And each time she did, her traitorous thoughts brought her back to the garden the other day. She scowled. Not only was her enemy the bloody most handsome man in Georgia, but he had also devoted his entire life to avenging his mother’s death.
How could she blame him?
“The numbers match up.” She pushed the ledger into Griff’s hands and strode to her cabin.
Inside, she went straight to her shelf and grabbed the big conch and peeled the wax back. Once the map slid out, she unfolded it and stared at the lines. This was what her parents died for. An emptiness gnawed at her insides. Killed over a piece of parchment.
She swiped at the dampness gathering at the corners of her eyes. She may not be able to get revenge, but she could do one thing.
She could make sure they hadn’t died in vain.
Clenching the map in her hand, she charged from the room.
“Griff!” Her shout drew curious looks from the crew.
He handed the ledger to another man and approached her.
“Tell me what you know about this.” She waved the map in front of his face and his eyes widened.
He snatched it from her. “Where did you get this?”
“Uncle Henry told me to keep it safe. Little did I know, it’s thereason my parents are dead.” She spat out the last word.
He quickly folded it and glanced around. “Let’s go inside.”
When they entered her cabin, he shut the door behind them. “So, you did overhear our conversation the other night.”
“Don’t you dare lecture me on eavesdropping. If I hadn’t warned you, Lieutenant Thompson would have walked in on your little meeting.”
He stared hard at her for a long moment before his shoulders dropped. “I’m sorry you had to learn that way.”
“What happened?”
A sadness filled his eyes. “We don’t know. They didn’t return from a voyage and we went searching. Never found a trace of the ship or any survivors. Your father had been worried before they left and told your uncle someone was after the map. It’s why he left it behind.”
“Why did Uncle Henry keep it from me?” Her stomach clenched. “Why hide that they were pirates?”
Griff sighed and looked out the wall of windows. “I think he wanted to make sure that you decided your future on your own, without the influence of their legacy.”
Tears stung the corners of her eyes. “He had no right to make that decision.”
“Perhaps not, but he did it out of love.” Griff unfolded the map and laid it on her desk. “Don’t ever let anyone know you have this.”
She stepped forward and slid it until it rested in front of her. “Why not?”
Griff pushed his lips together. “This is one half of the map to Read’s Revenge. There are men out there who would kill for it—have killed for it.”
Samantha blinked. “I thought that was just a myth.” Legend said that the one who found Read’s cache would be the richest person alive. Supposedly stashed away a hundred years before in a time when pirates ruled the sea without opposition, amassing their fortunes fromthe Spanish fleet, there’d never been evidence it existed.
Until now.
Mary Read.
One of the greatest female pirates to have sailed the seas.
Every pirate or smuggler who was worth anything knew the story. The famous trio, Calico Jack, Anne Bonny, and Mary Read had amassed a fortune during their plundering. Read had known pirate hunters were after them so she gathered the group’s riches and hid them away. When they were captured, the government raided their known homes and hideouts but found nothing. And Read took her secrets to the grave with her.
Samantha sank into her chair and studied the parchment once again. She twisted it so the coastline ran parallel to the edge of the desk. The map had been torn diagonally so that the entire coastline was on her half. The line snaking inland was cut off.
