Panic tightened my chest as I stared at him. Was he serious?
He began to laugh and shook his head. “It’s just superstition, Carl. No need to look so stricken. There’s no witch or woman on this ship—though, I suspect there might be a clergyman in hiding.” He turned to look at the ragtag crew of pirates with a suspicious, if teasing, eye.
“I need to get supper served,” I told him as I swallowed and moved away from the rail. I hadn’t once suspected that Timothy knew I was a woman, but I didn’t want him to look any closer than necessary.
“Be on the lookout for a Jonah,” he said with a chuckle. “You never know who might be a secret clergyman.”
I tried to give him a smile, but it fell flat. Now more than ever, I wanted answers from my mother, but those answers were farther and farther away as we floated listlessly in the Gulf of Mexico in the hot, stagnant air.
The supper bell chimed, so I set down the bucket and went to the galley. It was bigger and cleaner than the one on theAdventurer. The cook was French and didn’t speak much English. Timothy said that he had been taken captive, too, because the captain wanted only the best. But the cook seemed happy enough, and I couldn’t ask him if it was true or not.
Ned was already in the galley, eager to prove himself to the captain. Ever since I had arrived, he had seemed jealous of my presence and tried to outdo me every chance he could get.
The cook handed over the platters of roasted beef, stewed peas, boiled turtle, and fresh bread. We carried them across the main deck and up the flight of stairs where Hawk was waiting to open the door. Though he was one of the biggest men I’d ever met, I’d soon learned he was also the jolliest—when not in battle. And since we hadn’t come across another ship since theAdventurer, I hadn’t seen him wield his strength or height since then.
Hawk followed us into the outer room as he opened the captain’s door.
Captain Zale was sitting at the table, a glass of wine in hand ashe listened to his navigator. The boatswain, who was the supervisor of the deck crew, was also at the table. The surgeon was there, as well, though I had gathered he was also here against his will. He’d been abducted in Charleston three years ago, and every time he tried to escape, he was hauled back to the ship at the captain’s command. Dr. Hartville was irreplaceable, or so Timothy told me. The only person who could treat whatever ailed the captain, though I saw no physical signs of disease.
Marcus was also at the table and looked up at our arrival. My pulse quickened, and my palms grew clammy. I couldn’t account for my nervousness around him. I saw other crew members stand a little straighter in his presence, and Timothy was so afraid of him, he went in the opposite direction when he saw Marcus approach. But Marcus had not been demanding or threatening to me. On the contrary, he’d been polite and kind.
Perhaps it was his contemplative silence that set me on edge. He often spoke, but when he was silent, people steered clear of him. There was something stormy and ominous about his silence. He often stood at the window or the rail and stared at the ocean as if he was searching for answers.
And that was how he looked at me.
I had never wondered what another person was thinking as much as I wondered about Marcus Zale. Ever since theOcean Cursehad pulled up alongside theAdventurerand his gaze had caught mine, he had been aware of me. He was watching me, seeking answers.
Did he suspect I was a woman?
Ned and I silently served the evening meal as the men continued to talk around the table.
“I don’t think it’s necessary to go all the way to Barataria,” the navigator, Jack Tanner, said to the captain. Jack was a younger man, perhaps in his early thirties, with a thick British accent. He had a refined air about him that suggested he’d been raised with money and privilege. How had he ended up on a pirate ship? “’Tis already been two and a half weeks since we overtook theAdventurer. If we head back now, it’ll be another two weeks, at least—provided this blasted weather improves. By then, the authorities will have given up the chase. That is, if they were looking for us in the first place.”
Captain Zale leaned forward, his gaze intent on Jack’s face.
I set the platter of beef in front of him and the turtle next to it. Ned put down the stewed peas and the fresh bread. The aroma made my stomach growl.
Marcus was the only one who glanced up at me when I set the food on the table. He nodded his thanks.
“I’ve heard theAtlantishas also been looking for the Queen’s Dowry,” Jack continued. “We can’t waste a minute.”
I’d quickly realized the Queen’s Dowry was Captain Zale’s greatest goal. Timothy told me that in 1715, two Spanish treasure fleets had left Cuba later than planned and been caught in a hurricane off the coast of Florida. Eleven of the twelve ships were sunk, and over fifteen hundred men had lost their lives. The resulting treasure hunt had brought ex-privateers from all parts of the world to the Florida coast. They’d uncovered coins, jewels, gold, and silver. But after the initial recovery, most people had lost interest.
Not Captain Zale—or the pirate ship theAtlantis, apparently. Captain Zale, like many others, still believed the greatest treasure of all was the dowry that was being brought to Elisabeth Farnese, the Duchess of Parma, who was King Philip V’s second wife. The dowry reportedly included more than twelve hundred pieces of jewelry, a gold heart made of over one hundred pearls, fourteen-carat pearl earrings, and an emerald ring weighing seventy-four carats. It was supposedly on the flagship, theCapitana, which had never been found.
“You’re advising we turn around?” Captain Zale asked.
I watched Marcus as the men discussed their plans. He listened quietly, as if weighing their options.
If we turned around, I couldn’t escape in Barataria—but I’d be much closer to Nassau. If we met another ship, perhaps I could sneak away. Or, if we visited a port along the eastern shores ofFlorida, I could escape and wait for a ship that was heading farther south.
Marcus’s gaze lifted to mine, as if he knew what I was thinking.
The meal continued as the men discussed their options. Dr. Hartville was a silent observer, much like Marcus, but, unlike Marcus, he seemed more intent on filling his belly with the fine food and drink.
When the men were satisfied, Ned and I took the leftovers. I went to the cabin I shared with Marcus, and Ned went to his cot in the outer room where he and Hawk bedded down.
I loved the privacy and solitude that Marcus’s cabin provided. Not only that, but the captain and quartermaster shared their own privy, which none of the other crew members had access to, and I was allowed to use it. I no longer had to worry about being caught, or to hide my female necessities. Being abducted off theAdventurerhadn’t been my desire, but at least there were advantages.
