Riordan fought off a score of pirates, all the while struggling to keep Eli Sledge in his line of vision. Sledge was the key. If the pirate captain could be stopped, the others might lose their will to fight.
"Behind you, Riordan."
At Ambrosia's shout, he turned and faced two menacing pirates who came at him from opposite sides. Though he was able to disarm the first, the second brought his sword up in a slashing motion, laying open Riordan's arm. At once, Mistress Coffey and Miss Mellon picked up pieces of the shattered ship's rail and attacked the sailor, sending him toppling into the water. For a moment the two old ladies looked at each other with matching looks of horror. Then, realizing they'd been victorious, they leapt into another fight with a pirate, sending him into the water as well.
Riordan could see the blood spilling from his wound, and could feel the warmth of it. But the pain didn't register as he saw, across the deck, four swordsmen advancing on Ambrosia. For a moment his heart nearly stopped. Then, leaping to her defense, he was able to eliminate one, then another.
Ambrosia dropped the other two men where they stood, then raced the length of the deck to fight alongside her grandfather, who was holding several more pirates at bay.
The old man was still able to defend himself, but he was beginning to tire. The sound of his heavy breathing had Ambrosia more worried than she cared to admit. She shot him a quick glance. He winked, then ran one of the sailors through with his sword. As the man dropped, he turned to face three more. Just then, the housekeeper and nurse stepped in, swinging wildly with their wooden weapons. Two more sailors went into the water.
Ambrosia felt a sting of pain in her arm and looked down to realize she'd been wounded. Out of the corner of her eye she caught the flash of a blade and knew that someone was attacking. Before she could turn she heard the sound of a pistol shot and looked up to see Bethany holding a smoking pistol. The man who had been about to run Ambrosia through fell instead at her feet. She mouthed a silent word of thanks to her sister, then turned.
By the rail of the ship Riordan was fighting several men, and easily winning. But just as Ambrosia was about to turn away, she saw a man sneaking up behind him, holding aloft a club.
"Riordan." Though she shouted at the top of her lungs, she realized he hadn't heard her. The words had been snatched away by the wind. And then, as she watched, she saw the club come crashing down on Riordan's head. Saw him go limp. And then two sailors lifted him and tossed him over the rail and into the churning water between the two ships. "Nay!" With a cry of desperation she began running. Her sword slipped from her fingers and clattered on the deck.
She scrambled over the rail and, without a thought to her own safety, jumped into the foaming waves. Again and again, looking for a sign of Riordan, she dived beneath the bodies that floated on the surface. Finally, knowing each second lost brought him closer to death, she caught her breath and swam beneath the hull of the Sea Challenge.
Though the water was murky from the cannon fire, she spotted him, facedown, lying motionless. She wasted precious moments struggling to free his sword, which had become entangled in his sleeve and was weighing him down. Then, with one last burst of strength, she pulled him from beneath the ship and began swimming toward the surface. Her lungs were straining, and for one terrible moment she feared she wouldn't make it. Then she broke water and dragged precious air into her lungs, before clutching at his head.
"Breathe, Riordan. Please breathe," she sobbed.
He gasped, then opened his eyes. "Ambrosia. How...?"
"It doesn't matter, love. You're alive."
"The others?"
She looked up to the deck of the Sea Challenge and her heart nearly stopped. The little ship was tilted almost on its side. Flames enveloped the deck.
"Grandpapa. My sisters. Those sweet old people." She felt tears spring to her eyes.
"There." Riordan pointed. As she watched, she saw her family and old Newton standing on the deck of the Skull, being held at swordpoint against the railing. Sailors were hauling the last of the cargo from the Sea Challenge to the Skull. And a small skiff was already heading in
"Nay, Riordan. But we're alive. You're alive. And we're together."
Rough hands lifted her from the water and she was tossed into a corner of the skiff. As soon as Riordan was hauled aboard, the little boat returned to the Skull.
"Now, isn't this cozy?" Eli Sledge stared boldly at the young woman whose wet gown clung to her like a second skin.
He was a big man who used his size to intimidate, hough his face may have been handsome in his youth, it was now marred by a scar that ran from his cheek to the base of his throat. His skin was ruddy from his years at sea. Thick black hair hung down his back. Over his breeches and boots he wore a tunic that was stained with blood. In his hand was a coiled whip, which he used to punctuate his words. And just to assure that his prisoners understood he knew how to use it, he uncoiled it and drew his hand back, then brought it down with such force it sounded like cannon fire as it hit the deck.
He stood, feet apart, hands on hips, staring down his nose at the people who now crowded together for mutual protection and comfort.
With a laugh he turned to his men, who were grinning like fools. "It was everything our benefactor promised. A king's ransom in gold. Wenches, three of them young and easy to look at. He said that when we get to Cairn we can do with them what we choose. I say we kill all but the young females. And those who die must do so slowly, to make up for the pain and suffering they caused us. As for these three, our benefactor didn't say what was to be done with them, but I've decided that we'll keep them alive awhile. At least until we tire of them. So let's head for port, lads. There'll be ale for all tonight. And then we'll..." he gave a crude laugh as he looked the three young women up and down "...enjoy the rest of our bounty."
"Bethany. Darcy," Ambrosia whispered fiercely. "Give me your petticoats." While the pirates stood guard over them, she knelt beside Riordan, who lay on the deck, bleeding profusely. His arm had been slashed from shoulder to elbow, and he'd lost considerable blood while in the water.
With the aid of her nurse and housekeeper, she tied a tourniquet to stem the flow of blood, then began wrapping the wound.
As Ambrosia and the women huddled around him, he opened his eyes, fighting to remain conscious. But the pain of his wound and the blow to his head were threatening to take him down into a well of darkness.
"Listen to me, Ambrosia." His fingers gripped her wrist so tightly she nearly cried out. "My life no longer matters. I'm already a dead man. You heard what Eli Sledge said."
"Aye. He intends to kill all but the three of us. But I intend to stop him."
"What can you do against a score of hard-bitten pirates? You have to forget about everything except finding a means of escape."
"Not without the rest of you."
"Don't you understand?" He glanced from her to her sisters, and then to the two stoic old women, hoping to convince them. "These men will have their sport with you. Death would be far more welcome than what they intend."
Ambrosia gritted her teeth and continued wrapping his wound. When she was through she cradled his face in both her hands and stared deeply into his eyes. "Now you listen to me, Riordan Spencer. I've just found the man I love." She heard Mistress Coffey and Winifred Mellon suck in their breath, and realized she'd revealed more than she'd intended. It no longer mattered. Aloud she said, "I have no intention of losing you to this pack of cutthroats. We'll find a way to escape. A way that works for all of us. Or we'll all die together. Is that clear?"
There was something else he wanted to warn her about. Something that hovered on the edges of his mind. But the pain was too great, and the darkness was closing in. He struggled to hold on to the thread of thought.
"There's another enemy. More dangerous than Sledge. The ...benefactor. It has to be..." His voice trailed off. The darkness swallowed him.
Ambrosia watched as the Skull's anchor was lowere
d. Just beyond was the town of Cairn, long rumored to be home to some of the toughest pirates to sail the ocean.
"I'll take the prisoners ashore," Eli Sledge called to his men. "And then return for the cargo."
At the point of a sword they were herded aboard a skiff. Two sailors dumped Riordan in a heap, then took up their oars and rowed to the docks. From there they were taken to the upper room of a tavern that reeked of ale and unwashed bodies. Several filthy pallets were strewn about the equally filthy floor.
As soon as the door was slammed and the lock thrown, Ambrosia and Newton helped Riordan to one pallet, while Bethany and Darcy guided their weary grandfather and the old women to others. While they rested, Ambrosia looked around.
One small window overlooked the docks. She rushed across the room to stare out the window, hoping to find a means of escape. Her heart fell when she saw an armed sailor standing below.
"Sledge has posted a guard."
Her two sisters came alongside her and peered down. "I'd feared as much," Bethany muttered. "What are we to do?"
"I don't know." Ambrosia's eyes narrowed. "I have a knife in my boot. Knowing Riordan, he'll have one as well."
"As do I," Bethany said.
"And I." Darcy smiled for the first time. "We're not helpless, are we, Ambrosia?"
"Nay. Nor are we brainless. We'll do as Papa taught us. We'll watch and listen. We'll endure. And when the time is right, we'll escape."
"You have the gold?" Silas stood in the shadows of the tavern, watching the movements of the serving wench across the room. He'd been too long without a woman. But he'd been careful not to despoil any of the precious maidens of Land's End. That would ruin his plans. "Aye." Eli Sledge was elated. '"Twas a clever ruse to hide it in three tea casks."
"Our enemies become more cunning with each shipment. That's why they must be destroyed, if the king is to be toppled from the throne. Have your men load two of the casks aboard my ship. The other is yours, to keep as payment." Silas couldn't keep the glitter of greed from his eyes. "What about the family aboard the Sea Challenger'
"Upstairs." Sledge grinned. "I'll send a sailor to dispose of them after dark. My crew is eager for the young women."
"I've seen them. A pity they have to be wasted. Three more comely wenches I've yet to meet." Silas sighed and drained his tumbler of ale. "It can't be helped. What we do, we do for England."
Sledge saw the way his companion's eyes followed the movement of the serving wench. "Would you like one of them before you leave?"
"What I wouldn't give..." He caught himself before he said more. "I must leave for London. I'm taking my betrothed to see the king."
"You're to be wed?"
"Nay. I fear an accident will have to befall the lovely lass before the nuptials. But she suited my purpose. There were certain ...things I needed to see to in her village. She was the perfect foil."
"Ah. You were using her." Sledge drained his own goblet and ordered another by pounding it down on the table. The serving wench hurried over and filled it, then glanced toward his companion.
Silas looked her over, lingering on the full breasts beneath the simple gown. "Perhaps I have time for another." He held out his tumbler, then added, "But I'd like it served in the back room."
Sledge threw back his head and roared as Silas caught the wench by the wrist and dragged her from the room.
en he drank his ale and thought about all the ways he'd spend the gold that had just come into his possession.
Riordan opened his eyes and winced. His head was pounding, his arm throbbing. Across the room Ambrosia and her sisters were huddled around Newton, their voices little more than a whisper.
Despite the pain, he forced himself to sit up. For a moment the room spun in dizzying circles. Then it stopped, and he got to his feet.
"Riordan. You mustn't push yourself." Ambrosia hurried to his side and caught his arm when he stumbled. "How long have I been unconscious?"
"Two hours or more."
He glanced at the old people on their pallets. "And the others?"
"At least as long."
Just then they began to roll over and open their eyes. "Grandpapa. Mistress Coffey. Winnie." The three young women gathered around them. "Are any of you harmed?"
"I was just weary. The swordfight drained me." Geoffrey Lambert clasped his granddaughters' hands. "Have any of Sledge's men been here?" Ambrosia shook her head. "We've heard voices below in the tavern. I'd guess, from the sound of their laughter, they're drinking great quantities of ale." Riordan exchanged a worried look with the others. "That's what I feared. Once they're drunk, they'll become even more dangerous."
"Not necessarily." Ambrosia nodded toward her sisters. "We've been discussing what we'll do when they come for us." Riordan's eyes narrowed. "What you'll do is stay over
there, as far from the door as possible. Your grandfather and Newt and I will be the first line of defense. They'll have to go through us to get to the rest of you."
"Which shouldn't take them more than a few minutes." Ambrosia touched a hand to his arm, bound tightly against his chest. "Think, Riordan. How long can you fend them off?"
"I'll die trying."
"Aye. As will Newt and Grandpapa. But we want you alive. All of you. Let us try our way first."
"You have a plan?"
She nodded. "Ofttimes the best defense is surprise. I think..." She looked up at the sound of booted feet climbing the stairs. "There's no time to explain. Please, Grandpapa and Riordan, Mistress Coffey and Winnie. Lie down and pretend to be dead. Newton will be hidden beneath one pallet."
When Riordan started to protest, she begged, "Please trust me."
"Newt?" He glanced at the old sailor, who appeared as undecided as he.
Newton shrugged. "I haven't a better plan at the moment, Cap'n."
"Nor I," Geoffrey Lambert said in a tired voice.
"I trust my girls," Miss Mellon said with great dignity. "After all, I taught them to use their minds."
"Very well." As the others lay down, Riordan settled himself on the pallet, using his body to hide Newton. But he decided to keep one eye open. Just in case.
Ambrosia and her sisters listened as the footsteps halted outside the door. Linking arms, they stood together as the brace was thrown and the door opened.
A bearded pirate stood on the threshold. "I've come for the others," he announced. "Captain Sledge ordered me to kill them before my mates come for the three of you."
"You're too late." Ambrosia indicated the pallets. "Captain Spencer's wounds were too grave. As for the others, their poor old hearts couldn't take the strain." The pirate seemed actually annoyed that he'd been deprived of the chance to kill. Seeing that only stiffened Ambrosia's resolve. She'd thought only to wound him. Now she would have to see that he didn't live to call out a warning to the others.
His eyes narrowed as he glanced around. "What of the old sailor?"
"Gone." Bethany's lips trembled. She even managed a tear. "He slipped out the window and fled like a coward."
"He couldn't have. Sledge posted a guard."
"The coward took some of our gold to use as a bribe."
"You have gold?" The pirate stepped closer.
"Aye." Darcy tossed her golden curls. "More than we could ever spend. Did you not see the gold we carried aboard our ship?"
"Aye. But we weren't told 'twas yours. Only that it was bound for the king."
Bethany laughed. "Perhaps Sledge hopes to keep it all for himself."
"That's not the way of a pirate. We share the bounty."
"How would you know?" Ambrosia asked slyly. "Do you and the other men watch each time casks are opened and gold counted?"
"Nay. But we're given a share."
"An equal share?" Ambrosia's brow arched. "Or just enough to keep you content, while your captain grows rich?"
They could see that the pirate was mulling this over.
Ambrosia decided it was time to make the offer. "Perhaps you'd lik
e to be as rich as Sledge."
"How?" The man's eyes narrowed.
"We have no man to protect us." Bethany blinked away another tear. "If you were to become our protector, we'd be ever so grateful."
The time at sea had been long, the nights lonely. The pirate was staggered by the helplessness of these three maidens. Hadn't he fought the king's own sailors countless times and won? Why couldn't he fight off his own mates if necessary? The rewards would be worth any sacrifice. Gold. Enough to live like a monarch. And the gratitude of three beautiful ladies, who would be bis for as long as he wanted.
Filled with his own importance, the pirate swept past them. "First I'll have to make certain these others are dead."
As he bent to the first pallet, he felt a sudden shaft of searing pain. He tried to straighten, and found that his body wouldn't obey his command. He reached a hand to his back and felt the hilt of a knife buried deep.
With a gasp, he gave up his life and dropped forward, falling on top of Riordan.
The three young women rolled him aside, while Riordan and Newton scrambled to their feet. Beside them, Geoffrey sat up, looking at his granddaughters in disbelief, while the housekeeper and nurse averted their gaze, refusing to look at the dead man.
"Come," Ambrosia called urgently. "We must flee before the others come for us. There's not a minute to waste."
As they hurried from the room and started down the stairs, they heard the sound of footsteps climbing toward them.
"Tell me." Riordan stopped in his tracks and turned back. "Have you another plan, Ambrosia?"
She shook her head. "I believe I'm all out of plans. But I'll..." She swallowed. "I'll think of something." She glanced around, then pointed toward a small ladder. "Quickly," she whispered. "We'll climb to the roof."
Newton climbed first, shoving open a small trap door that led to the roof of the tavern. Next came the two old women, then Bethany and her grandfather, then Darcy and Ambrosia, with Riordan following.
"We'll have only a few minutes," Riordan told them. "Once they sound the alarm, the building and the street below will be swarming with Sledge's men."