“You’re very kind, Pedro. You must have been raised well in that monastery. You said your parents left you there?”
“I got no parents, Miss.” Shrugging, he gazed out the window, longing in his eyes.
“Everyone has parents.”
“Natural ones, I suppose.” He faced her. “But not ones who love you. I were only five, Miss. I don’t remember them.”
Five? Sadness weighed on her heart. “Why would they do such a thing?”
“I were a bastard, Miss.” His voice started out high-pitched, then grew deep, reminding Emeline he was fast becoming a man. “The nuns told me Francisco de Taboada were my father, an’ me mother were a chamber maid in his estate on Panama.”
Emeline drew a deep breath. Such sad stories. Did anyone on board theSummonshave a normal, happy childhood except for her? She’d never considered how blessed she’d been. Oh, how the enemy loved to kill, steal, and destroy every life…and the younger the better.
“I’m sorry.” She could think of nothing else to say.
“Don’t be, Miss. Some people are just born t’ be nothin’. Others are born t’ be great. The sooner we accept our lot in life, the happier we will be.”
What foolish wisdom was that?
Emeline sensed a deep sorrow in the lad, far too deep for one so young. A sorrow he often hid behind his childish grin. Approaching, she reached for his hands.
“That is not true, Pedro. God never creates rubbish. Every single person is valuable to Himandhas a purpose in this world.”
He took a step back. “I gots t’ go now.” He flipped his hat atop his head, smiled, and left, closing the door behind him.
b
No sooner did Blake’s feet land on his island than the Caribs he paid to protect it gathered around him, bowing and greeting him like the king he was. Two dozen of them to be exact. He’d built homes for them, gave them clothing, food, weapons, and the freedom to live on the island in whatever way they chose. In return, they were loyal to him and protected his home when he was away. That was what power and money provided—loyalty, fear, and lifelong service. All of which put Blake at the top of society andnotthe bottom. A place he would never be again.
He greeted them in return, uttering his appreciation and thanks in their native tongue, a bit of which he had learned. Then, with one last glance at theSummons,where he’d left a small crew as first watch, he plunged into the jungle.
As much as he loved the sea, he looked forward to coming home to a warm bath, a meal that wasn’t hard tack and fish stew, and to a place where he could enjoy the finer things in life—music, dance, art. He was most anxious to show Miss Emeline his art collection, though why, he couldn’t say, except that she might be the only one on the island who would appreciate it.
Emeline. He wondered at her impression of his home, picturing her surprise and astonishment at how cultured he was, how wrong she’d been in thinking him a barbaric, unlettered brute. He would prove to her that he could be a gentleman when he wanted to be.
Scads! He instantly cursed himself for those thoughts. It had been a long time since he’d cared what anyone thought of him, and he wasn’t going to start now. Especially not for some highborn, virtuous, nose-in-the-air female.
However when that nose-in-the-air female sashayed into the banquet room later that night, dressed in satin and lace and with her hair pinned up in a bounty of curls, Blake found hedidcare what she thought. A great deal.
Chapter 17
W
hen servant girls entered her chamber with pails of hot water for a bath and one of the most beautiful gowns she’d ever seen, Emeline had stubbornly refused both. She would be loath to accept the captain’s trifling gifts, for no doubt a nefarious purpose lurked behind them.
Yet…
After the servants left and steam rose gently from the tub, along with the scent of the rose petals scattered across the water, she couldn’t resist. It had been a least a month since she’d soaked in a hot bath, not since she’d been home at the Hyde Estate on Kingston, Jamaica. Yet, the mere thought of that safe abode flooded her with longing…andsorrow. She missed her parents. She missed her grandparents, Captain Merrick and Charlisse. She even missed her sister and brother. Still, the bath felt beyond wonderful as she washed the sweat and stink from her skin and hair. If only she could wash away Captain Keene and this horrible nightmare as easily.
After her bath, she sat on the bed, drying her hair and staring at the gorgeous attire the servants had laid so carefully across the coverlet. It made no sense to put on her old gown when a new—and much prettier—one was available. She fingered the pearls embedded amidst the gold thread of the stomacher, then caressed the green silk skirt, richly embroidered in woven silver designs.
What harm would it do to at least try it on?
Pah! Of course, it fit perfectly.
She had stood admiring herself in the looking glass when the servant girls returned, smiling and giggling as they assisted her with buttons and ties she could not reach. One of them pinned up her hair in a most alluring style. She had tried to engage them in conversation, but it seemed they didn’t understand her.
The thought that she was being prepped and primed, dressed and basted, for some elaborate main meal niggled at the back of her mind, but she ignored it. For now, at least. Especially when she saw her reflection in the looking glass, and the woman staring back at her was just as lovely as her sister or mother. But that couldn’t be.
