Passion's Tide by Sarah West Read Free Book Online Page A

to mark the location of the mysterious ship, which continued to draw closer . It was only a mile away when a shot rang out.
    Amber jumped to her feet and ran to the side of the boat where the Captain stood, his face suddenly distraught . “Are they firing at us?”
    “That was a warning shot.” His voice was grave as he watched with concern.
    “But why would they…” she trailed off as the other ship seemed to burst into action . Simultaneously, all sails dropped and filled with wind, at the same time as the Union Jack was lowered and replaced with the ominous black Jolly Roger . “Pirates!” she gasped, her hand flying to her mouth in surprise . “Can we outrun them?”
    But the Captain was already shouting orders to his men to let down the topsails on the mizzen and main and to throw anything over that could be spared . He was rushing to help the crew when he stopped and spun on his heel . “Miss Townsend, I’m sorry, but your trunk filled with books—”
    He was cut off mid-sentence as Lyle burst from the hatch, dragging the young boy by his hair . “I found him below, disabling the tiller . The rudder is useless now.” He shoved Johnny to the deck, but he quickly bounded to his feet again with a lee r.
    “It’s too late, anyhow,” he told them with a shrug “You can’t outrun the Imperial Shadow , even if you had a working rudder and a two day head start . Look!” Sure enough, the pirate ship was almost upon them.
    The Captain was shaking with fury . “Throw him in the brig, and make sure to lock it, then bring out the coffer of pistols.” Lyle was happy to dole out the punishment, and to the rest of the crew the Captain barked , “Men, prepare to fight.”
    “Captain, shouldn’t we surrender? Surely we cannot hold them off,” Amber shouted, trying to be heard above the cries of the crew .
    “ Miss Townsend, g et below deck, now! Lock yourself in my cabin, and don’t leave until I tell you it’s safe.” She tried to protest but he shoved her in the direction of the stairs and went back to shouting commands to his men . Amber did as she was told with reluctance, and locked the door behind her as she entered the cabin and began pacing, anxiously listening for anything that might tell her what was happening on deck . She heard nothing but the activity of the crew preparing for the attack, and then a large bang, followed by a sickening cracking sound, which she could only assume was the mast toppling over.
    She could scarcely catch her breath, mostly due to nervousness, but in part because her bodice was so constricting. She would have to find a knife to cut herself from her dress. Hastily pulling open the top dresser drawer she tried her best to block out the sounds of gunshots, and metal striking metal as the pirates boarded the ship and began fighting the crew . The top drawer contained nothing but a compass and a pair of breeches . S he slammed it shut and opened the second.
    The noise was getting louder as she rummaged through that drawer, still finding nothing . Panicked now, she threw open the third, where, underneath a folded shirt, she found a pistol . She was pulling it out when she heard two men descending the stairs, and she could tell by their voices that neither of them were members of t he Queen Charlotte’s crew .
    “Ah, this must be the Cap’n’s qua rters, not that he’ll be needing them anymore,” said one of the men, elicit ing a laugh from the other .
    “I say we have a look around, see what he’s hiding’ in there.”
    Amber held her breath as the door jiggled.
    “Locked?” this came from the first pirate, with an eager chuckle . “Must mean he’s got somethin’ of value in there!”
    “Stand aside, Buck,” the second commanded.
    With shaking hands, Amber cocked the pistol and pointed it toward the door, just as it s plintered open.

Chapter Four
    From his stance on the quarterdeck of the Imperial Shadow , the tall pirate Captain surveyed the scene . The