Dark Prelude by Andrea Parnell Read Free Book Online Page A

aching. Having suffered much to retain
her meager possessions, she could not easily part with them. As Eli
moved closer, his bulk and scraggly hair reminded her of a large
black bear she had seen once in a circus. Yet there was a gentle
nature in his rough features and his face held no threat. With a
sense of relief she relinquished her burden.
    Eli’s brawny figure disappeared as he
brusquely walked off, effortlessly swinging her satchel and leaving
her once again alone with the captain. Apprehension nagged like a
little speck of doubt set in her mind and even Langham’s
trustworthy appearance failed to completely rid her of it. The
entire morning had been a frightening ordeal and she longed to
reach the sanctuary of the cabin.
    Like a plague of darkness, the fog was all
around them now, until the air at her face felt congealed with the
density of it. Her throat tightened. She could scarcely see the
captain’s back as he threaded his way along the crowded deck.
Following, she gasped and trembled when the hem of her skirt
brushed against objects hidden by the oppressive thickness of the
cloying haze.
    With wide eyes, she imagined icy fingers
clutching at her from the gloomy mist. Suffering a disquieting
shiver, Silvia hastened to Langham’s side until they reached the
passageway that led below.
    “It’s small, but a sight more comfortable
and private than the hold, Miss Bradstreet,” he announced heartily
and with a nod of his head indicated the berth which nearly filled
the dim cabin. As Silvia stood inside, weary and disheveled,
scarcely able to keep to her feet, he pointed out a cupboard where
her bag had been placed.
    A sympathetic smile gave her a tiny bit of
strength and she responded weakly as he lit a small oil lamp and
anchored it in a rack set to the wall.
    “Thank you, Captain. I’m sure the voyage
will be a pleasant one,” she said hopefully. His words and the
soothing flicker of the lamplight had begun to settle her nerves
and now she sunk limply into a chair, drained of energy.
    Langham took a long but polite look at her.
“If you’ll pardon my saying so, Miss Bradstreet, you look a bit
worse for the wear. Perhaps you’d like to wash and rest a while.
We’ll not sail until this blasted fog lifts.”
    Somehow when he said her name there seemed a
bit of a sneer in his voice. Though before she could be put off by
it, he turned, smiling fervently, to open a cupboard and show her a
bowl and a pitcher of water.
    “I’ll send a tray from the galley, then
sleep if you like. Someone will wake you for the evening meal.”
    Silvia accepted his suggestion and thanked
him further. She was too tired to think clearly or to care about
anything but resting. Her misfortune had left her sore and
exhausted and even sitting in the hard wooden chair proved
painful.
    She stared blankly at the uneven planks of
the door for a few minutes after he left. How she yearned to climb
into the bunk and sleep. With a grimace of pain, she leaned over to
unlace her boots thinking that she must be certain to express her
gratitude to Mr. Schlange. Wickes had told her of the arrangements
for bondservants, makeshift compartments in the hold separated by
blankets strung on ropes. He had said only one other woman would be
aboard and she with her husband, a smith Mr. Schlange had bought
out of prison.
    That being the case, Mr. Schlange must have
decided she should not travel alone with the dozen or so men he had
indentured. Though she had not expected preferential treatment, she
wholeheartedly appreciated it and determined she would see that Mr.
Schlange did not regret his kindness to her. Slipping free of the
boots, she twisted slightly in the chair and placed them beside the
bed.
    Before she stirred again there was a light
knock at the door.
    “Miss,” a youthful voice rang out, and for a
moment Silvia stiffened in alarm. “Your tray, miss.”
    “Come in,” she said feebly, smoothing her
hair and covering her stockinged feet with