The Captain of Her Heart by Anita Stansfield

Author:Anita Stansfield
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: romance historical clean romance civil war lds christian christian romance clean books adventure war
Publisher: Anita Stansfield

Chapter Ten

CAPTIVE HEARTS

Kyrah lost all sense of time, drifting in and out of consciousness. At times it felt as if she had been home only moments ago. At others it seemed forever since she had been with Ritcherd. Ritcherd! She cried his name out over and over, as if he might hear her and come flying over the ocean to save her from this nightmare. She was vaguely aware of being repeatedly forced to drink more of the bitter liquid that lured her back into oblivion, where her dreams merged with her memories until nothing seemed real anymore.

When Kyrah finally became wholly conscious, she felt disoriented and afraid. The total absence of light through the little porthole told her it was dark out. Instinctively she wanted nothing more than to resume her shouting and banging on the door, even though she felt certain it would only bring on another visit from the smelly sailors with another dose of obscurity. But she felt so completely weak that she had to wonder how many days she’d been drugged. How long had she gone without food? A deep ache in her stomach suggested it had been far too long.

Hours passed with only silence surrounding her, and the mooring of the ship reminding her continually that she was far from home—and getting farther. Soon after some measure of light appeared through the mottled glass of the porthole, a key turned in the lock and she looked up to see a scruffy boy, not more than twelve, she guessed.

“’Ello,” he said. “The cap’n thought ye might o’ finally come around. I brought ye somethin’ t’ eat. But ye’d do well t’ take it slow. Tis been a while.”

Kyrah sat up slowly, fighting to keep her equilibrium. The tray of food he set on the bed beside her smelled good and her stomach growled in response. But she turned her attention to the boy first. “How long . . . have we been at sea?”

“A week t’morrow,” he said. He looked hesitant and nervous as he added, “The cap’n said t’ tell ye that ye’d best stay quiet, and if ye do, ’e’ll see no need to be givin’ ye any more o’ that stuff. I’d be doin’ what ’e says.”

Kyrah nodded, not willing to protest. After nearly a week with nothing to eat, they’d made certain she was too weak to cause any trouble. The boy left the cabin, promising to check on her later and bring some water for her to wash up. Kyrah stared at the door long after he left, feeling hopelessness and despair settle around her. There was no way out of this. There was no way back. She was being torn away from her home and the people she loved—perhaps forever.

The smell of the food brought her back to her senses. She forced herself to eat slowly, not wanting to make herself ill. But she was so hungry that she devoured every morsel and wondered how long it would be until they brought her some lunch.

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