CHAPTER 21: [21] A SMILE AND A SKELETON KEY

The clerk returned with apologetic shoulders and nervous fidgeting fingers. His regulation cap sat slightly askew, as if he’d been running.

"I’m sorry, Ensign Rivers, but Captain Hardy is... well, he’s rather occupied at the moment." The young man’s voice cracked slightly. "There was an incident earlier today involving a red-haired individual who apparently disrespected the Captain’s name and..." He paused, cheeks reddening. "And inappropriately touched Lady Alyssa."

That lying bitch. Raven kept her expression perfectly neutral while internally cursing Alyssa Hardy’s name. Pierre had grabbed the spoiled brat’s wrist to stop her from hitting someone, not "inappropriately touched" her.

"Oh my." Raven’s voice took on just the right note of concern. "That sounds terrible. What am I supposed to do now? I’ve come all this way, and I don’t have anywhere to stay..."

The clerk’s Adam’s apple bobbed again. He glanced around the empty lobby, then back at her face, his gaze briefly dropping to where her uniform jacket stretched across her chest before snapping back up.

"Well, I... I suppose I could give you a tour of the facilities? Since it’s your first time here and all. Just until Captain Hardy is available."

Raven’s face lit up like he’d just offered her the moon. She stepped forward and wrapped her arms around him in an enthusiastic hug, pressing herself against his thin frame just long enough for his face to turn the color of a ripe tomato.

"Oh, thank you so much! You’re absolutely wonderful!"

The poor boy stood frozen, his hands hovering awkwardly in the air as if he wasn’t sure where to put them. When Raven finally stepped back, he looked like he might faint.

"I... uh... yes, well..." He rubbed the back of his head, disturbing his carefully combed brown hair. "We should probably start with the administrative wing?"

"Lead the way!" Raven beamed at him.

As soon as he turned around, her smile vanished. During the hug, her fingers had expertly searched his pockets, his belt, even the inside of his jacket. Nothing useful.

But this tour could work to her advantage. If she played it right, she might find a way into the prisoner cells. Mika’s father was down there somewhere, rotting away because he’d refused to hand over his boat to Princess Alyssa.

The clerk—his nameplate read "Seaman Apprentice Hoffman"—walked with the stiff gait of someone trying very hard to maintain military bearing while his brain was clearly elsewhere.

"This is the main administrative corridor," he said, gesturing at the pristine white walls lined with official portraits. "All the paperwork for the base operations goes through here. Forms, requisitions, personnel files..."

Raven nodded enthusiastically, asking just the right questions to keep him talking. She memorized the layout as they walked—which doors were locked, which offices had windows, where the security checkpoints were positioned.

"And this is the communications room," Hoffman continued, pointing to a heavy door with two guards standing at attention. "That’s where we coordinate with Naval Headquarters and other bases throughout the Dawn Sea."

"Fascinating!" Raven clasped her hands together. "The Navy really is so well organized. No wonder Captain Hardy has such an excellent reputation."

Hoffman puffed up slightly at the compliment. "The Captain runs a tight ship, that’s for sure. Very... particular about order and discipline."

They continued through the mess hall, the officers’ quarters, the armory (heavily guarded, naturally), and the medical bay. With each stop, Raven learned more about the base’s routines, its weak points, its schedule.

"Now, this area is a bit more... somber," Hoffman said as they descended a stone staircase. The air grew cooler and damper with each step. "The detention facilities."

Perfect.

The basement level was a stark contrast to the polished white corridors above. Stone walls wept with condensation, and the smell of unwashed bodies and despair hung in the air like a fog. A single guard sat at a wooden desk near the entrance, reading a tattered book by lamplight.

"Hoffman?" The guard looked up—a grizzled petty officer with gray stubble and tired eyes. "What brings you down to my lovely domain?"

"Just giving a tour to the new ensign," Hoffman replied. "Ensign Rivers, this is Petty Officer Kowalski. He manages our... guests."

Kowalski grunted and returned to his book. "Don’t take too long. This place gives me the creeps even during the day."

They walked past several empty cells before reaching the occupied section. Raven’s heart clenched when she saw them—maybe a dozen men in various states of health, all guilty of nothing more than standing up to the Hardy family’s tyranny.

"Most of them are here for minor infractions," Hoffman explained quietly. "Failure to pay taxes, speaking out against Naval authority, refusing to comply with requisition orders..."

One man near the back caught Raven’s attention. He had the weathered hands of a fisherman and kind eyes that reminded her of Mika. When he looked up at their passing, she saw the same gentle spirit that had made his daughter so eager to help strangers.

Mika’s father.

"How long do they typically stay?" Raven asked, keeping her voice carefully neutral.

"Depends on their crimes. And their willingness to... cooperate with Captain Hardy’s vision for the island."

The tour continued for another few minutes, but Raven had seen enough. When they climbed back up to the main level, she was already formulating plans.

"Well, that concludes the basic tour," Hoffman said, his confidence returning now that they were away from the depressing cells. "I should probably get back to the front desk in case—"

"Actually, Hoffman?" Kowalski’s voice echoed up the stairwell. "Can you hold things down here for a minute? All that coffee is catching up with me, if you know what I mean."

Hoffman sighed. "Of course, Petty Officer. Take your time."

The older man trudged up the stairs, pausing to hang a large ring of keys on a hook beside the desk. "Thanks, kid. Won’t be long."

Raven watched him disappear down the hallway, then glanced at the keys hanging there like a gift from the gods.

Jackpot.

She forced herself to wait, counting the seconds in her head. Hoffman stood near the desk, clearly uncomfortable with the responsibility but trying to look professional. The basement grew quiet except for the occasional cough or shuffle from the cells below.

Three minutes passed. Then five.

Just as Raven was about to make her move, a commotion erupted from somewhere above them. Shouting voices, running footsteps, the sound of doors slamming.

"RED-HAIRED MENACE SPOTTED IN SECTION C! ALL AVAILABLE PERSONNEL TO SECTION C!"

Hoffman’s head snapped up, his eyes wide. "That’s... that’s the guy they’re looking for!"

Right on time, Pierre.

Raven grabbed Hoffman’s arm, letting her eyes go wide with perfectly feigned terror. "Oh no! What if he comes down here? What if he tries to free the prisoners?"

"I... I should probably go help with the search," Hoffman said, but his voice carried uncertainty. "But I can’t leave you alone down here with dangerous criminals..."

"I’ll be fine," Raven said quickly. "I have basic combat training. And someone needs to guard the prisoners, right? What if this is all a distraction?"

The shouting from upstairs grew louder. More feet pounding through corridors, more voices calling out coordinates and search patterns.

Hoffman looked torn between duty and the obvious excitement happening above them. "I really should..."

"Go!" Raven gave him a small push toward the stairs. "I’ll watch things here until Petty Officer Kowalski gets back. If anything happens, I’ll scream loud enough to wake the dead."

That was all he needed to hear. Hoffman nodded curtly and rushed toward the stairs, his boots clattering against stone as he disappeared into the chaos above.

Raven waited until his footsteps faded completely, then moved to the desk. The keys felt heavy in her palm—dozens of them in different sizes and shapes, each one representing a locked door or cell in this place.

She glanced toward the cells where Mika’s father waited in the darkness, then at the stairs where Kowalski would eventually return.

Pierre’s distraction wouldn’t last forever. She had maybe ten minutes before someone came back down here, fifteen if she was lucky.

Time to see what other secrets Captain Hardy was keeping in his basement.