His Devious Rule

Alvin furrowed realizing he scared her more with his words. He never coaxed anybody and didn't know what he should say to make her relax.

Just then, he heard her mumbling to herself, "I shouldn't be afraid." Then he noticed she was repeating it to herself without saying it out loud.

'She shouldn't be afraid!?' She was obviously scared to her wits. He wouldn't have been surprised if she had fainted in shock. Not everyone could handle watching such a terrifying view.

He held her arm and pulled her closer. Brushing her hair away, he cupped her face and lifted her head to look at him, "It's alright to be afraid."

She instantly retorted, "No." Fear takes away rational thinking and level-headedness. One who has to protect, couldn't afford to fall weak due to fear.

How to calm her down? He wasn't getting it. He tried to explain the situation and that scared her. He tried to tell her she doesn't have to hide her fear but she wasn't in a state to accept it.

Seeing her shoulders jerk at the other sonorous thunder, he pulled her to his embrace. She had seen and experienced the rain on the land, any normal person would be terrified by this downpour which would seem like the world was ending.

Standing on her knees, Anya held his shoulders when he hugged her. She tried to get away but gently patted her back and his assuring voice sounded a little hesitant, reluctant due to unsure how his words might affect her.

Not just the Harper's men and their plans, even nature was against them. But she had forgotten she wasn't fighting alone. "I am with you. I won't let anything happen to you." He knows best how it feels to struggle alone and how a little support could make one strong.

He sensed her stop struggling to get away from him. He carefully added, "Nothing will happen as you are imagining."

Anya breathed in through her mouth and said, hurting her dry throat, "That- That wave was so massive." She tried to say they will drown with the ship if they don't get out of the ship on time.

"Did anything happen to the ship?" He patiently asked as if talking with a frightened child.

Anya recalled there is an emergency alarm that will ring if the ship was in danger. That didn't ring so the ship was in general condition. "No."

"Then what are you afraid of?" He hoped she could understand she doesn't have to be afraid of being drowned.

However, Anya didn't think as he had hoped. She just responded to the question, "If something happens to me, there is no one to look after my parents and my baby... Krystie will help them, but that isn't the same."

When they left on this mission, she knew her life would be in danger but she had the confidence to handle the people, not the huge ocean waves. She never expected the ocean to scare her more than the disgusting people.

Or was she so unlucky to witness the huge wave?

She should have just slept without wandering in the cabin. She unawarely moved her hands on his back but came to her senses before she hugged him.

Alvin: "..."

And he assumed she was afraid of dying. He let go of her and made her sit. She was a lot calmer but fear was evident in her eyes. One who was maintaining distance didn't bother getting away from him.

"Have you been on such ship trips?" Because he was too calm as if what she was experiencing was nothing in front of what he had been through.

Alvin realized speaking could keep her distracted from the rough sailing, waves, and rain. So he chose to answer. "In the beginning, we found a huge rock figurine. We were very new and I had only a few subordinates." Hence he had personally traveled on a cargo ship to keep an eye on it.

Anya tilted her head. Since he experienced it before, how could his first experience be? She asked, "Were you scared?"

Was he scared? He wasn't sure. He was prepared to accept fate. "I thought I wouldn't see the sunrise."

"Oh…" She felt like she was overreacting and a scaredy-cat.

Alvin continued, gently rubbing her head, "Because I was alone." Unlike her who had a little son and loving parents. "So it's alright to be afraid sometimes."

Not just afraid, she felt torn hearing him. She couldn't help him bring his family close. She and her son couldn't be his family. She could only wish him to have someone he could love, call her a family and feel the urge to go home being safe and sound.

Her head dropped with mixed feelings. 'Anya Owen, don't think anything stupid.' Five years she had lived away from him. She didn't want these few days to destroy all her efforts.

Alvin silently accompanied her when she just sat, holding his sleeves while lost in her thoughts. He itched to lift her face and see her expression but controlled.

Seeing her hand covered in gooseflesh, he tried to stand to help her to bed but Anya pulled him down immediately without letting go of his shirt. "Don't stand." Her hoarse voice sounded.

He looked at her face gaining color, nevertheless her eyes were red and terrified and her breathing uneven. "You will catch a cold if you keep sitting here." He patiently explained, "I will help you to get on the bed."

Anya licked her lips, wet her throat by swallowing. She had dropped the coat she picked from the closet. She glanced at the glass wall but Alvin swiftly held her chin and pulled her eyes on him. He didn't want to take the chance of lightning brightening outside and Anya catching another big wave.

Anya repeated his words, "You said rain will stop soon." She wasn't so weak that she would catch a cold by sitting on the floor for a few minutes.

Alvin: "..."

She turns so smart sometimes that he will be amazed. Now, she was such a goofball that he was speechless. He just said that to calm her down. He didn't expect her to take the words.

Alvin forced himself to stay cool and assured her, "I won't fall. I won't let you fall, let me help you to bed. Alright?" Without waiting for her response, he swiftly took action by wrapping his arm around her waist.

Sitting on the bed, Anya felt like she was on a swing. "I won't bring my son on a cruise vacation." She mumbled to herself.

Looks like she will return home with bad experiences from this unexpected vacation.

Alvin, who fetched the comforter, laughed at her and was also a bit envious of her son. Her life just revolved around her son and his mother had gone months to years without seeing him. Shaking off his thoughts, he sat in front of her and wrapped her well in the comforter.

Anya snorted, hearing him laugh at her. She couldn't understand the man who gets annoyed with others' actions and reactions, laughs and talks casually with her. Contemplating, She patted next to her.

"No. You will see outside." He was blocking her view.

"Put the blindfolds on." She wasn't going to get off the bed and fall on her face.

Alvin couldn't believe she was ordering him to do the work. He pulled her cheeks until she whined. Then he got off the bed, carefully balancing himself. He pulled the blindfolds and sat next to her.

"Sleep." She again ordered.

He was sure she would sit all night, staring at the blindfolds and imagining the enormous waves swallowing the ship. So he asked, "Are you planning to take advantage of me?"

Anya was still calming down. Was it necessary to tease her now? "Why? Are you scared?" She provoked him instead.

"What if you turned out to be a pervert? I can't take risks." He didn't want to sleep while she would sit, scared to even move.

'Pervert?' Anya tried hard to think of any perverted things she could do. Just when she could conclude that she wasn't a pervert, she recalled Alvin naked in her bathtub. 'Oh damn! When am I going to forget that?'

"You are the pervert here." She countered.

He saw her flushed and continued to tease to keep her distracted, "Says the pervert."

Anya spread the comforter over him while they continued to banter.

—---

Four at dawn,

Yawning, Berwick's team reached their secret monitoring room once the ship crossed the cloudy region and sailing became smooth as butter.

They checked many rooms, a lot of people were sleeping, many people were wide awake due to various reasons and some people were scared.

"What is the Collins couple doing?" They have to keep an eye on them so they separately take note of the couple.

Both men saw the couple asleep in a sitting position on the bed. Anya's head was resting on Alvin's shoulder while hugging a pillow, Alvin was leaning against the headboard and asleep too.

"Are these two truly a newlywed husband and wife?" The first person doubted.

The second man drew his brows tight in contemplation. They only saw Alvin teasing Anya once or twice, other than that the two behaved more like friends without any kind of intimate actions. They had seen many couples on the ship, even the old and middle-aged couple were more intimate than these two.

"There is really something fishy about these two." The second man said, blinking his sleepiness away.

They checked the whole night video of the couple on fast forward. One was sitting on the couch and another on the armchair. They skipped the video and saw Alvin hugging Anya while sitting on the floor during the thunderstorm. With the rest of their actions, they understood Alvin was calming the scared Anya. Then the couple sat on the bed and started speaking.

The first man scorned, "Tell me which idiot of a husband will sit next to his beautiful wife in that distance? Wouldn't he at least hold her?"

The second man didn't have a different opinion. They could understand if they weren't wild on the bed taking the scary weather change but couldn't they cuddle to sleep? Wasn't it a normal thing between couples? At least for the newlyweds?

Although they didn't want to pick on this couple, they couldn't help but be suspicious of them and their actions.

A man picked the walkie-talkie to reach Berwick but halted. Berwick and the captain of the ship had a rough two hours night ride. They will be resting now.

"Let's report to the Vice-Captain when he comes."  They decided on it before continuing with other work.