Captain Vane's Daughter, page 13
I wanted to knock his teeth out, but in the interest of getting Lydia away, I restrained myself.
In what seemed to be an hour, but in actuality was probably only fifteen minutes, a slightly chubby man walked toward us across the yard. He was accompanied by a thin figure dressed in a gown. Lydia.
It was all I could do not to rush forward and smother her with an embrace.
As soon as she glanced up and saw us, her gait changed from a slow walk to a trot.
Sadly, it wasn’t me she ran to. She went straight into Benedict’s arms.
I surprised myself with the immediate thought that one day I wanted to be the man she ran to for comfort. Where had that come from? I’d known her only a brief moment in the years of my life, but somehow, she’d become that important to me. It was a scary feeling mixed with a kind of elation to realize I may have again found someone I could love and cherish.
Shaking my head at my own sentimentality, I smiled at her. “How are you? Were they too hard on you?”
“I’d rather talk about it when we’re alone. Please don’t say anything in front of this guard.” Her face had lost the light that usually shone from it. It made me want to hurt someone like I was afraid she’d been.
I took a moment to assess her when she faced me. She didn’t appear to be physically harmed, but she was definitely distraught and dirty. Resolving right then to try to make her laugh and be happy, I said, “It seems you’ve now had two gowns destroyed due to your involvement with me. I promise to obtain two more for you.”
“Thank you. I’d rather you get me a ship so I can be on my way to Nassau.” Lydia took a couple of steps and stumbled.
Moving to her, I picked her up and strode out of the fort’s gates so quickly, the boys in front of them barely had time to pull them fully apart.
“What are you doing?” she asked.
“I can see you’re exhausted and needed to be away from that place as fast as we can manage it. You have tear tracks on your face carving a path along your cheeks. I want you to feel safe so I’m not putting you down until we’re back at the inn.”
“Somehow I didn’t see you as the type to rescue a damsel in distress as in the tales of old.” There was a ghost of a smile on her lips that made my heart soar. I’d managed to coax at least that from her.
“I must rectify my image then.” I strode on, aware of the guard and Benedict behind us. Grateful for Lydia’s companion as he seemed to be keeping up some sort of one-sided conversation with the soldier to give us privacy, I said, “I’ve already arranged a ship. That’s what I was doing when we heard the shot.”
A look of dismay crossed her face followed by what seemed to be hope. “I’m glad. I want to tell you and Benedict what that captain said, but it must wait. I don’t want his man to report back to him what I have to say. I’m sure he’s been sent not only to be sure I stay in my rooms, but to learn what he can by spying on us.”
“Then we shall give him no chance to do so.”
We neared the inn. I spied Barnabas on the porch, smoking a thin cigarillo. “I’m going to send you up with Benedict. The captain I hired is here to speak with me. I’ll be upstairs in a few moments to explain what he tells me.” I set her gently down near the front door and nodded to Benedict before moving toward Barnabas at the far end of the veranda.
As soon as they were upstairs, I cocked my head at Barnabas. “What news?”
“I was waiting to be sure your Lydia was out of the fort. I’m glad to see they set her free and I presume you’ll still be wanting to sail as soon as you can?”
“It’s a condition of her release—to avoid a trial—she must vacate the island before the end of the day.” I shook my head.
“Seems awful strange to me. What’s behind it?”
“I don’t know, but I sure plan to find out. Maybe not before we leave, but when I return for sure. I can’t keep her here in danger, but I’ve not been run out of town on a stake so I’ll be back and then we’ll get to the truth of the matter.”
“Good to hear you’re not going to leave them to whatever corruption is going on. That old man was gone for years and was even slated to be hanged when Vane was. Now the government is protecting him? It makes no sense. None at all.”
“It is decidedly odd.” I couldn’t make sense of it. Why would the commanding officer of the fort think Lydia was the criminal here? All the poor girl wanted to do was find some information on her dead father. What harm could she do?
I shook Barnabas’ hand. “What time do you want us on board tomorrow?” I shook my head as I recalled it was after midnight. “I mean today.”
“Around three. The ship will be loaded in the morning and we’ll weigh anchor around four.”
“That gives me a little time to see if I can have a conversation with our friend, Silas.”
“I have a feeling you won’t be able to find him. I think they’re going to keep him somewhere inaccessible until the girl is gone. If they’re protecting him, that is.”
“That’s the real question, isn’t it?”
“I’d say so and I don’t think the answer is an easy one.” He tossed the end of his cigarillo into the street and turned to go. “Don’t do anything rash and be sure to be at the ship by three.”
When he was gone, I went inside and up the stairs, curious as to what went on in that fort.
Benedict opened the door to my knock. “Would you fetch some rum for Miss Lydia? She’s in a powerful state of agitation.”
I dashed down to the bar and paid for a bottle.
When I arrived with the rum, Benedict let me in.
Lydia was on the bed, barefoot and her clothes in a mess. She sobbed into a square of cloth as if her heart were broken.
Instinct made me go to her. Taking her hand in mine, I said, “What did he say that has you so frightened?”
“He didn’t believe me. He accused me of sending a note to Silas to meet me here so I could kill him. Why would I want to kill him? He was my father’s quartermaster. Wouldn’t he have known him better than anyone? He’d be the one with all the information I wanted to learn about my father. Killing him would get me nowhere.”
Benedict handed her a cup filled to the rim with rum. “Drink this.”
“I’ve only had some kind of awful gruel. If I drink that, I’ll be drunk in five minutes.”
“And you will sleep. You need to get some rest, Miss Lydia.” Benedict practically shoved the cup at her and some of the rum sloshed onto the bed cover.
“Now I’ll smell like a sot, too.” A fresh burst of tears came. “I’m sure I reek of that cell.”
She looked at me. “Did you know they took me to the cell Charles Vane lived in before his death? They put me in the last place my father slept. What kind of cruelty is that?”
Before I could answer, she tilted the cup to her lips and drank deeply of the rum.
“May I ask you something about what you said earlier about the note to lure Tobias here?”
“There was no note, Leo. No note.” Lydia screamed the words.
“I know that. What I meant to ask is if the commander said anything about what your motive would be to kill Silas. Did he say why they thought you’d want him dead?”
Lydia sat there in silence for a few moments and even took another drink of the rum before answering. “There was one odd thing he said, but then he told me to forget he mentioned it.”
Now this was interesting. Maybe there would be some explanation for why the commander of the fort wanted Miss Lydia Vane gone from this island. “What did he say?”
“He asked if Silas had mentioned gold to me.”
“Gold? He said gold?”
“Yes, but Silas never did. He just said I was a liar about my parentage. That was all.”
“Listen, I know you need some sleep so I’m going to let you do that. Our ship sails at four in the afternoon and my friend wants us on board at three. I’ll be here to escort you.”
“You won’t sail with us, will you? Won’t it endanger you without your proper papers?” She appeared genuinely concerned for my welfare, which made my treacherous heart happy.
“I can sail the seas, Lydia. I merely cannot serve as captain nor can I pillage at will.”
She shook her head. “I still don’t think you’re as bad as you like to paint yourself.”
As I turned to go through the door Benedict held open, I wished she were right about that. Maybe then I could endeavor to deserve her.
Chapter Twelve
Lydia
The only good thing about being taken to the fort, being scared I was going to be hanged and then drinking more rum than I ever had in my life was that I slept half the day away.
By the time I woke, had a bath sent up and put on clean clothing, the time to board the ship was close enough that I thought the hours would pass quickly.
They did not. The day seemed to drag on forever. As I wasn’t allowed out of my rooms, my food was delivered to me. It was delicious, but I would’ve liked to enjoy the time in the café. Benedict tried to keep my spirits up, but he seemed as anxious to be gone as I did.
It surprised me that Leo hadn’t come by, but I took him at his word that he’d be in time to escort us to the ship. I hoped so anyway since he’d neglected to tell us what ship he’d actually booked passage on. He knew it was vital that we leave so I had to trust he wouldn’t let me down. That he wasn’t truly the awful man he’d tried so hard to make me believe he was.
Finally, there was a knock at the door. Hoping it was Leo, I stood and straightened my gown, praying it wasn’t wrinkled and that I looked nice for the first time since I’d met Leo.
Benedict opened the door and Leo came in. He was dressed in a fine coat and camel-colored breeches. How any man could be so handsome and appear so at ease in the heat here was amazing to me.
“Are you ready?” he asked.
“More than ready. I want to be on that ship right now and sailing out of the harbor.” I picked up one of my valises.
“Let me take those.” Leo took the one from my hand and then grabbed the other. He turned to Benedict. “What else is there to carry?”
Benedict held up his own bags and said, “I believe we have it all.”
“Then let’s make haste to the carriage I have in front of the inn. It’ll take us to the harbor.”
Leo led the way down the stairs.
I took one last look around the downstairs of the inn and didn’t see anyone I recognized. Relief that Silas wasn’t waiting to attack me again, I let out the breath I didn’t realize I’d been holding. Somehow, I’d imagined the old pirate would get to me before I left here.
Of course, I wasn’t at the port yet, but I somehow felt safer with Leo with us. I had no doubt after the way I was treated yesterday at the fort, that if Silas had returned and Benedict had defended me, that both Ben and I would be the ones to hang. This place seemed to protect its own and I believed Leo had a better claim to being part of it because of his brother’s connection.
Leo handed me into the carriage and after he and Benedict stowed our bags on the back of the conveyance, they both joined me.
On the ride to the harbor, I couldn’t help but search the people passing by to be sure Silas wasn’t around. I didn’t miss the beauty of the scenery and the water and was slightly sad to be leaving without a longer visit as I’d have liked to see some of the places that Charles Vane went to when he lived here.
I almost laughed at my own sentimentality. For all I knew about Captain Vane, he was only onshore long enough to trade his gold for supplies and maybe visit a doxy or two.
The gulls flew over us, cawing their distinctive sound and diving for fish from the water as well as from some of the barrels on the seafront waiting for delivery.
The salt in the air cleared my head and the sadness from being locked in the very cell my father had walked to his death from. It was good to be alive and to be leaving this terrible island that for all its beauty was merely a place where people seemed to go to die. Or be accused of heinous crimes.
Before long, we arrived at the busy port. It was hard for me to realize my visit here was over. It was just mere days ago that Benedict and I had arrived and now we were leaving with a gun at our backs. Or more likely, a noose.
“There’s our ship.” Leo pointed at a large vessel with three sails. “She’s called Duchess.”
“What’s the reason? Did the captain love a duchess who broke his heart?” I was curious, as I’d always romanticized ships and how they were named.
“You’ll have to ask Barnabas. Men don’t talk about those things like you women do.” Leo laughed as he leapt off the carriage and held a hand out to assist me.
“The captain’s name is Barnabas?”
“Yes, and you’ll meet him in a few moments. As soon as we get up the gangplank with our baggage, he’ll be there to greet us and show us to our accommodation.” Leo indicated with his hand that Benedict and I should precede him toward the ship.
His friend met us half-way up the gangplank. He relieved Leo of one of my bags and greeted me and Benedict. “We’re happy to have you aboard.”
I wondered how much Leo had paid for our passage and thought I needed to ask him as soon as we were alone so I could arrange to pay him.
“Come with me.” Barnabas led us onboard and toward the bottom of the ship where I presumed there were cabins or some sort of sleeping accommodations as his vessel seemed very similar in size to the one we’d come from South Carolina in. The Duchess seemed slightly larger to my uneducated mind.
As I followed along behind everyone, I vowed to learn more about the sea and ships. After all, if it was in my blood as the daughter of a seaman, shouldn’t I know more than I did?”
Shocked when we moved into a large room that had to be the captain’s own quarters, I opened my mouth to speak, but before I could, Barnabas said, “I’m going to allow you to use my quarters as it’s the best accommodation on the ship. I’ve got two smaller cabins, but they really aren’t set for the use of a woman and I believe you’ll be more comfortable here.”
“Absolutely not. I won’t agree to displace you from your lodging.” I glanced around at all the maps and equipment. “Besides, you’ll be needing access to all these things. I’ll be fine in one of the smaller rooms.”
He opened his mouth as if to argue, but I added, “I won’t sail if I have to displace you to do so.”
“You’ll be tried if you stay here,” Leo said.
“Then we mustn’t let the choice of quarters be the deciding factor, must we?”
I knew I’d won when Barnabas said, “Then let me show you to your home between here and Nassau.”
Following him to another area of the ship, Barnabas pointed out two doors. “Choose the one you want and we’ll put Leo and Benedict in the other.”
Both rooms seemed to be the same size, but one had two beds and the other had one. Since I knew the two men wouldn’t want to share a mattress, I chose the one with one bed.
Stepping inside, I said, “I’ll stay here until we’re out of port. Would you send someone to let me know when we’re underway so I can stand on the deck? I feel safer here until then.”
“You’re safe now. No one comes aboard without my permission,” Barnabas said.
“And if anyone tried, they’d have to get past Benedict as well as me, too.” Leo grinned. “You’ve got a whole ship full of people ready to protect you.”
“I’d still prefer to wait here until we’re safely away.”
“Then you shall,” Benedict said. “Whatever you need.”
Once they left me alone in my quarters, I allowed myself a few moments of sadness at not finding any information on my father except for something I'd already presumed. That the men he kept company with were violent and without compassion. I don't know why I thought I could get any one of them to act decent and assist me. Perhaps it was better that they hadn't told me anything.
What made me the saddest was I could no longer cherish the thought in my heart that my mother and father loved each other. I'd romanticized them as if they were another tragedy like Romeo and Juliet. But now I had to face the reality that Charles Vane was probably as wicked as Nathaniel and Silas. Maybe even worse since he was their leader. And my mother was a foolish young lady as my grandmother always said she was.
My heart heavy, my mood brightened a bit as I listened to the activity on the upper deck. It sounded as if we'd be on the way within moments.
A sudden lurch sent me almost off my cot. The ship heaved backward and slowly began to slide through the water.
I breathed a sigh of relief to be leaving here. I never wanted to return. As it was, I regretted being here to the core of my being.
Except for meeting Leo Mountbank, I wished I never had sailed into this port.
"Lydia, we're clear of the harbor," the man I was thinking about said with a knock on the door.
"I'm coming." Glad to leave the stifling cabin and wondering how I'd ever sleep in it, I opened the door. It immediately seemed cooler. "How do you seamen sleep at night in these airless cabins?"
"When it’s hot like this, we don't. The men sleep in hammocks usually and when it's unbearable below, we allow them to sleep on deck. Most have their favorite place to lay and woe betide the man who takes another's place." Leo led me up the stairs we'd earlier gone down. "Be careful. Sometimes these get wet as we sail into deeper waters. The waves may hit them and so I advise caution even when they seem dry."
I nodded, still more focused on what he'd said about the men fighting if someone took their sleeping spot. "I never realized how violent your world was."
"All the world is violent, Lydia."
How right he was. I thought about my own past and the violence against me from the woman who should have loved me but didn't. Lord knew I bore the scars of her actions both on my body and in my mind. "I know, but I somehow allowed myself to see the man I believe to be my father as a compassionate man who loved my mother. Now I'm realizing that was the dream of the naive girl you accused me of being." We'd arrived on deck and he took my hand to lead me to the rail for my last look at Jamaica.
