by Marie Hall
For him it was rather difficult to keep Mia happy and not at all hard to raise her ire. But as he’d learn well enough by the end of the week, even when angry and irrational, Mia knew the ocean like no one he’d known before.
Chapter 19
Mia drew the large needle through the canvas and cast another hateful glare towards her husband. Why she wasn’t allowed to swim today she didn’t know. He’d simply stopped her from pulling on the short pants and shirt and told her flatly she wasn’t to go in today. No explanation, nothing. He made sure she was given a large swath of canvas though and told her to make her sail from it. Good too as she was done with this ship and its captain. They’d be passing close to the last few small habitable islands in the next day or so. She’d need the sail to get her to one of them.
The yelling and laughing coming from the waters off the starboard side annoyed her. There was no reason at all she shouldn’t be down there splashing and having fun. She pushed the sound out and focused on listening to other things.
The wind was barely moving. The last few days the ship had been struck by the doldrums. Mia made a note to lash an oar to her raft in case the wind didn’t pick up again. Then she lent her ear to the sound of the water. Still as well, with the exception of the small waves hitting against the hull. From farther out, she could hear the squawking of the sea birds that floated on the water waiting to catch a fish as a meal. It was they who first alerted her to something amiss. When they took to the air suddenly and rather than circle back and land again they flew off some distance.
Mia set the sewing aside and made her way to the portside of the ship. The waters around the ship were quite dark with its depth, but not far out they were lighter, easier to see into. Nothing of interest appeared and she readied to turn and go back. But as she gave the water one last look she saw the large school of fish swimming hard and turning quickly as if fleeing. Mia looked out in the direction they’d come from. The waters were cutting white where the large fins plowed through. Everything she did next was done on instinct.
Spinning away, she ran across the deck. “Get out of the water,” she yelled, her voice drowned out by the men she tried to warn. “Get out of the water,” she yelled again, hoping not to incite panic in the swimmers. No one heeded her as she yelled to them again, then yelling for the two men she knew listened to her she raced for the cargo nets rolled against the railing. “Grim, get the nets over and secure them fast. Hong, get the ropes out. Hurry.” Turning she yelled out to the swimmers. “Get out of the water. Get out of the water.”
“Mrs. Winthrop?” Mr. Brinks grabbed her and spun her around. “What is the matter?”
“Get them out of the water,” Mia yelled and pulled away. She headed straight for the gun locker opening it even as she cried out again for the men to get back onto the ship.
“Mrs. Winthrop?” Mr. Brinks called again as he tried to stop her reaching for the rifle. “What is it?”
Mia opened her mouth to warn him even as the call from above went out.
“Shark.” The single word had a chilling effect on the men in the water. “Sharks.” Mia was pushed aside as several men on deck grabbed weapons and went to the rail. The swimmers were already coming in a few grabbing the lines Mr. Hong tossed out and using them to pull alongside. But they were starting to panic, pushing and causing men already trying to climb out to slip and fall back in. Mia grabbed the last pistol and leaned over the rail.
“Use the nets,” Mia yelled down and banged on the hull with the butt of the gun she held to catch their attention. “Use the nets. Climb the nets.” The forty or so men in the water were quick to grab on enough to stand free of the water. Then as the first dark fin swished by they began to climb completely up and over the rails, turning quickly to help the next man over. More fins broke the waves, cutting a few men off from the ship.
“Aim true,” Devin commanded from behind her. “Fire at will.”
“Mr. Hong get lines out to them,” Mia said slipping the weapon into her pocket and picking up a rope to throw out. “Swim, swim hard,” she told those still trying to get back. Mia scanned the waters. She knew the men with the guns would be watching the sharks so she watched the waters for any last swimmer. Two more made a reach for the same line and were pulled in as balls of lead rained down into the dark waters turning it from blue to red. The shots might have kept the shark from the men being towed in but the bleeding animal caused more sharks to close in on the area in search of whatever was floundering. Mia again searched the waves for any last swimmer. “God keep us,” she breathed, then sucked in a deep breath and yelled as loudly as she could. “Now, Mr. Coventon. Now, swim through now. Swim. Swim.”
“Come on, Jonah,” Devin yelled, stepping up beside her. “Swim man.” They both watched as Lieutenant Coventon did the only thing he could. He started swimming. Twice they watched him dive below the surface coming up on the other side of the fin heading his way. A line splashed down in front of him even as Mia watched the fin trailing him disappear.
“Grab the net,” Mia yelled when he was pulled hard against the ship. “Grab the net. Get out of the water.” Mia’s warning came too late and she watched like all the others as Coventon was pulled under even as he reached for the safety of the netting. Again the water churned up red. But before it could clear Coventon surfaced, pulling hard to lift from the waters. “Grim,” Mia yelled but her man was already over the rail working his way down.
Grim took hold of Coventon’s arm and pulled him clear as another shark, or perhaps the same one, surfaced, rubbed against the hull and disappeared again. Several hands reached down now to pull both men over the rail.
“Get the surgeon and get this man to sick bay,” Devin ordered.
Mia didn’t want to, fearing what she’d find when she did, but she looked relieved to see only a deep gash running along the man’s calf and not a missing foot or worse. With a nod she signaled Grim to lift the man and carry him below where the ship’s doctor would hopefully have success stopping the bleeding and repairing the leg.
“Pull up these nets men,” Devin ordered before turning to her. “Are you all right?”
“Aye, of course,” she said although at the moment she felt like she’d been swept into the rocks. The sudden lack of activity was that jarring.
“Good work, Mia. Dropping the nets was brilliant,” Devin said as he set his hands on her shoulders.
“I should’ve been able to warn them sooner.” And she would have if she was more connected to the ship. If she was allowed to be part of the crew. But she wasn’t. She was disconnected, flapping in the wind without purpose. “I want off this ship,” she said but was drowned out by a new excitement as a shark tangled in the netting was pulled on deck. It thrashed around, chomping at anything that got close. Mia watched a few men poke at it with hooks. It was quite a sport they found at the animal’s torment. Pulling the pistol from her pocket she cocked back the hammer stepped through the crowd and pulled the trigger. The animal went still and the crowd around it moaned in disappointment.
“I guess we have dinner, men,” someone shouted and again the crowd cheered. Turning Mia could only shake her head.
“Mrs. Winthrop?” One of the younger topmen called as he came over, dripping.
Mia tried to smile at him, but couldn’t quite make it happen.
“Mrs. Winthrop, thank you.”
“For?”
“For helping us all out. We’d have been bait if not for you,” he said and stepped forward like he might try to hug her, before jumping back like he realized he almost did. “Thank you.”
“Yes, well, I wasn’t quite fast enough, was I?” she told him and saw his lack of understanding. “Not all of you made it out unharmed.” She watched then as the man realized they did have a seriously hurt member of the crew. And while he didn’t lose his leg to the shark, Mr. Coventon could still lose his life to an infection.
“You couldn’t have done more, Mia,” Devin said dismissing the man
with a nod. “There must be at least fifteen sharks out there now. If not for you, Mr. Hong, and Grim, half my crew or better would be dead or dying.”
“I didn’t hear them soon enough. I wasn’t listening to the right things when they came in,” she said and looked up to see his complete confusion. It didn’t matter if he didn’t understand. How could he if he wouldn’t let her be part of the crew. “I want off this ship.”
“We’ll make for port at Port-au Prince, take on supplies and see if another surgeon will be needed for Mr. Coventon’s injuries.” Devin said matter-of-factly as he reached under her chin and forced her head up. “Injuries which in no manner were your fault. He and all the others are alive because of you. I’m rather proud of you, I must say.”
“Cargo always has a use,” Mia snapped and spun away. She heard him call for her then heard someone calling for him. Making her way below decks back to the stores where she’d been hiding things away, Mia made sure everything was ready. A heading for Port-au Prince would keep them closer to shore and if the winds didn’t lift soon it could take days. She’d finish her sail and carry her supplies up to stash away until she could jump ship. Devin could carry on. If he still wanted, he could come back for her when he was ready to decide what part she’d play on his ship and in his life, because wife, lover and whore weren’t enough for her.
Chapter 20
Devin leaned back in the chair at hearing the knock. The doctor would answer it and send anyone away. Lieutenant Coventon barely glanced up from the book he was reading until the doctor stepped back and made room for the person knocking to step past.
“He’s quite lucky, it wasn’t a bite at all, just a scrape,” Doctor Krebs said as Devin watched Mia slip inside the room. Devin pushed back into the shadows to watch how his wife might interact with the one man on board who she knew disliked her. That he did and Mia still felt the weight of his injury on her shoulders was strange to him. He hadn’t expected a female to care as Mia seemed to for a declared enemy. Females, Devin knew well enough, likely would be drinking in hopes of the man’s death. But then Mia was first a captain. Even when she didn’t hold the position, she responded like one.
She’d not hesitated once in the commands she called out. That no one listened at first didn’t deter her in the least. She kept at it until she gained the cooperation she needed to keep the crew safe. Nothing she ordered contradicted any order he had given. If anything, they complemented his when he came on deck after the warning of shark was given. She never panicked or even stumbled as the men trying to swarm over the railing did. If any moment passed when she knew fear, she never let it show.
He heard Mia saying, “I’m quite sorry, still. If only I’d called out sooner.”
“Mrs. Winthrop,” Coventon interrupted.
“I wasn’t listening like I could have.”
“Mrs. Winthrop,” again the officer tried to interrupt. “Please, Mia,” he finally said, a bit exasperated as Mia continued to mutter about how she should have prevent his injury. The use of her given name hushed her. “Please, Mia. This wasn’t your doing. It’s because of you I’m sitting here, with both my legs. Feeling quite well if you wish to know.” Jonah laughed, a rare thing from the man under most circumstances.
“Aye, but…” Devin couldn’t see her expression because she had her back to him, but he heard the guilt plain enough.
“Mrs. Winthrop, Mia,” Coventon said reaching out and taking hold of her hand. “I’m going to recover. I’ll be on deck as soon as this blood-letter allows,” he said nodding towards the doctor. “I’ll grow old with two legs and a fantastic scar to point to as I tell my grandchildren how I was almost eaten by a shark.”
“Oh, you were only scraped,” the doctor cut in. “Eaten indeed.”
“Well, I’ll be telling them eaten,” Coventon said and laughed. “And I should hope, Mia, you won’t counter my tale when I do.” Mia shook her head. “Very good, so I’ll tell them I was almost eaten and show them the grand scar as proof.”
“Aye, they should like that, I’d think,” Mia said softly, trying to pull away. “I should go now.”
Coventon held her hand and tugged her closer to the bunk he was in. “Mia, I need to tell you. When I said you didn’t belong on this ship, I was wrong. You saved my life today. You saved a good number of lives today. You know the sea, and ships and sailing and you belong here as much as anyone. Thank you.”
Mia pulled her hand back abruptly. “No I don’t, you’re wrong. I need to go. Good night, sirs.” And before Devin could speak, she was out the door and down the passageway.
“Well, what was that?” Doctor Krebs asked, getting up again to check the bandages.
“She’s still mad at me for telling her she’s not part of the crew,” Devin said with a sigh.
“It’s not my place, Captain,” Coventon said, “but don’t you think she is?”
It hardly mattered two nights later when he was pulled from his bunk by a frantic Mr. Hong and an irate Mr. Quiggly. They were both yelling and waving their arms and between the two of them all Devin got was Mia jumped ship.
Mr. Asher filled him in as Quiggly called for all hands to turn the ship around. Sometime last night Mia took the lead watchman, Mr. Brinks, by surprise. Putting a gun to his back, she secured his arms behind him and gagged him so he couldn’t call out. She used him to force the others to first load, then lower her raft to the waters. The calm air and still waves aiding her the entire time, she wasn’t made to rush as she made one man tie and gag the others before she tied the last and secured Mr. Brinks to the rail. She’d made her way down, unmoored her raft, and simply let the ship sail on by.
“She said to tell the captain, you sir,” Brinks said, shame at being so easily taken, by a woman no less, in his voice. “She said tell you she’d named her boat Escape and she’d make good on it now. That she shouldn’t care. If you don’t come back around, she’ll manage.”
“She’ll manage forty with a cat, when I get my hands on her,” Devin growled. “Damn the pirate in her blood.”
He said that several times over the next two days and said it again when her craft was spotted shored up on a small island covered in lush green forest. It’d be no easy thing finding her among that and she was sure to spot the ship now anchored off the reef before he had a chance to hunt her down. And perhaps time was what he needed, as he didn’t know if he was going to whip her raw or throw her down and make love to her.
The worry she’d caused when hours passed without a sighting. Every man scanned the horizon, the waters and the land that came into view, crying out when a bit of wood or canvas drifted past. Everyone holding their breath until it was confirmed it wasn’t wreckage from Mia’s boat, only old bits cast off. The entire crew running towards the stem port side when a call went up her raft was spotted and that spotting was confirmed. A bit of a scuffle breaking out when members wanted to join in the landing party but couldn’t find a place on the two dinghies Devin lowered.
Devin may have not taken Mia as part of the crew, but the crew saw her as one of them. She’d not be lost at sea if any of them could help it. And when she was back on the ship he’d have to correct his stance on the matter. After, long after, he corrected her latest act of piracy. After he learned how one small woman managed to capture seven full grown men.
“Damn it to hell and back,” Mr. Brinks shouted as he pushed aside some of the belongings still on the raft. “Its fake, made of wood no less. Bugger me.”
“What?” Devin asked walking over and taking note of everything near the raft. A cook fire still burned. Mia wasn’t traveling far from this point which meant she did have a great many supplies with her now.
“Captain, I swear I thought it real when she held it on me,” Mr. Brinks said and held out the pistol.
Why anyone would be surprised Mia carved herself a wooden pistol he didn’t know. She made an entire sailing craft. What was so hard about a toy gun? “Damn that pirate in her,” he muttered and scann
ed the tree line for any sign of her.
“Captain?” Mr. Quiggly called as he worked to push away branches from the side of the cliff. “Look here. Someone wrote something in the rock.” He pulled away one more branch. “Everyone must die. Before you do, live,” he read the words carved deep the same as the last ones Devin saw. “Who you suppose put this here, now?”
“Mia’s mother,” Devin told him before turning away. “Spread out. Find her. It’ll go better I think if you don’t call out, she likely knows the island and taking her unaware will be the—”
“Captain?” Purser Dickson called out. “Captain, I think I found her,” the man said a tinge of horror in his tone as he looked up and pointed to the top of the cliffs. Everyone who’d stepped up to see the writings now moved back out to get a view of the shelf at the top of the cliffs. The long narrow platform stretched several feet over the ocean. And looking down on them from there was Mia.
Devin felt his blood go cold. The height was several feet above the top of the main mast of the ship and that was at least one hundred feet in height. She wouldn’t dare. She wouldn’t even think to attempt it. But as he watched her standing there looking down he knew she was challenging him. Daring him to find a way to stop her.
“Don’t you do it Mia, that’s an order,” he shouted up. “Get down here. Don’t you dare do it.” Regretting now that she wasn’t part of the crew to obey his orders as a captain. She certainly had solid respect for the rank. What she thought of a husband’s authority was less certain.