Above them, the fight between the two men was raging. Ramsay had taken advantage of Signy’s intervention to vault onto the scaffolding and grapple with Axel. They teetered back and forth until Ramsay yanked Axel off the scaffolding. They rolled across the pebbles until Ramsay was able to wrest Axel’s pistol away.
Axel was swearing and trying to claw his opponent’s eyes out when Ramsay rolled onto the younger man, pinning him with his greater weight. He cocked the pistol and jammed it against his cousin’s temple. Axel froze in terror.
Annabel screamed,“No!”
More calmly, Signy said, “Best not to kill your cousin, Kai. It hardly seems fair when he’s not half the man you are. Besides, I’m thinking that the pair of them are more to be pitied than despised.”
After several ragged breaths, Ramsay sat back on his heels and uncocked the weapon, though he kept it pointed at Axel. “Very well, my dear. What do we do next with these two budding criminals?”
“Not very competent criminals,” Signy said. “Just what did you hope to accomplish? Artifacts stolen from the ship have value, but only if you know where and who to sell them to, and Thorsay hasn’t got those kinds of buyers.”
Annabel’s weeping had stopped and she stared down at her lap. “We hoped we’d find gold coins, like the one that was in the center of the cross you found.”
One of the workers had obviously been talking about the excavations. “That’s not much of an escape plan,” Ramsay said, unimpressed. “Axel, are you sure you want to give up being heir to a substantial business empire?”
“I don’t want any part of my father’s damned empire!” Axel snapped. “I wouldn’t mind having the money, but my father isn’t that old and could easily live another thirty years. I’d rather drown myself than live as his captive for that long!”
The words were melodramatic but had the ring of truth. “What would you do if you had the freedom to choose?” Signy asked.
Axel looked startled, as if he’d never been asked that. “I’d like to be the captain of my own ship. I love the sea. My father thinks it’s a fool’s ambition.”
“There are many fools who choose the sea over all else,” Ramsay said. “Are you sure that is what you want to do with your life?”
“Yes! But I couldn’t leave Annabel alone here with him.”
Signy’s turn. “Annabel, what do you want to do?”
“Go to London and be presented and flirt with handsome men at balls,” Annabel said. “Then choose a nice gentleman who treats me well and marry him.”
“London is a difficult place if you don’t have friends or family to launch you into society,” Ramsay observed. “It would take a great deal of money and influence, and you’d be starting with nothing.”
“London isn’t the only possibility,” Signy said. “Wasn’t your mother from Dublin? Do you have family there who might take you in?”
“My aunt has offered to sponsor me several times,” Annabel admitted. “But I don’t know how I’d get there, because my father would never let me go.” She pouted. “And I wantLondon!”
“Sometimes we have to accept what is possible rather than break our hearts yearning for the impossible,” Signy said crisply. “I hear that Dublin is a lovely city, and if I recall correctly, your mother came from a well-established family. I’m sure you’d be able to attend balls and meet handsome gentlemen there. You’re beautiful, so you should be able to find a desirable husband. This is an achievable future. Does it sound so bad?”
Annabel bit her lip, her tears dried. “No. No, it doesn’t.”
Ramsay turned his attention to Axel. “How much sailing experience do you have?”
Axel gestured toward the sailing dinghy. “I sail here whenever I have a chance. I also go out with friends who need crew for larger boats.”
“It’s a beginning.” Ramsay frowned. “If you really want a sailor’s life, I’ll ask Alan Innes to take you on as a kind of apprentice and train you to be a ship’s master. It will take time and a lot of hard work, and if you act like an arrogant young lordling, he may toss you overboard to the sharks, and I wouldn’t blame him.”
He looked seriously into Axel’s eyes. “But if and when you learn to be a ship’s captain, I’ll give you theFreyaor a similar ship.”
“A . . . a ship of my own?” Axel stammered, his eyes widening. “I’d like that more than anything!”
“You’ll earn it, but if it’s the life you want, it can be yours and you’ll be free of your father.” Ramsay was very much in his laird mode. “Are you both satisfied with these prospects? You need to decide right away. Just now, your father is over at the kelp works, but he’ll be home before the Fire Festival.”
The siblings looked at each other. Annabel gulped. “Yes. Axel?”
Her brother took a deep breath. “You’ll be safe and be able to meet eligible men, and I’m not likely to get a better opportunity than this one.” He raised his gaze to Ramsay. “Yes. Yes, we both accept.”
“Then you need to return to Thorsay and pack,” Signy said. “Annabel, you may arrive at your aunt’s penniless, but you have quite a good wardrobe, I believe.”
“Yes, I do.” She got to her feet. “But these shoes are ruined.”
