“Damnation,” Della snapped and stuck the tip of her finger in her mouth. “Stupid needle. I hate darning socks.”
Della put the sock and needle aside and stood. “I’m too nervous. What’s taking them so long?”
Della went to the door and peered out at the front door. Unsatisfied, she went to the French Doors leading to the porch and stepped out onto the balcony. Jesse followed with the cat in her arms.
The beach was too far away and hidden by a strip of land filled with trees. They watched the path that led from the house and into a small set of woods. Jesse stared at LeBlanc’s flower garden, tempted to destroy it. Despite the fact he was a monster, he seemed to have a green thumb. Tropical flowers lit up the garden like colored stars twinkling in the midnight sky.
The sound of men talking brought Jesse out of her reverie. The minute Della’s father stepped into sight, the woman was running like a school girl. She flew across the porch and down the steps in a manner of seconds. Jesse smiled, wondering if she would do the same upon seeing her father again. A bit of jealousy crept over her as she watched Della throw her arms around him. She squelched the feeling and tried to be happy for her friend.
The group finally moved on to the porch, and Della introduced Jesse. When they went inside, Jesse re-took her seat on the sofa. Dulac sat next to her, and Jinx twisted out of her hands. The cat ran off. Oh sure, abandon me in my time of need. See if I let you sleep with me tonight.
“So where is Rod?” Captain LeBlanc asked.
“We have something to tell you that might upset you, Father,” Della answered.
“He’s not dead, is he?” His voice held a touch of concern as he stared Della down.
“No, nothing like that,” she assured.
Jesse reached out and grabbed Dulac’s hand. The scene before her seemed slightly unreal. She hoped the man took the news well and not like his son would have—with fists flying at her.
Della held her hands so tight they turned alabaster white. “Well, his crew...well, they mutinied against him and marooned him.”
“What?” he bellowed and jumped to his feet. “How dare they?”
Della rushed to calm him. “Don’t be hasty, Father. They had just cause to maroon him. He had become a tyrant and even kept poor Jesse a prisoner.”
The captain looked at Jesse. “Is this true?”
She swallowed over the dryness that was her tongue. “Aye, sir.”
“But that’s only one part of the horrible truth,” Della continued. She spoke the next words softly. “He’s a pirate, Father.”
The man hesitated, and Jesse thought she saw a sudden understanding ease over his face. It also came with a resigned set to his jaw, as if he’d been expecting this to happen. His shoulders drooped, and he slumped into the chair behind him. He rubbed his face wearily. “I knew this would happen.”
Della set about apprising him of all the cruelty LeBlanc had done to Jesse. When she was through, the captain once more looked at Jesse, then at Dulac. “He sold you both into slavery? I never thought he’d do something like that, but apparently, his mother’s blood flows well within his veins. She was a pirate too.”
Della poured some tea and handed it to her father. “I’m sorry. Once I found out what he was, he wouldn’t let me leave the island, and when you visited, he threatened to sell me into slavery if I told you.”
“You’re coming home with me.” The lines around the captain’s mouth deepened. “Thank God your mother is nothing like his. You shouldn’t tell her Rod is a pirate, either. She might get the vapors and stay in bed for days. Lord knows those two women are like night and day. ‘Tis a shame I didn’t meet your mother until after Rod’s left me and was hung.”
“If you like,” Dulac interrupted. “The quartermaster might be willing to give you directions to the island LeBlanc is on.”
The man glanced at Dulac, and Jesse swore she saw a look that reminded her of LeBlanc. The man’s voice was filled with regret. “Let him rot there. His sins have at last caught up with him.”
“All right, sir, I completely understand.”
“Father,” Della said, “would you be able to take Jesse and Dulac back to New Orleans with you?”
He nodded. “Most definitely. It’s the least I can do to make up for what my sadly disappointing son has done to them.”
* * * *
August 17, 1900
On board Captain LeBlanc’s Ship
Jesse hesitated at the slightly opened door leading to the captain’s quarters. She heard Dulac’s voice say her name, and her curiosity gave her further pause.
“Jesse included.”
“Well,” Captain LeBlanc’s gruff voice faltered. “I agree. All pirates should be hanged.”
Jesse’s blood seemed to drop to her feet. Did I hear him include me in that all pirates should be hanged? But he assured me he wasn’t going to turn us in!
She strained to hear more but the subject had changed to talk of the weather. Her heart rapidly beat against her ribcage, and her head suddenly pounded with an ache. She stumbled away as quietly as she could, unable to believe that her love plotted her destruction.
In a state of shock, Jesse made her way up on deck. Dulac had been so loving, and she, the besotted fool, had played right in to his hands. She looked around, but they were surrounded by water. There was no escape.
Distraught, she found the nearest box and sank onto it. She buried her face in her hands as complete confusion settled over her. Her inner thoughts warred with one another.
Maybe he was talking about something else.
She snorted. Yeah, and fish talk.
She bit her lip, close to tears. I just don’t understand why he would do all those wonderful things to me...for me. He’s been so nice to me.
She swiped at a tear that had escaped and stuck her chin in the air. Pull yourself together, Jesse. It’s simple. Just give him the slip when you get to New Orleans.
* * * *
Jesse laid in the ship’s bed, wondering if Dulac slept well. She snorted and turned her head to glare at the wall but saw his face instead. He had portrayed the besotted fiancé well. A cold fear shot from her heart to her toes as the same disturbing thought popped around her head.
He’s going to turn me in for piracy. Tears stung her eyes. He seeks to deceive me. What better way to get me back to his life guard friends than to pretend to be in love with me?
Biting her knuckle to keep back the sob, she knew she couldn’t let on she’d figured him out. She had to keep up the farce till they got to New Orleans, when she could escape.
A tear slid down her cheek. In her experience, all men were liars. The only exceptions were her father and Captain Sawyer. She felt more alone now than she ever had. She wanted to trust Dulac, but she couldn’t shake the feeling he was doing everything in his power to at least get one pirate back to hang.
She turned onto her stomach, but sleep eluded her. Jesse tried to think pleasant thoughts, but the devil kept sending her scenes from hell. She had never seen anyone hang before, but she’d heard awful stories of what could happen. Usually, the person’s neck was instantly snapped, and they met death quickly. But she’d heard from other pirates that a lot of times, the neck didn’t snap. Death then came slowly with much humiliation as the rope suffocated the person. One then had to endure the embarrassment of defecating all over oneself and, she imagined, listening to the crowd’s laughter.
Fear caused her breath to lock in her chest. She forced herself to think of something pleasant. She recalled her mother as she’d last seen her alive. She’d been tucked into bed for the night, and her mother had come in to kiss her one more time before going to the opera with her father. Her mother had smelled so good, like a rose in bloom.
Jesse had wrapped her arms around her mother’s neck and squeezed as tightly as she could. It was as if she had known she’d never see her again. “I love you so much, Mama.”
“And I love you, my sweet Jessamine. Don’t forg
et we are going to get your horse tomorrow.”
“Oh, I won’t forget, Mama. Why, I can hardly go to sleep.”
Her mother’s throaty laughter was pleasant to her ears. “I shall see you in the morn, then.”
Her mother left, but it had indeed taken Jesse many hours to fall asleep. Not long after she was awakened by doors slamming, and people screaming and crying. Bewildered, she had climbed out of bed and opened her door just as her father passed.
He had looked a mess. His clothes had been torn and muddy, and his expression had been full of grief. He had stopped and just stared at Jesse like he didn’t know who she was. In his hands was his crushed top hat, and he played with it nervously.
Her nanny swooped in between them and scooped Jesse up in her arms. She carried her into her room, shut the door and sat with her on her bed. The dear woman had then rocked Jesse, and, with tears pouring down her cheeks, she explained that her mother had died in a terrible carriage accident. She had broken her neck.
Jesse rubbed the back of her own neck. Like mother like daughter, I suppose.
She buried her face into her pillow and sighed. Weariness came over her, and she at last fell into the arms of sleep.
* * * *
Jesse clutched the rail leading from the ship to the dock. New Orleans bustled with life, and she looked eagerly at all the people. It was exactly as she had remembered it—exciting, busy and crowded.
A hand pressed lightly on her back, urging her forward. She snapped out of her dazed stupor and glanced back at Dulac. His whispered words belied the loving look on his face.
“Just a few more steps, pirate, and your fate is sealed.”
Her chest constricted painfully, and she followed his gaze to the group of men waiting for them below. They all wore the Lifesaving uniform. She panicked and started to turn around to kick Dulac, but his arm wrapped around her chest. He pulled her close to him. She closed her eyes and bit his arm.
“You little witch,” he snarled, inspecting his wound.
His words cut her aching heart. She backed away from him and turned on her heel with the intent to run to the other side of the ship. She was quick and managed to make it halfway there before Dulac knocked her to the ground. His weight crushed the breath out of her.
“Where do ya think you’re going?”
His warm breath in her ear raised goose bumps on her flesh but not from fear. Despite the fact he was trying to see her swing by her neck, she still wanted him. Her shiver of desire paralyzed her, and his tongue teased her earlobe. Her eyes closed, and her body pushed wantonly against his. He chuckled softly.
“I’m glad I snuck in here. Seems you want me as much as I want you.”
Jesse’s eyes flew open, and the world was covered in darkness. Then she felt the mattress beneath her and realized she’d been dreaming, but not about the last part. Dulac did indeed have his arms wrapped about her, and his mouth was pressed against her ear. She stiffened, hoping she didn’t talk in her sleep. “What are you doing?”
“Isn’t it obvious? I’ve come to ravish you,” he responded rakishly.
“Well, I’m not in the mood to be ravished.”
In truth, she was only in the mood to get some fresh air. She felt stifled sleeping below-deck and missed the nights on-deck. She tried to move his arm, but it remained firmly around her. His hand fondled her breast, and she bucked against him. Her resolve flew out the window.
“Please,” she begged.
“Please what?”
“Please let me up. I need to see the stars.”
“And, darling, I’m going to help you see stars, but none of them will be in the sky.”
Dulac’s mouth moved to her neck, and she tilted her head to give him better access to it. Desire rushed over her, and she forgot why she had to get away from him. She allowed him to do just what he had said he would...ravish her.
* * * *
Jesse leaned against the rail of the ship. After Dulac kept his promise and ravished her, she had made an excuse for needing fresh air. He had simply muttered an ok and rolled over. He had begun snoring immediately.
She sighed despairingly. She couldn’t shake the effects of her earlier nightmare. One side argued he wouldn’t make love to her if he were going to turn her in. The other side of her scoffed. He’s a man. What man would refuse the charms of a woman?
She also couldn’t shake off the words he had uttered earlier to the captain. “...Jesse included.”
As well as the captain’s response. “I agree. All pirates should be hung.”
A cool breeze brushed across her face, and she closed her eyes in an attempt to calm her nerves. Her stomach twisted, letting her know that while she may deny her fear, her body wouldn’t. But good try anyway.
“You seem to have found a very good fiancé.”
She jumped and turned to the person who had stealthily crept up beside her. The sky had lightened with the coming dawn, and she wondered how the captain could look so much like LeBlanc yet act so differently. She put on her best deceiving smile.
“Aye, cap’n. That he is.”
He leaned against the rail. “Would you mind if I inquired where you two met?”
Suddenly feeling as if she were being interrogated, she had second thoughts about the captain and LeBlanc. She gulped. “On a ship.”
Silence hung around them as she remembered how Dulac had reacted to her. She laughed. “He thought I was a boy.”
The captain raised an eyebrow. “And why was that?”
“’Cuz I was dressed like one.”
He nodded as if it was all perfectly clear to him. “I see.”
She couldn’t stop herself from continuing. “I was separated from my father in New Orleans when I was eight and grew up on a ship. The captain kinda took me under his wing. Said it’d be better if the crew thought I was a boy. I’m sure you know what a superstitious lot they can be.”
“Aye, that I do.”
Silence hung between them like a wet rug. She looked at him, feeling as if he had something to say or to ask. He opened his mouth several times before finally coming out with it.
“I’m sorry for my son’s behavior. I had hoped he wouldn’t follow in my first wife’s footsteps. She was a pirate as well, you know.”
“It’s not your fault.”
“If she hadn’t run off with him when he was nine, I’m positive he wouldn’t have turned out the way he did. Instead, he had to watch her swing from a rope. I had hoped that would jar some sense into the boy, but I guess I was wrong.”
Jesse was not a touching sort of person, but she still had the urge to pat his hand reassuringly. She refrained from giving into that urge. “So you got him back after she died?”
She couldn’t bring herself to say his mother had been hanged. At the moment, it struck too close to her fear to do so. Her grip on the rail tightened as she swayed a little from the fear. Get a hold of yerself, Jessamine!
“Aye. He was twelve then, and I could see the wildness of her in him. I sent him to the strictest of schools in an effort to tame it. I suppose it wasn’t good enough.”
“I’m sorry.” Jesse didn’t know what else to say, and they lapsed into silence. She was sorry LeBlanc was such a devil of a man. She hoped he never got off that island, however, and out of the corner of her eye, she looked at the man beside her. She could see the worry on his father’s face. She felt sorry for him but not the son. LeBlanc deserved everything he got, plus a trillion times more.
Finally, the captain slapped his hands against the rail. “Well, I’ve got a lot to see to. So if you’ll excuse me, I will see you shortly to break our fast.”
Jesse nodded. “See you then, sir.”
Turning her attention to the rising sun, she took a deep breath of the fresh, salty air. She had missed the open sea but hadn’t realized how much until now. She would miss all of it when she found her father, if she ever got the courage up to ask the captain for his help. That might not be such a wise ide
a as he would surely tell Dulac. He thinks the man is my fiancé. Might be better to find a ship heading for Virginia when we reach New Orleans.
Jesse nodded. Aye, that’s the plan then.
Chapter 22
August 19, 1900
Jesse reached for the slab of bacon at the same time Dulac did. She grabbed his hand instead. The feel of his skin and the smell of bacon brought back the memory of the first kiss she had ever given him, albeit it was a secret kiss. Then she recalled the first time they had made love. Her heart fluttered, and her body warmed at the pleasant thought. She quickly withdrew her hand.
“Sorry,” she muttered. What is wrong with me? One minute, he has me melting like butter, and the next, I freeze up like ice.
He grabbed her wrist and smoothly turned her palm upward. He placed the strip of bacon in it and let her go. He then grabbed another strip from the plate for himself and resumed his conversation with the captain.
Jesse was torn between leaving or staying with him. He certainly didn’t act like someone who was going to turn her in, but then, why would he if it were his true intent. He wouldn’t show his hand if he were really trying to send her to the gallows.
She realized she was staring at him and averted her gaze to her plate. She desperately wanted to find her father. Her heart sped up at the thought of seeing him again. Will he like me? Will he approve of me?
“I’ll give you our address,” Dulac said. “We live in the garden district.”
Jesse frowned, realizing she had missed an important piece of conversation. “What did I miss?”
“I just thought Della might like to know where you’ll be staying.”
She smiled at the captain. “Are we still due in to New Orleans tomorrow afternoon?”
“Yes, Miss Jessamine, provided the weather stays favorable.”
She nodded and gulped down her juice. As she was finished with her breakfast, she wiped her mouth and set the napkin beside her plate. “I think I’ll take a stroll on deck.”
All the men pushed back from the table and jumped to their feet. She looked around for the rat they must have seen, but when she saw none, she realized they were standing for her. Awkwardly, she stood, trying to hide her faux pas.
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