by Karen Badger
Where the hell did that come from? How is it I know how to handle a sword so well? Damn, I wish I could remember.
Spencer thought back to the encounter with Leilani in the hotel room the night before. I could have hurt her. Maybe it’s better that I left.
She looked around the room. It was sparsely decorated, containing only a bed and a small table and chair. Beside the bed was a crude shelf unit, apparently for clothing or personal items. There was a small window on one wall that overlooked the harbor. She propped herself on one elbow and looked at the ocean, but she had a limited view from her perch on the bed. Hoping to see more up close, she sat up, and then made her way on shaky legs to the window. From where she stood, she could see the entire length of the coast, all the way to Diamond Head. The morning sun shone brightly overhead and it clearly illuminated the large ship moored off the coast that she had seen in the moonlight the night before.
Spencer sat in the only chair in the room and lowered her head into her hands. She tried hard to recall the vision she had seen just before her confrontation with Donovan. She was fencing—of that she was sure—but when, and where? And who was she fencing with?
Spencer rubbed her face and sat back in the chair. Her attention fell on the sword that she had dropped to the floor with the rest of her belongings just inside the door. She rose from her chair and retrieved the sword, which was sheathed in its scabbard. She carried it back to the table and sat down once more. With one hand on the hilt and the other on the scabbard, she withdrew the sword and held it before her.
A face flashed through her mind. It was the face of a beautiful native woman with long brown hair and dark eyes. An intense rush of emotion filled her chest, making it difficult to breathe.
“Mak…”
Chapter 15
Bear made plans to meet Spencer right after lunch to show her around the docks. He carried a large ring of keys that he used to access multiple warehouses along the route.
“How on earth do you remember which key goes to which lock?” Spencer asked.
Bear held up the key ring. “That’s easy. As you can see, the warehouses are all in a row along the dock. The trick is that the keys are in the same order on the ring as the warehouses are on the dock. The warehouse number is on the door, so all you need to do is count the number of keys until you get to the one that matches the number on the door.”
Spencer shook her head and laughed. “And here I thought you had magical powers.”
“Don’t tell the guys, all right? I don’t want them to think the boss is human.”
“Your secret is safe with me!”
They walked in silence to the next warehouse. When they reached the door, Bear turned to Spencer. “You gained a lot of credibility with the crew when you beat Donovan today...especially when you helped him up after defeating him.”
“I wasn’t trying to hurt him, Bear. It was supposed to be a friendly match. Believe me, if it was a life or death situation, the outcome would have been different.”
“Have you ever killed a man, Red?”
“Not that I am aware of.”
“Well, let’s hope you’ll never have to go there.”
“Bear, you mentioned a problem with pirates. Can you give me a little more information about that?”
“It’s not that we’ve had problems with pirates...it’s more that we want to safeguard against having problems with pirates.”
“Any pirate in particular that’s giving you heartburn?” Spencer asked.
Bear put his hand on Spencer’s shoulder. “Come with me.”
Spencer followed Bear to the end of the dock. He stood beside her and pointed in the direction of Diamond Head.
“Do you see that ship out there?”
“Yes.”
“We have reason to believe it belongs to the pirate Makenna.”
“Makenna? What’s his story?”
“Her story. Makenna is a woman.”
Spencer pretended she was not already privy to that information. “A woman pirate? Really?”
“Yes.”
“So, why hasn’t she been arrested?”
“Because she hasn’t done anything...yet.”
“Well then, how do you know she’s a pirate if she hasn’t pillaged anything?”
“Her reputation precedes her.”
“How long has she been moored there?”
“She’s been coming and going. She was spotted off the shores of Kauai about a month ago, and then in early November, her ship was seen sailing by O’ahu, when it did an about face and slowly made its way into the harbor here. It came in so slowly, it looked as though she had mechanical problems, but so far, no one has ventured off the ship. She’s been moored there for two weeks.”
Spencer shaded her eyes from the sun with her hand as she looked at the ship. “It doesn’t look like a pirate ship. Are you sure that’s her?”
“You’re right about that. It’s a steam whaler. But, yes, we’re pretty sure it’s Makenna. She probably pillaged the ship from an unsuspecting whaler.”
“So, I assume she’s one of the bad guys you expect me to protect the docks against?”
“I suspect you wouldn’t last long against her. She’s no Donovan—that’s for sure. She most likely has an armed crew as well, so no—I wouldn’t expect you to personally defend the docks against her, but if you see anything suspicious happening around that ship, I would expect you to report it.”
“Fair enough.”
Bear and Spencer turned back to walk toward the warehouses.
“Bear, I’ve been hearing stories about unrest having to do with a deal the U.S. Government is trying to work with the kingdom. Something about Pearl Harbor?” Spencer prompted.
“You’ve been hearing right. The Navy wants to set up a strategic base on Pearl Harbor, but the natives don’t want to give up the land. There is an attractive trade treaty being offered to the monarchy in exchange for the land, but so far, the king doesn’t want to commit to anything permanent.”
“But wouldn’t a trade treaty be beneficial to the people of Hawai’i?” Spencer asked.
“Yes. It would. That’s why there is unrest. You see, there has been a temporary treaty in place for the past several years and this latest offer is to make it permanent. The people are becoming wealthier and they don’t want to see that stop. Some of them are forming insurgent groups to fight the monarchy.”
“So how do you feel about this, Bear? I mean...I can’t help but notice that you and the entire crew are haoles. None of you are natives.”
“We work for an American company. All of us came here from the mainland. I would be lying if I said I didn’t support the treaty. All of these warehouses are full of sugar cane that is destined for the United States. Trade between Hawai’i and the mainland is what keeps us employed...and now that includes you as well.”
“I will do my best to protect these docks from thieves, marauders, and pirates. You have my word on that.”
Spencer extended her hand for a firm shake.
“I appreciate that, Red. Here are the keys. Since most of the cargo activity on this particular dock occurs at night, there is always someone around to discourage thieves, so your hours will cover mid-morning until dark. Most of the men live in the crew quarters, so if something significant happens, we’re only a shout away.”
***
Spencer quickly fell into the routine of making her rounds three times a day to inspect each warehouse for evidence of forced entry or vagrant loitering. At Bear’s request, she wore both her sword and Frankie’s gun while doing her rounds. At the end of each round, she spent a full hour standing at the end of the dock, scanning the area around the moored ship for signs of movement, using a collapsible monocular she had borrowed from one of the dock workers.
After three days on the job, she had spent a total of nine hours watching for movement on the steam whaler, but had yet to witness any activity on the ship. As dusk approached on the third day, she clo
sed the monocular and slipped it into her coat pocket. She turned to head back to her room, only to be stopped short by Frankie, who managed to walk right up to where she was standing, unaware.
“Jesus, you scared me!” Spencer exclaimed.
“Some security guard you are! You were so absorbed in what you were looking at that I walked right up to you undetected,” Frankie said.
“How did you find me?”
“I’ve known where you were for the past three days. It’s not often a red-haired haole woman sporting a sword and a gun shows up out of the blue. It wasn’t hard to track you down.”
Spencer studied the boards on the deck; too ashamed to look directly at Frankie. “I’m sorry I cut out on you. I didn’t know what else to do. I’m pretty sure after the sword incident that Leilani would have had me arrested if I stuck around.”
“Red, look at me.”
Spencer reluctantly obeyed.
“Lei would not have had you arrested. For starters, I wouldn’t have let her. You didn’t do anything wrong.”
“I had her pinned to the wall with my sword. Where I come from, that’s called assault.”
“Yes, but there were extenuating circumstances. In my humble medical opinion, what happened was caused by muscle memory. You are obviously well skilled with a sword, and even if your brain doesn’t acknowledge it, it appears your body does.”
“She must be angry with me.”
“She’s angrier with me for defending you.”
“I’m sorry. I never intended to come between you.”
“That’s my problem to deal with. I stopped by to see how you are and if you need anything.”
“I’m doing okay. I have a room, and a job, but then, you already know that.”
Frankie looked beyond Spencer to the ship moored in the harbor. “What were you looking at just now?”
“That ship out there reportedly belongs to Makenna. I’ve been watching it for signs of life. So far, I’ve seen none. I’m beginning to wonder if it’s been abandoned.”
“Please be careful, Red. If what we’ve heard about her is true...”
“I am being careful, Frankie, but if she holds the key to who I am, I am willing to risk a little danger to find out.”
Frankie looked at the clock on the bell tower across the docks. “I guess I should be going. I’m supposed to meet Lei for dinner at a local restaurant in about ten minutes.” Frankie closed the distance between them and placed a gentle kiss on Spencer’s cheek and then stepped back. “Please be careful,” she whispered.
Spencer nodded. “I will. Oh, maybe I should give this back to you.” Spencer unbuckled the gun belt around her waist.
“No. Keep it. I know where it is if I need it. I suspect you will need it more than I do right now.”
“Thank you. Please tell Leilani I am sorry for injuring her, and that I will let you know if I learn anything about Makenna.”
Frankie nodded. “It looks like we’re going to be on O’ahu for a while, so I’ll check in with you again in a few days. Be careful.”
“I will.” Spencer watched Frankie until she reached the end of the dock and walked out of sight. She sighed and turned back for one more look at the ship. Her breath caught in her throat as she realized there were lights shining from the portholes. She quickly fished the monocular from her pocket and extended it as far as it would go. “Well, I’ll be damned. It’s not abandoned after all.”
***
Makenna paced back and forth across the captain’s quarters. She waived her monocular telescope around as she spoke. “I want to know who he is!”
“But, Makenna...” First mate Roberts attempted to interject.
“Don’t ‘but Makenna’ me. Whoever that is has been watching us for three days.” She thrust her telescope forward. “I’ve seen him with my own eyes, and he’s not even trying to hide it.”
“What harm is he doing?” Roberts questioned.
“What harm? Did you say, what harm? He has effectively paralyzed us. How can we do anything with him watching?”
“You don’t know that he’s watching us. He could be just scanning the horizon.”
Makenna walked up to her first mate and leaned in close to his face. “Do I look like an idiot to you? Do I?”
“No, you don’t.”
“Then don’t question me. Do you understand? I won’t let anything stand in the way of our plans.”
“He’s been watching only during the daylight hours. If necessary, we’ll execute our plans under the cover of darkness. It might be better that way,” the first mate suggested.
“Are you out of your mind? How do you know he isn’t watching at night as well...under the cover of darkness, I might add? No. Tomorrow, we find out who this bastard is, and why he’s watching us.”
“How do you propose we do that?”
“You’re so fond of the cover of darkness. Use it to launch a skiff—tonight, and don’t come back until we have answers. Is that clear?”
Chapter 16
Spencer made a point of being awake and on the dock before the sun rose the next morning. Breaking her routine, she spent the first hour of the day watching the ship in the harbor. At one point, Spencer heard a rustle in the bushes near the dock, but it was too dark to see, and since it only happened once, she brushed it off as being caused by wildlife.
Bear found her silently keeping watch just as the sun was beginning to rise.
“Good morning, Red.”
Spencer extended her hand for a warm good morning handshake. “Same to you, Bear. Are you heading home for the day?”
“Soon. I wanted to let you know that some of the men saw lights on inside that ship last night. They went out around midnight.”
“Yes, I saw them too. I watched for about an hour at dusk, but I wasn’t able to make out any movement...just lights.”
“No crime in lights, I suppose, but I thought you might like to keep an eye on it.”
“I’ve been checking periodically throughout the day, and so far, nothing to report, but you’ll be the first to know if something happens.”
“All right then. Time to get some shut-eye. Oh, and before I forget, this is Friday, so you get the next two days off.”
“Wow, you’re right. I’ve lost track of time. Thanks for reminding me. I would have been standing right here by dawn tomorrow morning if you hadn’t said something!”
“You’re welcome. If I don’t see you at the end of the shift, have a great weekend.”
“You too! Sleep well, Bear.”
Spencer scanned the area around the ship for a few more minutes, and then started her morning rounds of the warehouses.
***
Just before sunset, Spencer completed her final inspection. As part of her usual routine, she walked back to the far end of the dock and on the way, stopped to verify one final time that all the warehouse doors were latched and padlocked for the night. She then crossed the width of the dock and began her trek back to the far end while inspecting the vessels that were moored dockside. After four days on the job, she had become familiar with the boats and skiffs that were normally docked there. Occasionally, she would encounter a boat owner or two along the way, but on this evening, the dock was vacant and silent except for the sound of gentle waves washing up under the dock.
When she reached the end, she sat on the dock and retrieved the monocular telescope from her pocket to watch the ship.
For about an hour, Spencer scanned the ship and the area around it, but was disappointed when all remained dark and still. Finally, she climbed back to her feet and stretched her back. Then, as she turned to walk back to her room, she noticed a strange skiff she hadn’t seen before, partially dragged ashore, just beyond the end of the dock. Curious, she descended the stairs to the beach level and approached the skiff. Her right hand was poised on the hilt of her sword as she walked.
The skiff was empty. Spencer relaxed and removed the telescope from her pocket to scan the shore and the area a
round the ship once more. After a moment or two, she was satisfied that all was quiet and she turned toward the stairs to the dock.
Suddenly, all went dark.
***
Makenna paced back and forth across the captain’s quarters and anxiously awaited the return of the men she had sent ashore. Before long, she heard voices from the deck above.
“Haul it up!”
Makenna heard a loud thump on the side of the ship, following by more shouting.
“Take it easy, mate. We don’t want to kill the lad. Not yet, anyway.”
“This would be a lot easier if we lit a torch!”
“Can’t do that. Orders from Makenna.”
Makenna quickly made her way to the deck and watched her men in the dim moonlight as they winched a large burlap bag onto the deck and dropped it roughly to the floor.
“Take it to my quarters. I can’t see a damned thing out here,” Makenna instructed.
First mate Roberts ordered two men to heft the bag and carry it to the captain’s quarters. Makenna went ahead of them to light a hurricane lamp. Again, they dropped the bag roughly to the floor.
“Remove the bag,” Makenna demanded.
The men cut the rawhide ropes that held the bag closed and slowly pulled the bag off. Makenna watched intently as a pair of slim legs appeared, clad in leather pants and knee-high boots with buckles around the knee. The tip of a sword scabbard appeared next, followed by a sidearm.
“He’s armed. Get that bag off so we can take care of that little issue,” Makenna said.
The men quickly pulled the bag the rest of the way off.
Makenna took a quick step backward and then slowly approached and knelt beside their prisoner. She grabbed the lapels of Spencer’s jacket and pulled her upward. Spencer’s head fell back. There was a trail of dried blood streaked from Spencer’s hairline, down the side of her face to her cheek. “In the name of Pele! It’s a woman!” She looked at her men. “You morons ambushed a woman!”
She lowered Spencer back to the floor and stood up. “Unarm her, and then lock her in the brig. Roberts, you have some explaining to do!”