Passion's Tide

by Sarah West

  “What’s with the beard?”

  Logan shot his friend a glare. “I value my life a little too much to take a bullet from some vigilante who recognizes my face from the drawings posted all over the ports. Since we are going ashore, I figured it would be prudent to take any precautions necessary.”

  “And why is it that you’re going ashore? I thought you made it clear that you were going to work from the ship.”

  “He’s taking me because I asked,” said Amber, joining the conversation. “I’ve wanted to see Spain ever since I was a little girl and my father read me a book about the history of the Moors, so I persuaded him to take me for a night. We are going to stay at an inn in Zorrizo.”

  “Nice little town, not as much fun as the coast,” Eli remarked.

  “That’s hardly the point. Now, what news did you have?”

  “Oh that’s right, I had forgotten. Your beard is just so distracting. And manly. Do you know you look rather dashing?” Amber chuckled as Logan rolled his eyes.

  “I told him the same thing earlier.”

  “Ladies, enough. Eli, please, continue.”

  “We located Mendoza, He’s been staying at the Maravilla Inn, mostly laying low. He comes out of his room only to gamble and get more tequila. And,” he said, with a pointed look at Logan, “to pick up a nueva señorita.”

  “A different woman each night?” Logan asked in Spanish.

  “Sí.”

  “¿Por qué?”

  They both turned to look at Amber, surprised at her question. “You speak Spanish?”

  “Yes, as well as Latin and a bit of French. Why are men always so shocked to learn that a woman can study just as they can?” She shook her head. “They think they’re the only creatures God graced with a brain.”

  “I’m fairly certain that I’m offended by that comment.”

  “Eli,” Logan whispered, “you’re not helping our side. Shut up.”

  “What do all these women have in common?” Amber prodded, curious as ever.

  “Well for one thing, most of them are married. He picks up lonely wives while their husbands are conducting business or are otherwise engaged. He plays the perfect Spanish host, promising to show them the most beautiful parts of the coast, and then he gets them drunk and seduces them.”

  “Anything else?”

  She didn’t miss the look Eli shared with Logan before he answered, “he has a certain taste for…redheads.”

  Her head jerked up to meet Logan’s firm gaze. “Absolutely not. Whatever you are thinking, Amber, forget it. You are not getting involved.” She started talking at the same time as Eli, but he quickly cut them off. “Enough! I’m not putting her in danger, and that’s final. Eli, what else do we have on him?”

  “Unfortunately that’s it. We’ve planted men outside the inn day and night but he doesn’t leave, and none of his men have led us to his ship. Even our own searches of the coast haven’t turned up anything.”

  “Logan, I’ll do whatever I can to—” he held up his hand to stop her.

  Amber watched in silence as Logan ground his teeth, at war with himself about what to do. Minutes passed. Finally he sighed. “I don’t like this, but I must admit it is our best chance of catching him, and quick. But if we do it we must plan it thoroughly and carefully, I don’t want her in over her head.”

  “I’ll be by her side the whole time, Logan.”

  “Oh no you will not. You need to lay low, and besides, you’re too obvious. I’ll watch her.”

  “And you aren’t obvious? More people want you dead than me.”

  Logan’s dark scowl silenced him. “I’ve had plenty of experience at keeping to the shadows. If I’m to let her embark on this foolhardy mission she is going to be within my sight at all times.”

  “You don’t trust me? Thanks very much for the vote of confidence.”

  “Don’t play the wounded victim, Amber. You know full well that I have complete faith in you. Regardless, if you’re doing it, you’re going to do it under my supervision.”

  “So we aren’t going to Zorrizo?”

  He sighed. “No, we are going to stay in Caión. God help us.”

  Amber’s excitement grew as the towering cliffs came into sight, the fog of the morning dissipating with an eerie silence around the Costa de Morte and revealing the roar of the white caps crashing against the treacherous rocks. She watched as the two men steered the small boat to safety with finesse, then jumped into the cool water and pulled the vessel into a cave to keep it hidden. She was staring up at the vertical wall before her when Logan whistled. She spun around to see him standing in the shadow of a footpath, cut into the side of the cliff, beckoning her to follow him.

  Careful not to touch the damp walls she hugged the skirt of her dress close to her and stayed behind Logan as they climbed the dark, slippery slope. All light soon faded, and she gasped as something with more legs than she cared to count crawled across her hand. With a violent shudder she shook it off. A shriek behind her followed by the crunch of a booted foot making contact with the large insect told Amber that she must have flung it directly at Elijah. Refusing to think about what other creatures scurried in the darkness, she pressed on.

  At last they reached the end of the path. Logan signaled them to be silent as he inched forward into the scattered rays of sunlight and peered out, inviting them forward. The brightness of daylight blinded her as she emerged from the caves. She was unable to look around before Logan shoved her against the wall and kissed her. She blinked against the aggressive advance, pushing him away.

  “I don’t think this is the time or place—”

  “I know it isn’t,” he growled, his hands bunched in the fabric of her dress. “If I had my way we wouldn’t be walking around in the middle of the day, drawing attention to ourselves. Hell, we wouldn’t be here at all.”

  She raised a hand to his coarse cheek. “I know, but we’re here now.”

  “Damn it,” he kissed her once more, and then pulled a black scarf from his waist. “Put your hair up with this. We don’t want you being noticed just yet.”

  “Logan, now is as good a time as any,” Eli called from the street. “We need to get her to the inn before it gets too crowded out here.”

  Amber looked to Logan for his consent. He nodded and with a final kiss he pushed her towards Eli. She began walking briskly alongside the tall pirate, hiking up her skirts to match his long-legged pace. When she glanced behind her Logan was nowhere to be seen, and a sudden sense of panic filled her. Eli felt her body tense alongside him, and turned to see what she was looking at. “Don’t worry, he’s there.”

  As if he had been listening, Logan stepped forward from the shadows and just as quickly disappeared, leaving Amber to wonder if she had seen him at all. But Eli’s hand on her elbow steered her forward, allowing her no time to search for him.

  Finally she noticed Pax, his lanky body leaning against the whitewashed outer walls of a building, the painted sign above his head reading Las Meninas. His smile grew as he saw what Eli had in tow.

  “Brought me a present, did you?”

  “Actually, I did. Pax, meet your new wife.”

  “I…she…my what?”

  “Let’s get you inside,” Amber suggested as she led him through the front door, “and we’ll explain everything.” When they reached the room, she was startled but not surprised to find Logan already reclining on the bed.

  They filled Pax in on the plan, and sent him off to make contact with the others and let them know their roles. Logan ordered a small lunch from the kitchen downstairs to be sent up.

  “Isn’t it a bit early to eat?” Amber asked as she walked the perimeter of the room, her body still teeming with nervous energy.

  “It isn’t if we want to go out when the streets are the least crowded, which is when the sun is the highest overhead. Luckily it doesn’t get too hot up north, but the people still tend to head indoors during midday, making it a perfect time for us to go ex
ploring.”

  “We get to explore?”

  “I did promise to show you a little of Spain, didn’t I? And as long as we stay in the outskirts of town and avoid being out for too long, I think we should be fine. I wish we had more time though, because I would love for you to see Madrid, or Barcelona, or even Sevilla. They are stunning.” He saw her frown. “What’s the matter?”

  “It’s just that my mother and I always spoke of exploring Europe and the Mediterranean once I was old enough, but I see now that it was probably a ploy to get me excited about my studies. Learning history and foreign languages seemed so much more important when I thought I would get to use that information someday.”

  He led her over to the bed and sat her down, his arm resting on her shoulders and drawing her against him. “I am sorry about your mother; Eli told me what happened after I walked in on him hugging you that one night. I take it you were close to her?” She nodded. “When did it happen?”

  “Less than a week before I met you.”

  He winced and pulled her closer. “No wonder you thought I was an ass,” he murmured against her hair, planting a kiss on her forehead.

  “Logan, I would have thought you were an unmitigated ass no matter when I met you, had I met you under the same circumstances.”

  “Fair enough,” he replied with a chuckle, moving the conversation into lighter territory. “Are you looking forward to seeing your family in England?”

  She shrugged and slipped from his reach, rising to pace the room once again. “I suppose, although I haven’t seen any of these people since I was a child. They are practically strangers to me.”

  “Are they expecting you?”

  “Do you mean, will they be worried that I have not yet arrived? I can only speculate, but I assume that they are aware of my mother’s death by this time, as our butler Maxwell was sending several more trunks with my belongings to England on a passenger ship that departed two weeks after mine. A fastidious man, I will put money on the fact that he packed a note to my relatives should the trunks for some reason arrive before I did.”

  “I’m sorry.”

  “Stop apologizing, what’s done is done. We’re here now, and we have a job to do. Ridding the seas of Antonio Castaños Mendoza, remember?”

  “I remember,” he said, forcing a smile as the maid knocked at the door with a platter of food. They ate in silence, and as Amber was adjusting her day dress and tying on the boots Logan had procured for her, he came over and placed a wide brimmed straw hat on her head. “Ready?”

  He led her out into the blinding sunlight, sending a pointed look at a dark figure slouched against the wheel of a wagon. Johnny hopped to his feet and began following the pair as they headed towards a market on the outer edge of town. Although they appeared inconspicuous, Amber knew that under the shadow of Logan’s tricorne his eyes were darting around for any sign of trouble, his hand never far from the pistol strapped beneath his coat. She too was aware of the glances they were receiving, ready to grab the knife that was tied to the inside of her thigh.

  More distracting, however, was the beauty of the foreign land surrounding her. She was assaulted by the strong scent of flowers that seemed to adorn every pathway, window box, garden, and market stall, and the Moorish architecture took her breath away. But she was unable to admire it further, as Logan pulled her into a store.

  “Good afternoon,” the shopkeeper said as she approached, obviously annoyed at being taken from her lunch. “What may I help you with today? I’m afraid I’m rather busy at the moment, perhaps you can return later—”

  “I would like the dress in the window for my companion,” Logan interrupted in English, holding up a coin purse and tossing it towards her. “I believe this should cover the dress, the necessary alterations, and another dress for tomorrow evening.”

  “Señor, I assure you I cannot possibly…” her eyes widened as she opened the pouch and examined the contents. “My apologies, right this way, Señorita. Santos!” A young boy burst forth from the back room. “Santos, pull the silk gown and bring it to me, as well as the…” she eyed Amber’s complexion and the tendrils of red hair that curled around her face, “green from the back.”

  “But Doña, that gown was commissioned for—” he stopped as the shopkeeper raised a hand to silence him. He gave a bow and hurried from the room.

  “Follow me please. Señor, you return in one hour.”

  “You aren’t staying?” Amber practically pleaded as she was being led away from him.

  He smiled. “And watch you try on clothes?”

  “No! It is not allowed,” the shopkeeper said forcefully. “You will return in one hour.”

  “Johnny is waiting outside should you need anything. If I’m not back by the time you finish, he can get you safely back to the inn, where you will wait for me. You are not to wander around without me, understand?”

  “Where will you go?”

  “Just to take care of a few things,” he said with a wink as he pushed open the door. “Have fun.”

  Fun was far from how she would describe the next hour and a half at the hands of the rough seamstress, who seemed to push and prod and pinch her for her own enjoyment, so much so that Amber feared she might bruise from the assault. After being stuck by what felt like the hundredth pin, the woman stepped back to survey her work. “Yes, you take this off and give it to me and I will sew it. You come back later this afternoon with your husband and I will have it ready for you. And tomorrow you may come for the other one.”

  Amber picked up the skirts, careful to not prick herself further, and moved to the settee where her own dress had been carefully laid. “Let me help with that,” the seamstress offered as she stood from cleaning up her fallen pins, astonished to see Amber in her chemise and pulling her dress over her head.

  Amber caught her look and blushed. “My maid is often ill, and so I’ve gotten used to being self-sufficient,” she lied. The storekeeper gave her a strange look, and to avoid rousing suspicion Amber presented her back to the woman, allowing her to lace her dress and smooth the skirts over her petticoat. It was a foreign feeling having someone help her get dressed, so long had she been at sea and without a maid’s assistance. It was not an uncomfortable situation, but it reminded Amber that in a few weeks time she would be once again be introduced to the finer things in life and would have to get used to being taken care of by a large household staff. And it brought to the forefront of her mind that soon she would be separated from Logan—a most unwelcome thought. Trying to ignore it, she thanked the woman for her time and exited the shop. She looked around for Logan, but found only Pax.

  “Johnny was dismissed to do some spying, and I volunteered to escort you back to the inn. After all, we are married,” he said with a grin that Amber knew to be harmless.

  It was nearing dusk when Logan returned to the room, balancing a large load of boxes as he shut the door with his hip and approached the bed where Amber sat. “What are you reading?”

  She shut the leather tome and held it up for him to see. “Don Quixote. The maid downstairs suggested it to brush up on my Spanish. I’m afraid I’ve let it get quite rusty over the past several years, and I didn’t know how long I’d be waiting for you to come back.”

  “Where did you get it from?”

  “Don’t worry,” she reassured him, “I made Pax go out and get it for me. It gave me some time to bathe without him hovering over me. I don’t know why you couldn’t have chosen Deacon for this farcical marriage. At least he wouldn’t be quite so attentive.”

  “That’s precisely why I picked Pax. I’m not comfortable with this whole escapade, and would rather he be appointed your guard dog, as he does seem to have developed an affection for you. Come, try this on,” he instructed, pulling the green dress from the largest of the boxes scattered on the bed. He held it out to her. “Do you like it? You may keep it of course, once we’ve captured Mendoza.”

  She took the dress, and with his assistance strippe
d off the one she was wearing and slipped the new one over her head. It did not get very far, however.

  “After an hour of measuring,” she paused to gasp a breath, “you’d think that she’d be able to make a damn dress that fit!”

  “Perhaps it’s the style,” he said as he circled her, examining the seams of the new garment. “I’m afraid it will rip apart during dinner, and though it would certainly capture Mendoza’s attention, I don’t think that’s quite what we are aiming for.”

  “Just get it off,” she hissed, sighing in relief as the constricting dress was removed. She spun around and, striding across the room attacked the lunch tray, devouring the last bit of bread and cheese.

  “What are you doing? You do remember you will be eating dinner at Mendoza’s inn, don’t you? Once we figure out what you are going to wear, that is.”

  “I know that Pax and I will be sharing a meal, but it’s unlikely that much will be eaten.” She wiped the crumbs from her hands and walked to the wall, where she grabbed hold of the wooden pillar. “All right, I’m ready.”

  “Ready for what, exactly?”

  “You need to tighten my stays.”

  “Will you be able to breathe?”

  “Thousands of women have learned to get by without such a luxury; certainly I can as well. Now do it before I change my mi—” her words died in her throat as all air was squeezed from her lungs, the cording of her corset looped around his large hands as he pulled tight.

  “Am I hurting you?” She shook her head, holding back a cry of discomfort. “Well my ribs ache just looking at you, so I’m not going any further.” He tied a neat bow and stepped back. “Wow.”

  Straightening her back and turning, she caught sight of herself in the large looking glass by the tub. Her already small waist had been diminished to almost nothing, accentuating her round hips and forcing her breasts up further than she ever believed possible. “Jesus Christ…” she murmured.