Hunt for the Panther 3 (9781101610923) (7 page)

Scarlet shut her eyes. She’d survived her first night in the admiral’s house, in the middle of Port Aberhard and miles from her home.
Just twenty more nights to go, give or take,
she told herself.
I can do that, right?

Someone knocked on the door, and before she could holler that she wasn’t yet decent, the door swung open and in marched one of her father’s maids. A short, round woman with flyaway blond curls and a long gray dress, she gave Scarlet a once-over and tutted softly. Dressed in only a nightgown, Scarlet reddened and folded her arms across her chest.

“Aren’t ye a skinny little thing,” the woman commented. “Don’t they feed ye at that boarding school of yers?”

“Um…,” Scarlet began. Her father had warned her that everyone in the house believed she went to a little-known boarding school on one of the islands, but she hadn’t had a chance to invent some lies about it herself. She tried to remember what Jem had said about his boarding school back in the Old World. Something about football and libraries and a boring old headmaster? Whatever he’d said, it had sounded truly awful.

“Never mind,” the maid said cheerily. “Breakfast’ll be ready in no time. I’m Meggie, by the way. I heard ye need some clothes, so I brought a few things ye might like.” She produced an armload of dresses, and Scarlet cringed. “How about this one?” Meggie held up a butter-yellow eyesore, all ribbons and frills. Scarlet could practically
feel the lace scratching her neck and the satiny fabric damp against her back, just by looking at it. She had half a mind to fling herself out the window.

“Maybe something more… simple?” she croaked.

“Hmm.” Meggie picked through the pile. “So it’s simple ye want. How’s this?” She held up a blue dress, which still had ribbons and frills, but not quite as many. “Simplest I’ve got here.”

Scarlet bit her lip. “All right.”

Meggie laid the dress on the bed next to the petticoats Scarlet would have to wear under it.

She stood for a moment, staring at her new clothes, completely at a loss as to how to get into them. Finally, she swallowed her pride, feeling her ears turn crimson. “Um, can you… help me? I… um… I’m only used to wearing my school uniform. Which is… different.”

Meggie gave her an odd look but didn’t say anything. She hung up the other dresses, then turned her attention to Scarlet. She pulled one layer of clothing after another over Scarlet’s head, buttoning, clasping, and cinching everything in place.

“My, yer a squirmy one!” Meggie gasped as she pulled on the laces at the back of the dress. “It’s like ye’ve never worn a dress before!”

“Blimey!” Scarlet cried as Meggie gave the laces an especially hard yank. “Sorry,” she said quickly, remembering her place. “It’s just… does it have to be so
tight
?” She was already gasping for breath, and she had yet to leave the bedroom.

Fifteen minutes later, Scarlet was fully dressed in
petticoats, dress, boots, and stockings, and Meggie was damp with sweat and out of breath.

“There now. That’s better.” Meggie wiped her forehead.

“Is it?” Scarlet muttered. It certainly didn’t feel better. In fact, it had never felt worse. Her laces were so tight and her boots so pinchy that she couldn’t run if her life depended on it. But she swallowed her curses and thanked Meggie, anyway. She’d probably need the maid’s help again.

Meggie nodded. “Go on, now. Yer father’ll be in the library. I’ll bring yer breakfast there.”

Scarlet nodded and left the bedroom, walking bowlegged thanks to her bunchy petticoats and wobbling on the small heels of her boots. How was she ever going to fool Uncle Daniel and Josephine into thinking she was a proper young lady?

She found her father in his library, sipping tea while studying a map on the desk. He choked when he saw her, and set down his teacup.

“Don’t even say it,” Scarlet snapped.

“You look nice,” he insisted. “Just a bit… unnatural.” The corners of his eyes crinkled, and a smile tugged at his mouth.

Scarlet ignored him, turning away to get a good look at the room. It was just what she would have expected from a King’s Man’s library. The enormous shelves packed with leather-bound books would have made Jem swoon. The admiral’s desk was piled high with maps and measuring instruments that Scarlet had never seen
before. And all the furniture in the room was made of dark red wood—island trees, no doubt. Scarlet reached out to touch the smooth grain, then thought better of it and drew back.

Meggie entered, carrying a tray. She set it down on a table by the window. “Yer breakfast, miss.” Then she winked at Scarlet and left the room.

Scarlet sat before the toast the maid had buttered and sprinkled with cinnamon, and for a moment she wished she could package it up and send it to Jem. But since that wasn’t an option, she wolfed down an entire slice in two bites. Then she dumped two spoonfuls of sugar into her tea and gulped it down.

“Good?” Her father raised his eyebrows.

“Not bad.” And it wasn’t. Though she’d rather have been eating with her crew back in the clearing, there was something to be said for a hot breakfast. She wiped her buttery fingers on her dress.

He sighed and walked over to the table. “Etiquette Rule Number One,” he said. “Don’t wipe your hands on your clothes.” He handed her a cloth. “And remember to chew before you swallow. You no longer have to compete with twenty-three other pirates for food.”

Scarlet crumpled the cloth and dropped it in her lap. She hated rules. At least, ones she didn’t make up herself. She picked up the other slice of toast and bit into it, forcing herself to chew slowly.

Her father sat down across from her and poured himself more tea. As he reached for the milk, Scarlet caught sight of a leather cord around his neck.

“What’s that?” she asked, mouth full.

“Swallow first, then talk.”

She rolled her eyes and swallowed.

“And no eye-rolling, Scarlet. You’ve got to pass for an educated young lady.”

She bristled but held her tongue.

He pulled on the cord, revealing a wooden star on the end. “Remember this?”

Scarlet nodded. “Of course.” It was one of the little stars he’d carved for her when they still lived with the Islanders. Sina had given it to Scarlet when they’d been reunited. And Scarlet had passed it on to her father to jog his memories of their life together before her mother died.

She watched him tuck the star back into his shirt.
He’s on your side,
she reminded herself.
He’s fighting for the island, too.

“All right.” She sighed, wiping her hands on the cloth. “Tell me about these relatives. Uncle Daniel and Josephine. Think she’d let me call her Jo?”

Her father gave her a wry smile. “I rather doubt it.” He sipped his tea, then set it down again. “Daniel is my only brother,” he began. “He’s five years older than me. After our father died when I was around your age, Daniel looked out for me like a father would. He became a King’s Man, and when I turned eighteen, he insisted they accept me as well.”

Scarlet nodded. “And Josephine? What do you know about her?”

He shook his head. “Not much. She’s your age and
goes to a prestigious boarding school for young ladies. I’m not quite sure why Daniel’s bringing her along. Perhaps to broaden her horizons.”

Scarlet poured herself more tea and spooned more sugar into it. “We’re going to have nothing in common.”

“Well, actually, you do have one big thing in common,” he told her. “Josephine lost her mother to an illness, too. Just last year.”

“She did?” Scarlet looked up at her father, who nodded. “Oh.” She stirred her tea, unsure how that would make them better friends. Would she even want to bring it up?

“Admiral McCray, sir.” Meggie poked her head through the door.

The admiral looked up. “Yes, Meggie?”

“Beg yer pardon, but I’m to tell ye that the schooner yer waiting for is pulling into port. Yer guests have arrived.”

The admiral dabbed at his mouth with a cloth. “Yes, that’ll be them. Thank you, Meggie.” He stood and looked down at Scarlet. “Ready?”

She tossed back her tea and grimaced at the thought of standing in her pinchy boots.

“It’s only a few weeks, Scarlet,” her father reminded her. “And maybe you’ll find your own horizons broadening as well. Now, shall we?”

By the time they arrived at the docks, a crowd had already gathered. The giant schooner had dropped
anchor, but its passengers had yet to disembark. The ship towered over the crowd, red and blue flags sagging in the still, humid air as if the journey had tired them right out.

Scarlet glanced down at her dress and noticed a big smear of dirt on the skirt. “Blast!” She rubbed at the stain but only succeeded in spreading it around.

“Scarlet!” Her father glanced down and did a double take. “How did you manage that so quickly?” he whispered.

Scarlet grunted in response, rubbing even harder. “Oh blast, bilge, and blimey! It’s in there for good!” She looked up to see a woman in a spotless white dress giving her an alarmed look. She returned a dagger glare, and the woman
tsk
ed and moved away.

“Rule Number Two,” her father murmured. “No cursing. I mean it.”

“Blast.” Scarlet sighed. That was going to be a hard one.

“They’re coming!” someone yelled, and everyone looked up to see the schooner’s passengers streaming off the ship. The crowd parted to let them pass. A group of ladies in frilly dresses flounced by first, followed by some King’s Men smoothing their rumpled uniforms. Then came a mob of merchants wrestling with trunks of wares.

“There!” Admiral McCray cried. “There they are!” He pointed to a pair walking slowly down the ramp. The man had brown hair like Scarlet’s father, but his was streaked with gray. He was also a few inches shorter, and judging by his ample belly, better fed. A small, slender girl with chestnut curls and very pale skin clung to his arm.

“Daniel!” her father shouted. “Over here!”

Daniel searched the crowd until he found his brother. Then he waved back. The girl pulled out a pink fan and waved it in front of her face.

“Scurvy,” Scarlet said under her breath.

“Come, Scarlet.” Admiral McCray pulled her closer to the dock to meet their guests. “Daniel!” He threw his arms around his brother. “It’s been so long! Why, you haven’t aged a bit. All right, maybe a bit.” He tousled his brother’s hair.

“I think it looks distinguished.” Uncle Daniel laughed.

Scarlet stood a few steps behind her father, watching. It was odd to see him with his brother. Until then, she’d never actually envisioned him as anything but a dull grown-up, but at one time, he and Uncle Daniel must have run around and played games and wreaked havoc like the Lost Souls.

“Father,” the girl clinging to Uncle Daniel’s sleeve whispered, still fanning her face.

“Oh!” her father exclaimed, as though he’d momentarily forgotten her. “John, this is my daughter, Josephine.”

Josephine dipped into a curtsy.

“Wonderful to meet you, my dear,” said the admiral. “Are you not feeling well?”

“She’s feeling rather faint,” Uncle Daniel answered. “Josephine has a weak constitution at the best of times, and two months at sea did nothing to improve it, I’m afraid.”

Josephine looked down at her feet. “I’ll be all right once I sit down awhile,” she said softly.

Scarlet sighed. She didn’t know what a constitution was, but she was fairly certain cousin Josephine would not make for a fun companion. She could barely catch her breath standing still, and her arms looked like they could be snapped in two.

“Of course,” the admiral said quickly. “We’ll head right home, where you can rest up. This is my daughter, Scarlet. I think she and Josephine are going to get along swimmingly.” He gave Scarlet a nudge, and she realized that this was her cue to curtsy.

The only problem was, she didn’t remember how. Trying to picture how Josephine had done it, she set one foot in front of the other and bent her knees as deeply as she dared. But on her way back up, her ankle twisted, and she had to hop on one foot to regain her balance. Unfortunately, she hopped too far to the left, right onto the foot of a passing boy.

“Ow!” he cried, whirling around to face her. And Scarlet gasped as she found herself nose-to-chest with none other than Lucas Lawrence.

He seemed even taller and broader than the last time she’d seen him, only a few weeks before. Or maybe he was just holding himself taller, with an air of confidence that made her want to reach up and wring his thick neck. A flush crept up the back of her own neck and out to her ears.

For a moment, Lucas just looked down at her. Then he cleared his throat. “Beg your pardon, miss,” he said in an unnaturally deep voice. “That was my fault. Are you all right?”

Scarlet’s mouth fell open. The bilge rat didn’t recognize her!

“You’re not hurt?” He smoothed his dirty hair with a big, meaty hand.

Scarlet opened her mouth to answer, then snapped it shut before the curses could escape. Fortunately, her father reached over and put an arm around her.

“She’s just fine, thank you,” he said, pulling her closer to him.

Lucas looked up at the admiral and stared at him, as if trying to place him. For a moment, Scarlet held her breath, desperately hoping he wouldn’t put two and two together. But Lucas shrugged and turned away.