The Wrong Woman

The woman’s words were cut short because some of the pirates already had their rifles aimed at her.

The next instant, gunshots punctured the air, terrifying everyone. except for the pirates. They fired several times, and the woman collapsed in a mushy puddle of blood and flesh.

Screams filled the air. No one had the guts to move.

Terrified, Suzanne felt that her palms had turned clammy. Feeling Oliver’s hand on her shoulder, she gently pushed his hand away from

her.

“Don’t move,” Oliver said under his breath, his tone anxious.

Gingerly, Suzanne raised her eyes to look at the pirate who spoke.

Just like the other pirates, he wore a mask. He was pacing around as he looked carefully at all of the antiques that were on display.

A moment later, he spoke slowly in Dorzanian. “The waters are mi Everything you have here belongs to me now. Your money, jewe and antiques are all mine.”

He added, “But these aren’t that important. What I want is a gram hydronium. Who has it? Give it to me.”

Suzanne was even more shocked to hear the pirate say that he wanted hydronium.

“If you can give it to me, I’ll provide you a speedboat to get you out of here safely. If you can’t give me what I want, I’ll kill a person for every minute I spend here until all of you die.”

The longer Suzanne listened to him the more unsettled she became.

Just then, she heard Oliver mutter, “What’s he saying?”

She glanced at him in astonishment. How did he know that she could understand the pirate?

Judging from her expression, Oliver knew that she was confused, so he explained, “You have had a knack for languages since you were young. When you left me back then, you’d already grasped all the eight major languages.”

Suzanne was even more surprised after hearing his explanation.” When I was young? Eight languages?”

Stunned by her reply, Oliver took a moment to respond.

“You were twenty-two,” he told her. “You were quite young.”

Suzanne didn’t even know this fact about herself, yet Oliver knew it fairly well. She was about to sink into her thoughts when a gun was

fired.

The pirates actually kept to their word and started killing a person for every minute that passed. Screams filled the air once more.

After the third gunshot, Suzanne couldn’t take it anymore. In Dorzanian, she said, “Stop it. They don’t understand Dorzanian.”

The head of the pirates glanced around but couldn’t find the pers who spoke. He asked, “Oh, really? I thought Dorzanian was well- known. Well then, why don’t you stand up and help me translate wh I say?”

As Suzanne slowly stood up, Oliver grabbed her hand to stop her from doing so out of fear that her life might be in danger. However, she yanked her hand away from him.

The moment she stood up, the head of the pirates was taken by surprise by her beauty. The smile under his mask was rather

intriguing as he said, “Ah, it’s a sensible woman with courage and beauty.”

He rested the gun against his shoulder and stood in a pose that he deemed would make him appear more suave. “Hey, pretty, translate what I just said to them. If you do a good job at it and help me get the hydronium I want, I can spare your life.”

Suzanne glanced around. She saw the corpses lying on the ground in pools of blood amidst the crowd. The people crouched, their bodies trembling with fear. Some covered their hands over their mouths as they sobbed in horror at the bloody sight.

It was both gruesome and chaotic.

Suzanne mustered the courage to come up with words of comfort. Don’t be afraid. Don’t move. They’re pirates, and they want to find…

Her voice trailed off when she noticed the shadows stealthily approaching several pirates from behind them. Those shadows were armed with daggers. Judging from their posture, they seemed like professional fighters.

In the blink of an eye, a fighter appeared behind each and every pir standing in the crowd. Their daggers swiftly sliced the pirates’ throats, ending them all for good.

All those pirates fell to the ground instantly.

The only pirate left standing was the head of the pirates. Oblivious

it all, he snapped at Suzanne for being silent.

“Why did you stop?” Content (C) Nôv/elDra/ma.Org.