Vic smirked as she passed him, feeling amused again by how uncomfortable she became around him. It was almost like a game to him. He swiveled around to face Alice as she waited for him to continue, and he held her gaze as he slipped on his shirt. “I am glad you like it,” he said as he nodded his head at the bird-shaped necklace sitting on her chest. “I think it fits you.” He winked and walked past her down the hallway to the heart of the inn. The men were moving about getting everything prepared for the day ahead, and Victor slipped right in to join them until everything was set.

“Alright, boys. Everything that we did not sell to our bulk buyers will be sold to the street vendors. I have a quick stop to make with Alice, and then we shall join you shortly after, yeah?” A collective “Aye!” was shouted back at them as the men began to move out of the inn. He said his goodbyes to Blue, as always, and signaled for Alice to follow him. After they stepped outside into the sunlight, Victor took a moment for a deep breath before continuing - the sun on his skin, next to water or a woman, was his favorite feeling. “We are heading to a friend’s. Esmeralda. She asked to meet you,” he vaguely explained as they walked down the already crowded street. The woman told him to bring Alice in to see if she could read anything off of her. If her father was responsible for a curse put on him, Esmeralda was confident enough that she could sense it.

Victor brushed his hair back and worked his hands into it until it stayed put in a knot. “I must warn you, she is a strange character; very inquisitive,” he chuckled. “But you needn’t worry, she is a friend of mine.” He looked a foot behind him, making sure Alice was keeping up with him. He slowed his pace slightly, noticing he was nearly making her jog to keep up with him, which caused him to snicker. “Must you be [i]so slow[/i], Alice?” he groaned, obviously joking. The smile he had been missing yesterday was back on his face today.

---------------------

As they walked into the dusty, dimly lit building, Esmeralda came to greet them in a thick Spanish accent. "Hello, Victor, welcome back. And this must be Alice," she inquired as she approached the girl. She paced in a circle around her, observing everything she could. "Well, Victor," she said, her voice gruff with age and tobacco, "you know how to pick your prisoners, aye?" Victor laughed at the remark. "Ah, yes. Always a talent of mine."

Once she was done eying the girl, she nodded to Victor and shook her head nonchalantly. This meant that Alice's dad was not responsible for the witchcraft that took place. This made his mind race; if it wasn't him, who could it be? He knew that he could have a boatload of enemies that he wasn't aware of - scorned love ones of someone he slaughtered, a surviving member a ship The Black Star had sunk. But with the possibilities endless, it would be quite difficult for him to find the answer.

"Esmeralda, always a pleasure," he said as he leaned down to kiss her cheek. He nudged Alice with an elbow gently to signal her that they were going to leave. "We have got a bit of business to attend to. We shall you soon, yeah?" He waved and guided Alice out of the shop with a soft touch on the back until they reached the street again. "Well, we should be heading back. I suppose you'll need a change of clothes for after we leave the island. Don't exactly have maids on the boat, now do we?" 

The fact that the letter from her father should be in his hands by sunset almost made it hard to focus on anything else. Once he had he the answer from him, he would be able to devise a plan of action to gain back control of the port. He knew one thing - he wasn't ready to return Alice to her home. Not yet.