Total pages in book: 173
Estimated words: 163328 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 817(@200wpm)___ 653(@250wpm)___ 544(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 163328 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 817(@200wpm)___ 653(@250wpm)___ 544(@300wpm)
I never claimed to be a decent pirate, but my crew and I followed some rigid rules of conduct. The Articles we’d drawn up on board Jade prohibited raids against unarmed persons, farmers, commoners—anyone who didn’t fall into the wealthy arsehole and king’s men categories. Jade had sailed past this hamlet a few times over the years, and not once had we considered attacking it.
But that was exactly why Blitz was here.
Amongst these farming families, Madwulf could muster another fifty males as reinforcements for his militia.
As my captor shoved me forward along the beach, I watched pirates come and go on longboats between the warship and the shore. They were plundering the inhabitants of their liquor, whale oil, and as much livestock as could be carried away, no doubt crowding the warship’s decks with live chickens, pigs, goats, sheep—the makings of a feast.
Ashley and I were ushered into one of the humble, single-room dwellings. Upon entering, the air went taut, stifling in the humidity.
At least a dozen pirates had already made themselves at home, lounging on the beds, sitting around the dinner table, and sprawled on the modest furnishings.
A crawling sensation rippled across my skin and burrowed into my stomach.
Were any of these men Ashley’s soldiers? Where was Madwulf? On the ship? In one of the neighboring cottages? Perhaps he was out back, violating the women who lived here?
I shared a look with Ashley and knew he had the same dark thoughts.
“She lives?” One of the pirates jumped up.
“And the commodore.” Another spat through the gaps in his teeth.
Laughter and malicious cheer pressed against my bones, stretching my raw nerves.
Before the day ended, I would serve as entertainment for these bawdy rakes. They were all thinking it. And during the impending debauchery, Ashley would be forced to watch, tortured, and gutted, in no particular order.
I needed my voice, but they gave no indication that our gags would be removed.
We were led to a beam in the center of the cottage. Rope replaced the bindings on our wrists, and we were positioned on the floor, shoulder to shoulder with our hands tied to the post.
The impulse to rest my head on Ashley’s arm rode me hard, but I remained stiff and obtuse, giving nothing away. They didn’t need to know I loved the commodore. They certainly didn’t need to know I would die for him.
Thankfully, he followed my lead and didn’t drift closer or cast affection in my direction. For all they knew, he still wanted to deliver me to England to be hanged.
“Where’s the captain?” someone asked.
“Heading this way now.” A skinny, awkward, loose-jointed fellow leaned in the doorway, picking his teeth with a blade. “Captain! Come see what we got!”
Outside, two voices approached the cottage. One was too soft to hear clearly, but the other drawled in a brogue that hailed from Scotland. As the inflection hit my ears, my entire body shook with fear.
“I dinna ken anything about that,” Madwulf snarled. “I was told the admiral hanged her from the yard-arm. She’s dead.”
Who was he talking to? I leaned forward, heart pounding, hoping, pleading…
“She was spotted on the upper deck of the flagship while you were blowing her rigging to bits against my will!” That voice. The rage. His vicious, gravelly Welsh accent.
My breath left my lips on the wings of salvation.
Priest was here.
The booming pulsation in my head consumed the sound of Priest’s unforgettable accent. I pressed my lips together and silenced my gasps, straining to hear him.
Beside me, Ashley went inhumanly still as if his entire being was focused on the conversation beyond the door.
“Who spotted her?” Madwulf’s Scottish brogue thickened.
“One of Cutler’s soldiers. Why am I just learning this?” Fury roughened Priest’s voice, every syllable boiling with vehemence. “Mark me, Madwulf. If she’s dead because of your actions, I’ll need something to stab repeatedly, and your face will become my favorite target.”
“Uh, Captain MacNally…” The duke of limbs in the doorway held up a loose-jointed finger.
“I dinna understand the problem,” Madwulf said, ignoring his crewmate. “You told me you wanted her dead.”
“I wanted to kill her myself!” Priest roared. “Me! No one else. That was the agreement.”
Agreement? My mind spun, trying to fit the pieces together. How did Priest get here? Had he arrived with Madwulf? Did that mean he was on HMS Blitz when it fired on the flagship?
All at once, everything clicked.
Priest must have sneaked onto HMS Blitz while Ashley anchored in Nassau to search the brothel. Ashley was there for two weeks, so I couldn’t be sure about the timing. Evidence suggested that Priest freed Madwulf from the hold after Ashley sailed back to the admiral. Because the pirates overtook HMS Blitz while Ashley was with me on the admiral’s flagship.
Apparently, no one had told Priest I was alive and imprisoned on the admiral’s flagship. The omission was deliberate, to be certain, for it would’ve been in Madwulf’s interest to sink the flagship without Priest stopping him to look for me.