by Meg Caddy
The men lowered the anchor and fitted the gangplank. The crew gathered on the upper decks. There was longing in their eyes. The hard weeks at sea had taken a toll on them. Barnet knew all they wanted was to go ashore, find wine and women, and forget the rough journey they had endured. He would be happy to help them finance this endeavour, but not yet. They could wait a little longer for fort guards to relieve them of their captives.
The women were screaming.
Constance—
Barnet blinked the rain out of his eyes as it started to fall. He watched as a small knot of men approached the Albion. They were clad in uniform—like many of Rogers’ guards, a shabby and piecemeal uniform—and they looked as though they had been battling the fire. They were flushed and sweating and one of the men seemed to have singed off half his beard.
‘Captain Barnet?’ the man called from the bottom of the gangplank. ‘Permission to come aboard, sir?’
‘Identify yourself.’
‘Corporal Drake, sir. We have come from Governor Rogers to escort your cargo to the fort.’ The man’s bearded face grew apprehensive. ‘You…you do have a cargo of pirates, sir?’
‘Of course I do,’ Barnet snapped, nettled. He did not need the reminder that he had lost so many of them in the fray on the beach and the voyage that followed. ‘Come aboard.’
There were eight men in all. Rough-cut soldiers, but well armed and strong enough looking to handle themselves with the pirates. Barnet led them down to the brig. His own men had already bound the pirates in a line, hands to neck. The elderly slave, a man they called Old Dad, struggled to stand, swaying from side to side. He was bleeding from the temple; Barnet assumed he had given the crew some trouble.
‘This is it?’ Drake asked. ‘We were led to believe…’
‘This is the entire crew,’ Barnet replied through clenched teeth.
‘We were expecting at least thirty men.’
‘This is the entire crew.’
Drake swallowed and did not pursue it further. Wisely.
Barnet unlocked the brig and the guards herded the pirates out. It was slow going up the companionway—roped together, hands bound, the pirates slipped and struggled on the wooden ladder. Barnet felt a twist of vindictive pleasure to hear them choke and splutter as they climbed onto the upper decks.
‘Captain?’
Hutch stood with a group of crewmen.
‘Not now, Hutchinson.’
‘Captain, are we dismissed?’
Barnet narrowed his eyes. Usually he would have punished such impertinence.
‘The quartermaster will distribute the pay,’ he said at last. ‘Do not disgrace the good name of the Albion, and be back here by tomorrow morning for muster. I will instruct you then as to the length of your shore leave.’ He was gratified to see relieved smiles leap onto the crew’s faces. A good leader knew when to loosen the reins.
‘We’ll take them from here,’ Drake said. ‘The governor will see you tomorrow to commend you, and to discuss your reward.’ A smile crossed his face. ‘Congratulations, Captain Barnet. It has been a long journey, but these men will meet the full force of the law. You have served your King honourably.’
‘With all due respect, corporal, I would like to personally see these men brought before Governor Rogers. It will give me great satisfaction to see this through to the end.’
Drake’s smile faded. ‘I can assure you captain, we will deliver this charge safely to the governor.’
‘I do not doubt your competence corporal, but I am loath to leave my post until I have been formally relieved of it. I have lost good men to these people. Perhaps you will think it petty, but I wish to see them brought to justice personally.’
Drake hesitated, then gave a stiff nod. ‘Very well.’ He turned and jerked the rope attached to Rackham’s neck. ‘Move!’
The pirate stumbled forward a step. He did not raise his eyes. He drew a slow, shaking breath, then trudged after Drake with the walk of a man bound for the gallows. The other pirates followed. They kept their heads low, even the men who had been most defiant at the beginning. Barnet walked alongside them, his hand on the hilt of his sword.
The docks were filled with smoke. Though the rain had started it was not yet enough to douse the flames. Men ran across their paths with buckets, halting them time and time again. The smoke choked them all, pirate and hunter alike. Barnet found himself reaching for a kerchief in his pocket to hold over his mouth. The procession made it only a short way towards the fort before Drake stopped, frustrated.
‘It’s no good,’ he said. ‘We’ll have to go around.’
Barnet coughed and cleared his throat. His eyes stung from the smoke. ‘The most direct route possible,’ he urged.
‘Of course, captain.’ Drake’s eyes were red-rimmed, streaming. He took them inland a short way, away from the harbour and into Nassau. There was a strong wind coming in off the sea but the short wooden buildings gave them some protection from the smoke that lashed across the town. They moved into the shadow of a deserted street. Barnet guessed most of the town was down at the docks trying to salvage their businesses.
One of the younger pirates stopped. Dobbin. He was towards the front of the line and the other men stalled behind him as he coughed helplessly, bent double. Barnet reached across and grabbed the length of the rope just in front of the man’s neck, yanking it hard.
‘Move,’ he snapped.
Dobbin staggered.
‘Let him alone!’ The small, wiry slave, Old Dad, tried to push forward from the back.
Barnet turned and cracked his fist across the old man’s face. The slave fell back. Dobbin’s wheeze cut into the silence.
The pirates stopped walking. Rackham stood at the front, his head low and his shoulders tense. A ripple ran through the men.
‘Keep moving,’ Corporal Drake said from the front of the line.
The old slave spat out a tooth. ‘Bastard,’ he hissed at Barnet.
‘You heard the man!’ Barnet snarled. ‘Walk!’
Rackham squared his shoulders. No more words passed among the pirates but they followed their captain’s lead, straightening. Barnet put his hand on his gun. He wanted to deliver the pirates to Woodes Rogers, to justice, to the noose. But if he had to shoot them down in the street, he would.
‘Move now or I will shoot!’
The women were screaming.
Constance—
‘Put your weapon down, Captain Barnet.’
Barnet’s gun wavered.
Drake had a musket trained on him.
So did the other guards.
‘What is this?’ He spoke between his teeth. Sweat prickled on his palms, on his brow.
‘A rescue. Lower your gun, captain.’
It was over. The ship had been gutted of its wares. Beaten and bleeding, Barnet had been found cowering in the bilge and now he knelt on the upper deck with the other survivors. The pirates surrounded them, jostling one another and laughing.
Constance was just a few feet away, sprawled across the deck on her stomach. Her nails were red with blood from where she had clawed at her attackers, her clothes torn from their outrages. More than anything Barnet wanted to drape his coat over her, to afford her some dignity in death.
But he could not move.
He was so afraid.
Corporal Drake walked forward and slashed the ropes binding the pirates. His men, the men who had disguised themselves as Rogers’ guards, gathered about them in a tight knot. They put their arms about the pirates, steadied the men who were faltering on their feet. The pirates were confused, stunned into silence, but they accepted the help that was offered.
John Rackham, newly freed, flexed his hands and rubbed his wrists, his eyes gleaming as he turned to face Barnet. There was a bright triumph in his face, a light Barnet had thought to be extinguished.
Enemies on all sides.
‘I will say it one more time, captain.’ The imposter took a step closer. ‘Put the gun down.’
Panic and rage warred in Barnet. His crew was too far off to be summoned, the men from the town were all out at the docks. There was no one to come to his aid. By the time the soldiers arrived from the fort, it would be too late.
There was no chance of shooting his way out. But he would not surrender to pirates. Not again.
Never again.
He swung his gun around and pointed it at Rackham.
If he was to die, he would die doing the Lord’s work.
32
BONNY
As Read and I left the William the smoke was already rising from the docks. Darling and his lads had set the fires strategically, working fast to strike and run. The William was far enough to the west that she was in no danger, and she would be well clear of the guards from the fort when they came to help combat the blaze.
We stood on a jetty in the shadow of another vessel and watched as the Albion groaned into the harbour. She looked to be in a bad way. Her hull was honeycombed with bore-holes from hundreds of tiny teredo worms. Her sails were in tatters and one of the masts had been snapped halfway up. They had replaced it with a jury-rig, just enough to help them limp to a safe port, but it leaned badly to port.
Desperate to see my lads, I watched men move across the deck, searching for Calico. Isaac. Old Dad. Dobbin and Harwood. I sucked in a breath of air and forced it out again slowly. The gun in my hand was slippery from sweat. The only thing stopping me from running out of hiding and right onto that ship was Read’s solid presence, an anchor at my side.
Read knocked my shoulder lightly and nodded towards the docks. Darling and his men approached the Albion, dressed in the closest approximation of guard uniform they could dredge up at such short notice. Putting their acting skills to good use. I wanted to be there with them. I wanted so badly to be at their side but there was no way I could get any closer without being recognised.
Please, God, let him be alive. Let them all be alive.
Darling shouted something up to the ship. I could just make out Barnet standing at the prow. There would be no saving him if he had killed my Calico. My hand tightened about the gun.
Darling and his men went aboard. They spoke with Barnet briefly, then disappeared. There was nothing we could do but wait. Hope and fear gathered in a knot about my throat, pulling tighter and tighter until my breath was nothing more than a thin, high whistle. There were shouts from further along the docks. The blistering smell of smoke carried on the wind. A wave slapped against the jetty and it swayed beneath our feet.
And then, there they were. Bound, bowed, trudging up onto the deck. I grabbed Read’s arm. With their heads down, I couldn’t quite tell which of our lads they were—except Isaac, at the back, the tallest of all of them. I squinted, desperately trying to work out if Calico was among them.
‘Steady, Bonny,’ Read murmured. I was holding him too tight. I pried my hand away and searched the deck, waiting for more of the men to come out. There were only eleven so far. Less than half our crew.
‘Where are the others?’ I hissed.
Read didn’t have an answer. Darling and Barnet spoke, then started to walk down the gangplank, taking the eleven crewmen with them.
Eleven?
Grief knocked me square in the chest.
Just eleven.
But there was no time for tears. No time to wonder what happened to the boys, whether they’d died quick or slow, no time to figure out who we’d lost and who we could still save. Darling and his men were taking our lads along the docks. They passed our jetty and I drew back into the shadows, scanning the faces.
Relief weakened me. Calico. My Calico was at the front of the line. He was thin and unshaved, his head low and his shoulders slumped. He looked like the ocean had spat him up. But he was alive.
I could bear any other loss so long as he was still alive.
Barnet was with them. Spiteful, I thought. He wanted to see every moment of suffering. Rage twisted in me and ground through my bones. He would get his reckoning.
He’d left his men on the ship. Some of them came down in small knots but they went west, doubtless seeking out taverns where they could rest and eat and keep company with whores. Read and I waited until they were clear, then ducked out from the underside of the ship and started to follow Darling and the procession of men. They were far ahead of us but we kept them in sight. The smoke grew thick and smothering, worse for a while as the rain started to beat down the fire. The wind wasn’t enough to cut it. I lifted the kerchief I had around my neck, using it to protect my face. Read kept pace with me, steady and relaxed. He’d worn the axe strapped to his back until now. There was something deadly about the casual way he swung it: lightly, to the beat of his steps.
One of the crewmen stopped. I couldn’t tell who it was but a weak, hacking cough carried back to us. Barnet strode to the line and yanked the rope. Old Dad’s voice rose. There was a hard snap and I saw Old Dad stumble back, almost to the ground, dragging on the man before and behind him. Our lads stopped walking. Barnet put up his gun.
I jerked and almost ran out, but Read clapped a hand on my shoulder. He held me steady as we waited, standing in the lee of a small building. My heart was beating so hard I thought it would bruise me.
Darling’s men revealed themselves; Barnet didn’t lower his gun. They kept talking but he didn’t waver and I knew suddenly that he wouldn’t surrender. That he would take as many pirates to the grave as he could, no matter what befell him.
‘Bonny—’
Barnet’s gun swung to point at Calico. I wrenched away from Read and ran forward, firing as I ran.
The shot cracked through the air.
The gun flew out of Barnet’s hand.
He dropped to his knees, clutching at his wrist as blood spattered the ground. Read was at my side a breath later, skidding into Barnet and tackling him to the dirt. I grabbed the gun he had dropped and wheeled around. His was primed and I pointed it at him. I didn’t dare take my eyes off him, not even to look over at Calico.
Read wrestled Barnet’s arms behind him and pinned him with a knee in the small of his back. Barnet struggled, wild, but he stopped when he looked up and recognised me.
‘Surprise.’ I bared my teeth. ‘You have him, Read?’
Barnet twisted, only just realising who it was who had him on the ground. His face contorted with rage. He bucked again but Read had him solidly down. Moments later, Isaac was there as well, adding his weight. I opened my mouth to say something but Calico grabbed my shoulders and spun me around, and his arms were about me, and I couldn’t breathe.
I didn’t care who saw.
A sob caught in my chest and threatened to pull loose. I held on, feeling how thin and frail he was since the last time I’d seen him. This was not the bold pirate who had rushed into battle so many times, nor the man who had stolen me away from Nassau. But he was still my Calico.
I could have stayed like that for the rest of my life. I clutched Calico tighter for one moment then stepped away from him.
‘We have to get out of Nassau.’
He was tired, frayed by grief, but a smile touched the corners of his mouth. ‘I take it you have a plan.’
‘I have a ship.’ I took in the faces of the other lads for a moment. They were in a bad way but they gathered close. Harwood reached over and clapped my shoulder. I glanced over at Read and Isaac, then took the manacles from where they’d been secured to my belt. We cuffed his feet.
‘Harlot,’ he snarled at me. There was a cut above his brow and it bled into his eye. ‘I’ll see you hang!’
‘Doubt it,’ I murmured. I considered killing him; it would be easy. And he’d cut down more than half of our crew. He deserved it.
I held the gun against his head. Read took in a sharp breath. I knew how he felt about cowardice.
Barnet steeled himself. He squared his shoulders and lifted his chin. Prepared to go nobly to his death at the hands of a pirate.
I leaned in and spoke in his ear.
‘Remember that I chose to let you live, Barnet.’
He opened his mouth to speak but I cracked my gun against the back of his head.
A murmur went through our small crew. They wanted him dead. But the sound fell away as I turned to face them.
‘We’ll take him with us, maroon him somewhere. The pirate way.’
Calico smiled grimly. ‘What’s the plan, Bonny?’ he asked.
‘It’s getting dark. We need to get down to the docks and onto our ship.’
‘Where did you get a ship?’ Harwood asked.
‘It’s not ours yet.’
‘There it is,’ Isaac muttered.
‘We’ll follow your lead,’ Calico said. The words took me by surprise, fanned warmth up into my cheeks.
Hurriedly, I turned to Darling. The bearded man stood smiling, his men at his back. I held out a hand to him. Clasped the hand that had pushed my husband’s body into the deep.
‘Darling Darling.’ My voice was warm.
He squeezed my hand. ‘Bonny Bonny.’
‘My thanks. We owe you.’
‘We’ll remember it if we ever need you. Now, get out of the harbour safely. And make sure you cause plenty of trouble.’ He paused, then turned to one of his lads and took a sheet of black cloth from him. He pressed it into my hands. ‘It’s not exactly what you’re used to but it’ll do until you’re established. Fly it true. I’ll see you on the waves. We’re going to set fire to Barnet’s ship.’
He gestured to his men and they went off the other way. I was sorry to see him go but we had no time to linger over farewells. The rains were sweeping in now. The fire on the docks would be all but quenched and soon the governor’s men would be all over Nassau in search of our lads.
Dobbin was unsteady on his feet so I put an arm about his shoulders and helped Harwood as we started towards the docks. Isaac and Read carried Barnet between them. And I didn’t let Calico out of my sight, not for one moment.
