48 Hours a Day - Chapter 185

Chapter 185

Chapter 185: Not For Sale

Wilton looked at Carina . “What is it? Don’t you want them?”

Carina simply bit her lip, not saying anything .

“It’s no problem . We’re all civilized people–we don’t force anyone to do business with us, miss . ” Wilton waved his hand, and immediately, one of his men grabbed a Gentle Breeze sailor, dragged him to a wooden pole, and tied the helpless man to it .

Wilton took one last bite from the apple and threw the core on the ground . He wiped his hand on his clothes before taking out his dagger again .

“What are you doing?” gasped Carina as she felt a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach .

“Did you know, ever since I was a kid, I’ve always been curious about the inner workings of the human body?” Wilton pried the sailor’s shirt open with his knife .

The poor freckled boy was only around sixteen to seventeen years of age . Carina remembered him . He was called Booker, and her uncle had recommended him some time go . The two worked together on the Gentle Breeze . Booker was a cheerful lad who always wore a pleasant smile on his face . Right now, however, he looked terrified, more so when the knife slithered down his chest .

“What do you want?!” Carina hissed .

Wilton smiled slyly, letting the blade linger on the boy’s abdomen . “As I said, I just want to make a deal that’s mutually consented . ”

Carina’s eyes looked like they were about to burst into flames, but there was nothing she could do–Wilton had two pirate ships and around 200 men while she was all alone . There was this one guy who reported this to her, but he was just a docker at the exchange of secondhand goods . Carina had no other choice but to agree to Wilton’s terms .

“How much do you want?” sighed Carina, eventually giving in .

“That’s more like it . If only you said this earlier, then there wouldn’t have been any problems, eh?” Wilton kept smiling as he put his knife away . Just when everyone thought that the danger had passed, Wilton suddenly swung around, and something in his hands flashed . Before anyone could react, he plunged the blade into Booker’s stomach!

Booker howled in pain, and a look of wild excitement flashed across Wilton’s demented face . Instead of pulling away, he shoved the knife upwards until finally, the boy’s stomach was sliced open, his guts spilling out like a crushed snail .

Never in her entire life had Carina ever witnessed such barbaric savagery . She instinctively covered her mouth, mind saturated with fear .

When she was younger, Carina had her fair share of pirate-related horror stories . The civilized world regarded these men who roamed the seas as beasts and thugs . When she came to Nassau, however, she realized that the truth couldn’t be further from the tales she heard . Pirates were humans too, and of course, they had feelings . In fact, most of them were very reasonable, where some were even smart and polished like Zhang Heng .

So, her impression of pirates was reversed entirely; that was until Wilton showed up and reignited the terrifying impression of pirates buried deep in her mind .

Fresh, warm blood dripped from the knife and Wilton’s right arm . He stepped backward and tilted his head as if admiring his handiwork . “It’s fascinating . Did you know that even if a person’s stomach is cut open, they won’t die immediately?”

When Carina looked at him again, her demeanor had completely changed . She asked in a shaky voice, “Haven’t I already agreed?”

“Yeah, except for this one,” Wilton answered as he wiped the blood off the blade with a handkerchief . “This is not for sale . After all, other than making money, I have to find some way to have my fun, right?”

Wilton flashed his teeth at Carina . Next to him, Booker’s cries were getting weaker and weaker . Wilton’s soulless smile would make anyone’s blood run cold .

“Don’t worry . I won’t ask for an unreasonable price . Right now, a strapping black slave is worth five gold coins . I’ll sell these very experienced sailors to you for only ten gold coins . The captain is worth twofold . I think that’s a very fair price . Apart from the four of these here, there are also twenty-eight men on the ship . That makes thirty-two people in total . Oops… it’s now thirty-one . So, that’s a total of three hundred and twenty gold coins . ”

Carina tried to calm herself, but she could hear her voice trembling whenever she spoke . “I don’t have that much money on me right now . ”

“That’s going to be a problem,” smirked Wilton with a cocked eyebrow . “Tsk, tsk . I’ve given you an excellent price . I’m afraid I cannot do any better . But, if you really don’t have enough, you can consider buying half of them . I can present the goods to you for you to pick whichever you like . What do you think? It all sounds pretty good, right? You get to decide their fate, and the ones you select will be eternally grateful to you . As for those who remain…”

Wilton paused for a second . “They will hate you, of course . But nevermind that . I will help you solve this problem . Consider it a value-added service for the transaction . ”

“No, I want them all–not one less,” Carina insisted .

“Didn’t I make myself clear? Depending on how many coins you give me, that’s how many people you’ll get . There’s no room for bargaining here,” Wilton shook his head .

“I may not have that much money, but I have a piece of property in the colony . Give me some time; I will get you your money . ”

Carina felt wholly dejected and humiliated . Not only had her ship been so rudely snatched away from her, but one of her crew had been tortured and mauled before her eyes . Right now, she was forced to agree to the trade, and even begged Wilton to give her time to amass the ransom .

Wilton rubbed his chin as he considered Carina’s offer . After a while, he walked up to her, used his knife to pick up a lock of her hair, and leaned in to sniff it .

Carina felt goosebumps all over her body . After what he did to Booker, who knew what the madman would do next . Carina stayed as still as she could, eyes closed and praying that the ordeal would be over soon .

After half a minute, his demonish voice echoed in her ears, “It’s our first time here, and we are not very familiar with this place . It just so happens that we need a guide . How about this, you become our guide, and I will agree to your request . ”

“Who do you think I am?!” Carina’s eyes flew open, shocked, and outraged . “A prostitute from one of those brothels?!!”

“It doesn’t matter . A virgin comes with its own advantage . If you serve us well enough, who knows, I might even return that cargo ship of yours . ”

Carina was shaking even more violently now, unable to tell if it was from her anger or fear .

Just as she was about to give up all hope, a familiar came from behind Wilton .

“I don’t think she likes having strangers being so close to her . ”