“It seems I’ve outstayed my welcome. I’ve neglected my own ship long enough anyway, it’s time to go and make my presence felt aboard Freedom. You’re welcome to come and visit when you’re ready, Gabriella. Enjoy your new boat.”
“Ship!” I shouted after him, furious.
I watched him spread the pinnace’s sail and reach over to Freedom. What have I done? Had I got this completely wrong? Had I ruined everything by demanding this ship and leaving his decks? The last few months had been better than I ever could have dreamed, an impossibility based on my life up to a year ago, but there was no denying I’d started to resent the power Leo had over me aboard Freedom. If I’d let things stay as they were I’d be unhappy and weak again, and I’d had enough of that. I had to be strong; I had to prove I was strong—to myself as much as anyone else. I had to know I was worthy of this life—of my life—that I was worth the air I breathed, and worthy of Leo as well, although I’d never admit that to him. But it worked both ways, I had to know he was worthy of me, too. I had to know that he loved me for me and not just an idea of me, or because I happened to be married to the man he regarded an enemy. I needed him to accept me as an equal. I wanted his respect and even his admiration. I wanted to share this life with him, not just keep him company while he lived it. I wanted, no needed, to be independent, to know I could rely on myself; but I needed him too. I needed him to accept me, but to be honest; I wasn’t completely sure who ‘me’ was. I was sure that I needed to find out, and I had to test Leo’s love for me while I did it. No wonder he’s so confused and frustrated.
I sighed and felt my shoulders relax and droop. Maybe I was being too hard on him. I couldn’t bear it if I found myself but lost him in the process. Then what will I do?
“Stand by to jibe!” I called, striding amidships to take the tiller myself. My conversation with Leo was not over. I wasn’t going to let him leave me in anger, not after the way we’d loved last night. Filled with resolve, I pushed the tiller hard over to windward, but immediately realized I’d been too eager. The deck canted viciously and I heard cursing from my crew. We had too much sail flying for such a violent jibe in this wind, and, after a creaking and cracking, I watched in horror as the mainmast slowly fell to the sea in a tangle of sailcloth and rigging.
Valkyrie hadn’t been at sea a week and I’d broken her.
*
I stared at the mess that, moments before, had been my beautiful ship, my hands over my mouth in shock, and slowly raised my eyes to the men who were shouting and running toward the tangle. I suddenly realized two were missing, and put my shame aside. I ran forward and pulled out my dagger to cut away canvas and cordage. Please let them be well. Please be well. Please don’t let me have killed anyone. Please. Please. Please.
Was wind thumping that canvas or a fist? I scrambled to the moving sail, screaming to be careful I was going to cut, when a knife blade thrust outward and ripped through the sail. Gaunt and Butler followed.
“What the hell did thee do that for, lass? This ain’t a pinnace thee knows, thee needs to give us a bit of time afore thee jibes like that! We’re blooming lucky not to be hurt or worse!”
“Sorry, sorry, I didn’t realize, are you both well?” I paused and looked at Gaunt, ready to burst into tears. “Now what do we do?”
“Don’t fret so, lass.” He relented now that he was free of the shroud of mainsail. “There must’ve been a flaw in the mast to go like that, or a frayed stay. We’ll have to cut her free and head back ashore. Just let me catch me breath and I’ll check below, make sure she ain’t sprung no boards an’all.”
“Stay here, I’ll go below,” I said, suddenly desperate to get away from the glares of my crew. Bless Gaunt for his generosity, but I couldn’t expect any from the others, nor did I deserve it.
It was bad news below deck, water was streaming in. The mast had pulled at the garboards next to the keel and we were filling up fast. Am I going to lose her? I shouted for help and all eight of my crew shot down the hatch.
“Come on, Captain,” Davys said. “We’ll be needed on the pumps whilst Gaunt and the others try and salve this. Hope you’re feeling strong.”
I nodded dumbly. I felt like I was being punished, and that I deserved it. I was not in command here: Gaunt, Cartwright, Davys, Butler and Greenwoode all knew better than me what to do in this situation. Klara, Obi, Baba and I could only follow their lead.
“Gabriella! Gabriella! Where are you? Are you hurt? Gabriella!” Leo had arrived back aboard. Wonderful. I took a deep breath and shouted up at him, “We’re all well, but we’re making a lot of water. Mr. Gaunt and the others are fitting a lead patch.” I raced up through the hatch after Davys, who had already rigged the pump to the capstan, unable to look at the concern on Leo’s face. I didn’t deserve it.
“Can you cut away that mast? We’re too unstable and need to get way on as quickly as we can.” I tried to act like a captain again.
“Gabriella,” Leo said, quietly, stepping toward me.
“Please, Leo. Help me save her. I can’t lose her after everything, she deserves better.”
He nodded and got to work, whatever he wanted to say could wait. We had a ship to save. If we could just get moving, the water would start to flow out rather than in, and Valkyrie would have a chance.
Chapter 61
GABRIELLA
28th January 1687
Sankt Jan Island
I took the approach to Sankt Jan Island carefully under foresails and a jury mainmast made from one of Freedom’s spare main yards, and sounded every few feet. I wasn’t taking any chances. I felt so sad running Valkyrie onto the beach only five days after we’d left. I’d failed her. All my posturing and my insistence that she was mine alone had nearly sunk her. Freedom had sailed in close company and was already at anchor. Her laden pinnace and longboats pulled toward the shore. It was time to face the rest of the men—a moment I’d dreaded all the way back.
“See, I told you, a fair weather sailor. A woman has no business being on the quarterdeck of any vessel!”
“Don’t talk to her like that, Newton, whatever your thoughts on the subject, Gabriella is Valkyrie’s captain and your talk is damn near a threat of mutiny,” Leo defended me.
“I’m not on her crew. I am not mutinous.”
“You are on my crew, and any threat to Gabriella is a threat to me. Now shut up and get to work, I’m sick of the sound of your voice.”
Maybe having Leo close by on occasion wasn’t such a bad thing, after all.
“Gabriella, we need to select a new mainmast for you. Gaunt will stay here to replace and seal the garboards to make the hull sound again. It won’t take long, he only needs a couple of planks and we have some spare aboard Freedom.”
I nodded and followed him inland.
“I’m sorry.”
“What?”
“I’m sorry. I thought I knew it all and wanted so badly to do well and I nearly sank her.”
“Oh, come here, querida, every captain is a little insufferable at first! But don’t worry too much about it, your jibe was ill advised but it would not have been enough on its own to spring the mast. You saw the hull—how it hadn’t been tarred properly and had rotted through at the chains. It should have been spotted before you set sail, but you won’t make that mistake again.”
“It’s not that easy is it, commanding a vessel? Someone could have been hurt or even killed in that jibe, and it would have been my fault.”
“But everyone is well. Life as a ship’s master isn’t an easy vocation, you can’t expect to know it all straight away. He, or she, has to be master of all trades: shiphandling, war, navigation, weather, sailmaking, carpentry, gunnery, plus a competent topman, fore-the-mast hand, rigger, shipwright and expert at general maintenance. A captain does not have to be a good sailor—Henry Morgan of all people has proved that. But a captain who is not a good sailor needs a good ship’s master—and to heed his advice.
“Gaunt has been at sea
most of his life—and he’s had a long life. He knows everything there is to know about ships and the sea—and he’s a damn good carpenter too. You won’t go wrong following his advice. You’ve only just started learning, but you have a good crew, one that encompasses all of it, and me. You’ll get there, you just have to take the time to listen and learn.”
He paused, his attention out to sea. “I don’t like the look of that sloop. She was on the horizon last time we were here, but seems to be coming in a lot closer now. What do you think, querida, are they threatening or just watching?”
I didn’t want to admit that I hadn’t noticed her—today or on our last visit. “Maybe we should get Valkyrie off the beach quickly, just in case.”
“Mmm. By the look of the rake on that mast they’re pirates. There are a couple of successful crews operating out of Sankt Tomas Island, we’re probably invading their territory—hopefully they’re just making sure we aren’t a threat to them. Anyway, it’s only a small sloop and they look to be on their own, they’re not likely to take on two vessels, both of them bigger than themselves.”
“Even with one dismasted and high and dry?” I asked.
“We’ve probably taken their careenage and they’re waiting for us to move on,” he tried to reassure me, although I knew as well as he did there was nothing we could do at the moment, whatever their intent.
“So why haven’t they hailed us?” I wondered.
“Would you approach ships this size surrounded by cannon from a boat that size? No, don’t answer that, you probably would, but it’s not an advisable course of action.”
“No offense taken.” I was just starting to realize how much I didn’t know, and how much there was to think about all the time. On land as well as afloat. Have I made a big mistake?
“No you haven’t.”
“What?”
“Made a mistake.”
“How did you know what I was thinking?”
“It’s written all over your face. You’d better smile before we get back to Valkyrie and your crew realizes their captain is doubting herself—that’s always something to keep hidden and closely guarded.”
“What do you really think? Have I taken on too much?”
“No, I don’t think you have. I was hesitant at first, but I’m coming round to the idea. Just remember to be fair, confident and honest with your crew. Their safety is your responsibility so respect that, and don’t be afraid to ask for advice. You have a lot of experience and seasense on your deck—use it and learn as much as you can. You benefit and you’re honoring your crew at the same time. Remember, the men who agreed to sail with you have faith in you. If you keep faith in them too, you won’t go far wrong.”
I nodded and sighed. “You make it sound so easy.”
Leo laughed. “I assure you it isn’t, especially in a heavy sea with an inconvenient island or reef to leeward. Or in the flat calms come to think of it—in a way they’re worse. A bored crew can easily become a malicious one, especially if the rum’s running low. But you shouldn’t have too much trouble with those old salts. They’ve seen it all and done it all, countless times, and they chose to sail with you. Anyway, they know they’d have to answer to me if they make trouble for you. You’re lucky, not many captains get such an easy passage into command. But I can assure you that despite my best efforts, it won’t stay easy—as you’ve already discovered. Admit your mistakes, make good the damage you’ve done, and set your sights on your next prize.”
“That’s a lot to remember!”
“Not really, a bit of common sense to go with the seasense, basic human courtesy and a firm manner is all a good captain needs. Oh, and to trust his or her crew—assuming they’re trustworthy—if they aren’t, you’ve no business having them on your decks in the first place. An untrustworthy crew has been the death of many a good captain.”
“There, that will serve.” He leaned against the tree he had selected and ran his eye up its trunk. “It’s straight and tall enough. Right, Capitana, mark it and we’ll get some of the men out here, I want your new mainmast felled and hauled back to the beach before it gets dark and we don’t have much time.”
*
Night fell quickly as it always did, the sun set as if it couldn’t wait to get to bed, and, instead of the brilliant golds and reds and orange and pink, we were left in near darkness. A sliver of moon and a thousand, thousand stars shone down—just as beautiful, but a poor substitute for the tropical sun, as was the fire that blazed on the beach, although at least that had some color to it: orange, yellow, green and blue flared in its depths. I sipped my rum punch, content at last. Valkyrie was afloat again—as she should be. Her new mast was stepped slightly further aft than the old one had been, and was raked back sharply. There was no mistaking now that she was rigged for speed. A pirate ship.
We’d spent a week stepping the new mast and everyone realized the accident hadn’t been my fault. Even so, it could well have been and I’d learned a lot—and had a much better idea of the captain I wanted to be. But for now, I had the confidence of my crew back, of my man, and even of myself. I felt content and ready to take on the world, closer to confronting and divorcing Erik—although I knew a divorcement would be difficult to take from him. I’d have to force him, or trick him somehow to be free of him. Or kill him.
I shook these thoughts off, I’d deal with them another time when I was alone. For now I leaned into Leo, enjoying the weight of his arm slung around my shoulders, and laughed at the antics of our crews. After a week of hard work, we had a night of relaxation around the fire ahead of us. We’d rig the recut sails and put off again tomorrow. I looked seaward again, at my beautiful ship, and raised my rumpot in a toast to her, then squinted. Is that vessel out there again? I turned to Leo to point it out but he’d already seen. We had trouble.
Chapter 62
GABRIELLA
5th February 1687
“What the hell? Get off me!” I shouted. Something had landed in the fire with a bang, shooting flame high into the air, and Leo had shoved me down. I had a mouthful of sand and no idea what was going on.
“Arrows,” he hissed in my ear. “Stay down, we need to find some cover.”
Another explosion from the fire; they must be tipped with powder. Then more, this time alight, and fire rained down on us. The campsite was chaos: drunken men ran shouting for cover, their superstitious souls sent into blind panic, guns firing wastefully at I didn’t know what. I stayed down, trying to think.
“Over there, get behind the boats,” Leo instructed and shifted his weight off me. “Don’t waste your ball, find someone to shoot at afore you fire.” Then, louder, “Feliciano! Phillippe! Can you see anyone? Get to the cannon!” We had readied both vessels for sea and only had one cannon still ashore. The other guns were aboard Freedom and Valkyrie, but the gun crews were all on the beach. That boat had chosen her moment well. “Mierda, what’s that?”
I stared open-mouthed at the sea: it had erupted into flame. I could just make out bundles in the waves and as I watched, another was hit by a flaming arrow and spilled more fire.
I looked at Leo, who waved at me to stay down. He’d managed to calm the men after the initial surprise, but we all had the same problem. With a lake of fire at our backs and flaming arrows firing down on us from inshore we were trapped, we had no night-sight, and no one to shoot back at. We were easy targets. Then a louder boom, and I followed Leo’s jerk of the head seaward: the boat offshore had opened fire.
Leo shouted at Phillippe and Feliciano again to fire to seaward. All was utter confusion, and I was more scared than I had been since I’d first come to sea. It was the first time I’d seen Leo at a loss. I didn’t like it.
Another boom from the water grabbed my attention, and I watched the flickering shadow of another mast come down in horror. This time Freedom’s foremast toppled overboard, lit up by flames, accompanied by a roar of rage from Leo. They meant to trap us ashore—they wanted Valkyrie and had just made sur
e we couldn’t pursue when they took her.
Leo was furious. “They are not going to steal the new boat, especially after all the hard work we’ve put into her. I’ve not been through everything the last few weeks have brought just to lose her now!”
He wasn’t the only one who thought that way. Sense and well-honed fighting instincts had quelled most of the confusion and rampant superstition, and the men had taken what little cover there was behind the boats and faced inland, recognizing they could do nothing at the moment for Freedom or Valkyrie on the other side of that wall of fire.
“They can’t find anyone to shoot at,” I hissed at Leo. As I spoke, a couple of shots from the shore cannon blasted out to sea, and Leo shouted to take care. Thanks to some clever positioning by the attacker’s helmsman, we were in danger of hitting Valkyrie, but Feliciano on the cannon couldn’t hear.
“Look! Someone’s boarding Valkyrie!” I watched the boarding of my ship in horror, my eyes now used to the flaring light as the flames subsided.
Leo laughed. “They’re in for a surprise then!”
“Why? What do you mean?” I asked.
“Frazer’s aboard, and Jean-Claude. Half a dozen others too. That boat’s been standing off and on for far too long, I thought they might be up to something. I wasn’t quite expecting this, though!”
A big cheer went up around the beach. Feliciano had succeeded in hitting the pirate boat just as she tacked round to get behind Valkyrie again, and it had been a good shot. By the looks of it, it wouldn’t be long before she went down. Then I realized they would only want Valkyrie more.
“Newton, take Thomas and Juaquim, get into those trees and see if you can find whoever’s shooting those arrows, but take care—they seem to know the island well.”
A noise to seaward grabbed our attention again—shots sounded from Valkyrie. They had boarded her. Men from the beach started running to the boats to row out, despite the flaming sea. They were angry now, and a little embarrassed that we’d been taken by surprise, despite our numbers and preparations—and of the way they had panicked. Leo and I jumped into the first boat to hit the surf.
The Valkyrie Series: The First Fleet - (Books 1-3) Look Sharpe!, Ill Wind & Dead Reckoning: Caribbean Pirate Adventure Page 43
