by Louise, Kara
The captain rubbed his bearded chin and looked out. “It is… ’tis not easy to say, Miss Bennet.”
“I hope we shall be able to. Are you concerned we might be stranded on the island yet another day?”
“’Tis much to be concerned about in our circumstances. But I’ll do me best to get ye safely off this island an’ sailin’ home.”
“I am confident of that, Captain. I want to express my appreciation, from myself and all of the ladies, for how safe you have made us feel and how obliging you have been towards us. I know it has not been easy.”
She looked up at him, but he only nodded while seemingly intent on staring ahead.
“How is your wound, Captain? May I look at it?”
She heard a deep sigh. “It is well enough.”
“You must know I am truly sorry for what I did. Especially after how good you have been to us.”
He turned to face her. “Pray, do not berate yourself.”
She reached up and removed his hat. She could readily see how much the wound had swollen, and there were blue and purple tints of colour that spread over the top and side of his head. Dried blood was caked around the edges of the wound.
“It looks quite ghastly! I fear you shall probably have a scar and will have a dreadful memory of me and what I did every time you look at yourself in the mirror.”
The captain inhaled sharply and looked down at her intently. “As long as I ken get you safely off this island an’ back home, I shall not dread the memory o’ our encounter in the slightest.”
Elizabeth smiled, and a blush tinted her cheeks. “You are too kind, sir. Do you mind if I tie the sash back on over it?”
He looked at her, weighing what to say against what he was thinking. “Me thinks I’ll leave it about me neck fer now, as the bleeding ’as ceased.”
She turned to gaze out at the sky, the rocks and dirt and sand – anywhere but at his penetrating eyes. “I fear Lockerly will also end up with quite a scar, as well, but will not have such a forbearing estimation towards the person who inflicted it.”
The captain chuckled. “No, I should imagine not.”
“Since the others are still sleeping, Captain, would you be so kind as to allow me some privacy out there? I shall return shortly.”
“Aye. I’ll make certain no one steps out ’til ye return.”
“Thank you.” Elizabeth dipped a curtsey and left.
Elizabeth walked carefully through the mud to a shelter of rock and shrubbery. The only sounds were the rustle of the breeze through the leaves and the waves crashing onto the beaches off in the distance. She closed her eyes and allowed the peace of this place to soothe her soul.
She thought about Captain Smith and how she had on numerous occasions blushed in his presence. He evoked something within her – a sense of familiarity, as if he was a long-time close acquaintance; a deep appreciation for the concern he obviously had for her welfare and the welfare of others; and a feeling of admiration. Sometimes when she looked up into his eyes, she felt drawn into them.
She let out a long sigh and put her hands up to her warm cheeks as she considered how silly this was. Of course she appreciated him, but he was a lowly sea captain with very little education. While it was apparent he enjoyed her company, she could never return his affection.
She crossed her arms in front of her as she walked back to the cave. It was a silly, groundless attraction that could never amount to anything.
The sound of the captain’s voice stirred her from her thoughts. More people must have awakened, so she hurried back.
When she returned to the cave, Captain Smith welcomed her return with a smile and sent off two of his men, one of whom was Bellows. They were carrying the trunk.
Elizabeth nodded at them as they passed and then asked the captain where they were going.
“They’re headin’ down to the beach to make sure Lockerly hasn’t returned, an’ then they’ll row out to our ship an’ sail it back ’round to the merchant ship. Once there, they’ll have ’em send out the dinghy to pick us up if they haven’t already.”
Elizabeth bit her lip, feeling admittedly a sense of disappointment. “And so we are to go back to the merchant ship. Do you think it repaired, then?”
“On the contrary, it is not.”
Elizabeth looked up at him, startled. “How do you know?”
“Just as it was gettin’ light, I walked down to the beach. It is still listin’ quite a bit.”
“And shall you then leave us there?” she asked softly. “On the merchant ship?”
“Do ye think I would?”
Elizabeth shook her head slowly. “Not, perhaps, to fend for ourselves, but perhaps you shall leave to go get help.”
“’Tis dangerous to remain with me – especially on Lockerly’s ship! I fear Lockerly will return to exact revenge.”
“So our choice is to remain on a crippled ship and face pirates who know where it is, or risk encountering pirates intent on finding and retrieving their ship?”
“’Tis not an easy choice.” He looked down at her with those piercing eyes. “If I have me say, I shall insist ye come aboard with us on the Devil’s Seamaiden so we at least ’ave the ability to escape from the pirates should they return!”
“I am inclined to agree with you. Lockerly knows where the merchant is and that it is helpless. It is an easy target, but then he may have the greater wish to seize his own ship to get it back!”
“’Tis exactly my thought,” the captain concurred in a low, coarse voice.
Elizabeth narrowed her brows and looked down. “There is one thing I fear I do not understand, Captain. Why were you impersonating Lockerly, and why do you have his ship?” She tilted her head as she looked up at him. “I do confess that I see the resemblance between the two of you, but why?”
The captain crossed his arms in front of him and leaned against the wall of the cave. “I was mistaken for Lockerly an’ thrown into a cell. Spent a night in that foul place. Fortunately, someone saw me the followin’ day an’ realized I wasn’t him.”
“You truly were mistaken for him?” asked Elizabeth, astonished.
The captain nodded. He then began to tell her more of the story, omitting certain details that would reveal his identity.
“Oh, my!” she said when he finished. “So you had not intended to go to sea at all?”
The captain shook his head.
“Heavens!” Elizabeth exclaimed. “If you had not gone to sea, we may all have been killed by Lockerly and his men!”
The captain nodded slowly, tightening his hands into a fist. “Or been taken onto their ship and suffered unimaginable atrocities at their hands!”
Elizabeth shuddered. “We are so very much in your debt, Captain. I shall never forget this!”
“Neither shall I…” he returned, his voice trailing off into a soft whisper.
By now everyone had awakened, and the three ladies stepped up to the captain and asked for some privacy outside the cave. He nodded his assent, and Elizabeth stood next to him as the ladies departed. They listened to the ladies moan and groan as they trudged their way through the mud.
Elizabeth heard the captain chuckle.
“Do you find their struggle walking in the mud humorous?”
“I’m merely considerin’ what these ladies will say when they discover how we propose to get them aboard the Devil’s Seamaiden.” The captain shook his head and chuckled again. “If they don’t like walkin’ in the mud, I ken’t imagine them bein’ happy wi’ how they’ll be boardin’ our ship from the merchant ship, if it come to that!”
The captain started to walk back into the cave, and Elizabeth turned with arms upturned. “How?” she asked.
“I’d rather not tell ye now,” he said with a sly grin. “That way, when the ladies ask if ye knows how we’re goin’ to do it, ye ken honestly say ye don’t know!”
“Is it truly that bad?” Elizabeth asked.
Captain Smith continued. “I w
ill need ye to trust me implicitly, Miss Bennet. There is but one way to do it, and I beg o’ ye when the time comes, you will shew the ladies there is no peril.”
“If you say there is no danger, Captain, of course, I shall trust you.”
Chapter 14
Later that morning after everyone had finished eating what food remained, they gathered up their belongings and walked down to the beach to await the dinghy that would take them out to the merchant ship.
When they arrived, they spied it a short distance from shore. Excitement rose among the small group as they watched it come towards them, finally being propelled the final distance by the small waves breaking onto the shore.
Darcy stood back, watching Elizabeth as she laughed with the ladies. He leaned against a rock, folding his arms in front of him. He had taken too many liberties with her this morning and had almost blurted out his recollection of her having walked in the mud to Netherfield, early in their acquaintance.
His frustration the night before when the ladies had laughed as Elizabeth spoke of his foolish proposal had been short lived. When he had seen her sit up this morning and walk towards him, all resolve to put her out of his mind evaporated. When she had lifted her face towards his, he fought off the temptation with his every ounce of resolve to lean down and kiss her.
He shook his head to clear his thoughts and joined the other men as they rushed out to pull the dinghy up to the beach. They were told that the merchant ship had been pulled off the one rock during the storm the previous night, but had come down on another, breaking through the hull in another place. It was a smaller gash, but one that would require more repairs.
It was decided that the four ladies, Mr. Joyner, and Darcy would ride back with the two crewmen. Timmons and the remaining crew would wait for the dinghy to return for them. Darcy wanted to discuss his plans with Captain Meeker on how he proposed moving the ladies from the merchant ship to his. It was not going to be easy.
The sea was calm, and the dinghy travelled smoothly over the crystal blue water as the men rowed. Mrs. Joyner held tightly onto Mr. Joyner’s hand. The other three ladies searched the faces of those watching from the ship for the first sign of their loved ones. When they came up alongside the ship, the ropes were lowered and secured to the small boat. The crewmen attached the small boat to some cables, and then they, along with Darcy, climbed up the rope and wood planked ladder that hung over the side of the ship.
Hands were again grasped tightly as the boat was slowly lifted out of the water.
“Be still, now,” Captain Meeker called out. “Ye don’t want to rock the boat!”
It took a little more time to raise it than it had to lower them into the water the day before, but once high and above the railing of the ship, they swung it over and brought it down onto the deck. With sighs of relief, the women climbed out.
Mr. Dillard and Mr. Keller rushed over to greet their wives. Darcy watched as Mr. Bennet and a young man with a bandaged arm rushed up to Elizabeth.
Mr. Bennet drew Elizabeth into his arms. Tears ran down the older man’s face. Seeing the love and care he had for Elizabeth and his relief at being reunited with his daughter, moved Darcy. He realized then how much her father loved her.
Darcy then watched with narrowed brows as the young man grasped Elizabeth’s hands in his good hand and brought them to his lips. He stepped closer to hear what he was saying.
“Cousin Elizabeth! We were so worried about you! It has been the most helpless feeling not to be able to do anything to ensure your safety!”
“Thank you, David, but what happened to your arm? Did you injure it?”
The young man looked down and nodded. “I took a tumble in the storm last night when the ship lurched from the rock’s grip. The man who calls himself the doctor on board does not think it is broken, but he wrapped it, and I will need to go to a doctor in London once we arrive.”
“I am so sorry!” Elizabeth said.
Darcy turned his attention away, rubbing his bearded chin with his hand. He certainly did not like the way Elizabeth and her cousin looked at each other. He walked to the back of the ship, where the Devil’s Seamaiden was slowly approaching. As it drew close, he watched some of the ship’s sails being furled to slow her down.
One of his crew held a grappling hook and called out, “Ahoy!” With all his might he threw it across the distance of the sea separating the two ships. It came over the side of the merchant ship, landing with a thud. As it was pulled back, the hook gouged into the side railing. The Devil’s Seamaiden was slowly pulled as close as it could get without hitting the rocky outcroppings lurking just below the sea’s surface. Then they stopped and dropped anchor.
As Darcy supervised this manoeuvre, Elizabeth came over with her father and cousin.
“Captain Smith, may I introduce my father, Mr. Bennet, and my cousin, David Adams? This is Captain Smith, who is a great deal responsible for our safety.” She bit her lip and then added with a wry smile, “Please do not ask him how he received the bruise above his eye. It will not speak well of my behaviour when we met.”
Darcy bowed. “If I recollect, Miss Bennet, ’twas before we met, and as I ’ave said many times already, ye were doin’ what ye thought ye must.” He looked at the two men. “’Tis a pleasure to meet ye.”
Elizabeth walked to the ship’s railing and looked out at the Devil’s Seamaiden. “Can your ship be brought any closer? I cannot imagine how we shall get over to it, especially with all the rocks below.”
“An’ that is where I need ye to trust me… all o’ ye need to trust me.” He gave a slight bow and said, “If ye will excuse me, I must speak with Captain Meeker.”
*~*~*
Elizabeth watched as Captains Smith and Meeker seemed to be engaged in a lively discussion. They pointed up to the masts and over to the Devil’s Seamaiden. After much back and forth conversing, pointing, and alternately nodding or shaking their heads, they finally seemed to agree on something. Elizabeth was quite certain it pertained to getting the passengers off the crippled merchant ship and onto Captain’s Smith ship.
David spoke in a hushed whisper. “Do they truly expect us to travel on that? It looks to me like a sinister pirate ship!”
“Oh, that it is!” Elizabeth said with a smile. “In fact, it used to belong to one of the pirates that captured us!”
“How can you laugh about this? You could have been killed!” David said.
“True. When we were in the midst of it, we were very much afraid. But we are exceedingly grateful that Captain Smith and his men were very brave, freed us from our captors, and made us all feel very safe.”
Mr. Bennet turned to Elizabeth. “So, my dear Lizzy, you had your pirate adventure after all. What shall your mother say? She will blame me for it, of that I am certain.” His eyes rolled up to the heavens, and he gave his daughter a weary smile.
Elizabeth raised her brow and said in a conspiratorial tone, “Unless she chooses to divert us with stories about how she once knew a most dashing pirate and how forlorn she was when he left her for the sea.”
Mr. Bennet let out a hearty laugh. “Oh, be assured of it, she will have some story to tell, if only to impress upon us how she always longed for a dashing pirate to carry her away!”
At length, Captain Meeker called the nine passengers over. Captain Smith stood next to him.
“We regret that this voyage ’as proven to be so calamitous for ye all. Unfortunately, storms arise with little warning, but wi’ major implications. Addin’ in the presence of pirates in this area an’ we know not what we will encounter. We cannot guarantee yer safety if ye remain on this ship while we continue to repair it. We ’ave no other choice but to move you to the Devil’s Seamaiden. Please go to your cabins an’ pack up yer belongings. Our crew will bring ’em up ’ere fer ye as ye transfer to the other ship.” He bowed and turned back to Captain Smith.
“But shall you be safe if the pirates return?” asked Mrs. Joyner.
“W
e’re ’bout finished repairin’ the ship an’ most likely will be able to set sail on the morrow. We ’ave cannons that ought to hold ’em off without any problem if the pirates do show up. We all agreed that it would be best if the passengers were on a ship that could get them back to St. Mary’s directly.”
With that, the ladies and gentlemen rushed to their rooms. The ladies were grateful for the opportunity to freshen up and change into clean clothing. They quickly gathered their belongings and packed them up. When they stepped out of their rooms, there were some crewmen waiting to carry the luggage up for the ladies.
Elizabeth joined her father and cousin, who had already come up on deck. The three looked up at the men who were climbing the rigging of the ship and untying some ropes. A large wooden plank was brought over and propped up to one of the lower yardarms. Despite being a narrow round beam, the crew travelled across it with seemingly little concern.
As they watched, a sudden movement caught their eye. They turned to see someone fly across the bow of the ship on a rope attached to a yardarm on the Devil’s Seamaiden. He landed with a thud on the ship’s deck.
Elizabeth looked back up at the men and the plank and the ropes. “Oh, my!” she exclaimed. “Is that how we are to get across? Now I can see why Captain Smith told us to trust him!”
Captain Smith approached the passengers and addressed the four men who had not been with them on the island. “For those o’ ye who ’ave not met ’im, may I introduce ye to me first mate, Bellows. If ye noticed how ’e came over, this is how we’ll be gettin’ all of ye over to our ship.”
Mrs. Joyner let out a cry of protest.
“’Tis only two ways of getting’ over to the ship, either that way or goin’ across in the dinghy. To go in the dinghy, you’ll ’ave to be climbin’ up the rope ladder on the Devil’s Seamaiden. If ye aren’t used to climbin’ up a ladder that is swayin’ up an’ down an’ back an’ forth, I suggest you allow us to help ye over this way, as fright’nin’ as it may seem. But I assure ye, ye’ll be safe.”