She shuddered in his arms, and then the dam burst. She buried her face in his chest, her tears soaking his shirt. Her shoulders shook, but she never made a sound. She held it all inside.
Poor, lass! How long has she held these tears back? Ned thought. Her silent sobs seemed to come from somewhere much deeper than just the shock of getting sent back in time and landing in a fight for her life. Those tears came from years ago, from an ancient hurt that had never healed. She couldn’t have held them down with such power, or for as long as she had these last few days and hours, without years of practice.
Ned recognized those silent sobs. He’d been swallowing them down for centuries. He’d been passing one interminable year after another in a numb coma while his own unshed tears ate a hole in his guts.
When her racking cry eased off, she didn’t sit up. She lay there in his arms, and he didn’t try to stop her. He pressed his nose into her hair and inhaled her smell. She felt so good lying there, even if she still held herself distant from him. All that would come in time. He didn’t have to push her now. She would break away in a second, and when she did, he would let her go. He could take his time and give her a chest to cry on. That’s the least he could do for her.
She peeled herself out of his arms and sat up, then wiped her face against her shoulder and looked around at nothing. “Sorry about that. I don’t usually fall apart like this.”
He rolled toward her and stroked her hair. “Ye can fall apart with me anytime ye like, lass.”
Ree took a steadying breath and diverted her gaze away from his. “I should probably go. I’ve been taking up your cabin all this time. I should find another place to stay.”
“Ye can bunk down in the hold with the crew if ye like,” he replied.
Her head snapped around, eyes wide.
“Just a wee joke, lass,” he told her. “Ye can stay here, and I’ll go stay with Gilias in the mate’s cabin below.”
“You don’t have to do that. You should be comfortable. Isn’t there anywhere else I can stay?”
He cocked his head. “Are ye saying ye dinnae fancy staying here with me?” He laid a finger on her lips. “Dinnae answer that. I wouldnae have ye stay anywhere ye were uncomfortable. Just give me ten minutes to catch me breath, and I’ll leave ye to it.”
Chapter 12
Ree hugged her knees against her chest and watched the boats crisscrossing her field of view outside the aft window. The thriving port city of Aberdeen lay across the water. Ships of all sizes lay docked along the quay, and small runabouts and skiffs made the constant back-and-forth journey between the larger vessels at anchor farther out. The Prometheus hid among the other ships so as to be less noticeable from shore.
She surveyed the town with a mixture of foreboding and relief. On the one hand, she looked forward to getting back to civilization, or at least what passed for it in this prehistoric era. On the other, she didn’t care for the idea of leaving the Prometheus and going out among strangers.
While she sat pondering in the window seat, the door of the small officer’s quarters opened and Ned entered. “It’s time, lass. Gilias will row ye over to the quayside. Here, this is enough money to take care of yerself.” He plucked a small coin purse from his sporran and handed it to Ree.
Ree took it and stashed it inside her dress. “When will I see you again?” she asked with apprehensive eyes.
“I’ll come back as soon as I’ve got the hull repaired.”
“I don’t like being left behind,” she remarked. “Can’t I come with you?”
“We discussed this, lass,” he replied. “It’s too dangerous with the Gunns still searching these waters for us. We’ll run across to the fjords of Norway. I ken a man there who’ll fix the ship, and then I’ll come back and find ye here.”
“What if something happens and you can’t find me?” she asked. “What then?”
He laid both hands on her shoulders. “I’ll find ye, lass. I’ll find ye no matter what. If I dinnae find ye here, I’ll find ye somewhere else. Dinnae bother about that. Just go. It’s no safe for us to park up in this so long. Go ashore. No one’ll bother ye.”
Standing so close to him, she realized all of a sudden just how much she didn’t want to leave. Parting from him wrenched her gut. He was the last foundation block supporting her new and completely altered world.
What would happen to her when she got on shore? She would be thrown on her own resources for her very survival—not that she couldn’t survive. She could survive anywhere, even in this backwater of history. No, it went so much deeper than that. She hadn’t once faced this crazy situation alone since she’d washed up on the Isle of Lewis. First Cora, then Malcolm, and then Ned took charge of her and protected her. They’d kept her safe and comfortable and warm when she didn’t know what would become of her next. She wouldn’t have any of those people looking after her in Aberdeen. She would have to rely on herself in this strange time. If she was being honest with herself, she didn’t want any of the others. She wanted Ned. She didn’t want to part from him—not because of the dangers she might face, but because she wanted to be near him.
She swallowed hard. “Please let me come with you. I don’t want to go out there. I don’t want to be separated from you.”
He put his arms around her and kissed the side of her head, then held her close. “I’ll be back for ye soon, lass. I wouldnae be taking care of ye if I took ye with me. If the Gunns attack again, I dinnae want ye on board this worm-eaten bucket.” He took a step back and held her at arm’s length. “Now come along. Gilias is waiting to row ye over to the quay, and then we must put out before the Harbor Master catches sight of us.”
Ned took her hand and led her out of the cabin, then held her hand across the deck in full view of the whole crew. How had it come to this? All the men must know…what? What could they possibly know when nothing was going on between them? He conducted Ree to the side where a rope ladder hung over the rail.
“I didnae ken if ye could climb down on yer own, so I rigged up a sling to lower ye,” he told her. “I hope ye dinnae mind my presumption.”
Ree’s cheeks colored. “Not at all. Thank you for considering me.”
She wanted more than anything to kiss him. Only her own stubborn defenses stopped her. Why did she always have to be the strong one? Why did she have to hold herself together all the time? Why couldn’t she open her heart when she wanted to so badly?
Ned pulled a strap of canvas from the mast. A length of rope connected it to a pully on a crosstree above their heads. He spread the canvas out into a seat, slipped it over Ree’s head, and positioned it around her hips to act as a swing. One last time, he looked into her eyes.
All the emotion she ever felt about him threatened to explode out of her. She wanted to burst into tears. She wanted to kiss him and hold onto him and never let him go, but she couldn’t do any of those things. She had to maintain this ridiculous façade that he meant nothing to her.
He glanced down at her mouth, and his lips twitched.
Was he thinking the same thing?
The next thing she knew, he was moving away. His hands and arms had left her cold and alone, abandoned against the whole world. She never felt worse in her life.
She had locked away all the pain and grief over losing her leg, and any hope of love with it, in an iron box way down deep inside her soul. And now this man seemed to hold the key that could unlock it all. Someone cared. Someone wanted her as much as she wanted him, and she couldn’t have him. Now he was leaving her alone, and she might never see him again. Her spirit revolted at the thought.
She would have thrown her arms around his neck and covered his face in kisses, but he caught hold of another rope and pulled before she got a chance. The swing seat lifted her off the deck and swung her out over the water.
He lowered her into a skiff perched below where Gilias held the oars. She stepped down into it and slipped the sling over her head. Ned hauled it up, and Gilias leaned on his oar
s to pull for shore.
Ree sat down on the thwart and watched the Prometheus dwindle into the distance. Ned stood at the rail. The wind caught his hair, and his stony features faded until she couldn’t make out his expression any longer. He stood there until Gilias nosed into the quay and helped her climb onto the jetty.
“Be off with ye now, lass,” Gilias told her. “We’ll be back before long.”
“Thank you,” Ree murmured as she turned to face him.
Gilias plunked down into the boat and took the oars again. In a few seconds, he was halfway across the harbor to the Prometheus.
Ree stared at the ship. Even before Gilias got back, the sails unfurled. The skiff bumped its hull, and Gilias scrambled up the ladder as the crew hauled the skiff on board. The Prometheus turned in the breeze and drifted away.
Was Ned still standing there? Was he still watching her the way she’d watched for him? Did his heart ache as much as hers did at parting? Ned had told her the trip to Norway could take a week each way and couldn’t guess how long the repairs would take. What should she do in the meantime? What could she do?
Ree slowly turned toward Aberdeen, looking around to get her bearings. She had to find a place to stay, and then she had to figure out what to do with herself in this strange town until Ned returned. She tightened the woolen shawl he’d given her around her shoulders and set off toward town. Workmen bustled all over the dock. They rolled wooden barrels along the ground and up and down gangplanks in and out of ships. Sailors scurried up and down the rigging of the many ships as their shouts called back and forth from man to man and ship to ship. A spirit of excitement infected the whole place.
Ree strolled along the quayside and watched the activity. She’d never seen anything like it, nor was she likely to see anything like it again. She remembered how François Boucher’s paintings had mesmerized her in college and thought those glimpses into a time gone by hadn’t done justice to the real people of this time period. Noticing women in similar, less than perfect clothes as hers moving among the workmen and sailors, she was relieved that her dress would blend in so well. The women hardly noticed her as they went about their business of selling food and hot drinks to anyone willing to pay.
Ree came to the end of the quay. Nothing remained but to head into town and see what lodgings she could find for the indefinite future. She could have asked anybody but was enjoying the walk through this long-ago scene.
She turned off into town and started down a dirty little street as a tall man in a blazing red military uniform approached her. She glanced around and spotted five more soldiers standing off on the other side of the street. They all carried rifles and watched the man.
He bowed and doffed his three-cornered hat. “Good morning, Madam. I’m Major Kirk, at your service. I command the British garrison in this town. Do I have the honor of addressing the lady that just disembarked from the three-masted galleon Prometheus not an hour ago?”
“Yes,” she replied. “That’s me. Is anything wrong?”
“The Harbor Master watched you come over and alerted me,” the man continued. “The Prometheus belongs to a notorious buccaneer and marauder known as Dagar Lumani. He also uses the name Niall Lewis. Perhaps you came into contact with the same man on board that ship?”
“Yes, I did,” Ree replied. “Is there a problem? You can see I’m not a member of his crew.”
Major Kirk suppressed a smile. “No, Madam. I never thought you were. You must understand, however, that my position requires me to question you about your association with him. Had I known sooner he was anchored here, even for a few minutes, I would have gone out to engage him and capture him. He’s wanted all over the British Isles for crimes too unspeakable to mention in the presence of a lady.”
“Thank you, Major,” she replied, “but I can assure you Niall Lewis treated me kindly in every respect. He came to Aberdeen on purpose to drop me off and put me at liberty. He never gave me any indication he was dangerous. He was courteous and considerate at every turn.”
Major Kirk cocked his head. “Then perhaps you can explain to me how he managed to kidnap you from a village on the Isle of Lewis just before he set it to the torch and slaughtered all the inhabitants. I imagine he wasn’t courteous and considerate then.”
Ree flinched in surprise. “How do you know about that?”
Major Kirk waved his hand behind him. “I think you had better come with me, Madam. Even if you’re telling the truth about his intentions, I still need to file a full report on the incident. Please come with me, and I will escort you to the garrison where we can converse in comfort in my office.”
His manner and facial expression left her no choice. He stood several inches taller than she, and his sharp eyes sought out every weakness in his object. Those soldiers waiting across the street didn’t help much, either.
She set off down the street with Major Kirk at her side. When she had no idea which way to turn, he guided her by bowing and waving in the direction he wanted her to go. His manners didn’t comfort her, though. If he knew how the pirates captured her, he might know a lot more. Everybody seemed to know everything before she did. Maybe he realized she wasn’t a hapless stray the pirates had picked up by accident. Maybe he already detected where her loyalties lay.
Where did her loyalties lie? She didn’t know for certain herself, but her instincts told her to protect Ned in any way she could.
Major Kirk led her to a stone fortress near the center of town. He showed her through a low arched doorway, down a dismal corridor, and into a room with a low ceiling and only one tiny window. Only a fire burning in the fireplace made the place habitable. He pulled out a chair in front of a big wooden desk and then waited until Ree sat down before he took the opposite chair. He rifled papers and picked up a feather pen stained with ink at the tip.
“Now then, Madam,” he began. “May I have your full name?”
“Ree Hamilton.”
His head shot up. “Ree?”
Ree gave him a sincere nod. “Yes, that’s my name.”
Major Kirk’s brow pinched. “I have never heard that name before,” he remarked. “Is it short for something else?”
“No, just Ree,” she replied in a curt tone. “That’s what my parents named me.”
He frowned and scrawled something on a piece of paper. “Now, Madam, I have it on good authority that you were found alone on the coast of Lewis, and not by Niall Lewis or his men.”
Ree’s face scrunched up in confusion. “Who told you that?”
He checked his notes. “A certain Cora Gunn. Perhaps you know her.”
Ree jumped. “Cora! Is she here? Where is she?”
Major Kirk held up his hand. “All in good time, Madam. So you see my information isn’t so shabby as all that. Kindly confirm how you came to the Isle of Lewis and how you came into the society of one of the most notorious and wanted pirates alive.”
Ree’s head swam. Cora! If Cora had reported the whole story to the British authorities, Ree couldn’t hold anything back. She had to tell the whole truth, or she would get cast as one of the pirates. In this day and age, that could mean imprisonment or the gallows.
Ree let out a sigh. “What Cora told you is true. I washed up on the Isle of Lewis with my memory a blank. I have no idea how I got there or where I came from. I was dressed in strange clothes and soaking wet. I made my way to the nearest sign of human habitation, which turned out to be an encampment of these Lewis men. I knew nothing about them. I was freezing, and I asked them for help.”
“Did they help you?” he asked.
“No, they didn’t. I was attempting to warm myself by their fire when Cora and her associates found me. They took me to their village. It was the Gunns who helped me, and while one of their leaders was questioning me—”
“Malcolm Gunn,” he interrupted.
“Yes, Malcolm Gunn. While he was questioning me, the pirates attacked. I tried to flee with the other villages, and I got captured by Niall
’s first mate.”
He studied his papers. “A certain Ben Harris?”
Ree gasped, “Ben Harris!”
“Yes.” The Major held up a piece of paper. “He’s described as a big fellow, about six foot five inches, pale sandy hair and a thick bushy beard, quite stout and strong, ruthless and cunning. Does that sound familiar?”
Ree looked away. “He’s using a different name on board the ship.”
“What name is that?”
“Gilias Luga,” she replied. “I never heard the name Ben Harris before today—at least, I never heard it on board the ship in connection with Niall’s first mate.”
“But you have heard the name Ben Harris before today?” he asked. “Where have you heard it?”
Ree shrugged, hoping he’d settle for “I don’t know.” She couldn’t tell him the truth. She couldn’t tell him she’d heard that name in 2018—Ben Harris worked for the San Francisco City Council on Primary Industries contracts for the skin anti-aging formula.
Her mind spun. So Ben Harris was Gilias Luga, another one of these immortal Angui. She had never met Ben Harris. Mila handled City Council applications.
Major Kirk’s voice snapped her out of her reverie. “Miss Hamilton? I asked you a question. Where did you hear the name Ben Harris before today?”
She shook herself. “Oh, I can’t remember. It’s a common name. I’m sure I heard it somewhere.”
He frowned even more and shook his head while looking over his notes.
She wasn’t convincing him. That was obvious. She had to come up with some plausible explanation. “I believe my father hired a workman by that name once to repair some damage to our chimney, but that was a long way from here.”
He laid down his pen and fixed her with a piercing gaze. “I do not recognize your accent, Madam. Where do you come from?”
This wasn’t going her way at all. “I come from the colonies of America,” she replied. “I have an American accent.”
“Ah, of course!” His face brightened. “My apologies for not recognizing that. Of course. That explains everything.”
Pirates of the Angui (Cipher's Kiss Book 1): A Scottish Highlander Time Travel Romance Page 10