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We passed Tila dunmati a little after noon, and within the hour the fate of the ship changed. It began with a warning call from the crow’s nest. Another ship approached, sailing directly toward us.
The general excitement aboard the LeHa
Most provocative information; I wondered what they wanted with the LeHa
Nearly a half hour later, our ship slowed until she floated in the waves in an exaggerated rocking motion. If this kept up, I surely would be seasick.
The other ship adjusted their course. They no longer rode the wind but drifted off our leeward side about five hundred feet away, edging closer with each swell of the waves.
Our crew grew silent. It seemed like our ship held its breath, waiting. At last, Captain Hume barked an order. But it was only to the crew to man their positions and await his orders. From my porthole, I could see him standing midships, near the railing. He said something to First Officer Greer at his side. Officer Greer saluted and in seconds had marched to my cabin and accosted my guard.
“Open the door,” Greer ordered him.
The guard held the door open with one hand and trained his pistol on me with the other. After the murderous incident with my last warder, the procedure for guarding me had changed. Now, they brandished a pistol, not a musket.
Greer entered my cabin and glanced around before saying, “Gather your things, Celwyn. You’re leaving.”
“Where am I going?” I asked.
“No questions. Either pack your things, or you’ll leave without them.”
WHEN I emerged on deck, two more guards gripped my arms, and another lugged my trunk. As I walked, I reveled in the sun and drank the fresh air like a newborn calf.
During the time it took to pack my belongings, a boat had been launched from the other ship. It contained six crewmen and a man who was obviously their captain. He sat at the rear of the boat, examining the LeHa
With his officers flanking him, Captain Hume stood in front of the bridge, arms folded, feet apart. His officers maintained a stern stance, but their eyes bounced everywhere. The tension in Hume’s officers increased as the other crewmen left the rowboat and scampered up the rope ladder. They attained the deck and walked toward Captain Hume, ignoring the rest of the LeHa
“No restraints? I no longer frighten you?” I held up my naked wrists to Captain Hume.
He didn’t quite look at me, but said, “Be quiet, you ruffian. If necessary, Greer will knock you out to insure your silence.”
I had a good idea of what Captain Hume was up to. And an even better idea of what he deserved.
As the crewmen swaggered toward us, I studied their captain. Perhaps forty years of age, with strict bearing and well-tended whiskers, he was a barrel of a man. Solid muscles and apelike arms swung at his sides. He shoved one of the LeHa
Up close, the most i
“I am Captain Falkenburg of the Sibylline.”
A simple statement, but out of the corner of my eye, I spied Captain Hume wetting his lips. A bead of sweat trickled from under his hat and ran down his collar. If it hadn’t occurred to the rest of the crew, it should have: this appeared to be a pirate ship flying under the i
Captain Falkenburg turned on his counterpart. “What are you carrying?”
Sweat began pouring down Captain Hume’s pudgy cheeks. Beyond him, the deck of the Sibylline swarmed with dozens of pirates who had not been visible before. They watched the LeHa
“Spices and sugarcane. Nothing more.”
“Nothing, Hume?” The pirate smiled broadly, and I could see he’d been opening wine bottles with his teeth. More of interest: I wondered who else noted that we’d had a chance encounter with a buccaneer who happened to know Captain Hume’s name.
Several of the LeHa
Captain Falkenburg laughed, and the sound seemed to chill the crew of the LeHa
“Our agreement is still good. I have what you want,” Captain Hume blurted. He looked at me, nearly in the eye, and added, “I also have another token of good faith. A prize of sorts.”
“Eh?” The pirate captain picked his teeth with the sharp point of a blade, spat, and then regarded Captain Hume with his brows up.
Undeterred, Captain Hume explained, “Mr. Celwyn here is the cousin of the British ambassador to Portugal. Surely, you can ransom him. He was to have stopped off for a short time on Victoria to assess conditions there. They won’t miss him for several extra days. Perhaps weeks.”
I turned on the bastard. He wouldn’t look at me. Ah. Plainly dear Captain Hume was letting me know that I could have my freedom if I went with the Sibylline or be dumped on the penal colony on schedule-if the LeHa
Captain Falkenburg didn’t seem impressed. His glance rested on the cabins below the bridge. “This can’t be all you have, Hume.”
Most anxious to please, Captain Hume nearly curtseyed like a matron in front of a queen. He assured the pirate, “Oh, no! You will receive what I promised you. One moment, please.”
He turned to his first officer. I caught parts of his whispered instructions, enough to know that the crew of the LeHa
First Officer Greer wasted no time gathering a contingent of crewmen and marching over to Dr. Perideaux’s cabin. It was then that I decided to allow myself to be transported aboard the other ship; I must protect my new apprentice, after all.
MORE than an hour later, the doctor, his family, and I were removed to the Sibylline. I did my best to reassure Felicity and carried her aboard the pirate ship while the doctor helped his wife. In a billowing pale blue dress, Mrs. Perideaux appeared angelic and as fragile as a porcelain figurine. She maintained a white-knuckled grip on her husband’s shoulders as he steadied her on deck.
We huddled together and watched as the pirates used ropes to bring our trunks up to the deck. With hungry eyes divided between the woman and the trunks before them, the pirates hovered close by. Their stench competed with the foulness of the ship. Mrs. Perideaux clung to her husband, and the child buried herself in her mother’s skirts and whimpered.
I squatted beside her and tapped Felicity on the shoulder.
“Poppet, we must be brave. And quiet.”
One tearstained blue eye chanced looking at me, and then she buried her face in her mother’s skirts again.
I said, “Remember the crystal frogs?” Without turning around, Felicity nodded. I placed a hand on her shoulder, and her whimpers subsided. “Just wait,” I added softly before standing once more.