A Flawed Jewel (A Marsden Romance Book 1)

by Dawn Brower

  “Do you know my grandpere well then?”

  “As this is one of his ships, I have had many occasions to spend time with him, discussing how his shipments are to be handled. You are one of our most important cargos. He made sure to have a meeting with me before I left France and gave me the strictest instructions regarding your safety on this crossing.”

  Did he? She shouldn’t be surprised, and yet she was.

  “Grandpere can be very protective. I’m surprised he didn’t make the trip himself.”

  “He wanted to, but an emergency arose at the last minute on one of his estates. It was something that required his personal attention. It is why he gave me instructions as to your passage and care. I hope your crossing with us is pleasant.”

  Pleasant? As far as she was concerned, there really wasn’t anything that could make this journey tolerable let alone pleasurable. It took every ounce of her will to not come back with a rude comment. The need to get to her cabin and rest was starting to become a top priority to Pieretta. She needed to vacate the captain’s company with as much haste as possible.

  With as much politeness as she could muster, she cleared her throat. “I certainly wouldn’t want it to be unpleasant. Who is to show us to our cabin?”

  “My first mate will gladly give you a brief tour of the ship and show you to your cabin. We would prefer you remain in your quarters for most of the trip. It is the safest option. We will have a tray brought to you for all of your meals.”

  Was the captain mad? How could he expect me to be confined to a small room for three weeks? She would have to make her needs known from the very beginning or be stifled inside of a cabin with Tully for the lengthy passage. Her throat closed up just at the thought of it—she hated being confined.

  “I couldn’t possibly stay locked inside a small room the entire journey, Captain. We are going to be on the ship for at least two weeks. I would go mad for sure. I must insist on daily walks above deck.”

  The captain studied her for several seconds before he nodded.

  “Very well, but limit them to thirty minute intervals twice a day. Do not walk on deck once night falls for any reason. If I tell you to get below deck, you are not to argue. Just go. I wouldn’t insist unless it was a matter of safety.”

  “I can agree to that.”

  “Very well, Cam will see you to your cabin now.”

  The first mate guided Tully and Pieretta below deck and escorted them to their accommodations. There wasn’t a lot of free space aboard the ship. The captain gave his quarters to the two women for the trip. Pieretta wondered where the captain would stay during the crossing to France. It would be cramped for all those involved.

  Pieretta sighed as she entered the cabin. The limited space didn’t leave much room for her to share with her maid. The journey across the ocean stuck in such a tightly confined room with Tully constantly telling her what to do might drive her mad. Tully scrambled in behind her, scuffling her feet as she settled into the small room. If only Grandpere hadn’t demanded she come live with him. Why must females be dependent on their male relations?

  “Thank you, sir. I think we will be fine for now. How long until we set sail?”

  “If all goes well, we should be on our way in an hour’s time. Please remain here for the rest of the evening. It will be too dark to walk on deck, and it is easy to fall overboard when you can’t see in front of you.”

  “I will heed your advice, sir. I have no desire to swim, or sink, any time soon.” Pieretta shuddered.

  As the first mate left the two women, Pieretta only had one thought. It’s going to be a very long and grueling excursion across the immense ocean.

  Chapter Two

  A week later...

  “Captain Thor, sir. The ship has been spotted. The one you’ve been waiting for,” bosun Cornelus informed him.

  Thor lounged in his bunk. It had been an uneventful few days aboard the Sea Rover. He had waited patiently for the vessel leaving the American shore to cross paths with him. It carried a package he was desperate to get his hands on. That particular parcel held extreme importance to him—for one reason and one reason only. He needed it in order to finally get even with his former partner Renny Dubois.

  The bloody man had organized Thor’s early departure from this world.

  If he hadn’t been quick, he would instead reside in his eternal resting place. The bullet Renny had put into his shoulder would have entered his heart if he had not seen the glint of the pistol out of the corner of his eye. Since then, he had been patiently waiting for the opportunity to enact his revenge. As far as Renny knew, Thor died on that fateful night. The comte certainly hadn’t bothered to check before he exited the docks as fast as his pudgy legs could carry him.

  Thor had been twenty-four when his father died. At that time he inherited his father’s business holdings along with the entailed property. Dubois-Marsden Shipping Firm was one of his more profitable business ventures. Thor had met with Comte Renard Dubois to learn more about the business side of the shipping company. He’d had a lot to learn before he could make sound business decisions. Renny took him under his wing and taught him everything. He trusted him completely. He’d been like a second father to him.

  So it had come as a shock when Renny attempted to murder him. The brutal betrayal stung his pride and made it next to impossible to trust.

  Thor had been on the docks in Paris overseeing the shipment of their latest cargo when everything changed. He’d looked up and saw Renny walking toward him. He turned to say something, and Renny pulled out a pistol, firing it at him. Thor had turned just enough preventing the bullet from hitting anything vital. His shoulder was nicked and he’d lost a lot of blood. With each wave of pain, he grew light-headed, causing him to lose his balance. His head had bounced off of the hard surface below him and knocked him unconscious. Renny, the bloody bastard, had left him for dead.

  When he finally awoke, he had been surprised to find himself aboard a ship with his shoulder already doctored. Another captain had seen the whole thing and had Thor placed on his ship. It was on that ship, the Sea Rover, where he had made a life for himself.

  It changed his life and from that moment on he became a new person, one that held no qualms about what must be done. Thor became an unscrupulous pirate—no bounty to small. Until the day would come when he’d become the Sea Rover’s captain and his revenge became possible.

  He worked his way up the ranks and, after a few years, he made first mate. When the old captain was killed in battle, Thor was promoted to captain as the laws of the ship dictated. He had been a pirate for five years now.

  Snapping out of the distant memory, he looked up at his bosun with a smile on his lips. Thor had been planning his revenge against Renny Dubois for a very long time. All of his plans were finally going to become a reality. Today was going to be a very good day.

  A cocky grin filled his face. “Corny, ol’ man, that is the best news I’ve heard all day. Make the call, all hands on deck. We’re about to plunder us a ship.”

  Soon he’d have his hands on the means to take down the most evil man he knew. It didn’t matter that Thor had to sink to his level to obtain it. In his mind the means more than justified the end.

  If Pieretta Carlyle let him he’d try to make it up to her later—hell even if she wouldn’t he’d find a way.

  ***

  Pieretta was on the deck looking out at the ocean. She had taken well to sea travel and enjoyed having the wind blow on her face. If only she was allowed more than thirty minutes on deck each day to enjoy it, her life on board the ship would be more ideal. The waves danced and rolled across the ship’s hull, crashing into it and creating white crested waves atop the cerulean horizon. She looked across the indigo waves and saw a ship in the distance. In fact it looked like it was moving toward their ship, growing closer with each gust of wind. As the other clipper’s sails brought them closer to her, Pieretta squeezed the guardrail of the ship tightly. She bit her lip
, the sting of her teeth drawing a minuscule droplet of blood. Surely they could see the two vessels were going to cross paths. There was a commotion to her left so she turned to see what was going on.

  “Captain! Captain!” the first mate called out.

  She looked over as the first mate ran toward the captain. His face was flushed bright red from running across the windy deck. Once he arrived at his destination he stopped suddenly and with a high pitched voice delivered the imperative message to Captain Devere.

  “Sir, there be a pirate ship drawing close. It’s flying the red flag, we’re about to be attacked.”

  “Hurry, all hands on deck. Make sure our important passenger gets below deck,” he shouted as he ran off.

  “Wait. What does it mean when it’s waving a red flag?” Pieretta asked the first mate. By the way Captain Devere and his first mate acted, Pieretta knew it wasn’t a good sign.

  Her heart beat hard against her chest. Pirates? Surely they were mistaken.

  “Don’t you worry none about that, miss. Just get below deck like the captain said.”

  “No, I am not going below deck until you answer me.”

  The first mate kept shooing her, his hands waving wildly in front of her face. He made sure she turned around and started the trek back to her cabin. When she didn’t move fast enough, he pushed lightly against her back in an attempt to get her to move faster. If Pieretta didn’t start moving faster, it was very likely he would shove her all the way to her cabin. He clearly didn’t have time to deal with the hysterics of a young girl. From the expression on his face, it was evident he was weighing his options. He kept lifting his eyebrows and looking back at the approaching ship. They continued their journey to Pieretta’s cabin. The first mate needed to follow the captain’s dictate to ensure her safe return to her cabin.

  He turned back with a frown on his red face. “It means they’re going to give no quarter.” A tinge of fear colored each word he spoke.

  The words didn’t mean anything to Pieretta. The term was foreign to her. “I don’t understand. What does give no quarter mean?” she asked him.

  “They’re not going to leave any survivors. They will kill us all if we allow them to board our ship. Go below deck as you were told.” He scurried away. He had followed Captain Devere’s orders and delivered her to her cabin—why should he care if Pieretta stayed inside. It was up to her to make sure she remained safely inside.

  Pieretta’s heart beat faster as the blood drained from her face. It frightened her, knowing that if the pirates boarded the ship they’d murder everyone. Pieretta quickly went inside the cabin and slammed the door shut. It was the only place she felt truly safe, but with each breath she took, she felt less and less protected on board the craft. She had never been more helpless than in that moment, thinking she was going to die. What should I do?

  When she calmed down enough to look at her surroundings, she was surprised to see Tully paid no attention to her. Tully was unfolding one of her dresses and laying it across a table to smooth out the wrinkles, a complete waste of time in Pieretta’s opinion. It wasn’t as if she was going to wear it anytime soon. They were confined to the cabin.

  Pieretta hadn’t even considered this possibility when crossing the ocean. How could she have? She had lived a very sheltered life. It occurred to her in that moment— she really didn’t know anything. She didn’t want to have regrets, and more importantly, she wanted to live. She had never been given the chance to do any of the things she wanted with her life. More importantly, she had plans—beginning with an expansion to the plantation and making the lives of the slaves better. Pieretta didn’t believe in slavery, but she didn’t have the authority to make any changes until she had gained her majority. There were so many books she hadn’t gotten a chance to read, and so much she still wanted to learn. Damn those pirates for making her fear for her life.

  “Tully, we are going to be attacked by pirates,” Pieretta shouted, frustration flowing through each word she enunciated. “Put those away, we need to take cover.”

  “You be a silly girl, Miss Pieretta. We are not under attack by no pirates.” Doubt was evident in Tully’s voice. Instead of heeding Pieretta’s advice, she turned her back and resumed her work.

  Pieretta gasped. Why wasn’t she taking her seriously? She stormed over to her side and shook her.

  “Tully, I was just on the deck. I heard the first mate and the captain. They are preparing for battle. Do not call me a silly girl!”

  “Hmmph,” Tully said, ignoring the warning. “Leave me be. I have work to finish.” Tully turned around and resumed her task. Two seconds later she screamed when an earsplitting explosion hit the ship.

  Pieretta jumped onto the bunk and covered her face in her skirts.

  Tully joined Pieretta on their bunk, and they held on to each other. Tully squeezed her so tight it took everything Pieretta had to not push her away. They shook uncontrollably when another thunderous blast rattled the ship.

  Pieretta closed her eyes, blocking out everything. She had never been a truly religious person, but in that moment, it wasn’t hard to remember some of the prayers her pastor said during church services. The Lord’s Prayer popped in her head, and she could hear the words loud and clear as if she was attending mass. With a shaky voice she began to recite them aloud, hoping if she died, the Lord would grant her some absolution.

  ***

  Thor made his way onto the deck of the ship. With each movement his stride became more of a swagger. Most of the ship’s crew were already tied up and secured in the empty cargo hold. His men were pretty savage when they worked, but they kept the casualties to an absolute minimum. A laugh rumbled through his chest, echoing across the deck. This vessel had been much easier to capture than Thor had anticipated.

  It was a grand day to be a pirate.

  The captain would be required to answer a few questions before they vacated the vessel. Thor walked over to where the captain was tied to the center mast of the ship, blood dripping from his mouth and a resentful look in his eyes.

  “Well sir, I commend you on a fine battle,” Thor said. “You didn’t make it too easy. However, your job isn’t quite done. You have something I want. Now, Devere, be a good sport and tell me where I can locate it.”

  The captain spit blood at him in response, hitting him square in the face. Thor wiped it from his eyes with the sleeve of his jacket. If the captain was looking to make Thor angry, he was doing a tremendous job so far. Captain Devere had better start cooperating before Thor would have to do something he disliked. He did not enjoy killing people and avoided it whenever possible, but the captain might just force his hand.

  “Now, mate, that’s not the way to go about this. If it’s death you are looking for, I would be happy to oblige, after you tell me what I want to know. Where is Pieretta Carlyle? Tell me where she is, and I will consider letting you live.”

  The captain looked up at him through swollen eyes, now turning various shades of blue, black, and purple. “Why should I tell you anything? You are going to kill us anyway. I don’t see the point of putting that girl through something that she doesn’t deserve. I have no doubt that what you have in store for her is terrible. No one deserves to be tortured, even irritating females.”

  A cocky smile formed on his face. “Well that is no concern of yours.”

  The captain’s face turned several shades of red at Thor’s comment. “Go and bloody find her yourself.” Each word uttered from his swollen lips was strained with barely contained rage.

  “I know you work for that deplorable man Comte Dubois. I want to wring his neck more than yours. Don’t be bloody stupid and save your own hide. Otherwise, I’ll leave you for my men to torment. The choice is yours, mate. Now tell me where I can find her.”

  “You call him deplorable when you’re a damned pirate. What makes you any better than him?”

  Thor glanced at the captain’s bloody and inflamed face, trying to decide how to best answer his quest
ion. He crossed his massive arms over his chest as he tilted his head up, looking at the billowing sails. After some careful internal deliberation, he chose the truth. “I keep my word.”

  The captain stared at Thor, disbelief clouding his eyes. His swollen lids folded down into tiny slits narrowing just enough to see the small specks of his black pupils shining through. “Why should I care about that?” he asked.

  The man might just have a brain after all. He seemed to be considering his options.

  “Well I guess that doesn’t really matter, as your life is of little consequence to me. Whether or not you are still breathing depends on your willingness to help me locate Pieretta. Would you like to die now, or live to fight another day?”

  Devere didn’t take long to answer the question. He looked up at Thor. “She should be in my cabin with her negro maid. Good luck handling that one—she’s a spitfire and stubborn as hell.”

  The Captain’s head rolled back into unconsciousness. It bounced off the tall mast and landed hard against his left shoulder. The man would surely wake up sore if he remained in that position overly long. Thor couldn’t muster enough energy to care and left him where he was.

  Being a pirate was bloody business.

  He stopped letting his principles get to him years ago. It was a hard life at sea every day, plundering ships for supplies. It went against his nature to kill, but if he was forced to, he never thought twice about delivering a fatal blow. Because he didn’t believe in murdering someone without cause, he decided to leave the captain and his crew alive.

  Thor wanted to make them suffer. He hated anyone working for Comte Dubois. Renny was rotten to the core. His precious granddaughter was the key to his undoing. Pieretta Carlyle would ensure his vengeance. Joy burst through his heart at the idea of finally making the comte pay. No words could express his delight.