the bag gingerly out of his hand, as though he was going to try and snatch it back at any moment.

“Thanks,” I said. Opening the bag, I counted six gold Citadel coins. True, it wasn’t much, but this was enough to feed a handful of girls for a week back at the orphanage. I’m sure it would go a long way here for me in the Camp.

“Try not to spend it in one place.” Eli said, “And keep it hidden beneath your jacket. People have killed my sailors before over a few coins.”

His words made my hairs stand up on end. For a split second I wished I still had Stew’s drink in my hand so I could chase the feeling away with the burn of the liquor. I gave Eli a nod in understanding, and he walked off into the night, not hanging around long enough to buy himself a drink.

“Is anyone sitting here?”

I looked up, my heart skipping a beat as I caught the sight of wavy blonde hair in the firelight. Looking more closely, my heart sank as I realized it wasn’t who I thought it was. This boy was a stranger, his blonde hair much longer than Jax’s and his skin didn’t have the same bronze glow. He couldn’t have been a few years older than me, but the dark shadows under his eyes and the almost sickly color of his skin made him look much older. His breath reeked of stale liquor and old bread.

“Yes, actually, it is.” I said, my voice hard. There was no way this mess was going to sit down next to me.

“Oh, okay.” he said, and sat down next to me.

Great, I thought to myself. What do I do now?

“So,” he breathed, trying to lower his voice an octave so he sounded more seductive than he really did. The only thing it did was make him sound like an idiot. “do you come here often?” He leaned in far too close to my liking, causing me to scoot down the log. He smiled at me, his crooked teeth gleamed in the light as he edged himself closer to me each time I tried moving farther away. He thought this was a game – and I was the prize.

I felt my disgust building up behind my throat, threatening to puke up the shot of liquor.

“No.” I said. Why was I even bothering to respond? Where was Stew and Carlo? Why were they taking so long?

I looked over my shoulder to search for them, but the crowd of people hovering around the liquor stand proved to be too thick to see them through. A clammy hand inched its way from my wrist and up my arm, resting over my shoulder as it brushed my hair back. The action could have been cute if this guy wasn’t drunk – and if he was Jax.

I snatched him by the wrist and flung him off me, my impatience growing by the minute. “Didn’t your mother ever teach you it’s not okay to touch someone without their consent?” I said, continuing to move further down the log. At this rate, I was going to end up in the mud if this guy didn’t get the hint and move on to some other poor girl soon.

“What?” he said, his eyes moving up and down my body. It was clear he wasn’t listening to a word I said. “Hey, how’s about we take this somewhere… lighter.”

“Lighter?”

“Quieter, I mean.”

“I think I’ll pass.”

“Aww, come on baby,” he said, reaching out and grabbing me by the front of the shirt. I was on the edge of the log by now, with the stranger close behind. Another minute and I would be up and out of my seat, hunting for Stew and Carlo. I just hoped he would be too drunk to follow.

“Get off me!” I said, my voice turning into a shrill shriek. I tried to push his face away, my nails digging into his rough skin for good measure. This only seemed to motivate him more, however, as he pulled me closer and forced his mouth against mine.

His hands let go of my shirt, opting to grab and feel whatever he could get his hands on. Rage poured over me like a bucket of ice water being thrown over my head, and just as I wrapped my hands around his neck to throttle him, the stranger was ripped from my grasp and thrown into the mud in front of me.

“Nor, are you okay?” Jax said, looking at me as he stood over the boy.

Instead of responding, I threw myself into the mud and began clawing at the stranger’s face. My nails left bloody gashes in their wake as I pushed his head deeper into the mud, raising my fists high over my head as I pounded him. I could dully hear someone calling my name from behind me, but I was too focused on making sure good old lover boy would remember me in a different way in the morning.

“Nor, I said that’s enough!” Jax grabbed me by the cuff of my shirt and yanked me backwards, his arms wrapping around my middle the moment I swung onto my feet and tried to lunge for the guy a second time.

The stranger groaned as he tried to pull himself up and out of the mud, a few people began stepping forward to help him up. My rage turned into a complete boiling rampage as I thrashed against Jax. Why were they helping him? Why help that piece of scum?

Those who had stepped forward to help him now hesitated, their eyes watching me carefully and then glanced at Jax, who nodded for them to go ahead. They scooped the boy out of the mud and carried him by the arms out of the courtyard and out of sight.

Jax let go of me once they had disappeared, raising his hands up in mock defense as I whipped around to face him.

“Why did you do that?” I said, seething my words. My temper was beginning to fade now that the stranger was gone and Jax had let me go. A small part of me wished that Jax had held on a little bit longer, long enough so I could smell the sea salt that hung off his clothes.

“You mean why did I pull that guy off you or why did I pull you off of him?” he said, raising an eyebrow.

“You think this is funny?” I said, bewildered.

“Not at all,” Jax said, “but another minute of you pushing his head into the mud and suffocating him the officials would have been called, and you would have been shot on sight.”

I rolled my eyes and looked away from him, suddenly unable to meet his eyes. He had saved me, once again. Would there ever come a time when I wasn’t the damsel in distress, and he would come riding to my rescue? It might sound romantic, having someone constantly fighting your battles, but after the fifth or sixth time it was really starting to get old. Not to mention that it only made me feel guilty once I remembered how I had yelled and screamed at him the night before.

“Did we miss anything?” Stew said as he and Carlo sat back down on the log behind us. Stew and Carlo took in my muddied state, their eyes widening with questions that I wasn’t in the mood to answer.

Instead, I grabbed the cup of liquor out of Stew’s hand and swallowed it, handing it back to him before I sprinted out of the courtyard.