The Sneaky Lass: The Silver Locket, Book 1 by Kennedy Sutton

Author:Kennedy Sutton [Sutton, Kennedy]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781958453001
Publisher: Kennedy Sutton
Published: 2022-06-29T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter 17

Weeks pass without a word from the captain, and I have not approached him again. I still feel foolish enough for my last attempt. Instead, I have occupied my days learning as much as I can. If I am going to be so foolish with my heart, I should at least try to make up for it by being a good sailor.

Determined to better myself, I have not shirked away from any task no matter how daunting. Paying seams, ankle deep in bilge water, trimming and waxing sails, on and on. The ship is a cracked cup, always in need, and I intend to keep it filled.

Pax, the carpenter on our ship, is always drunk and sings filthy songs while he works, but he has not minded teaching me a thing or two about replacing rotten boards and stopping leaks from one deck to the next. On one quiet afternoon, Pax taught me how to throw boarding axes at a makeshift target made from an old crate. Most of the crew got a kick out of watching me give it my best effort and fail miserably. I was not nearly so frightening as the carpenter, who was so off target, being stumbling drunk, that the crew was in terrible danger.

I have trailed Mickey, too, mostly during the taking of prizes, but also so I might learn something of gunning. Of the two boarding parties, I would rather be in the second mate’s boat than the captain’s. I could stay behind, but that would cost me pay and personal prizes like clothing and the quartermaster often stays behind to helm on Sneaky Lass during the work of piracy. I would rather be tied to the captain’s belt, even with his avoidance, than be left to Hugh Digby.

We have taken ships and returned to Azure Cove and the rocky beaches surrounding it a few times now and will keep doing so until it is time to move on. It would seem the crew has entrusted that decision of when we will leave this area to the captain.

I have not left the ship any of the times we have dropped anchor. My purse has grown heavy with all the coin I am not spending. It has occurred to me that I could use the money to get off and find new employment. I tell myself all sorts of lies for why I have stayed, but the true reason is obvious to me. I want to stay here. I have made friends here. I am liked well enough here. The captain is here…

We have left Azure Cove just this morning when the bronze bell tolls, something in the response of those around me tells me that the bell does not signal another merchant ship on the horizon.

My fears are confirmed when the man on high climbs down and shouts, “She’s flying the blue birds, Captain.”

There is a pause that could not have truly lasted more than a few heartbeats while the man adjusted his spyglass, but it feels like an eternity.

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