“He’s not dead,” I yelled, gesturing at one of the twins.
“What?”
Holder’s men looked at him as Prudence swung out a grappling hook. Holder snapped an order, and three grappling lines shot out to our ship, snagging us and pulling our ship up close.
“Stay here. I’ll be right back,” I told my crew before scrambling up a thin rope ladder that had been tossed down. Bas ignored my order and followed me onto theJava Guru.
Holder grabbed me before my foot even touched the deck, shaking me as he demanded, “What did you mean he isn’t dead? I saw his ship sink.”
“So did I. I saved him. He was drowning, but I saved him.”
Holder stopped shaking me, staring intently into my eyes. I smiled at him.
“He’s safe, Holder. He’s been injured, but he’s safe. At least, for a little while, but I need you to—”
The rest of my words were cut off when my face was squashed into Holder’s shoulder, his whoop of triumph leaving me deaf in my left ear for the three hours that followed.
He planted a smacking kiss on my cheek before giving me another bear hug, finally releasing me. “I knew you were the one. I just knew it the minute I saw you. And I told him, too. Bless you, lass. Whatever I have, it’s yours. Money, jewels, my prized signed photo of Johnny Depp as Jack Sparrow—nothing is too precious.”
I laughed, flinching as the guns belowdecks blasted into life. “This will have to be fast. I need to get Corbin off Turtle’s Back, and I can’t do it by myself.”
Holder didn’t wait for explanations. He simply started snapping out orders, and before I knew what had happened, Bas and I were back on board the stolen ship, heading for the far side of the harbor. Holder was at the helm of another sloop, a small, low-slung racing model, which was on its way to the portage where mySaucy Wenchwas lying. I had a pouch full of reales with which I was to buy anything that Corbin needed for the trip, and the assurances of Holder that no one and nothing on this earth would stop him from spiriting Corbin out from under Bart’s nose.
It took some time for us to make port, what with having to stay out of range of Pangloss’s guns. We had a few sticky moments when we were in firing range, but for whatever reason, we weren’t fired upon.
By the time we reached the dock, I was exhausted, both mentally and physically, and wanted nothing more than to go check on Corbin and collapse next to him.
When I saw who was waiting on the docks, however, my exhaustion suddenly disappeared.
“Amy, m’lass… surely that isn’t yer ship? It looks like one I own, which has apparently gone missin‘.”
I swung myself over the railing and leaped down to the dock without waiting for the wooden plank to be set into place, stalking over to where Bart stood with two of his pirates. “No, it’s not my ship. I stole this one because mine was shot to hell by your first mate, so I guess it’s just a bit of poetic justice that it should turn out to be yours.”
His eyebrows raised. “My first mate shot ye?”
“Yes, he did. A whole bunch of times. My ship is unsalable.”
“Nay, ye’re mistaken,” he said, shaking his head, a puzzled look on his face.
“It’s a little hard mistaking a ship from your own crew when it’s blasting you to smithereens,” I said grimly. “What made you do it, Bart? Why would you set me up like that? Why did you tell Pangloss to sink my ship?”
“I swear to ye, lass, I gave no such order,” he protested, turning to his men.
“Ye’ve not heard me order any action against our own ships, have ye?”
“Nay, never,” the men said in unison.
“Look, you can say whatever you like, but I’m the one whose ship is lying on the other side of the island, filled with huge holes.”
Bart gave me a sad look. “Ah, lass, the sun has bleached yer brain. Yer ship is right where she should be, in the blockade. Whereyeshould be, as well.”
I stared at him, wondering whether some glitch had happened, rendering all the computer characters insane. “What are you talking about? My ship is on the other side of the island, lying on her side because of the damage Pangloss did to her.”
“Look for yerself,” Bart said, pulling a spyglass from where it was attached to his belt. “Yer ship is to the north of theJava Guru. She’s been there all day. I thought ye were waitin‘ until Panny’d stopped engagin’ the warships afore ye were goin‘ to open fire.”
I didn’t bother arguing further; I just opened the spyglass and scanned the line of ships, waiting for the smoke to clear to identify theJava Gurubefore I turned the glass northward. Two ships were beyond theGuru’sbow, on her port side. One, a gray and navy two-masted sloop, was firing on one of Bart’s captains. The other… smoke drifted across the outline of the ship. As it cleared, the sleek lines of a compact sloop became clear.
A sloop painted a familiar maroon.
