Dear Olivia,

You are a complicated woman, my love. You are uncharted territory. There is no map of you -- I must write one myself. And what a difficult challenge that is proving to be.

I kissed you last night. I woke up in your arms. Yet, when I asked you if you would like to stay for breakfast, you pulled away and told me you'd forgotten -- The Fina is setting sail for Canada this afternoon.

I called Heath a few minutes ago. She says this voyage was completely impromptu and largely inadvisable. If I didn't know any better, Livia, I would say you're running away.

You left with so little production. All I got was a, "See you in a few weeks."

I don't want to see you in a few weeks, Preciosa. I want to see you now. I want to talk to you, but you aren't picking up the phone.

Maybe you just need a little time. That's okay with me, I just wish you would have told me. I just hope you aren't having second thoughts about us. We were meant to be together, I am sure of it.

Perhaps it's James. Maybe it's too soon. Oh, I don't know, Livia. There are too many "maybe"s. I can't figure you out.

Today, I will go shopping for crewmen. La Aceituna is all shined up and ready for her first voyage. I sigh to myself now, because we had planned to do this together. But alas, you are gone and I cannot wait for you.

The thing is, mi querida, if I though waiting would do me any good, I would wait until the end of time for you. I would wait for years, I would deprive myself of all other women for the rest of my life if it meant that for our final days, you would belong to me.

Ah, Olivia. How do you do this to me? I have never wanted anyone the way I want you, but I don't know if you feel the same. Tu me vuelves loco, Livia. You drive me crazy.

The thing is, I don't mind being crazy for you. Heath says you have me on a leash, and I can hardly disagree with her. If you asked me to sell my ship and join your crew, I would do it in a heartbeat. I almost already have, but then you would know. And you can't know, Livia, because I don't want to put that weight on your shoulders. If you don't love me, at least I can spare you the fact that I do.

       Te Extraño, Livi. I miss you.

                    -Robin ♥

XXX

Peter felt like a pirate.

He stood on the quarter deck in his bandanna and combat boots, watching Robin steer the ship while his men danced below. Night had fallen, and the pirates drank and sang below, illuminated by the starlight on the main deck.

"You should join them," Robin called. "You know what they say."

"What do they say?"

"The only difference between a sailor and a pirate is rum."

Peter raised his eyebrow. He'd never heard that before, but maybe it was a thing on the Seven Seas. "I'm thirteen," he reminded Robin.

"Right," he said. He let go of the wheel, turning to face Peter. He looked tired, but smiled. "We're in the same boat. A captain's got to stay sober."

"Did my aunt?"

Silence. Peter's words hung in the air, heavy as stone walls between them. Robin's eyes darkened. He turned away, back to the helm. Peter sighed, walking closer. In the darkness of the night, he could imagine Olivia standing on this very deck beside this same man, smiling at the stars.

"No one wants to talk about her," he said. "Even you. I thought you loved her."

Robin's eyes flashed. He leaned against the wheel as if knocked off balance by Peter's words. "Don't you ever," he growled, "doubt that I loved her."

Peter knew he should back off. He knew he should leave the quarter deck, and go join Amelia on the one hammock Robin had granted them to share. He knew he should close his eyes and block out the pirate sounds above, and think up a way to apologize to Robin in the morning without sounding too pathetic.

But instead he said, "If you loved her, why didn't you save her?"

That was when he got cold cocked.

XXX

Peter woke up in a dark room with one eye swollen shut. He blinked the other, trying to make out the outline of the place. The clothes on his body felt unfamiliar.

He realized that someone was holding his hand, but his head wouldn't rotate to the side enough for him see them. He lifted one finger, stroking the person's palm. Oh, he knew that hand. It was just Amelia.

"Hey," he said, his voice coming out raspy and barely audible. He cleared his throat. "Mel?"

Her hand closed around his. "Peter? Oh, good, you're awake."

The light flickered on, piercing his eyes. Squeezing them shut, he croaked, "God, that's bright. Can you turn it down?"

The lights came off again, and were reignited as a single weak flame in Amelia's other hand. She set the candle on the nightstand beside him, leaning toward Peter so that he could see her face. In the dim light, she looked ghoulish and red.

"How long have I been out?" He asked.

She thought for a second. "Not more than a few hours. Everyone's asleep."

Looking more closely at her face, Peter saw her eyelids drooping, her eyes puffy and rimmed with red. He wondered if she'd been crying, or if she was just tired. "You didn't have to stay awake," he told her. "I feel bad. You should get some sleep."

Amelia shrugged. She let go of his hand, turning away so that he couldn't see her anymore. "Peter?"

"Yeah?"

"What'd you do to make him so mad?" She asked. "Robin, I mean. He went berserk on you, just out of the blue. Did you say something?"

Peter sighed, blinking at the wooden ceiling. It was covered in wooden beams, reminding him of a cage of ribs. He was trapped inside the belly of the beast, broken and at the mercy of its digestive system.

"Peter?"

He turned his head, wincing at the pain in his neck. Amelia frowned at him, hazel eyes searching his. He wondered if she missed home yet.

"It was my fault," he said. "I antagonized him."

"Yeah, but just 'cause you're antagonized is no reason to attack a kid," Amelia pouted. "Like, he could have killed you if Heather didn't pull him away."

Peter returned her frown. "He wouldn't have killed me, Mel. We can trust him, I swear. I was just being a jerk, that's all. Anyone would have flipped out."

"What'd you say?"

"I asked why he didn't save her." They sat in silence for a moment. Peter closed his eyes so he wouldn't have to see her reaction.

Amelia let out a long breath. "It's hard to love someone you can't save," she said.

"What are you talking about?"

She gave him a weary smile. "Get some sleep. You're going to need it."