Captain Vane's Daughter, page 18
"Unless the captain succeeds in his quest to woo your woman away from you. Then she'll still be here." He glanced around as if to determine if we were alone before adding, "I dare say some of the crew might assist you, should you wish to spirit her away."
I kept my face impassive. "No need. I'm sure of the woman's loyalties to me."
"That very well may be, but don't underestimate the captain. When he's determined, he's deadly."
I clapped the man on the shoulder. "Me, too. Me, too."
He nodded and went inside to Benedict.
As I gathered mine and Lydia's property, I hoped the medical man was right and that some of the men wanted Lydia gone badly enough that they'd only make a minimal stand to keep us from sailing away. I wouldn't count on it, but it would be helpful if it was true.
Surprised that Benedict and I met no one on our way to the bottom of the ship, I helped him into the small boat and left him with our bags and weapons except for my own flintlock and knife.
I arrived at my cabin just as Barnabas and Lydia walked up.
"Where have you been, Mountbank?"
"Getting some fresh air before my talk with Lydia."
She was pale and agitated.
Worried that he'd made some kind of move to seduce her, I said, "Is everything all right?"
"I'm fine. Just tired. I think I got too much sun today on deck," she said.
"Remember, I'm going to leave my door open for you tonight, my dear. Come when you're ready." Barnabas kissed her cheek then turned to me. "If she wants to come to me, don't try to stop her and if she asks you to go, you best leave her in peace or you’ll answer to me."
"Understood." I didn't like his tone, his possessiveness or his arrogance, but in the interest of getting this woman out of his control. I let it all go. There'd be another day to deal with him.
As soon as we were alone, Lydia said, "He terrifies me."
I took hold of her. "We're leaving as soon as I'm sure he's not waiting out there."
"Good, but where's Benedict?"
"Already in the boat. He's got the pistols ready and as soon as we're aboard, he's going to cut the ropes. The two most dangerous parts are getting from here to there and then moving the small boat out of range of the guns once we're in the water."
She gasped. "Will they use the cannons?"
"There won't be time to swing them around and besides, Barnabas won't want to harm you." I chuckled. "Me, he'll want to kill, but you, he'll want to keep safe so I guess it's good in a way that he likes you."
"That's the only good thing about that." Lydia wiped her eyes. "I can't even imagine what he'd be capable of with me in his possession."
Much as I hated to ask, I had to know. "Did he harm you up there on the deck?"
"No. But he said some things that caused me concern about what kind of man he is when he has a woman in his bed."
The rage in my breast returned, but I had to focus on escape not murder. "Don't tell me until we're well away. Otherwise I might have to kill him before we go."
Her hand flew to her mouth. "No. Don't."
"Let me see if he's gone." I touched the door and she placed a hand on my arm. "Don't hurt him. Come back and get us off this ship."
I nodded and crept out of the room to the top of the stairs. Peering around in the dark, my eyes adjusted fairly quickly. Barnabas was silhouetted near the door to his quarters. Far enough away not to hear us descend lower to the small boats, he appeared to be talking to his quartermaster.
I moved easily and silently back to Lydia. "Let's move. He's occupied."
Grabbing her hand, I pulled her along as we made our way to Benedict and the boat, surprised at how no one was about. It concerned me somewhat, but maybe I was going to be lucky tonight.
We had one moment of fear when I heard several laughing voices. I squeezed Lydia’s hand and let go. Indicating to her that she should remain where she was, I took a few steps and peered around a corner.
Four men crouched on the floor. I took me a second to realize they were playing a game of chance by tossing bones toward the wall.
As their backs were to me and they were engrossed in their activity as well as the bottle of rum they appeared to be sharing, I determined they were no threat.
Lydia stood where I left her and I took her hand to continue our run toward freedom.
At the boat, I assisted Lydia inside and as I climbed in myself, Benedict cut the ropes.
The splash into the water was louder than I'd anticipated. Many times I'd put these small dinghies into the water, but I'd never needed to be silent doing so.
A bell sounded as Benedict and I started rowing with all we had. "Grab a pistol and be ready," I called out to Lydia as the first shot rang out over the water.
Chapter Sixteen
Lydia
My first inclination as the sound of pandemonium on the upper deck reached my ears was to hunker down and hide. But I couldn't. Ben and Leo were doing all they could to get us free of the ship and it was up to me to shoot back as Barnabas called his crew to action. I didn't stop to think how I, as one woman, could hold them off, but I was determined to do my best. If I died, that would be fine too as I wouldn't be subjected to the depravity Barnabas had promised me I would be expected to submit to if I were his woman.
It took me a few minutes and several shots off to realize the pirates weren't trying all that hard to hit us.
I cast a glance at Leo and Benedict, but it seemed my loss of concentration might be the end of Ben as a crack of the wood beside him told me a shot hit home.
Not taking the time to assess if he was hit, I turned around and fired up at the men standing at the edge of the ship.
My shot hit one as I heard someone scream out in pain.
Another shot almost hit our vessel, but landed in the water just short of us. “Hurry, Leo. We’re moving out of range since that one didn’t make it,” I said.
“Or he’s a lousy shot. Don’t stop shooting until I say.”
I reloaded and fired again. This time, mine didn’t quite reach the deck. “We’re pulling away.”
Glancing over to Benedict who had dropped his oar at his feet and sat as if dazed, I made the decision that I’d be better off helping get this little dinghy away from the large ship. I set the two pistols I’d been using aside and made my way to Benedict. “Give me that oar.”
He nodded, but didn’t speak. His eyes didn’t seem to be focused and I prayed he hadn’t been shot. “We have to get somewhere to take care of you. Hold on for me, Ben. Hold on.”
With all my strength, I tried my best to keep up the pace Leo set and it wasn’t long before I could tell we were well out of range of the larger ship.
“Is he hit?” Leo asked. He hardly seemed out of breath and I couldn’t seem to catch my own. Thank goodness he was in such a fit state that he could do the bulk of the rowing.
“I can’t tell.” I took the chance and stopped rowing for a moment. Peering into his face, I said, “Have you been shot?”
“I don’t think so, but my arm is hurting powerful bad and I can feel the blood dripping. I don’t rightly know what it feels like to be shot so I guess I could be. Can you see anything?” Benedict’s voice was stronger than I thought it would be since he appeared to be so disoriented.
“It’s too dark to tell anything for sure, but if you let me touch your arm, I see what I can find out.”
“I’m going to keep rowing. I don’t know what Barnabas will do and I want to get as much water between us as I can,” Leo said.
“As soon as I know how Ben is, I’ll help.” I leaned in to Benedict. “Which arm?”
He held his right arm out to me. I ran my hand gently up the side and when I got almost to the shoulder, I let out a relieved sigh.
“What is it?” Benedict asked.
“From what I can tell, it’s some splintered wood from the side of this boat. A large piece is poking out and I can get that if you brace yourself. I can’t see if there are any shards though.”
“I can brace myself here on the floor. You pull it out.”
I pulled up the hem of my gown and reached up to my chemise. Ripping a long strip from it, I said, “As soon as I have the large part out, I’m going to wrap the arm to staunch the flow of blood.” I leaned in to grip his wrist. “Are you ready?”
Being close enough to his face to see the fear in his eyes, I sent up a little prayer that I would be able to remove the wood without hurting him too much.
“I’m ready.” Benedict’s body stiffened as he braced his legs against the side of the boat.
My left hand slid up his inner forearm when I held on to give myself some leverage with my right hand. I pulled the large piece out and flung it aside as Benedict let out a scream the likes of which I’d never heard before and hoped never to hear again.
He fell backward in a faint. Grateful that he wasn’t awake while I wrapped the arm and hoping I wasn’t making it worse by further embedding any splinters, I made quick work of my task.
By the time I was done, Benedict was awake. He gave me a weak smile. “That was something awful.”
Knowing the kind of pain he’d suffered at the hands of the foreman of the plantation, his statement made me cry. I’d never want to inflict that kind of anguish on him. I loved him too much to do so and the very idea that I had was enough to send me to despair.
Trying to hide my reaction, I picked up the oars and started rowing again.
“Miss Lydia, why are you crying? We’ve gotten away and we’ll be in Nassau soon.” Benedict tilted his head, confused.
“I didn’t mean to hurt you. I can’t stand that I caused you such awful pain.”
“My Lord, Miss Lydia, had you not done what you did to help me, I could’ve had much worse pain. I likely would die so don’t you fret none about what happened here. I’m grateful.”
“But you’ve had such a hard life.”
He reached over and touched the top of my hand where it held the oar. “You weren’t abusing me. You were helping to heal me. There’s a big difference. You’re not your grandmother.”
His words made me sob some more, but this time with relief. That was exactly my fear. That I would somehow, someday, turn into the very woman I hated.
A large splash in the water beside us startled me.
We all looked to see what it was but it was impossible to tell in the dark.
“One thing I know it wasn’t is a cannonball. That’s the good news. Barnabas isn’t pursuing us this way, but he may be at the port in Nassau when we arrive. We may be better off trying to come in away from the main area,” Leo said.
“We’re both trusting you as the captain of this little boat. You’ll have to take us in wherever you think it’s safe.” Another splash unsettled me. “What do you think it is? Could it be a shark?” Terrified that we’d changed one enemy for another, I shuddered.
“It could be, but I’d bet it was a more playful creature. Like a porpoise.” Leo laughed.
“What about a mermaid?” Benedict asked.
Leo glanced at me before he answered and even though it was hard to see his eyes in the dark, I knew they were twinkling. I got warm all over thinking about our night together and how he’d held me and told me I was his mermaid.
“I don’t think they like this area of the West Indies, Benedict.” Leo set his oars inside the boat. “Let’s rest a while. I’ll keep a watch for any danger and you two try to sleep.”
“Aren’t we close to Nassau?” I asked.
“Still some way to go, but the wind is with us and I won’t let us go off course. May as well save some strength for when we need to row the last few nautical miles.”
Two more splashes and this time I saw a glint of silver. “Looks like we may have an escort to show us the way.”
“I think you’re right,” Leo said. “Now, please, try to rest. We’ll have a busy day once we reach Nassau.”
“I’m sure I won’t sleep, but I’ll close my eyes.” I looked at Benedict. He was already half-asleep and I hoped it wasn’t as a result of his wound. Surely his fever hadn’t returned. I prayed he was all right and that we could get him to a doctor to have his arm attended to.
Leo put his hands behind his head and stared up at the dark sky lit by smattering of stars. “This is what makes me happy, Lydia. Being out in the sea air with nothing around but water and sky.”
“And many creatures under the water that have the power and ability to kill us in an instant?”
“Life is risk, my dear.”
“It seems you thrive on it, Mr. Mountbank.” He was right about the sea. It was lulling me into a restful state.
Amazed at how terrified I’d been just moments earlier and how relaxed I was now, I let out a small laugh. “If we had enough food and some blankets, I think I could live out here forever.”
“Even with the creatures?”
“Of course. After all, I have you to protect me.”
“If you’re too cool, come over here and I’ll do my best to keep you cozy.” The warmth of his voice made me wish I was next to him, but I knew we needed to keep the boat balanced as well as keep myself a bit distant from Leo for now.
“May I ask you a question?” I asked.
“Of course.”
“What was the discussion you and Barnabas had that he was so keen for you to tell me about?” I wasn’t sure if I really wanted to know, but I thought it might be important to learn what Barnabas thought he had said that would make Leo act in a certain way.
“My brother left England because a woman he loved married someone else. Barnabas learned she was coming to Port Royal the day we left. It seems she’s now a widow and wants to find Tobias.”
“Why would Barnabas think that would make you toss me over, as he stated it?”
“I don’t know.” Leo hesitated as if he didn’t want to continue, but then went on. “I suppose he thought since the lady in question is accompanied by her sister, he thought I might be interested in that young woman.”
I didn’t know what to say. All manner of thoughts ran through my mind. Had he had a prior entanglement with this woman? If he had, how would Barnabas know about it?
After a long silence, Leo said, “No questions?”
“No. It’s not my concern.”
“You mean you wouldn’t be broken-hearted if I ran away with some other young woman?”
Was it my imagination or did he sound sad?
Trying to make light of the conversation, I said, “If you left me and Benedict out here in the open sea, I’d definitely miss you.” Wanting to go on and say that I really would miss him for other reasons, but reluctant to let myself be that vulnerable, I added a small chuckle.
“Go to sleep, Lydia. We’ll talk more later. We both need to rest.”
I closed my eyes and stayed quiet, but my mind didn’t shut down. Pictures of what this woman from Leo’s past might look like passed through and I was sure whoever she was, she didn’t have the scars I had. Imagining her as glamorous and beautiful, I had no doubt Leo would choose her over me if he had that chance.
Leo
When it got quiet and I was sure Lydia was asleep, I allowed myself to think about Elizabeth Burns. This being the first moment I felt safe enough to allow my mind to wander to the past since I heard about her and Penelope’s journey to find Tobias, her scent seemed to waft over me. She’d been such a young girl, she wore only a light fragrance of lily water. Her small, heart shaped face set off with a perfect bow of a mouth that made a man hunger for their taste hovered in front of my eyes like a vision.
And what a vision she usually was. She wore primrose almost exclusively. She’d once told me she was aware it set off her coloring and made her feel beautiful. And she was. Such beauty was rare, but she was also as sensitive as a hot-house flower. One never knew if she would cry or smile.
Surprised at how quickly I recalled her and at the tug on my heart, I glanced across the space between me and Lydia. I greatly admired Lydia's spirit and unwillingness to have her hard life pull her into despair. Elizabeth, on the other hand, was a pampered, gently raised daughter of an important man.
While there was no doubt Lydia was better able to survive in the dark, dangerous world of my current life and Elizabeth was not, the news of her arrival in this part of the world had set my sensibilities on edge.
I had no understanding with either woman and wasn't sure if I ever want to return to England, but I knew I'd be faced—no, I was faced—with a big decision. No doubt Tobias would go home. He'd never really adapted to Port Royal and now that Penelope was reputedly available to make a match with him, I was sure he'd book passage home in an instant. The only question would be if he'd return to the life of a gentleman or continue on as a vicar.
His decision would be easy.
Mine, on the other hand, would be most difficult. I’d been away for over ten years and had no idea what to expect from Elizabeth or even if she were truly with her sister with the idea of finding me. And there was Lydia. Beautiful in her way as well. No hot-house flower there. She was a real woman who would be as passionate outside of the boudoir as I’d already tasted she would be inside.
Which was better? The unfulfilled dream of a young man’s heart or the promise of a mate who would certainly never obey me and probably cause me untold problems, but would be a firebrand in my bed?
Most men would want a docile bride and a wild, passionate lover, but I knew Lydia would never stand for such an arrangement. I’d have to decide on her fully or let her go.
I must have dozed for a while as a splash beside me alerted me to another dolphin. I looked down and was pleased to see the lightness of the water. One of the first things a sailor learns in the West Indies is lighter water means shallower seas. We must be nearing land.
I stood to peer out at the horizon to try to judge both when daybreak would come and how far away the shore was.
"What's wrong?" Lydia sat up and immediately reached over to touch Benedict's face. "Does he have a fever again?"
"I don't know. He's not been restless."
