Authors: Lynelle Clark
What was that all about? He had never knelt before
a woman, let alone told anyone the story of his scar. Never
had he felt this vulnerable in all his life. He thought she
merely intrigued him. But he found it was more than just
attraction or thoughts of a few minutes rolling in the hay.
He had feelings for her.
He knew she had the same struggles as he did. Her
feelings for him were crystal clear for that brief second
when she touched his cheek, trailing her small finger down
his cheek and letting it stop at his lips.
She was fighting, refusing to recognize it.
Smiling softly, he thought he would have to be
patient with her. He could understand why she was fighting
it. In her eyes, he was a pirate. Ladies like her never fell in
love with pirates. It was unheard of. His life foretold an
unsavoury future, a life no woman would be willing to
share. But then, he was not an ordinary pirate. He could
have a future with her, but he could not reveal it. Not now.
He could still feel her touch on his face. He enjoyed
the memory of the delicate caress against the scar, emotions
she stirred; what it did to him. Sitting down on the chair she
had left, he leaned back and closed his eyes, a smile on his
handsome face.
†††
'Captain, we have set the sails and we are on our
way to the
Heerengardt.
The winds look good,' Pierre
reported after a while.
'That is good.'
Roberto stood over the maps and studied them, but
Pierre knew him. His thoughts were not with the maps. His
guess would be that they were with the beautiful señorita.
He had seen how Roberto looked at her when he
thought nobody was watching. His captain was in love with
her, and who could blame him? She was not only beautiful
but very intelligent too. She was a novelty in these times
where women were only expected to have children and do
household chores, staying in the background.
The señorita could speak to them about things that
interested them. She had a sharp mind. She had proven it
again with her perception about the
Heerengardt.
If he had half a chance, he would pursue her. His captain would not
like the competition.
†††
A while later Rosa-Lee came on deck. She wore a
beautiful pale green dress, her skin glowing and hair shiny,
looking magnificent. She was the picture of a stunning
female, now more than before.
Roberto watched her from the bridge as she stood at
the railing, peering over the waters in the direction of the
captive ship. They were going at a good speed. The winds
had picked up and the ship cleaved the water, leaving a
white trail behind.
'At this rate we will catch up in time,' Roberto
thought.
The stormy weather they had experienced the
previous evening had fled but left them with a good strong
wind blowing the sails in a sharp convex. The wooden
beams creaked under its force.
The meal bell reverberates through the ship and he
walked down the steps off the bridge. He met Rosa-Lee at
the bottom and offered his arm to walk her to the dining
hall. With a smile, she gladly accepted, placing a small
hand on the sleeve of his jacket. He inhaled. She smelled
like cinnamon and honey, his favourite smells.
'Are you feeling better?' He inquired.
'Yes, thank you. The bath was wonderful and
Enrico is very good.'
'I am glad you are pleased, Mon Petite.' He let the
endearing words slip again and she smiled, looking down at
her feet, the stairs steep in front of her.
Once they were seated, Pierre asked, 'What is the
plan of action?'
'I have given it much thought,' Rosa-Lee said
immediately and both Roberto and Pierre grinned at the
señorita's self-assuredness. This they had to hear. The other
men looked dumb-founded at the three.
'The moment that we are close enough to send a
signal, we will send a distress call. I, as a diversion, will go
on board while you --' looking at both Pierre and Roberto ' -
- Will come from behind and free the captain and his crew.
Easy.' She shrugged her shoulders casually. Roberto
thought his heart almost stopped at the ridiculous plan.
'There is no way that I will allow you to go on that
ship again,' said Roberto abruptly, glaring at her.
'Now wait, Roberto. That sounds like a great plan.'
'No.'
'Do you have a better idea?' Pierre asked with a
grin. His friend was smitten.
'Please, Captain, we can help these men and I can
make a better diversion than you can. My life will be safe. I
mean, I am surrounded with D.E.I.C. men. There are only
ten pirates. We can take them out.' Her logic was too
simple for him. How could he put her back, knowing what
he had just discovered?
All eyes were on him, the food forgotten, as they
waited.
Debating with himself, weighing both the pros and
cons, he knew this was the best plan. Reluctantly, Roberto
had to agree to the plan and finally said:
'Okay. I see that it can work, but if there is, at any
time, the smallest notion that your life is in danger, we pull
out. Is that clear?'
'Yes, clear.' both Pierre and Rosa-Lee agreed and
they smiled to each other.
'Let's eat,' said Rosa-Lee. 'I am starving.' Chuckles
filled the cabin; even Roberto revealed a grin before it
disappeared again.
11
Watching the woman eating, Roberto could not
believe he just agreed to this insane plan. His mind raced,
trying to find a new plan, but hers was the best. He
admitted after a few minutes. She clearly had put a lot of
thought into it and they could win. Setting the captain and
his men free for a get out of jail free card… he smirked.
'Yeah right.'
The whole idea was preposterous but as he watched
her it grew on him just as she grew on him. He knew he
had feelings for her but to what extent he did not want to
admit. But she brought out the best in him. She was more
than he expected and in only a short time he could not
imagine giving her to the Falcon. That in itself was a
thought that kept him awake often.
The whole idea of putting her in danger among the
other pirates made his palms sweaty. His heart throbbed. So
many things could go wrong. And he would never forgive
himself if she got hurt.
He watched as she listened to the conversation at
the table, smiling sweetly at the men, and another emotion
surged through him. One he had never encountered before.
He frowned as she talked to Pierre, who listened to
her with interest. When Pierre looked at him, Roberto
scowled. His second smiled and continued with the
conversation. Her laughter rang through the air. It annoyed
him and he pushed his chair away, stepping out into the
passageway as the door slammed behind him.
He knew he was acting childlike but he could not
help himself. He walked to his grand cabin and plopped
down in his chair. Thoughts rushed through him.
Come on,
man.
The woman can talk to whomever she wants. She is
not married to you.
He squirmed in his chair. Seeing a glass of wine on his desk he took one huge swig and smacked his
lips as the red liquid poured down his throat. His thoughts
stuck on the word
married.
As if something had struck him, he briskly walked out of his cabin to the upper deck,
knowing that his thoughts would be best occupied when
busy.
It took them eighteen hours to catch up with the
Heerengardt
near the north coast of Morocco, at the curve where the Atlantic and the Mediterranean met. It was
already late and Roberto decided to do it early in the
morning, when most of those men would still be asleep. He
was hoping they would have a good run-in with the rum
barrel the previous evening.
They chose a few trusted men to go with them and
brought them up to speed with the plan. All of them were
eager to help the fellow sailors, even if they were
technically enemies.
Just as the sun broke over the horizon the
Contra O
Vento
sent a distress signal and the
Heerengardt
answered.
The long boat had left an hour earlier with the chosen men
on their way to the other side of the ship, waiting for the
signal from Roberto.
The longboat had lowered onto the water and Rosa-
Lee was let down with the boats man Fausto accompanying
her. The Spaniard's short, bulky frame concealed his
strength and speed, both with weapons and his fists. He was
the only man Roberto trusted to protect her at all costs.
Roberto thought his heart was going to stop at the
sight of her. To think that he gave in to the plan was utter
madness.
He swallowed at the lump in his throat, followed
Pierre into the water, and swam behind the longboat to get
unnoticed to the
Heerengardt.
They would then continue
around the ship where they would meet the other men and
get up with a rope fastened to their waists.
They were both masked, their identities sealed from
prying people. They were still pirates, enemies on the
waters. As they approached the ship, Rosa-Lee made sure
that her dress revealed enough to keep the 'captain' busy.
Roberto almost had a heart attack when he saw her at first.
Her bosom was showing too much soft roundness for his
taste, and her small waist was even more accentuated.
Some of his men smiled with pleasure and he gave them
angry warning looks.
To display her attributes before other men was not
good at all. It made him resentful to the whole absurd idea
all over again. And again that unknown feeling coursed
through him. It was an emotion so new to him that he did
not recognize it at first, until Pierre pointed it out and
Roberto told him to shut his mouth. The man was pleased
with the discovery of Roberto's envious emotions and
gleeful, full of mischievous behaviour. Roberto knew he
would never hear the end of this.
Rosa-Lee made sure that the men on the
Heerengardt's
eyes were glued on her so that they would
not notice the two men behind them. The boatswain had
warned her a few times to take it easy, not to fall over the
side, at which she just shrugged her shoulders and
continued, enjoying the adventure. However, in reality, she
was nervous and did not want to show it to Roberto. She
was hiding behind the bravado. To show so much of herself
was a first. She had never flaunted herself deliberately and
felt self-conscious about it, but the reaction from Roberto
surprised her in a good way.
When she finally got on board, the impostor greeted
her keenly. He seemed ugly as his eyes ran hungrily over
her body. She had to fight the shivers running through her.
She swallowed at the bile threatening to rise and
plastered a smile on her face.
This is what she was aiming for. Distraction.
'My good captain, finally we can meet. I was
distracted when you were on the ship earlier. Your fame
precedes you, and your second in command is a worthy