Elizabeth Meyette - [Love's 01] by Love's Destiny Read Free Book Online

disquiet. Everyone around Emily was caught up with securing the ship for what promised to be a severe storm.
    Lightning flashed in the distant clouds, and the remote rumble of thunder caused urgency in movement among the crew. Jonathon hurried across the deck to Emily, a look of concern creasing his brow.
    “You had best go below, Emily. It is dangerous to be about during a storm at sea,” he said.
    Emily felt anxious, but she did not want Jonathon to sense her fear.
    “As you wish, Captain.”
    The tossing ship made it difficult for her to remain seated comfortably anywhere in her cabin. Her heart pounded, and she kept wiping the sweat from the palms of her hands as she awkwardly paced the length and breadth of her quarters. In spite of herself, Emily began to wonder what her father’s thoughts and feelings were as his ship was beset by that fatal storm. She pictured him bravely giving orders, urging his men on, boosting their morale. She closed her eyes and ground her fists against them at the thought of him being swept into the sea. It was a vision she had been fighting for a month or more, and, try as she would to erase it, it haunted her waking and sleeping.
    Fear gripped Emily and she decided to join Andrew in his cabin. She steadied herself along the walls as she made her way to his quarters, pausing when the ship lurched, then moving on. She knocked at his door and, getting no answer, rapped louder and called his name. Receiving no reply, she entered his room and proved her growing fear. He was not there. She spun about and ran toward the ladder. Clambering up it, she lost her balance when the Destiny dipped suddenly. She regained her footing and sped to the main deck.
    Drenching rain combined with the waves that spilled over the sides of the ship and made the deck dangerously slippery. She searched for her brother, but rain-soaked men with dripping hair and clothes that clung to their bodies were everywhere. Lightning streaked across the murky sky as thunder deafened Emily’s call. She quickly, but cautiously, explored the entire deck, jostling among the men, trying to keep her footing. Suddenly a firm grip encircled her arm and swung her around.
    “You little fool! Did I not tell you to get below?” Jonathon yelled above the din. His sodden clothes clung to his lean form and his hair dripped down his face and neck.
    “Where is Andrew?” she cried.
    “Where he belongs, in his cabin,” Jonathon bellowed.
    “No, he is not! I was just there!” she wailed in dismay.
    Jonathon cursed. “Get below. I will find him and order him down, too,” he shouted and swiftly turned and left. Emily started for the quarterdeck but was stopped by a sudden loud crack. Looking up to where the sound came from, she screamed in horror. Andrew was high up the mizzenmast; it had just snapped and was tumbling toward the raging sea.
    Everything seemed to happen slowly, as if in a dream, Emily’s agonized scream hovering in the air before her. The mast seemed to drift downward, then caught for a moment, and it seemed Andrew would fall to the deck — a long fall, but at least safe from the angry ocean.
    Emily ran forward, but it was as though she was caught in a nightmare. Her slippers lacked traction on the rain-soaked deck, and she made no headway. The slick wood made her feet slide from underneath her, and she fell with a thud that knocked her breath from her.
    “Andrew!” she tried to scream, scrambling toward where he was falling. Then she watched in horror as the mast snapped completely, and the sea claimed Andrew.
    Jonathon saw what had happened also, and stripping hastily, he kept his eyes on the spot where Andrew entered the water. Grabbing a sturdy rope, he tied it about his waist while some men secured the other end to a winch. Tucking a knife between his teeth, he dove into the roiling water and was lost beneath the waves.
    Emily regained her footing and scrambled to her feet clutching the railing for support. She