Authors: Janelle Taylor
She glared at him. “You have a strange way of revealing your interest in me, Captain Steele. The answer is still no. I find your company most disagreeable.”
“Since when?” he snarled, his temper rising at her blatant rebuffs.
She laughed, a cool and taunting sound. “I am not one of your strumpets, Captain Steele. I will not be flaunted or treated as such. I’m sure you’ll discover any other female more pliant and inviting than I am.”
She placed her rigid back to him, waves of tawny hair flowing down her slender back. Was she still hurt and jealous? Was this some feminine ploy to punish him or to entreat him to plead for her attentions?
“You’re coming with me whether you want to or not,” he ordered. No woman had ever refused him anything. Who did this arrogant girl think she was!
“Are you still pouting because I didn’t get home in time for dinner last night? If I had known you were planning such a special evening, I would have left my meeting posthaste,” he murmured.
“Meeting, my foot!” she blurted out before thinking.
He chuckled, baiting her. “By jove, you’re jealous!” he accused. “No need, love. That perfume was a silly joke; one I didn’t take kindly to either. That cheap floozy should be glad I didn’t beat her after rubbing all over me like that. I don’t pick up cheap tarts, Angel, in case you’ve forgotten,” he sought to disarm her with the truth for a change. “I’m sorry I missed a pleasant dinner with you.”
“I’m not,” she crisply replied, doubting his every word now. To nettle him, she said, “Besides, it was only meant to relax you so I could convince you to free me. With your vast knowledge and experiences with so many women, you would have seen right through my ruse. So, it really was for the best you didn’t come
back last night. I hate making a fool of myself, which I would have.” She somehow knew the sarcastic truth would be more disturbing than a false pretense.
“Frankly, I’m not sure who’s the bigger fool, you or me,” he snarled.
She laughed again. “I doubt you have ever been a fool about anything or anyone, Captain Steele.”
“Where you’re concerned, I have, and it galls me beyond my limits of patience and endurance,” he admitted reluctantly. “Now get dressed; we’re going to that party.”
“No,” she calmly protested, keeping her back to him.
“You’re coming along if I have to dress you myself!”
“I doubt you would want to tarnish your image by carrying me to a party all tied up, love,” she scoffed. “That’s the only way I’ll leave this room. I should think you would find that most embarrassing. I’ll make certain everyone there knows how much I detest you.”
“I could care less how you feel about me.”
“What about how they might feel if I shout your identity to them?” she retorted spitefully.
Suddenly realizing the guests at this affair would know him as Captain Stephen Farrington of the
Wandering Siren,
he chided himself for his careless oversight. He couldn’t take her along. With any intelligence at all, she would figure out his identity. “If you don’t want to come along, fine. Call George when you’re ready for dinner, if you decide to ever
eat again.”
He was giving up awfully easy! Alex realized. He wasn’t going to throw his weight around? A strange look had briefly crossed his aristocratic features. Why? Was he afraid to subject himself to a pleasurable evening with her? Now she had rashly condemned herself to another boring night alone, denied herself a chance to get even with him or to change his stubborn mind!
She hurried after him. He was leisurely changing clothes. Her eyes widened at his choice of garments. He had put on a pair of rich gold knee breeches which fit his fine form handsomely. They buttoned just below the knee over silk stockings which were concealed by shiny boots in the finest of leathers. Tailored to fit him perfectly, there wasn’t a single crease or wrinkle to mar the seductive picture of his slender hips and muscular thighs.
A man who obviously recognized a flair for fashion and spared no expense with his clothes, she was speechless in her bold study of him. A definite sign of wealth and polish, he donned a white linen shirt which clung tightly to his chest and shoulders. A deep wine vest was added next. As if he had all evening, he gradually fastened the four buttons down its front. He slipped his arms into a matching coat which was elegant and appealing with its plain lines, snug sleeves, small cuffs at the wrists, and dangling coattails. Instead of a snowy cravat, he knotted a jabot of ivory lawn at his neck to complete his attire.
As he playfully brushed and fluffed his sable mane
which fell loosely to his collar, she suddenly realized his hair was freshly trimmed and shaped. His clean-shaven face flaunted the proud and arrogant lines of his features. He was certainly taking great pains with his appearance tonight! How she longed to be the woman on his arm tonight—on any night! He exuded such animal magnetism and undeniable charm that she scolded herself for her rash and regrettable refusal to go with him.
He turned around before her gaping eyes several times. “Well? Will I pass for a gentleman of fine breeding tonight, love?”
Unnerved and entranced, she murmured, “I didn’t think it possible for you to look any better than you already did, but I can see I was vastly mistaken, Captain Steele. Like this, you could charm the Queen herself into deserting the King,” she admitted.
“The Queen would be more susceptible to me than you are?” he wickedly teased, meeting her appreciative gaze in the reflective glass.
“I must confess, Captain Steele, you are most attractive, too much, so I fear. Is it too late to change my mind about going with you tonight?” she asked, causing him to tense up.
“I’m afraid so, love. I’m late as it is,” he stated stoically.
“I can dress quickly when I must,” she hinted boldly.
“After your little display of temper earlier, I don’t think I could trust you. Tonight, I’m in the mood to relax and have a good time. I don’t relish remaining on
guard against your wily tricks.”
“Not even if I promise to be on my very best behavior?” she pleaded.
He eyed her intently. How he wished he could take her along—but it was much too dangerous. “Don’t wait up for me. I expect to be late, if I come back tonight.” With that he headed for the door, opened it and told George to bring her dinner when she was ready for it. He glanced at her, winked and left.
Hearing him take the back stairs, Alex hurried to the balcony to watch his retreat. She berated herself for being so stubborn. She leaned back to hopefully catch another view of him while denying him one of her. He halted just beneath the balcony to talk with Andy, his first mate and good friend. As the words drifted to her alert ears, she couldn’t believe what she was hearing.
Winking at Andy who was reluctantly a part of his devious scheme, Spencer played his role to the hilt…
“Delays have dangerous ends.”
—
Henry VI,
William Shakespeare
“I’m tired of all her wily games and taunts, Andy,” Spencer confided. “One minute she’s all over me, and the next she’s fighting me tooth and nail! I’ve given her ample time to tell me what I want to know. I can’t take her back to sea with us; it’s getting too dangerous out there. Besides, I’m exhausted with trying to figure out a woman who’s so temperamental.”
“What do you think they’ll do with her?” Andy questioned, not daring to look up at the balcony.
“I wish I knew. Maybe she’ll convince them she’s innocent. Maybe they’ll turn her loose to return to this so-called uncle of hers. Who knows?”
“What if they don’t accept her claim of ignorance? Look how close you two have been, and you don’t believe her for a minute.”
“I could if she would tell me everything, Andy. My stars, man, doesn’t she realize how suspicious her story and actions are? Once we sail, she won’t be my problem anymore,” he stated.
“Come on, Josh; you know you care about her,” Andy injected, bringing a scowl to his friend’s face at his audacity.
“Of course I care about her! She’s different; she’s refreshing and entertaining. But there are lots of sexy mermaids around.”
“Have you mentioned her to the authorities yet?”
“I dropped a few hints about a possible spy,” he nonchalantly answered.
“Is she really an English spy?” Andy skeptically inquired.
“If she isn’t, she knows who is.”
“Have you given any serious thought to her fate? It could even be death.”
“I know, Andy, but it can’t be helped. If she confesses all, I’ll let her go. If not,” he halted and burst into hearty laughter.
“What’s so funny?” Andy quizzed.
A new idea came to mind. If Angelique didn’t fear the authorities, there was another fate she would surely wish to avoid. “I have a better solution for our silent Angel. Since I don’t want to endanger her life, I know a place where she’ll be kept out of any further activities. She can spread a little joy while being out of the Americans’ hair.”
Assuming he was referring to his Virginia plantation, Andy jumped on this hint, “Where?”
His elation was short-lived when Spencer murmured in sardonic pleasure, “In Maria’s brothel. She guards her girls like an eagle. Angel would never get out of there to transport any more codes.”
“You can’t mean that!” Andy debated, noting he was indeed serious.
“Why not? She would be alive and out of the way. It
would serve the little tease right! By now, she’s experienced enough to survive there nicely. If she’s cunning, she just might earn her freedom one day.”
Alex winced at the coldness in Spencer’s withering tone. She burned at being discussed so intimately and spitefully and fury filled her. She strained to catch his every word and inflection.
“That’s exactly what I plan to do. If Angel doesn’t come across by midday tomorrow, she’ll be sleeping at Maria’s from now on.”
Alex nearly fainted. She didn’t doubt his ruthless threat at all. Taking her chances with the American government was one thing, but risking enslavement to a filthy brothel? She had heard tales of this horrible fate of young girls who unfortunately fell into the hands of evil men like Joshua Steele. She could never endure such degradation. It was a far worse fate than death. How far did her loyalty to her family go when it endangered her survival and honor? Could she allow Captain Steele to confine her in such a deplorable place?
Could this man who had artfully seduced her body and claimed her heart and soul subject her to such an existence? They had shared blissful moments of unbridled passion—was he capable of such cruelty? Had she so misjudged him and their fiery relationship? Why, Joshua? she wretchedly cried. He was no human god after all; he was a sadistic demon who was devouring her heart, soul, and body.
“I have a meeting with Minister D’Onis and Governor Sebastian Kindelan tomorrow afternoon,
then one with Commandant Lopez and some American named Campbell afterwards. I’ll know all by lunch, or Angel will be keeping company with Maria before either meeting.”
“I can’t change your mind, Josh?” he worriedly pressed.
“No!” he objected arrogantly. “Let’s go or we’ll miss dinner.”
The two men, so different in looks and character, strolled off. Alex slowly entered the room, suddenly stuffy in her highly emotional state. Yet, she did not dissolve into tremors and tears. A pleased smirk claimed her lovely lips and revenge danced brightly in her eyes. Her careless captor had just become her unknowing liberator.
She ran to her trunks and opened them. She quickly selected a special outfit for this final act to a desperate drama. She pulled two black dresses from her trunk, ones chosen by her uncle for a smiliar deception. She rolled them into a neat bundle and bound them inside a dark blue shawl. She put on a bright red gown with a daring neckline and billowy shirt. She placed her collection of jewels on the bed beside the other bundle to select a few pieces to aid her plans. Let him keep the rest; it would look too suspicious if she managed to escape with the entire collection. She headed to the door to set her desperate plan into motion, clutching a heavy object within her grasp. As a better plan came to mind, she sat it upon the table in the middle of the room.
She called George’s name. The door clicked as he
unlocked it and stuck his head inside. “I need some help, George. Captain Steele is coming back for me later, but I’m having trouble with this dress. Some empty-headed seamstress placed hundreds of tiny buttons down the back. Could you do it up for me?” she sweetly entreated, smiling demurely.
Unaccustomed to helping a lady dress, he shifted nervously and hesitated. She innocently coaxed, “It’s all right, George. Josh won’t mind. I must hurry before he returns for me. Please. We won’t tell him,” she wheedled conspiratorially.
He laughed amiably and shuffled forward to comply. Just before he could fasten it halfway, Alex gasped in surprise and shrieked, “Who’s that?”
George naively turned around to glance at the door. The statue thudded down upon his head, instantly rendering him unconscious. Alex hurriedly checked to make sure he was still breathing. She sighed in relief, hating to injure this genial man. To show him her apology, she placed a flower in his right hand and a diamond bracelet in the left. She stripped off the red gown and rolled it into a tight ball, then swiftly dressed in a dark blue gown and covered her head with the lacy Spanish scarf which she had bought just before leaving Philadelphia. What a wise purchase it had been!
Alex stuffed two necklaces of expensive gems into her dress near the waist and seized the red gown and her other bundle. She left without looking back, locking the door behind her. She rushed down the stairs as quickly as she could without making any
excessive noise. She cautiously skirted the rear of the next building before stepping out to the main street. As if she were merely taking an afternoon stroll, she headed toward the tall white structure which was sure to be the governor’s home. If she were mistaken, a large slice of her precious getaway time would be consumed.
The mantilla of midnight lace clutched tightly before her face, no one caught sight of the beauty revealed there. As she passed a heap of trash, she tossed the red bundle upon it. She had never liked the tawdry gown anyway and shouldn’t have allowed that seamstress to convince her to buy it. She walked to the side gate and called out through the iron barrier. It was but moments before a Spanish soldier came to answer. She eyed his uniform in bright red and midnight black. Perplexed, he asked what she wanted.
She held her disguise in place as she calmly stated, “Please tell Governor Kindelan that Lady Alexandria Hampton is here to see him.”
The guard gaped at her in disbelief and suspicion. She haughtily snapped, “We are close friends, sir. He will be most displeased that you kept me standing here like some commoner!”
Witnessing her polished manner and genteel speech, he hurriedly unlocked the gate and asked her to follow him. Once inside, he told her to wait while he told the governor she was here and wished to see him. She nodded and sat down, discarding the feigned haughty role she had seen so many spoiled females use on those of lesser stations.
Sebastian Kindelan swept into the room with his usual flair for pomp. She arose to greet him, extending her quivering hand. He gaped at her in astonishment as he took it and affectionately squeezed it. “Do my old eyes deceive me, Lady Hampton?” he ventured.
She smiled and stated clearly, “I fear not, sir. I am in dire need of your help and your secrecy.” A look of sadness and fear entered those lovely green eyes. Pretense was necessary though she despised wearing its guise.
“I do not understand,” he murmured in befuddlement. “Is your father with you?”
“No, sir. In fact, he has no idea where I am,” she began.
“Surely you have not run away from home, my wild dove,” he teased, recalling her willful nature.
“I was kidnapped by wicked pirates while returning home from visiting Uncle Henry in America,” she announced in a shaky voice. “I have recently managed to clobber my guard and escape them this very day.”
“What injustice is this!” he shouted in distress and fury. “I will set my guards upon them and slay them all!”
“I wish you could, sir, but they set sail earlier. Once I escaped them, I hid until their sails faded from sight. I didn’t know what to do. There are American ships and men everywhere. Since we are at war, I feared to ask their assistance. I would be held for a hefty ransom should they learn of my father’s name. So many of the privateers are connected with the American forces. I dared trust no one until I heard your name. It was the
sweetest sound I’ve ever heard, sir,” she declared honestly, tears springing forth.
He patted her shoulder and comforted her, “Noharm shall befall you now, my dear. I owe your father many favors. You have given me the chance to repay my dear friend of many years.”
“You must tell no one of my presence here, sir. One careless word dropped, and friends of those ruffians might seize me again. They threatened me with dire fates. One wanted to sell me to slavers; others said to ransom me to my father. But I refused to speak his name or mine. I dare trust no one except you. Is there some way I could travel back to my uncle’s without anyone, including your own men, finding out about me? I mean no disrespect, sir, but men often leak secrets when into their cups. I can hardly go unnoticed unless you keep me hidden.”
“In troubled times like these, I will tell no one but my most trusted servants,” Kindelan promised. “There are several privateers whom I trust implicitly. I am sure I can persuade one of them to take you safely to Henry’s. With your King’s men playing havoc upon the seas, it will be far easier to get you to Pennsylvania than England.”
“I thought as much myself, sir,” she concurred. She quickly related the protective ruse her uncle had planned for her and how it had failed. The elderly man was rankled by her vile treatment. “As you can see, if such facts came to light, my name would be soiled beyond repair. I shall be in your debt forever if you
can assist me without others learning of this degrading experience. I fear I should die of shame.”
“Perhaps we can solve this problem quickly, Lady Hampton. I would enjoy a short visit, but I know you wish to relieve the frantic minds of your family as promptly as possible. There are two ships anchored nearby who might be of help to us,” he began. He halted briefly to pour her a sherry to calm her tension.
“You shall dress as before, the tragic widow. I will place you under my personal protection as my grieving sister. I shall even hire a trusted man to guard your life and privacy. Let’s see…” he murmured thoughtfully. “There’s the
Agatha
and the
Wandering Siren
in port now.”
Wandering Siren!
Joshua’s ship in her elusive disguise! Alex hastily interrupted his line of thought, “The crew on the ship where I was held captive mentioned the crew of the
Wandering Siren,
sir. I think perhaps some of them might be acquainted.”
“I recently met their captain, a charming and serious fellow. He looked a man who could protect any treasure from harm. But you are right; his crew is a different matter. I shan’t give him any consideration at all. These privateers and pirates are a fiercely loyal bunch. Besides, he is much too handsome to be trusted with my beloved sister,” he merrily jested, playfully tweaking her cheek.
“I fear it will be a long time before any man is appealing to me, sir. I did not realize such evil and cruelty existed in their hearts. I pleaded for help from
many of them, but they laughed in my face and tried to steal disgusting kisses,” she lied out of necessity. Never would she reveal the name of her true captor. First, she must get back to her uncle’s, then home whenever possible. After all, her father assumed she was still in America. With her uncle’s and Sebastian’s help, he would never learn the truth.
“I will seek out the captain of the
Agatha
this very day. I believe he is set to sail within the next two tides.”
“I must ask one more favor, sir. If you would be so kind, please do not ever relate this humiliating episode to my father. He does not know of it and I pray he never does. It would hurt and distress him deeply; he would feel he is to blame.”
“As you say, Lady Hampton. This tale will go no further than this room,” he chivalrously vowed.
She smiled in gratitude and embraced him fondly. “Whatever would I do without you, sir?”
Kindelan called one of his servants and ordered her taken to a room. He cautioned the woman that no one was to know of her presence, for she was a dear friend whose life was precious to him. The woman quickly obeyed. Sebastian called in another servant and ordered him to fetch the captain of the
Agatha.
When the stocky man appeared to discuss some profitable business with the governor, he was surprised to learn the powerful man only wanted to pay a hefty price to have his sister taken to Philadelphia. There was no easier or quicker way to earn such a nice
pouch of gold coins since that was to be his second port of call anyway.