“And you didn’t?”
“I was a dreamer, I guess you could say?” I laughed at the thought. “I convinced myself there was more out there in the world for me than to stay home in our tiny, small-minded community and be a baker.”
“And what happened then?” Henry had rolled to his side to face me, propping his head up on one arm, enthralled in the words I had to say.
“She died,” I replied with barely a whisper. I single tear escaped my eye and Henry’s thumb reached out to catch it as it rolled down my cheek. “She… drowned at sea. When I was a teenager. I had been considering staying home for a few years to help with the bakery, but after she was lost, when we never found her body, my father sort of lost his mind. Went mad with grief. I felt so alone so I… ran away. Became a cook for rich people.”
To my surprise, Henry replied, “I can imagine what he felt.”
“Because you went through it with your parents?”
“Well, yes, in a way. I cried for months over their deaths, but I was trapped in a void of constant fear, I’m not sure I ever properly grieved for them.” The man next to me leaned in and pressed his body to mine. “But the thought of losing you…”
I told myself I would refrain from letting things get deeper, but I couldn’t help it, Captain Barrett had my heart in his hands and could so easily mold it to his will. I let a slight whisper escape my lips, “I know.”
“It would end me.”
I only nodded in reply and Henry grabbed my head, holding it to his chest where I happily remained, comfortable and satisfied in his warm embrace. We talked for hours, discovering one another in a whole new way. Then, we eventually drifted off to a world where I knew we both could live, in our dreams.
Together.
Chapter Fourteen
The next day we met landfall near the small community we planned to stop at for the night. After we checked in at a tavern, I found myself in the room Henry and I was sharing. I wanted to rest, but he held out my jacket and smiled.
“Are you ready?” he asked and then looked to the clock in the corner of the room. “We don’t have much time.”
“What, is there a time limit to when the treasure is available?” I asked sarcastically and grabbed my coat from his arms, slinging it over my shoulders. I no longer thought of it as Maria’s. This jacket came back through time with me, kept my skin from burning in the sun while I clung to that chest and bobbed in the sea, and it’s kept me warm on cold nights aboard the ship. It was every bit mine.
“As a matter of fact, there is,” he replied with all seriousness.
We skipped down the stairs like two children eager for an adventure, with no worries in the world. Finn approached us before we got to the door.
“Where’re the two of ye headed off to?”
“We have something to tend to, Finnigan,” Henry replied, and I tried to hide my grin at the use of Finn’s full name. I could tell it bothered him by the slight twitch his face gave, but not enough to say anything when his captain used it. “Mind the men and take Gus to suss out the word on land. See if you can find some new information about The Cobhams.”
Finn nodded. “Aye, Captain.” Then he shot me a look I knew I was going to miss. The kind an older brother would give his kid sister when he wanted to tease her but couldn’t in front of the parents. “Milady.”
“I brought some fresh rosemary buns with me. I put some on your bed,” I told him.
He lit up before hopping away and bounded up the stairs, his long legs easily taking three at a time. I was going to miss him dearly.
***
Henry led the way as we scaled the rocky shore near the small community. The sun shone down from high in the sky, and it sparkled on the ocean like wet crystals.
“How much further?” I asked him.
“Not far,” he replied and reached back to take my hand. Not that I needed it. Growing up in a coastal community meant that I spent the majority of my early days playing down by the water, hopping across rocks, building rafts, jigging for squid with nothing but a stick and some line. I loved the sea and everything that came with it. But I let him be chivalrous.
Any sign of life was far out of sight as we approached the mouth of a cave, nestled away in the rocky walls of the cliffs above. I felt like I walked into a storybook, full of wonder and fantasy as we entered, and the sounds of the waves turned into echoes around us.
“Is it in here?” I asked.
“Yes, but we’ve a way to go yet,” he vaguely replied. “Here.”
Henry stopped and stared down at a hole in the floor of the small cave, barely large enough for us to fit in. It reminded me of a manhole. I peered in and saw that it was full of water. The water emitted an aqua glow that illuminated the granite around us like strange, magical twinkle lights.
“Down there?” I asked, my voice cracking.
Henry picked up a rock, about the size of a basketball, and handed it to me. I nearly dropped it, the weight pulling me down, and he picked up another similar one for himself.
“When I first found this cave, I was holding the small chest in my arms. I had no idea this blowhole was here, and it was dark. I fell into it and would have surely drowned. The opening was so deep and narrow with nothing to hold on to. But, thankfully I held the chest and it caused me to sink to the bottom.” He shifted his stance and grasped the rock tightly. “These rocks should do.”
I shook my head in confusion. “Wait, you want me to hold this rock and jump into that tiny hole?” His answer was a cheeky smirk. “No, no way in Hell am I doing that. You can go. I’ll wait here.”
“Dianna, look at me.” I tore my eyes from the hole at my feet and gazed up at Henry. “I would never put you in danger. Do you trust that?”
I stared at him, searching for a sign, any waver in his certainty, but found none. This is what I wanted, wasn’t it? A grand adventure and someone to share it with? I sucked in a deep breath and clutched the rock to my chest.
“Fine, let’s do it. Quickly, before I change my mind.”
Henry beamed. “I’ll go first. Just hold the rock tightly and let yourself sink. Don’t fight it. I’ll see you on the other side.”
I watched in terror as Henry pencil-dove into the narrow hole and saw his head quickly fade away. I panicked, my heart racing, and I couldn’t bring myself to do it. But then, I heard my mother’s voice whispering softly in my ear and I closed my eyes to better hear the sweet sound.
“Never turn your back on an adventure, Dianna, baby,” the voice told me, and I swore I felt her delicate hand on my shoulder. “Most people are too blind to see,” her face brushed my hair as it neared my ear, “open your eyes, baby.”
My tear-filled eyes flew open and I grasped the rock tight before jumping into the hole, feet and heart first. I held my breath as my body rapidly sunk to the never-ending bottom. My lungs tingled as they began to run out of air and I wondered if I went too far, maybe I was supposed to lean a certain way or something.
But my feet touched the soft, sandy bottom and I saw a glow coming from the right, where the narrow hole seemed to veer off into an L-shape. I dropped the rock and bent my knees, launching myself toward the light. Something grabbed a hold of my arm and yanked hard, pulling me up and out of the water where I gasped and clawed for air.
“Oh, my God!” I cried out, lungs still burning from air deprivation. Henry helped me to my feet and wrapped his arms around my drenched body. “That was insane!”
I saw the carefree smile he wore, it was the happiest I’d ever seen him; as if the rush of adrenaline pumped life back into his stiff body and I couldn’t help but laugh. He joined in and the sound our laughter echoed off the cavern walls around us.
Our wet faces came together in a passionate kiss, the taste of saltwater mixing with the sweet flavor of Henry’s lips and I delighted in it, taking in as much as I could as if I were starving for him. I felt him pull away and he gazed into my adrenaline-crazed eyes.
“I lov
e you, Dianna.”
Everything in my body came to a screeching halt, my ears filled with the sound of my heavy pulse, and I just stared at the man before me, mouth gaping but empty of sound.
The pirate shook his head and smoothed the soaked curls away from my face. “It’s okay, you don’t have to say anything. I know it’s unexpected. I just,” his chest heaved with the intake of a deep breath, “I just had to say it. I know it’s only been a short while that we’ve known each other but I carried the words in my mouth for days now, and I wanted you to have them.”
My mouth still hung open as my brain searched for a response. “Henry, I–”
As if sensing my hesitation, Henry took me by the hand and broke free of our embrace. “It was right over here that I hid it,” he told me, the sound of his voice echoing off the cavern walls that covered us.
As we headed to the rocky side of the cavern, I searched around to take in my surroundings. We were completely underground. What I thought to be a blowhole was some sort of tunnel that led to an underground cave, bigger than the one we first entered. A mound of rock occupied the center of where we stood, and a small moat of water surrounded the perimeter.
Then, I watched as Henry, ankle-deep in water, forcefully removed stones from a spot in the wall. They fell and crumbled at our feet as he dug deeper and deeper. Finally, he pulled something from the cavity and let the weight of it fall to the ground. It was a chest, almost an exact match to the one that started my journey to the past.
“Holy crap,” I whispered to myself. Now, this was a real-life pirate’s chest.
Henry fished a ring of keys from his pocket and seemed to know exactly which one to use as he expertly flipped to it and then opened the brass lock. The lid creaked open to reveal a half-full chest of gold coins, trinkets, jewels, and other otherworldly treasures. My eyes widened with fascination and I kneeled next to Henry.
“This is ours, Dianna,” he told me, “after this is all over, we can use this to start a new life together. If you would want.”
I couldn’t bring myself to look him in the eye. This man from another time confessed his love for me. Henry saw a future for us that would never happen. And I would be the one to take it all away from him. I realized then, I had to tell him. But, when I finally brought my eyes to meet his hopeful gaze, I decided to wait until later that night. For now, I wanted to have our adventure. That much I could give him.
I stuck my hand in the chest, letting my fingers swim through the cold, wet contents with amazement. “These things are miraculous. I feel bad keeping any of it.”
Henry fished out a long gold chain and looped it over my head. I looked down at the heavy egg-shaped ruby that hung from it.
“Oh, no, I could never–”
“It’s yours,” he insisted. “Along with everything else in here. Accept that, Dianna. We’ll live like kings and queens.”
I felt a twinge of pain in my chest from his words. It felt as if Henry was falling deeper and deeper in love with me, at a rate I couldn’t keep up with. I should have told him before this, I should have told him last night when we laid in bed, divulging all the tiny details of our lives to one another.
I wondered how he would react when I told him; when I’d surely crush his heart, stripping away the little I helped to heal. Would he kill me? Did I think he was capable of that? Maybe he’d hold me prisoner and return me to that storage cell on deck. My aunt once said that the mind of a dying man is a lonely place. And I wondered, then, how the mind of a heart-broken man looked.
I could tell Henry sensed my emotions, but he chose to ignore it, shutting the chest and rising to his feet. “Right, very well,” he said. I stood to meet him and tucked the necklace inside my shirt. “Let’s head back, shall we?”
I couldn’t believe it took me that long to realize, I’d been so enthralled in our adventure, but how were we supposed to get out? We couldn’t go back the way we came, gravity just didn’t work like that. I craned my neck and searched around, my eyes landing on the source of light which filled the cavern.
“Wait,” I spoke and narrowed my eyes at Henry who sported a playful smirk. “Are you kidding me?” There, just a few feet above the floor of the cavern was a hole filled with light. “Why didn’t we just come in that way?”
Henry shrugged and bent down to pick up the heavy chest. “Now, where would be the fun in that?”
Chapter Fifteen
We arrived back at the tavern just in time for supper. I’d been silent the whole way home, my mind racing with all the different scenarios of how I could tell Henry my secret. None of them ended well. I made myself sick with worry and could barely get down more than a few bites of the moose stew the inn’s cook served us. Thankfully, Henry’s attention was held by Finn and Gus who had been spewing the details of their day. They heard more whispers of The Cobhams ravaging the East Coast. It seemed they were hanging around one main area, so we were still on track to find them and the Gaelic witch.
And my ticket home.
I ascended the stairs to the rooms above as Henry held my hand and led the way. I was so engulfed in my cloud of shame and worry that I hadn’t noticed that he acted strangely. Like he was nervous about something. Maybe it was from talking about The Cobhams and knowing how close we were to them. He’d have to face some old demons real soon, and I knew how hard that must be for him to imagine.
We entered our room and I turned to close the door behind me. When I spun back around, I found Henry down on one knee, and a tiny object held in his one hand. The candlelight glistened off a large emerald stone that sat within a gold claw, its thick loop pinched between Henry’s fingers.
My breath caught in my throat, all form of words or thoughts fleeing from my brain. This was not the way I expected the evening to go. But, still, my heart yearned for the words to spill from his mouth, the ultimate declaration of love, and I chastised myself for wanting it.
“Dianna,” he said, mouth trembling, “I wanted to ask you today in the cave, but I had to be sure this ring was still inside. It was my mother’s–”
I stepped closer. “Oh, Henry…”
“Maria stole it from my home and I took it back when I left her ship that night. I swore to keep it safe and return for it when I was ready.” He paused, and I watched his face glow with excitement. “I’m ready. I want to share my life with you, the life you’ve given back to me. Dianna, will you marry me?”
Tears spilled over the edge of my eyes and I hid my face in shame. Finally, I shook my head. “Henry, I’m so sorry…”
He stood and came to me, prying my hands away from my face. “What’s wrong?”
“I-I can’t marry you.”
I may as well have driven a knife through the man’s heart for the pain I witnessed enter his body. He fell back a step and clutched his chest.
“What do you mean? What are you saying?” And then a whisper, “You can’t care for me?”
“No, I do,” I assured him, noting his use of the word can’t rather than don’t, as if he truly believed himself unlovable. “I really do, Henry, I swear. So much, you have no idea.” My trembling hand reached up to wipe my face. “But that’s what makes this so hard.”
His face twisted with emotions and he fought with my words. “What did I do? Was it because… I hurt you?”
“Oh, God, Henry, no,” I told the man and stepped toward him. “I showed up here and ended up on your ship. I never expected to live through the first day, let alone make it to now. Or to have fallen for you this way. This fast.”
I watched his face harden as he fought back tears. “Then what is it? Another man? Are you betrothed to someone else?”
“No, it’s not another man. It’s another place.”
He recoiled, confusion flooding his expression and I urged myself to continue, to make him understand. Rip the band-aid off.
“Henry, I’m not from this time.”
“I don’t understand.”
“I was born in the twentiet
h century,” I began, “and I came here from the year two thousand eighteen. My mother collected things from the past. Artifacts. Your chest, for one. After my father’s death a couple of weeks ago, I returned to my childhood home to settle things. I found your chest among my mother’s stuff and opened it. I accidentally broke the ship-in-a-bottle and a massive wave came crashing in through my house, sweeping me away. I woke up, clutching the chest, and that’s when Finn and Gus pulled me from the water. I feared for my life when I discovered who your enemy was… because my name is Dianna Cobham. Maria is my… ancestor.”
I stopped to catch my breath and to let the words sink into him, which didn’t seem to be doing very well. Henry’s head shook as he fought with my terms, rejecting them. The man refused to respond, and his body vibrated with anger.
“I wanted you to find the witch, so I could save my lineage and then ask for her help to send me back. And, well, you know the rest.”
Silence filled the room and Henry turned, walking toward the window where he stopped and hung his head. His silence was killing me, so I closed the distance between us and braved to touch his shoulder. He reacted with a swift turn, knocking me down on the floor, and his sword unsheathed.
“You lie!”
My eyes widened in panic at the sharp tip, just inches from my face. “H-Henry, no, I swear!”
The blade pressed against my chest and his eyes gleamed with madness. “Then you used me, played me for a fool!”
I couldn’t think of a proper response because, from his side, I could see why he would think that. And, in a way, I did. But I never deliberately leveraged his feelings for me. I would have gladly sought another way if I could have. But, like him, I was weak and gave in to my emotions.
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