Smuggler's Lair by Virginia Henley

Author:Virginia Henley [Henley, Virginia]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Kensington
Published: 2016-02-26T05:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 7

“Up anchor!” Hawkhurst waited for silence as the anchor chain was pulled up through the hawsehole. He knew he must court caution tonight. He was well aware that Captain Drudge and his militiamen would be on the lookout for a marauding ship in coastal waters.

“When we get to the mouth of the Rother, we’ll drop anchor in the hidden cove. We’ll take the longboat and row out to the Boulogne. I’ll take only seven,” he pointed to the men he wanted. “The rest of the crew should be ready to run back up the river on the tide, whether we’re here in time or not.”

Hawkhurst took the Seacock’s wheel and guided her silently down the River Rother. When they got to Rye Bay he ordered, “Ready the longboat!” and turned the wheel over to the first mate.

The boat, fitted with grappling irons, was lowered into the water and Falcon was first down the rope ladder. He set his cutlass beside him and took his place at an oar along with the other seven. With the riding lights of the merchant vessel to guide them, they pulled alongside in less than an hour.

Hawkhurst was always first to swing across from the Seacock to the ship they were invading and tonight was no exception, as he flung his grappling hook, grabbed his cutlass, and shinnied up the thick rope. He swung his legs over the rail and before his boots hit the deck he got the surprise of his life.

“Fuck!” Hawkhurst saw the dark figure cross the deck with raised sword and knew it was Drudge. He parried the thrust hard, but as the weapon flew from his opponent’s hand, he felt it slice into his cheek. Knowing his men would not be far behind, he alerted them to the danger. “Back! Retreat now!”

He was over the side in a flash and jumped from the rope into the rocking boat. He held it steady until the four men who were climbing grappling ropes made it back down. “Man the oars!” Thank Christ I had the presence of mind to keep the Seacock hidden. They were expecting a ship and had the cannon ready to blow us out of the water. Our longboat surprised them as much as Drudge surprised me. “God rot the bastard!”

* * *

“Go and rot, Falcon Hawkhurst!” Victoria paced the chamber. As she passed the mirror, she caught a glimpse of her worried face and knew that her anger paled beside her fear for Falcon’s safety.

She went to the window, hoping against hope that she would see the Seacock moored in the river. The brigantine was gone and her heart filled with dread that Falcon was off marauding another vessel. She heard the echo of his words when they’d taken Pandora into the forest to hunt: Make no mistake; smuggling is a blood sport. Tory knew a pirate risked a hundredfold more danger than a smuggler.

She wished she could take back the angry words she’d thrown at him. Her threats were empty; she would never leave Falcon of her own volition.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.