The Lady Captain

by Caylen McQueen

  “I don't mean to offend you, but your claim is a little far-fetched,” Lettie told her. “And listen... I've been on this airship a long time already! Julian owes me! He's promised me things, and I intend to make him deliver on those promises.”

  And then, oddly enough, the women teamed up against him.

  “Did you promise her something, Julian?” Mae asked. “Because if you did, you shouldn't be an ass about it.”

  “And if Mae needs to go to the capital... well, to be honest, you should probably swing back and drop her off,” Lettie suggested. “We can't be that far away from the capital!”

  Julian's eyes opened slowly. It was too much to hope the ladies had vanished. They were standing on either side of him, watching him expectantly, with eyes that flashed like thunderclouds. He doubted there would be an answer to please them both, so he spoke to Jolly instead. “So... Jolly... what are we having for lunch? Or is it breakfast? I'm not sure of the time, to be honest.”

  “Captain...” Jolly handed him a spyglass and pointed toward the starboard side of the ship. “Look.”

  When Julian raised the spyglass, he spotted it right away. There was a slender, sleek-bodied airship approaching their right flank. Julian unknowingly licked his lips as he watched it.

  “Now that is a beautiful airship!” exclaimed an awed Julian.

  “Indeed it is. And I think it's a pirate ship. Do you see its black flag?” Jolly ripped the spyglass from Julian's fingers before his captain got any mad ideas.

  But he was too late.

  “I want it,” Julian said. “Can we take it? I really, really want it!” He could feel his headache dissipating, replaced by a surge of excitement. “Let's attack them before they attack us!”

  Thirty Six

  When his airship was rattled by the first impact of cannon fire, Francis Doon had to chuckle. It had been ages since anyone was foolish enough to open fire on him, but if they were that desperate for death, he was happy to give it to them. “That little airship thinks it can take me on?” he snorted at the thought. “It's time to teach them what a terrible mistake they've made. Bryce!”

  His brutish sidekick instantly appeared at his side, as if he had been waiting for such a moment. “Yes, Cap'n?”

  “You know what to do, yes?”

  “Right. Precision cannon. Got it.” Bryce didn't wait for confirmation from his captain before setting off to find his favorite toy. He was one of few men capable of hauling around the giant weapon, so it was easy to guess what was expected of him.

  “Wyatt!” Doon addressed one of his newest crew members, who had already proven to be quite capable. “Get below deck and prep the main cannons. In a minute or so, I should have the perfect shot lined up, and we don't want to miss it. We need to start shooting at them before they take another shot at us.”

  Wyatt, a taciturn fellow, simply nodded. His silence was the one thing Doon admired most about him. Wyatt didn't waste time with unnecessary words, he just got the job done.

  “Doon!”

  When he heard Kitt's voice, Doon winced. Her presence during battles was usually an unwelcome distraction, and he might have sent her away, if not for the fact that she was wearing his clothes. It was one of his few weaknesses, and she shamelessly used it against him. Kitt looked adorable in his clothes.

  “What should I do?” Kitt asked. As she stood beside him, she readjusted the red bandana around her neck. The bandana was a gift from Bryce, who seemed so proud when he gave it to her. She rarely took it off.

  “Nothing.”

  “Nothing?” Kitt shrieked. “Am I not your first mate? Shouldn't you give me something to do?”

  “Not if it's dangerous.” He didn't want to tell her it was more of an honorary title. “You know how I feel about this. I'd prefer it if you waited in your room.” Doon suddenly steered the airship upward, into the clouds.

  “Are we ascending? Why? Are you trying to escape?”

  Kitt's questions made him groan. It was useless to talk tactics with someone who had never experienced a battle. “No. But that's what I want them to think,” Doon explained. “I'm letting them think they've got the upper hand. I'll let them think we're weak and crippled, and when they least expect it, we'll drop down and fire away.”

  Kitt hitched a shoulder. “Well... I guess that almost seems like a good plan.”

  “Of course it's a good plan! My plans are always good.” Doon raised a monocular to his eyes. He was trying to get a sense of his enemy's location, but the clouds made it impossible.

  “Let me see!” Kitt snatched the monocular from Doon's hand and tried to locate the airship. A few seconds later, she sorrowfully reported. “I don't see anything.”

  “Of course you don't, Kitten. And I could've told you as much before you ripped the damn monocular out of my hand!”

  When Bryce showed up at the helm and gave him a thumbs up, Doon knew they were ready. He descended at full tilt. As soon as they were within range, Bryce launched the precision cannon, landing a direct hit on the enemy's deck. A few seconds later, Doon's main cannons unleashed a barrage of destruction.

  “We've almost got them, Bryce!” Doon shouted. “Reload!”

  The enemy airship was ablaze and flying lopsided, but that didn't stop them from returning fire. Their counterattack grazed one of Doon's masts, but it dealt no noticeable damage.

  Another shot from Bryce's cannon put an end to the opposition.

  Julian Featherstone's airship was spiraling down to earth.

  “Brace for impact!” Jolly screamed as their airship made a nosedive. Lettie was on her knees, preparing herself for death's embrace. Julian clung to a mast and whimpered a prayer, while Mae clung to his arm. When their ship struck the ground, everyone was tossed around like dolls. Mae was face-down on the deck, and Julian's head landed on Lettie's lap.

  When he realized where he was, Julian didn't move right away. Landing on Lettie's lap almost made him feel better about his failure. As his face nuzzled her thigh, he asked, “Is everyone alright?”

  “Well, I'm not dead yet!” Lettie moaned, shoving his head away from her. “And you need to get off of me, Julian!”

  “I almost died, and still you can't show me some affection?” Julian shook his head and pouted. “You could've let me lie there for a few seconds, at least... you could've stroked my hair... maybe even caressed my cheek? It would've had such a calming effect, I'm sure. You're so disappointing, Lettie. So disappointing. You're breaking my heart!” Julian sat up and pointed at the hellish orange blaze that partially consumed the bow. A bit too calmly, he said, “Hey, someone needs to put that fire out!”

  Mae sat up and rubbed her nose. It was already injured; now she was pretty sure it was broken. Though she didn't speak, she unblinkingly glared in Julian's direction. Succumbing to the amorous advances of Julian Featherstone was easily the worst decision of her life—even worse than leaving The Velvet Dame, and that was a decision she regretted on a regular basis.

  “There's no use putting out the fire, Captain! We're done!” That particular opinion came from Wiggly Joe, who laid down on the deck, whimpered, and accepted his fate. “We're dead! Deceased! Done for! The bastards are boarding us!”

  “Damn, they're boarding us?” Julian drew his sword, though he wasn't sure how much good it would do. “I suppose it was too much to hope they would leave us alone.”

  Lettie frantically chewed on her lips. In a few minutes, Julian's airship would be commandeered—that much was obvious. She wanted to tell him he deserved his fate; after all, it was exactly what he did to her. But she didn't want to make a bad situation worse for him, so she kept her thoughts to herself.

  “Captain!” Jolly suddenly appeared at Julian's side. “One man is taking on everyone by himself! In all my years, I've never seen anything like it. Men are laying down their arms, begging for mercy. What should we do?”

  The fire wasn't getting any smaller, his men were dying, and the airship was utterly destroyed. There
was only one option left.

  With a heavy heart, Julian admitted, “We should surrender, I suppose.”

  When the pirates rushed him, Julian willingly relinquished his weapons. They stripped him of his guns, his sword, the knife in his coat, and even the coins in his pocket. As soon as his last weapon was ripped away, the enemy captain appeared.

  And there was a familiar redhead standing beside him.

  “Jared?” Julian squealed the lad's name. “You betrayed me? Why?”

  Jared was wincing. He wanted to apologize to his former employer, but he didn't think his current captain would appreciate it.

  “Are you this airship's captain?” The pirate's nostrils flared as he studied Julian's panicked face.

  “I am.” Julian would have bowed, but he was already on his knees. “My name is Captain Julian Featherstone. I would say it's a pleasure to meet you, but under the circumstances, I think I'll pass.”

  “And I'd say it's nice to meet you, but I'm not a liar, so I won't.” When the pirate pressed the tip of his blade against Julian's throat, he came close to drawing blood. “I'm Francis Doon, by the way. I'm sure you've already figured this out, but you're my prisoner now. Lucky you.”

  A Note from the Author

  Thank you so much for reading my story! If you enjoyed it, it would be a great help if you left a review. It doesn't have to be long. Just a sentence or two is fine. It might help me believe I'm not terrible at this writing thing!

  The next book in the Belles & Bullets series, Prisoner Princess, will be available in September 2017. For news on future releases, please follow me on Twitter! https://twitter.com/CaylenMcQueen

  Thanks again!