“Jewels?” Harris suggested.
“We will need to see if anything was stolen,” David said.
“I did not bring anything of significant worth.” She dismissed the idea.
“Maybe the thief did not know that and took his chances. Let us put the cabin to rights and see if anything is missing.”
Her maid, Chapman, had already begun. The furniture was nailed to the floor, and Charlotte had not brought too much luggage, so it was not long before everything had been returned to normal—except for her insides. She felt violated. Someone—some stranger—had looked through all her personal belongings.
David placed an arm around her and held her tight as if guessing her thoughts. His hand stroked soothingly up and down her back and she did not want him ever to let go.
“Why would someone do this? It makes no sense,” she asked.
“Sometimes you never discover a reason. Most criminal acts stem from either greed or desperation.”
“I cannot think greed alone could be the explanation for someone risking such a dangerous deed. Are any of the other cabins ransacked?”
Lord Harris answered, “No.”
“Nothing seems to be missing, my lady,” Chapman said. “Even your jewels are still here.” She held up a pouch of trinkets which were worth a small fortune, even though they were not ducal heirlooms.
“’Twas not greed, then.” Charlotte remarked. “Could this be some kind of a warning? Is there more to the smuggling than we thought?” she asked with genuine consternation.
“Why not me, in that case?” David asked. “Surely their grudge would be with me, not you?”
“It was because of me that Prescott died. If I had not struggled with him, he would have got away,” she explained.
“No, you cannot think that. We had other measures in place to catch them.”
“Did they know that? If Colonel Prescott was only one of the villains involved in the scheme, there could be others.”
David shook his head. “We have not found anything beyond Colonel Prescott. He had the connections in the Home Office. He was clearly the mastermind. And you saw what happened to the boat Dunn was on.”
“Was he ever found, though?”
A pregnant pause ensued before he answered, with obvious reluctance.
“Not to my knowledge,” David said, looking at Lord Harris, who also gave a small shake of his head.
“It is not likely that he ever will be found, Charlotte. The sea would have carried his body far away very quickly. Only a few pieces of the ship even made it back to shore,” Harris explained.
Charlotte was only mildly reassured. It seemed too much of a coincidence to discount the fact that Dunn had somehow escaped or been rescued. The men probably suspected the same, but were trying to protect her delicate sensibilities—again.
“There has to be a reason for this to have happened.”
“We will be done with searching the ship soon,” Harris replied.
“Would you prefer to exchange cabins with me?” David offered. “Mine is not quite so handsome, but if you will feel safer you are welcome to it.”
“No, thank you. Chapman will sleep in here with me. If you had ever seen her deal with a mouse, you would fear for anyone who dare cross her.”
Chapman let out a muttered, “Humph.”
The men laughed at the comic relief. Charlotte had always found humour useful as a protective mechanism to hide her true feelings. Hopefully, they would not see through this flimsy barrier to her true thoughts. Nonetheless, there had to be more to this than they knew, which meant they were still not safe. The question she could not answer was what could the smugglers want from her? Or did they seek to terrorize her by scaring her to death; to keep her from sleeping as well as causing her to jump at every shadow? It was an effective means of punishment, she had to admit. Would Dunn take such risks, however?
His livelihood would have been stripped from him, and he would be desperate, which meant he needed something. This was not mere punishment. He either thought she had something or thought to gain from her.
It was not a settling realization as she tried to find sleep. Chapman was already well past forty winks by the sounds of her snores and Charlotte sighed with frustration. This was why she avoided sharing her room with her old nurse. As much as she wanted to go and find David or Harris to see what had been discovered, she was more afraid of walking about the ship, alone, at night.
David joined Harris in his cabin after he had seen Charlotte safe inside hers, with Chapman ready to defend her mistress to the hilt.
“This is a development I had not anticipated,” David said, sinking into a chair.
“Nor any of us,” Harris agreed as he poured two glasses of brandy and handed one to David before sitting in the other armchair.
“It must be Dunn.”
“But how did he know she would be on a ship and which one?”
“We hardly kept it a secret. We did not know we needed to. Certainly everyone at the house in London would have known, and likely Langborn as well.”
“Do you think he has been on board since England?” David considered.
“Unlikely. We stopped once, along the Coast of France, to pick up some cargo. He could have easily disguised himself and come on board. My crew did not know to be suspicious.”
“If he were set on vengeance, why wait until now? Why not act sooner?”
“Perhaps it was a target of opportunity—a coincidence even. We have no proof that Dunn was our man.”
“Do you think he is still on the ship?”
“Only if he is waiting for a noose around his neck. However, at this point he has little to lose.” Harris swirled his drink.
“Indeed. I think he is looking for something specific.” Harris’s eyebrows elevated in question. “He did not take any valuables, and he waited until Charlotte left her cabin—which she had not done for nearly the first week of the journey. Either he waited in hiding, on the ship somewhere, or he joined us at the last port.”
“Therefore, you conclude Charlotte has something he wants. But did he find it or not? Will we be safe, or will we be stalked by this unscrupulous murderer until he gets what he wants?”
“Charlotte has no idea, I would bet on it. I think we had best hope your men find him on board, or we may never know and she will never feel safe again. I felt that way about Brennan, even when I was in the Indies. I had no doubt he knew where I was and I was always looking over my shoulder.”
“I fear you are right. It is an unfortunate situation. I cannot think his chances of jumping ship would be very successful, but he would have needed a plan. You cannot simply ransack a cabin on a ship in the middle of the ocean and not expect someone to be looking for you afterwards,” Harris noted dryly.
“Do you think he had a rowing boat, or could he have used one of yours to escape?” David suggested.
“He could not have taken one of mine, they are stored on deck,” Harris said quickly, but he was pondering the matter. There was a small crease between his brows. “I suppose there is a slight chance; if he had an accomplice, he could have managed it. We are in calm seas and not too far from land.”
There was a sharp knock on the door. “Enter,” Harris called.
Connors, the first mate, entered. He was the one David had seen taking the helm when Harris was not. He was young and weathered like most sailors, but looked capable. “There is no sign of him, Captain.”
“Any sign of him having stowed away anywhere?”
“None. I did not think that likely from the beginning, but I cannot see how someone could have boarded without our knowledge while at sea.”
“We were just contemplating that very thing.”
“There was only a small amount of time, while Charlotte was out of the cabin. How would he have known if he had not been on board, watching her movements?” David asked.
“It seems much too unlikely to be coincidence, since she had not left her cabin befor
e.”
“Thank you, Connors. Can you keep one man watching over the cabins in case our man has eluded us?”
“Aye aye, sir.”
After the first mate left, Harris looked at David. “I think Charlotte is going to have to determine what Dunn is looking for. There has to be something he wants from her.”
“Or, he at least thinks she has. She had no dealings with Dunn to my knowledge and only a few moments with Prescott—until the moment they were struggling in the water.”
“Could Charlotte have, unknowingly, taken something from Prescott during their struggle? Or unwittingly dislodged something and Dunn is convinced she has it?” Harris continued to think aloud.
“The devil! That must be it. We have to catch him!” David pounded his fist on his leg.
“What if he has already found it?” Harris refilled his drink.
“I cannot believe it would be so easy.”
“Do you want me to turn the ship around and go back to the nearest port—try to search for him?” We can go into deeper waters until Gibraltar. It would make it less likely he could give chase. Afterwards, we will be negotiating around shoals and reefs as we approach Malta.”
“No. I do not want to risk Charlotte. If he does not have what he wants, he will not stop.”
“Still assuming this is Dunn we are talking about, we need to think like him. What would cause him to come after her? There is perhaps only one answer.”
“Money.” David nodded.
“A key of some sort? A treasure map?” Harris chuckled.
“The likelihood that anything would have survived on her person, in the water, is minuscule. He is desperate enough to take that chance, I gather.”
“You used to run in his world. What could he be after? Where would payments get made for receipt of goods?”
“We did not get paid until the job was done. The ammunition was discharged on the ship, so the goods were not delivered.”
“So, the operation failed. Was that everything?”
“Actually, no. There were guns. They buried them on the beach that night. If he went back in and uncovered them and carried on with the exchange, he would be looking for the payment, if he did not receive it at the time. We disrupted their plans and they had to move quickly, possibly disrupting their usual method.”
“I still do not understand why he thinks Charlotte would have something. It makes no sense. I assume we will know in time. The truth will always out unless he has already found what he needs.”
David sighed. “So much for a relaxing wooing of my future bride.”
Harris laughed. “What is the fun in that? Did your candlelight dinner go well?”
“I believe so. She said we could marry now because she knew the Captain.”
“This Captain values his life more than marrying Yardley’s sister in a private wedding. I have a feeling that the family will all be joining us, soon.”
“I do not know whether I should laugh or cry at that news.” David frowned.
“Having married into the family some years ago, might I suggest you take the path of least resistance. As with sailing, going against the wind is futile.”
“The wind always wins?”
“Exactly.” He leaned over and clinked his glass with David’s. “To your future with Charlotte. I promise it will be worth it.”
Chapter 20
Is there anything more wracking to the nerves than for someone to think you know something and you do not? Before, I have only experienced this frustration with dim-witted suitors or spiteful gossips. Now I am being chased by a hardened criminal for it, and it is most unsettling. I would gladly part with what he wants if only I knew what it was.—17 April
The next day, the sun still rose and life seemingly returned to usual. There was little to do but wait. Even though things looked normal, Charlotte could see that there was a new sense of watchfulness about the ship.
“Good morning,” she said to Sir David and Lord Harris. They were on the quarter-deck, conversing, but stopped and gave her bows of greeting when she approached.
“I gather our perpetrator was not found?” she asked.
“Unfortunately not,” David replied.
“And have you decided to do anything about it? Do you have any idea who it could be?” She watched their faces closely for any sign that they might be hiding something from her. Men tended to do that—at least her brother did—and she was suspicious.
“We think it very likely that Captain Dunn did not die in the fire as we suspected,” David said frankly.
Charlotte was astonished. “I do not understand. Do you think he followed us from England?”
Lord Harris blew out a breath. “Honestly, we are not certain. We found no signs of anyone stowing away, but the idea that he followed us in a ship, unbeknownst to us, and escaped the same way, is unfathomable. My crew has too much experience to allow anyone to sneak up on them. We would not have survived the years of war and privateering for so long, otherwise.”
She nodded as she tried to assimilate what they were telling her. They remained silent, still watching her.
“Irrespective of the manner, someone slipped on board and ransacked my cabin. What do you think he was looking for?”
“Charlotte, can you recall your time with Prescott? I know it is painful to think about, but was there anything at all that he might have said to you or that you could have taken from his person during your struggle?”
“You think I have something he wants. This was not just a way to punish me for ruining his livelihood?”
“It could well be that, and we will not know for certain unless he comes back again. He may have found what he wanted last night.”
Charlotte sat down and closed her eyes, trying to cast her mind back to that dreadful night.
“The house was empty, and I heard a noise behind the secret door in the library,” she said, eyes closed, picturing that night. “I went looking for the outside entrance and found the door open. I went through the tunnel until I found the store-room, but it was empty. Two men passed me, but did not see me, so I followed them when I thought it was safe. I continued on through the tunnel until I reached the ravine, and then kept walking out onto the beach. I found a small crevice to hide in, and noticed the men burying bags in the sand. I assumed it was the guns you had found in the hidden store-room.” She took a deep breath as she remembered, but kept her eyes closed. “I felt the water come over my boots as the tide began to come in. I did not see you, Sir David, as I had gone to try to find something to help you. I began to turn around when I overheard them speaking about the new type of gun cartridge and realized it was all hidden on my brother’s yacht. I knew that was the missing information and I grew anxious to return to the house to find Benedict.”
She inhaled a ragged breath. “That is when an arm grabbed me from behind. I immediately began to panic. I recalled Sir David’s warnings that these men would not hesitate to kill me. I did not know who it was at first, of course. We struggled. The other men began to leave in small rowing boats and I called out for their help—but it was as if no one heard me. Prescott made some type of call similar to the ones the men use when hunting. There was an answering call and I saw The Jolie come into view. I had not noticed it before, due to the dense fog. That was when I knew he was going to kill me. He began to drag me through the water towards the ship. He tried to force me under the water and I kicked him as hard as I could. He released his grasp long enough for me to get my head above the water again. I had a small pistol Benedict had bought for me and I knew I needed to retrieve it before all was lost. I cannot remember how I managed to snatch it from inside my cloak. I did not know if it would be dry or not, but it was my only chance.”
She paused to compose herself and felt David’s arm come around her in gentle reassurance.
“Take your time. I know it is painful to remember.”
“But there must be something—some little detail—I am forgetting.”
“Perhaps. It is likely there was some small thing he said that is the key—or even, mayhap, something you tore from him during the struggle.
She wrinkled her face with the effort as she thought about those terrifying moments. “I do remember his neckcloth ripping...” She shook her head. “I do not recall dislodging anything from him, though.”
“Could something have landed in your cloak?”
She opened her eyes and gave him a look which she hoped conveyed the foolishness of his question.
“You are welcome to look, but the odds are more favourable to beat the house at a gaming hell.”
They all laughed at the analogy. “True, but it would be stupid not to even look.”
“Then send for Chapman. She might have burned it at Langborn. She was complaining about my gown being ruined.”
Harris turned and instructed one of his seamen to fetch her maid and the cloak.
“So after you went for your gun, what happened next?”
“It was over with very quickly. Sir David shot Prescott and I shot at the yacht.”
“Why did you shoot the yacht?” Harris asked.
“Because I did not want them to get away. I did not even know if my gun was too wet to fire, but I had nothing to lose. I knew I had one chance and the heat from the powder could cause a spark, which I discovered after setting a target on fire when practising with Benedict. If a spark could ignite a target, then it was probable that it would ignite paper cartridges and gunpowder on the ship. It was more effective than I had imagined in the few seconds I had to do so. Had I had the luxury, I would have aimed at Dunn. It was too dark to make out anything other than the hull through the fog.”
“You kept a ship-load of cartridges out of the hands of our enemies, Charlotte. We will sort this out and capture whoever is still after that unknown something.”
Chapman climbed onto the deck, holding Charlotte’s cloak across her arms.
“I was not sure if you had burned it,” Charlotte said to the maid.
“I did burn the dress,” the maid replied with a laboured sigh. “If it had been any of your other cloaks, it would not have survived.”
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