Original X-roads-2003

    Most of the crew left half their pay at the casino, but the rooms at the inn were always free to the crew. Some of the older crew stayed on the ship. Other crew had wives who worked at the inn or the laundry. They went home to their families and enjoyed a different life. Not all of her crew were bloodthirsty blights on society. A lot were just men with no where else to turn.
    When you became to old to serve on the crew, you moved to the islands to protect the treasure. It was a never ending job, with employment for life. Wether your retirement came from old age or the end of a blade. It wasn’t that she didn’t let people out of service, they were free to leave at any time. It was the best racket in town, and everybody working for her knew it.
    The salt air rose up and engulfed Jamie. He and the other crew slept at Hatro Inn. He woke up and glanced at several of the new crew still sleeping off their drink on the floor.
    He smiled as he tiptoed around them.
    Last night he had watched a tax collector dance on a table. A farmer kissed an unknown barmaid for good luck in keeping his next drink down. The master at arms won twelve wrestling matches, then lost all his money to a dancer in the street outside the bar. He wished Jas was here to see all this, but he would relive them with her soon enough.
    Jamie knew all he had to do was find Mark. It shouldn’t be too hard to find out where he was. He was in a position where he would be traveling from port to port. Jamie stepped out on to the open street. The sea air rushed over him as a breeze blew past. He turned in the direction it was blowing to, and in front of his eyes was the town’s bazaar.