A Pirate's Love (3 page)

A
fter a week at sea, Bettina missed the luxury of her baths. The small bowl of water allotted to her each day was hardly sufficient, and she soon found that her dirty hair was to be her worst problem. But after two weeks she was able to wash it, when the
Windsong
encountered her first rainstorm on this voyage. She had to go on deck, which the captain sternly disapproved of, and let the rain caught by the slackened sails pour down on her. It meant getting soaked to the bone and having to walk across the slippery, dangerous decks, but it was worth it.

The men were ordered below decks, for the captain preferred not to take chances. But with Jacques Marivaux and his officers on guard, and Madeleine beside her, Bettina felt quite safe.

The captain joined Bettina a few times for dinner, and each time he stressed that she must remain out of sight of the crew. She was allowed on deck in the late evening, after most of the crew was below, but only if the captain or one of his officers was with her. Bettina couldn't understand why, and the captain was too embarrassed to explain. Finally, Bettina asked Madeleine why she couldn't have the freedom of the ship.

“It's not for you to concern yourself with,
ma chérie
,” Madeleine said. “You just do as the
capitaine
instructs.”

“But you do know the reason, don't you, Maddy?” Bettina pressed her.

“Yes, I suppose I do.”

“Then why do you hesitate to tell me? I am not a child anymore.”

Madeleine shook her head. “You are innocent of life, and a child in many ways. You know nothing of men, and the less you know, the better.”

“You cannot protect me forever, Maddy. I will have a husband soon. Must I be completely ignorant?”

“No—no, I suppose you are right. But do not expect this old woman to tell you everything you want to know.”

“Very well, just tell me why I cannot have the freedom of the ship,” Bettina replied.

“Because you must not tempt the crew with your beauty, my pet. Men have strong desires that make them want to make love to a woman, especially one as lovely as you.”

“Oh!” Bettina gasped. “But surely they know that they cannot.”

“Yes, but if the crew is subjected to seeing you every day, then they will begin to want you. This desire that a man has can become so overpowering that he will even risk death to make love to a woman.”

“How do you know all of these things, Maddy?” Bettina asked, smiling.

“I may never have married, but I have knowledge of men. When I was young, I was not shielded from them as you have been, Bettina.”

“You mean you have made love with a man?”

“Now your curiosity goes too far, young lady. Leave this old woman in peace.”

“Oh, Maddy.” Bettina sighed, for she knew Madeleine would tell her no more, and there were so many things that she wanted to know. Perhaps after she was married all her questions would be answered. But she couldn't help wondering what making love would be like. It must be a great pleasure if men would risk their lives to do it. But she would just have to wait until she was married; then she would learn what it was all about.

 

After three weeks at sea, a most unpleasant incident occurred. Bettina was alone in her cabin, for Madeleine had left her to wash some of their clothes. When the door opened, Bettina didn't even glance up, thinking it was Madeleine returning. But she screamed when two hands clamped down on her shoulders and spun her around. The man didn't seem to hear her. He just held her, his glazed eyes covering her body slowly, but he made no move to do anything else.

“Seize him!” the captain shouted.

Bettina started, and then two men hurried into the cabin and took hold of the man. She followed in confusion and watched as the man was dragged across the deck, despite his frantic struggling. He was then tied to the mainmast and the first officer ripped his tunic fiercely apart.

Captain Marivaux appeared beside Bettina, scowling. “It is most unfortunate that this has happened,
mademoiselle
. Comte de Lambert will be furious when he learns that you were nearly raped.”

Bettina did not look at the captain, for she was
staring as if in a daze at the poor man who was awaiting his punishment. The first officer himself stood behind the man with a short whip in his hand. The whip was made of coiled leather, about a yard long, frayed into many knotted strands.

The captain addressed his crew harshly, but Bettina was too appalled at what was about to happen to even listen to his words. Then Captain Marivaux gave the signal and the first officer cracked the whip in the air once, twice, then brought it down with brutal force across the man's back. Thin trickles of blood ran down from the red streaks across the man's quivering flesh. Then another streak appeared as the whip lashed down once more.

“No, for God's sake! Stop this!” Bettina cried.

“It must be done, Mademoiselle Verlaine. The crew was warned, so it is no fault of yours.”

Again and again that horrible instrument tore into the man's back, splattering his blood across the deck and onto nearby men's clothing. Bettina didn't know when she ran to the railing. Perhaps it was when the man started screaming, but even that didn't last for long. When her retching finally stopped, she could still hear the horrible sound of the whip tearing into the man's flesh, and there was not another sound to be heard.

Finally it stopped. Thirty lashes had been given, she was told later, and the man was only barely alive. In Bettina's mind, the man had only frightened her, and for this he was writhing in pain and would be useless for the remainder of the voyage.

Bettina cried that night, and she was sick three more times, every time she thought about that horrible scene. A man had almost died because he had nearly raped her. Raped.

“What did the
capitaine
mean, Maddy, when he said that man nearly raped me?” Bettina asked late that same night. “All he did was look at me, and for that he suffered terrible pain.”

Madeleine, who was lying on her small cot, was staring moodily at the ceiling of the cabin. She was as disturbed as Bettina over what had happened that day, but her concern was for her ward.

She looked at Bettina now, a worried expression on her face. “He would have done more than that if the
capitaine
had not come in time. This is my fault, Bettina. I should not have left you alone.”

“But the man did nothing, and now he is marred for life because of me!”

“He disobeyed the
capitaine
's orders, and for that he was whipped. The crew was warned not to go near you, Bettina, but this man did not heed the warning. He would have made love to you if the
capitaine
had not heard your scream,” Madeleine said quietly.

“Then why didn't the
capitaine
say that, instead of saying he nearly raped me?”

“Did you want that man to touch you?”

“Of course not,” Bettina replied.

“Well, he would not have taken your wishes into consideration. He would have forced himself on you against your will, and that is rape.”

Bettina leaned back on her own cot, her mind in a whirl. So that's what rape was—making love to women who did not want to be made love to. How awful! But then, she still didn't know what making love was all about. Oh, she was so stupid! When would she learn? When would she find out what making love was like? When she was married, she reminded herself, and that would be soon enough.

T
he
Windsong
was making rapid headway into warmer waters, but she still had a great distance to go before reaching Saint Martin. The weather had changed considerably, and the wind no longer had such an icy bite to it.

Bettina knew that she could look forward to a warm tropical climate on the small island of Saint Martin. Captain Marivaux answered many questions when he dined with her. She learned that her future husband owned a large plantation on the island and that he had gained great wealth by exporting cotton.

After the horrible time when that poor seaman was whipped so cruelly, no other such incidents occurred. The crew was careful to stay well away from Bettina when she was allowed on deck.

After a month at sea, they encountered another storm that was quite mild at first, and Bettina was able to wash her hair again. But she had barely finished when the storm increased in intensity, and she was forced to return to the safety of her cabin.

It seemed as if the heavens had opened up and were throwing their vengeance on this ship alone. It stormed all through the night, and the violent pitch
ing of the ship made it impossible for Bettina to sleep. She tried pacing the floor nervously but was quickly thrown against the walls of the cabin. Luckily, everything was securely fastened down, and Bettina dashed back to the built-in captain's bed for protection.

Amazingly, Madeleine had fallen asleep quite easily, which annoyed Bettina, who was very frightened. She was sure that the
Windsong
would crash over into the sea and they would all drown.

But sometime in the middle of the night, with her hands braced against the sides of the little bed and her still-wet hair trailing over the side, Bettina herself finally went to sleep.

 

The sea was calm the following morning when Bettina awoke. She chided herself for being so frightened the night before, and was sure it hadn't been such a bad storm after all.

Madeleine was already up and dressed, and pouring the allotted amount of cold water into a small bowl for Bettina's morning toilette.

“Did you sleep well, my pet?” she asked cheerfully.

“I did not,” Bettina grumbled and swung her long legs off the bed. Her damp hair fell over her shoulders, and she grimaced. “Maddy, be a dear and go ask the
capitaine
if I can dry my hair on deck.”

“I will do no such thing. You are not going out there in the morning,” Madeleine answered adamantly.

“If I have the
capitaine
's permission, then it will be all right. And you know how long my hair took to dry last time. I nearly caught cold.”

“There is worse you can catch up on deck,” Madeleine replied.

“Please, Maddy, do as I ask.”

“I will, but I don't like it.”

Madeleine left the cabin, grumbling to herself as she closed the door. Bettina dressed quickly in a velvet dress of a dark violet that contrasted vividly with her hair. When Madeleine returned, she led Bettina to the rear deck of the ship.

“I still don't like this, young lady, so be quick about it,” Madeleine said sternly.

Bettina laughed. “I cannot make the wind blow faster, Maddy. But it will not take long.”

She faced the wide expanse of sea to let the wind sweep through her hair, drying it swiftly. After a few minutes she spoke again.

“Where is the
capitaine?
”

“On the gallery I am surprised he agreed to let you on deck after what that poor sailor attempted.”

Bettina turned to see the captain in a heated argument with one of his crewmen.

“Look, Bettina, a ship!” Madeleine cried.

Bettina turned and saw the other sail in the distance.

“Ladies, you must return to your cabin quickly.” Bettina jumped as the captain came up behind her. “If that seadog of a lookout had been doing his job, instead of watching you, then he would have seen the vessel in time. As it is, they are coming straight for us.”

“Is there anything to be alarmed about,
Capitaine?
” Bettina asked worriedly, a frown puckering her brow.

“That ship is not flying her colors. She may be a pirate vessel.”

Bettina gasped. “But surely they will not attack the
Windsong!
”

“It is unlikely that they will,
mademoiselle
, but one never knows about these cutthroats. We will try to outdistance them, and I must ask that you lock the door to your cabin. Do not open it for any reason until the danger is past. And do not worry. We have succeeded in fighting off pirates before.”

Bettina felt sick inside. Do not worry, the captain said! How could she
not
worry? She had heard vivid stories about pirates from other girls in the convent. Pirates were horrible, horrible men! They were the rogues of the sea, the Devil's workers, who plundered, murdered, and raped.
Mon Dieu
, this could not possibly be happening!

“Maddy, I am frightened,” Bettina cried, close to tears.

“We are not going to worry. This is an able ship, my pet. The pirates will not have a chance to board her. And besides, the other vessel may be friendly. You must not fear, Bettina. The
capitaine
will protect you, as will I.”

Madeleine's words were reassuring, but Bettina was still alarmed, and even more so when they heard cannonfire. Madeleine's soft gray eyes widened as she stared at Bettina, who had turned suddenly pale. A thunderous blast echoed in the small cabin, and then they heard the cracking of timber and a loud crash. They knew that one of the
Windsong
's masts had fallen.

Soon they felt a jarring, as of one ship coming up against the other. Shouting could be heard, and gunfire, and the sickening sound of screams—men screaming as they met their deaths.

Madeleine sank to her knees to pray, and Bettina
quickly joined her. After a short while, the gunfire ceased, and they heard boisterous laughter. Perhaps the crew of the
Windsong
had won. Was it too much to hope for, that they were safe now? But then they heard English words among the laughter. The crew of the
Windsong
was entirely French, and spoke only French. The pirates had won!