A great wrong. A great wrong. The words followed one another around and around in her mind. She closed her eyes and gave her head a quick shake. “I don’t understand.”
“Jessup did ye dirty, Tupper,” cried Finch. “Ye ’ave te say what his punishment be.”
She looked at Finch in disbelief. “Why me?”
Alice could feel Gavin’s gaze upon her. “You’re to impose his penalty.”
Jessup glared at her. She saw the muscle jump along his jaw. When she met his stare, the corner of his mouth tipped in a knowing sneer. If she called him out for what he’d done, he’d tell everyone she was a whore and drag her into the muck right along with him. It would be the only way he’d save face among the crew. There was only one other solution.
“I hold no ill will toward Mister Jessup.”
“Tupper, he could’a killed ya,” Robbins sputtered.
“But he didn’t. I was asked to do what any other seaman on this ship would have been asked. There was no wrong done to me.” Alice risked a quick glance in Gavin’s direction. “Not by Mister Jessup. He should be released.”
Jessup’s glower grew darker at her absolution. She had him, and by the murderous look in his eye, he knew it too. If he said anything about her and Gavin now, it would appear he was concocting stories to justify what he’d done. No one would believe him. She’d outsmarted him. Disgraced him in front of the crew. In front of his followers. If she hadn’t been an enemy before, she was now. “If that’s all, I’d like to return to my duties.”
Alice didn’t wait to be dismissed, but as she attempted to leave, Gavin stopped her.
“If that’s your final say.”
She replied to the toes of his boots. “It is.”
“Then so be it, but as captain of this ship, I charge First Mate Jessup with endangering a member of this crew, thereby putting the ship and the rest of the crewmembers at risk. Mister Jessup, you are hereby on half rations for the next fortnight.”
Jessup’s glare turned black with rage. As she walked away, she could almost feel the heat of his fury burning into her back.
Returning to the armory, MacTavish handed her a beautifully carved baldric of thick black leather. “Sharpened the blade there and shortened up the belt te fit.”
Jaxon Steele’s sword sat in a matching tooled scabbard tipped in silver, which hung off the wide strap. And the pistol MacTavish chose for her sat clean, oiled, and snug in its holster.
“You made this for me?”
“Were ye plannin’ te carry yer weapons in yer pocket?” He narrowed his eyes at her. “Now don’t be gettin’ all soft on me. Just take it.”
Alice slipped it over her head. The position of the sword and gun were easily within reach. She pulled the pistol, and pointed it at the door. Not too heavy. It fit her hand perfectly. As though the two were destined for one another.
Closing one eye, she aimed for a knothole in the door. “Teach me to load.”
Chapter 13
Gavin’s watchful gaze followed Alice as she moved through the crowd. Back straight, her hips with their easy sway. She hadn’t looked at him. Not in the eye at least.
He wasn’t the only one watching her leave. Jessup’s growing hatred toward her had increased tenfold. The man should be grateful. Were it up to Gavin, he’d be dragging him across the keel this morning. Alice’s actions had only endeared her to the rest of the crew once more. They’d watch for any retaliation from Jessup and stop him. They were quickly becoming her champions. Next, they’d be voting her captain.
When he’d returned to his cabin last night, the sight of his rumpled bed cut him deeper than any blade. The perfume of her skin clung to the sheets making his body hard for her all over again. He’d spent hours navigating the Scarlet Night through the last of the storm reliving each torturous touch in his mind. Every caress. The taste of her skin. He wanted to go to her, beg forgiveness, and sweep her back into his arms. His hunger for her had only increased.
But then he had seen the blood. The proof of her virginity there on his bedding. Guilt and anger gnawed at him. If Alice was playing some sort of a game, it was a dangerous one. One that could only end badly. First climbing the bloody mast in the middle of a rage, then giving herself over to him without a word and with no thought to what lying with him had done to her future. They were both mad.
It had to stop. Now. As difficult as it was, he needed to speak with her. Opening the door to the magazine, he stared down the barrel of a pistol. “Were you expecting me?”
Alice lowered the weapon and looked away. “If I were, the gun would be loaded.”
Behind her MacTavish snorted. Gavin grabbed her elbow. “We have unfinished business, you and I.”
“I’m on duty.”
He steered her toward the door. “Not until we settle things.” He kept a firm pressure on her arm moving her through the crowded decks.
“Where are you taking me?”
“My quarters.”
Alice tried to jerk away from him and pulled them both to a stop. “Say what you have to say.”
He snapped. “My quarters.”
She looked him in the eye. First in anger. Then something else flitted across her face. Was it fear? Regret? Hurt? It caught him like a blow to the gut. “My quarters,” he insisted in a gentler tone.
* * * *
The bed was made. Gavin’s cabin was once again pristine as if last night never occurred. The door closed behind her, but she couldn’t face him. Was it his goal to humiliate her more than he already had? Unfinished business? What more could he want?
Behind her, Gavin gave a short sigh. “We need to discuss last night.”
Alice continued to stare at the bed until she closed her eyes against the images already burned into her memory. Crossing her arms over her chest, she dropped her chin.
Gavin continued. “Why didn’t you tell me you were an innocent?”
“I’m hardly innocent.”
“I took something I had no right to take.”
She lifted a shoulder. “You are a pirate. Isn’t that what you do?”
Gavin grabbed her arm and spun her around. “Don’t be glib, woman.”
“I’m glad to be rid of it.” Alice pulled out of his grasp and crossed to the windows to concentrate on the ship’s wide wake.
“How can you say that?”
Her patience snapped and she spun on him. “What did you expect of me last night?”
“Not to discover you were a virgin.” He threw his hands wide.
Alice planted her hands on her hips. “Why? Do you think I frequent men’s beds?”
“No, of course not. I thought… I assumed. You’d been a prisoner of the Duke of Wentworth. Wolfsan had a vile reputation. He left a trail of destroyed, dead women in his path.”
She nodded. “You thought he raped me?”
Gavin clamped his jaw and let out a long breath. “Yes.”
Anger flared. Would Wolfsan’s stain upon her ever be gone? Would she fight it forever? Her breathing hiked. To link what she survived with the duke to what happened with Gavin made her ill. “He tried. There’s a scar on my thigh. Here.” She lifted a knee and showed him the position of the slivered line that was a constant reminder of her time with Wolfsan. “This is as far as he got. He preferred torture to foreplay and started to monogram me by carving his initials into my skin.” She jerked at the neck of her shirt and tipped her head. A thin line marked her throat. “This is his work as well.” She straightened her collar. “Needless to say, I killed him before he got the chance to finish what he started.”
“And you survived the crew of the Delmar?”
“I lied, vomited, kicked. I shot one, stabbed another. Had you not shown up when you did, my precious virtue wouldn’t have lasted another hour.”
“What happens when you begin life in Virginia? When a man wants you for his wife?”
Alice gave a bitter laugh. “I have no such
illusions. If, by chance, there was a man who wanted to wed me, hearing my story he’d assume as you did. But the fact I killed my attackers would no doubt disturb him far more than the absence of my maidenhood.” She went back to staring out the windows. “I can’t see what difference it makes to you. I won’t demand you marry me if that’s what you fear.” Alice turned to face him. She met his gaze. “Last night…was nothing.” The lie turned to dust on her tongue. “Another lapse in judgment.”
His head jerked back as her words struck. It should have made her feel victorious to give back some of the hurt he’d given her last night, but it didn’t. It only hurt her more. Made her hollow inside. When had she become so hard? Where had she learned how to wield her tongue with the same force as her sword? She was beginning to hate the woman she had become.
Gavin pulled a bottle of brandy from his desk and poured himself a drink. Tossing it back, he grimaced at the bite of the liquor and leveled a dark glare at her.
“Was it yet another lapse in judgment when you decided to climb the mainsail in a full gale?” He took another drink and waved the glass at her. “I see you found your boots. Do you recall how you lost them? Or how you ended up in my bed?”
“No, I—”
“After your stunt—”
“Stunt?”
“You notched that damn chin of yours, glared at Jessup and proceeded to faint at the top of the ladder way. I caught you about the waist and carried you. No one knows you didn’t walk down those stairs on your own.”
Alice twisted at her ring. “Then I should thank you for saving more than my neck. All I’d gained in climbing the rigging would have been lost had they seen me collapse.”
Gavin slammed down his glass. “Gained? Are you insane? Whatever possessed you? You could’ve been swept out to sea or thrown to your death.”
“I was ordered,” she shot back.
“By Jessup. I’d be striping his back right now had you not stopped me.”
Alice threw up her hands. “I couldn’t refuse. No other member of your crew would have been given that option.”
The muscle in his jaw pulsed. “It’s not the same thing, and you know it.”
“Jessup has hated me since I arrived. He has no loyalty to Captain Steele. He doesn’t care who I am. I’m a cursed woman aboard this ship. I silenced him and put an end to it. I’ll continue to do whatever necessary to survive until I can reach Virginia.” Alice understood his anger, but she was alone in this. She’d fought Wolfsan alone. Boarded the Pennington alone. The decisions were hers, as well as the consequences. Stopping Jessup’s reign of abuses had been her battle, not Gavin’s.
“Everything I did last night was to secure my place on this ship.”
Gavin’s head snapped up. “Does that include warming my bed?”
Alice was unprepared for the blow mere words could inflict. “You twisted my words.” Past the pain, a deep sadness engulfed her and threatened to drown her. Any hope she had clung to regarding his caring for her were dashed. She swung back. “If you’ll recall, Captain, you were the one to carry me to your bed.”
Gavin poured another drink and spoke into the glass. “You could have stopped me.”
Alice closed her eyes to keep him from seeing her pain. “Could I?”
“You just finished telling me how you stopped men in the past who were much more intent upon having you than I.”
Ice encased the shattered remains of her heart as she forced herself to lift her chin and look him straight in the eye. “Yes, I stopped them, and then I killed them, but none of those bastards was ever vile enough to call me a whore.” Alice crossed to the door. “At least Jessup is honest in his hatred toward me. It seems my imagining about your cock wasn’t the only thing I was wrong about.”
Alice looked down at her chest as she made her way back to her post. Was there blood? There should be blood when someone cut out your heart.
Moving though the crowded deck, her vision blurred. Everything slowed as if she were trudging through murky water. She was numb. Looking forward, there was sea as far as the horizon and beyond. There was nothing left to do but pray the winds held and the voyage to the new world was swift. Short of throwing herself overboard, Alice’s only hope now was to survive the next few weeks and be rid of this ship and all who sailed upon her. She would keep to herself, work herself into exhaustion so she could sleep at night without the dreams of what would never be, and stay clear of the good captain.
She and Annalise had played a game as children. They would become invisible. Keeping out of sight and anticipating each other’s moves, they stayed one step ahead of each other. Stealth was a honed gift, and she planned to use it to lose herself within this ship. It had helped when she tracked Wolfsan into Port Royal and ended him. Evading Gavin couldn’t be any more difficult.
And for the next several days, it was child’s play. Gavin came looking for her in the armory. Alice ducked behind a stack of crates.
“Where’s Tupper?”
MacTavish shifted. “Over there... She just be there talkin’ te me. Must ’ave slipped by.”
From her vantage point she could see Gavin’s frustration. He scanned the armory. Twice. “She came this way. I’ve been trying to track her down for days.”
“Been here ’ard at work. Quiet mostly. Does what’s asked of ’er.” MacTavish stopped what he was working on and wiped his hands on his kilt. “What ya be needin’?”
Gavin rubbed at his eyes. “Nothing. Forget it.”
“Then why ye lookin’ fer her?” MacTavish’s broad back blocked Alice from seeing his expression, but she knew the tone in his voice and could imagine the narrow-eyed glare he was famous for using.
Gavin growled and turned to leave. “I’m seeing things. Carry on.”
Alice waited until Gavin closed the door and returned to her workspace. “I’ve finished trimming the wicks and filling the smoke pots. Aren’t we casting shot today?”
MacTavish leapt from his stool. “Lassie. Scared te crap out te me. Capt’n lookin’ fer ye.”
Alice bit back the laugh. “Oh, sorry.”
“Were ye here te whole time?” The Scotsman rubbed at his eyes. “I’m losin’ me grip.”
Alice patted his muscled arm. “You’re fine. Should I start melting the lead?” She bit the inside of her cheek to keep from smiling. The ever-sharp MacTavish didn’t miss anything.
He narrowed his eyes at her and planted his meaty fists on his hips. “What game ye be playin’ at, lass?”
“Don’t know what you’re talking about.” Alice crossed her arms over her chest and studied the toes of his worn boots.
“I ken smell it. Ye be up to somethin’.”
She lifted one shoulder. “I’m doing my chores and keeping myself from trouble.”
“Well, none ken fault ye fer that.” He got almost nose to nose with her and stared her down. “But I smell somethin’ rotten.”
Alice blinked at him. “When was the last time you washed your kilt?”
* * * *
While Alice chose to evade Gavin’s notice, over the last days, she gained a small shadow. One who was becoming dearer to her by the day. Bump had no trouble finding her wherever she may be. He wouldn’t venture into the armory, but she had come to expect he’d be waiting for her at the end of her day. Sometimes she would find him curled up in front of her door. Other times she would be crossing the decks, and he would simply appear at her side. They shared their evening meal together. It was Alice’s favorite time of day. They started off sitting in silence, but soon Alice took to telling him stories of her and Annalise’s adventures when they were his age. He didn’t hear a word, but it didn’t matter. He would watch her and on rare occasions treat her to a tiny glimpse of a smile.
The night of the storm when she found him hiding under her cot, he had crawled into her lap, but that had been the only physical connection she’d made with the boy short of the occasional ruffle of his
hair or a pat on his back. He was careful to never get closer than arm’s length. His unreasonable panic at being hugged had her worried. What must his short life have been like to incite such a response?
This night, however, he wasn’t waiting in his usual spot. Alice slipped into the galley and gathered bread and ale. Still she didn’t see the boy. Tonight, she guessed, she’d be dining alone.
Moving into the dim below decks, she spotted him in a dark corner. His eyes were round with fear.
“There you are.” It was then she noticed the hand gripping the boy’s shoulder, and the knife against the boy’s chest. Jessup stepped out of the shadows. Alice’s blood chilled. “What the hell do you think you’re doing?”
“Hard to decide which of ye needs cuttin’ worse.” He jerked Bump back against him and tightened his hold.
Cold fury flashed behind her eyes. “Let him go.”
Jessup shook his head and pressed the blade against Bump’s throat. “Done enough listenin’ to ye. Ye made me the fool fer the last time. Now ye be listenin’ te me.”
Alice’s hands were busy holding bread and ale. If she dropped them to draw her pistol, Bump would be dead before she could cock the hammer.
“Sick of hearin’ about the great Tupper. Ye’re nothin’ but a fukin’ slut. Makin’ everyone think yer better ’an me.” His voice was low and menacing. “Think I don’t ken what yer doin’?”
She tried to talk him down while keeping a close watch on his knife hand. If he so much as drew a drop of that child’s blood… “I’m not doing anything. I swear. Let Bump go.”
Jessup went on as if she hadn’t spoken. “Stood there, all high and mighty. Takin’ me balls wit ya when ye strutted away like some common whore. Got the crew laughin.’ They all be laughin.’”
Alice inched forward. “I want nothing to do with your balls. They wanted to flog you.”
“Ye think I ain’t had me back striped afore?” he spit before jerking Bump back against him again, adjusting his hold.
Within a Captain's Treasure Page 10
