Francine nodded obediently and did as she was told. She gave her pistol to Pauley then she hustled a protesting Alexis into the house, shutting the door firmly behind her.
Alexis had never seen fear on Francine’s face before and the sight of it made her own stomach churn disquietingly. “Francine! For God’s sake! Tell me what is going on!”
Francine answered in rapid French until she realized Alexis could not make out what she was saying. Slowly, as if she were talking to a child, she started over in English. “Those men are from the Royal Navy. They’ve come from English Harbour on Antigua to see George about some of his ships.”
“They want to commission George to build some?” she asked hopefully.
Francine shook her head sadly. “They don’t want to commission. They want only to take what is available in the harbor now.”
“They can’t do that. Why even if they took them, they wouldn’t have enough men to sail them. It’s preposterous.”
“It’s a press gang, Alexis. Do you understand what that means? They’ve already been through the settlement, taking men who were unfortunate enough to be on the streets this morning.”
Alexis remembered back to the time she had boarded theConstellation.The Thorton Shipping Line required its men to sign a paper saying they had not been forced to take the job. Now she understood exactly what that document meant, and at the same time, the stories she’d heard from her seafaring friends about press gangs came back to her. “But they won’t take George surely? How would they get ships later?”
“They don’t seem to have much thought for the future. They need the ships now and they’ll take George and any other able-bodied man they can to replenish their own sickly crews.”
Alexis gasped. “Pauley too?”
“Pauley,” Francine confirmed. “He knew about it before he came here. He warned me to be prepared.”
“But he didn’t say anything to me. He let me believe everything was fine.” Alexis didn’t know with whom she was angrier, Pauley or the limeys.
“I asked him not to. We both thought we were worrying needlessly. In any event, we didn’t expect them to come so soon. I tried to warn you to stay away, but you didn’t listen.” Francine collapsed into tears.
Alexis led her over to a chair and pushed her into it gently. “Francine. Quiet. We’ve got to do something and I can’t think while you’re crying.”
Francine buried her face in her hands, and although she did not stop crying, the sound was at least muffled so that Alexis could hear what was being said through the closed door.
“Listen Quinton. We didn’t come here for trouble. The pistols aren’t necessary. If you had been in your office we could have talked this over reasonably.”
George laughed. “Captain Travers, I have never heard you discuss anything reasonably. Tell your gang to put their guns away and leave quietly. We have nothing to say to one another.”
“You’re a British subject, Quinton. You have a duty to your king. I’m claiming those ships by right of the British Crown.”
“How typical,” George answered smoothly. “The King pays us no attention until he finds himself in need of a few ships and some men to sail them. Then he suddenly remembers we are British subjects.”
“We can take them with or without your consent,” Travers replied testily. “I prefer your approval. We already have most of the crew we’ll need. We want you to join us. Your friend there, with the gun, as well. He looks as if he knows his way around a ship.”
“Indeed I do, Captain,” Pauley answered, raising his pistol a hair. “But I’m already employed aboard theConstellation.That’s a Thorton merchant and my captain won’t take kindly to me jumping ship.”
“I know Whitehead well enough. He won’t be protesting too loudly, seeing that we found some deserters on board his ship.” Travers looked at the five men surrounding him, daring them to contradict his statement. None did.
Alexis left her position at the door. “Francine! Is there another pistol anywhere?”
“In George’s desk,” she replied before she realized what Alexis intended. In horror she watched as Alexis ran to the study and returned to the foyer in a few moments with the weapon. “You can’t go out there! George and Pauley will be furious. You’ll be killed!”
Alexis stared at Francine uncomprehendingly. There was the faintest glimmer of a smile on her lips as she spoke. “If I can’t die for the only people who have cared for me, then what am I supposed to die for?”
Francine saw the smile fade, to be replaced by an expression of intense determination. “Alexis, the gun isn’t even loaded.” It was too late. Alexis had turned and was heading toward the kitchen entrance at the rear of the house.
“Those limeys won’t know that!” she called back.
Moving stealthily along the side of the house she was unaware her progress was being watched by four Americans. Even while admiring her bravery they were cursing her interference because fear of exposing her prevented them from making a move to assist her family.
“What is it going to be, Quinton?” Travers’s voice was impatient. He kept his narrowed eyes trained on George. The stare was as hard and cruel as the face it belonged to. The narrow pointed chin and the high prominent cheekbones were set so tightly that neither George nor Pauley doubted this was a responsibility to which Travers was accustomed. “I’ll not ask again. What are you going to do? Will you have to be persuaded to do your duty by your country?”
“I’d like to persuade all of you to drop your weapons.” Travers turned quickly in the direction of the voice and saw Alexis approaching his men slowly, her weapon held steadily.
