Chapter 2

R

oberto, one of the most famous shipbuilders, set his foot on the ship. "Welcome on board, Signore Giannani!" a brown-capped man at the end of the plank murmured. "I'm captain Verunja." Roberto welcomed him with a short nod. "It's windy. The birds are flying high today. A good sign! Even for this strange ship." "Strange?" Roberto objected. This captain probably didn't know who stood in front of him! Roberto hated wind. But he hated somebody speaking bad about his ships even more!

When this happened, the knob on the point of his nose always got very red. The captain's turquoise eyes were already looking at it, so he decided to ignore the cheeky remark of the captain and his dirty smile. Of course, he could have let hang him on the mast. But not today! He took a closer look at the old sea dog: The captain had a big red lousy beard and the typical blue uniform of a seaman. Only his worn-out shoes were made out of elk leather. He went down to the lower deck without saying one more word.

After he was past the snoring crew's cabins, he stood in front of his cabin. It was pitch-dark. He entered. The door creaked. Opaque sunlight shone through the gaps of the planks. Suddenly he balked: An iron candlestick lay fallen on the ground. Scary! Everything seemed in disarray! And there was more! On his bed there lolled a long sleepy mane of black hair! Panther's hair. Shiny!

"Morning, daddy!" a young mezzo-soprano voice whispered from somewhere out of the bed sheet.

"Who are you and what are you doing in my bed?"

"YOUR bed? It was free as I found it!"

That was too bold! Who was this...thing under his bed sheet? Suddenly, it throw away the sheet. A cloud of expensive rose perfume streamed towards him and silenced his mouth. It was a girl! Hardly 20 years old. It wore narrow long, brown leather pants, a cotton-white, paper-thin night dress over her orange-breasts and had freckles on her face like the stars of a galaxy. The freckles made one step forward, kiss-close to his face, and said,

"When I climbed the railing yesterday, the ship was abandoned-and all the cabins too! So I decided that nobody wants this small shippy! It's mine!"

"Small shippy?"

Roberto Giannani's nose started to glow. It was just about to burst! But the young lady anticipated him.

"By the way, I'm Ama, the daughter of the city governor. Half of the city guard is searching for me! I ran away out of our Abitazione and I'm seeking adventures! I hope you'll help me with this, Sweetheart! Now, don't stand around stupid like a stonebeetle. Let's move on deck and move off this port! Pronto!"

The cat had Roberto's tongue. Like a wet dog, he trotted behind this girl who only had a nice smelling see-through curtain around her breasts and ending at her hips. What had happened to him?

All the low ranks and sailors were looking at her with their slobbery mouths opened wide. She commanded the first mate where to go. For God's sake! Roberto had to save her from this rotten pack of hounds! Someone had already touched her! So he roughly took her peach arm and went below again. In the next moment he felt himself pressed against a timber and kissed intimately...