Work fast and get out.
The sailor attacked first, his arms coming around her waist and knocking her off balance. Some of her lentils slipped from her plate, and hot fury raced through her.My food!She wouldnotlet these men dictate her time on thePandora. She was in charge, and she was dratted hungry.
With a flourish, she spun the dirk in her palm and thrust the blade between the sailor’s ribs. His hoarse scream rang in her ears, but she hadn’t the time to think as he released her. She pulled the dirk out and brandished it at the pirates before her.
“I shan’t warn you again,” she said low, grateful that the sudden trembling she felt didn’t reflect in her voice.
The pirates, at last, retreated, and she backed to the companionway.
“That’s enough, men,” another pirate—blimey, it was Stubbs!—called over the din of the bell. “You ’eard th’ cap’n. Get t’ yer stations.”
He was a bit late, but she appreciated the show of support nonetheless.
Oh Lord, Heather!Did you just kill a man?She chanced a glance, and a wave of profound relief swept over her. The sailor held a hand to his side as he cursed her name, but he was alive. And it appeared that he wasn’t bleeding too badly. He would survive.
“Thank you,” she called after Stubbs as she sheathed her dirk.
Stubbs tugged on his forelock before hurrying to his duties.
Still clutching awkwardly at her plate, Heather clumsily made her way up the companionway onto the gun deck, where men were scrambling to ensure that items were fastened down and the animals were safe. Her heart was all but entirely in her throat, and her skin hummed with trepidation. Would any ofthesepirates attempt an assignation with her? She swallowed her fear, determined to ignore them, and darted into the safety of the captain’s cabin, closing the door behind her.
CHAPTER 14
“Anotherswell!” Percy shouted, rainwater spraying from his lips.
He widened his stance slightly to accommodate the movement as thePandoratilted bowsprit-first into the approaching wave. His grip tightened on the helm’s handles, slippery though they were with rainwater and the ocean’s spray.
“Direction?” he asked his second helmsman nearby.
The man gazed into one of the compasses set into the binnacle and shouted, “Five degrees west-southwest, Captain!”
A wave crashed against the side of the ship, spraying water through the air. The ship groaned, and Percy cursed. They’d been tossed about in this storm for hours. Now he and his pirates were battling against each wave deep into the darkness of night.
Another swell appeared before them, and he spun the wheel toward it.
“Brace yourselves!” he hollered.
Up they went, tilting toward the dark clouds pouring water down on them. They crested the wave, and Percy braced as thePandoratipped down.Bwoosh!They landed hard, the sprayreaching across the planks of the quarterdeck before being sucked back into the ocean.
Wave after wave tossed them about like a leaf upon a river, all while Percy fought to keep thePandoraupright.
A smaller swell tipped them forward, and he once more tightened his grip on the helm as seawater crashed over them. The next was yet smaller. Gradually, the whipping wind died down, and with it, the tempestuous waves. The rain didn’t abate, nor did the sky clear, but at last the ship settled into a gentle, steady rocking.
He stood thusly for long moments, braced for the storm potentially gathering strength once more. But, as time passed, the waves continued to gentle.
Percy loosened his grip on the helm’s handles and adjusted his stance, his muscles aching with tension. “Direction?” he called to the second helmsman.
The shorter man wiped back his dark locks and examined the compass. “Five degrees north-northeast, Captain.”
Percy cursed and turned the wheel, trying to get them back on course.
A crate wobbled with the turn, its movement catching Percy’s attention not for the first time that evening, and his mind once again strayed to Heather. Christ, but he hoped that she’d weathered the storm well enough. Her cask of water would do her plants little good, however, if it was full of salt from the ocean.
“You, there!” he called to one of the pirates, ensuring the cannons remained secured. “Empty that cask and refasten it to the bulwark.”
“Aye, Captain.” The man tugged on his forelock and hurried to do as he was bid.
Despite himself, Percy warmed at the thought of Heather’s joy at having the water to feed her beloved plants. It bewilderedhim, his reaction to her. He desired her, of course, but this…attachmenthe felt for her was veritable tosh. Nothing could come of it, and he knew that, damn it.
