13.
The driver took them to a small airport in a heavy silence. Oliver was still furious about Nola figuring out his destination. He had forgotten how smart and clever she was. He hoped he would be able to leave her behind but the air of determination on her face wasn't a good sign.
They stepped out of the car on the tarmac. Nola looked at the jet in awe, delighted to be travelling in such a manner. She figured cuisine and comfy seats, one last five stars time before the Hell Oliver had promised her.
But Oliver didn't board the plane, their luggage weren't transported inside the cargo hold. Instead, Nola saw him give an envelope to the pilot, shake his hand and put his pack in an old car waiting nearby.
« Oliver ? »
« Get in. »
She took her backpack from the driver, thanked him and followed Oliver. They saw the jet take off and took the road soon after. That was a move she hadn't envisioned. But she kept quiet, not wanting to give him a reason to ditch her. She turned on the on-board computer.
« Where to ? »
« The docks. Pier 6. »
Oliver smiled at Nola's surprise. But she just entered the coordinates without a word. Nola's mind started to work again. The jet had left without passengers but with an envelope obviously filled with cash. Bribing the pilot… to go in Europe with a fake manifest… so Oliver could pretend he was there when he wasn't. Meanwhile they would take a boat, and Nola was betting against luxury.
Oliver thought about what Nola had told him about her mom attempting suicide.
« You want to talk about her ? »
« I haven't talked about my mom for a long time. »
She looked at Oliver for a second, sighed and remembered.
« My parents always had trouble with me because of my oversensitive sense of smell. It made me fussy, I cried a lot. My father left when I was about three. The only thing I remember about him is his scent. It was sour, acid. I never saw him again. »
« What does your mom smell like ? »
« Apples. Not the green tart ones, but the yellow, sweet ones. Which I always found funny because she didn't like apples. After my father left, her scent started to change, but I didn't notice until later. When I was four, she got me a kitten and life became easier. She never drank, or took drugs, but she was depressive. She saw some shrinks who gave her pills, but little by little it only got worse. When I was sixteen, the black had taken over most of the yellow. One morning, something bothered me about her scent, but I couldn't put my finger on it. Like every day I took the bus to school. A mile down the road it hit me, I hadn't smelled the apples. The black had swallowed them. »
Nola paused, took a deep breath and continued.
« I made the driver stop the bus and I ran back home. She was lying down on her bed, already passed out. She had raided the medicine cabinet, swallowed pretty much everything, chased all that with bourbon. She had made sure to take everything as soon as I had left to be dead and gone by the time I got back. »
Oliver was appalled. His own mother had taken every possible action to protect him and his sister, even prepared an apocalypse, and he was with a woman that had been abandoned by hers.
« Did… Was she okay ? »
« That day ? Yes. I got to her in time. But she was sent to a mental institution. Her sister, my aunt Kelly took me in. She was a midwife, and she had given birth to wealthy heirs. Maybe even you. With her relations, I was able to get into Laughton Prep, where I met you. »
« She's still in the mental institution ? »
« No. She let herself die, a couple of years after. »
« And your aunt Kelly ? »
« Cancer took her three years ago. »
« I'm sorry, Nola. »
Oliver stayed silent for a while.
« I know what it's like to lose a parent. »
And he told her what he seldom talked about.
« Dad and I made it to a life raft, after the boat went down. I saw him shoot himself in the head so I could survive. »
They arrived at the docks without having said another word. A big grey freighter was moored in front of them and three men were waiting on the pier. Before exiting, Oliver filled another envelope with more cash and warned Nola.
« You let me do all the talking. »
« All right. »
Nola took her cane and followed him. The men looked like seasoned sailors, and smelled like grease and ocean. One of them greeted Oliver in some Slavic language, and Nola was surprised to hear him answer in the same. They showed each other their tattoos, some star Oliver had on the chest and the man, Nola figured it was the captain, on the forearm.
« There's a second passenger, so I've doubled the fee. »
« No need, she can pay in another way. »
The captain looked at her with lust and Nola was repulsed by his scent. Oliver took her by the arm and led her a few feet away.
« I can't let you come with me on that ship. It's too dangerous. »
« Like I told you, I can take care of myself. »
She turned and walked back to the captain, who was smiling widely. Oliver followed and stood by her.
« My friend gave you money, there's no other way I'm gonna pay for the journey. »
« Is that so ? »
« First, if you touch me, he's not gonna be happy about it, and you don't want to make him angry. »
« Oh, really ? »
« And second… »
Nola turned the head of her cane and unsheathed the top of the sword hidden in the stick.
« If you, or one of the men in your crew put a hand on me, I'll cut what's hanging and feed it to the fish. »
The captain stopped smiling, and the two sailors backed out.
« Is that clear ? »
Oliver tried not to show his stupefaction at Nola's behaviour. He looked stern and stared at the captain.
« Youri ? »
« It is clear. We leave in seven hours. »
« High tide is in two. We're not going anywhere. »
The captain looked like he had swallowed bad vodka. Oliver took the sailors to his car, loaded them with big plastic crates and they boarded the ship.
« Do you even know how to use this thing ? »
« Actually, I was hoping you could teach me. »
Oliver opened his mouth to answer and rubbed his forehead.
« You were bluffing ? »
« The secret to a good bluff is to believe you're not bluffing. »
He just shook his head in disbelief and walked back to the car with Nola. When she opened it to take her backpack, Nola noticed that along Oliver's rainforest scent, her wildflowers were present. In the past few weeks, she had built up some confidence in herself that was finally showing.
« We have time to go to a bank so I can give you back the money for my fare. »
« I'm a billionaire, I can afford to pay a couple thousand more. »
« That's not the point. »
Oliver sighed and thought he didn't need to be on Lian Yu to be in Hell.
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