Call of the Sea (26 page)

Ellie’s sapphire orbs flew open as the cylinders of the lock fell into place. “Jashir. That’s who you mean, isn’t it?” Her fingers twisted around the blanket until her knuckles blanched.

“Aye. We were to meet with Jashir and sell him two hundred flintlock rifles McTavish supplied to us.” Daniel rose from the bed and started pacing the room, nervous energy making his limbs twitch.

“We set up the meet, but your father never made the final rendezvous to complete the trade.” He left off the part of the story where her father decided to postpone the meeting with Jashir and follow a rumor that Harris’s ship, the one Ellie sailed on, had departed from Gibraltar just a day earlier. He couldn’t tell Ellie they’d been attacked because Captain Winters felt chasing after his daughter was more important than a mission he was being blackmailed to complete. Some truths were never meant to see daylight.

“Why didn’t he?”

Daniel stopped pacing the floor and settled his rump on the corner of the desk, folding his arms over his chest. He considered his words carefully. “Something important came up that your father decided to handle first. I’m certain that’s why Jashir came after us, why he shot your father. He’s a man who doesn’t take kindly to being disappointed.” Daniel released a harsh laugh. “I’d have given anything to have been conscious when Jashir learned those guns weren’t aboard.”

Confusion danced across Ellie’s features. “Why not? Where were they?”

“We hid them on an island near Gibraltar until we could get back to complete the trade. McTavish thinks the guns were stolen, that Jashir took them when he commandeered
The Siren’s Call
. I didn’t bother to tell him what your father did with them. Those guns are going to be our key to getting Jashir’s attention.”

Ellie arched a brow. “How’s that?”

“We collect the guns and bring them into Gibraltar, make it clear around town that we’re looking to sell them. Jashir is sure to hear about it. When he learns I’m captaining
The Call
and I have the flintlocks, he’ll come after what he considers his.”

Ellie sighed. “Why didn’t you just tell me the truth before, Daniel? Why the secrecy? I don’t understand. What was the point in hiding all this from me?”

“I swore an oath of secrecy, as did you father. I only break it now because one, you are my wife and I have no intention of hiding anything from you ever again, and two, because I’m a man of my word. I told you I would explain about McTavish if I lost the wager, and I have.”

Ellie rolled his explanations around in her head, nose wrinkled in concentration, and teeth gnawing her lip. “If McTavish thinks the guns are gone, what does he still want with you?”

“He wants me to finish what your father started and find out who Jashir is buying the weapons for.”

Ellie just stared at him. He could see her mind racing, watched with a sense of awe as dozens of different emotions flashed in her stormy eyes. “How exactly did you plan to do that, Daniel, when I have every intention of slitting the bastard’s miserable throat?”

The question was a sound one, but he had no answer for her. If he didn’t follow orders, McTavish would take great pleasure in ruining Captain Winters’ reputation and taking everything from Ellie in the name of restitution to the crown. Rather than try to paint the situation in a positive light, Daniel settled on the stark truth. “I really have absolutely no idea, El.”

Chapter Thirty

Ellie stood at the rail of
The Siren’s Call
clad in breeches, work shirt and boots, the only evidence she’d revealed her gender to the crew found in the curve of her breasts, no longer bound tightly to her chest. Alternating currents of fear and exhilaration coursed through her as she watched the port of Newquay shrink behind a blanket of white-tipped crests. The sun rose behind the distant hills, painting the horizon with a dazzling display of reds and pinks.

Red sky at morning, sailors take warning.

The age old sailor myth echoed in her mind, but Ellie was too eager to finally be on their way to let a silly legend affect her mood. It felt like she’d been waiting forever for the opportunity to avenge her father. She released her grip on the rail, her hand sliding down over her abdomen.

What will I look like round with child?

She had been sick each of the three mornings since the wedding. At first, Ellie had tried to convince herself she had a bug, or something she ate at the wedding hadn’t agreed with her. She might have believed it, if it weren’t for the tenderness in her breasts and the way the nausea disappeared a few hours after she woke each day.

Ellie turned from the breathtaking sunrise and wandered across the deck to the helm, where Daniel had stationed himself. The mere sight of him sent her heart rate soaring. Standing at the wheel, wind tousling his thick chestnut hair, he resembled a mythical sea god. What would he say if he knew?

I wouldn’t be on this ship because he’d have left me behind.

No. Telling Daniel she suspected she was pregnant was definitely not on her agenda. The first order of business was to sail to a tiny island off the Spanish coast and retrieve their guns. While the crew knew the island’s location, only Daniel knew where her father had hidden the crates.

“How long do you think it will take us to reach the island?” she asked Daniel when she reached him.

“A week, maybe two. I plan to stay as close to the coastline as possible, try to avoid the deeper waters and potential traffic. The less attention we bring to ourselves, the better.”

“Where would you have me report? I hope you don’t expect me to sit idle while the rest of the crew works.”

“Of course not, I know better.” Daniel pointed out ahead of the ship. “We’ve some foul weather in our path. As much as it pains me to say it, you’re the best we have in the rigging. I’d like to have you up tending the yards with Nelson.”

She felt a rush of pride at his praise. “Aye, Captain.” Ellie was anxious to get back to work. She welcomed the distraction and the fresh air could only do her ailing stomach good. She crossed the deck to the mainmast, swung her gaze upward.

Nelson worked in the canvas sheets overhead, fastening a coiled length of rope to the spar.

Ellie stuck her foot into a loop at the base of the mast and climbed hand over hand, catching the footholds on the way. Reaching Nelson, she offered him a teasing smile. “The captain sent me up to cover your arse. Said you can’t handle the rigging alone and you needed someone to show you how to do it.”

He rolled his eyes, a smile stretching his lips. “Yeah, I’m sure that’s what he said.” Nelson knotted the rope in his hands and shifted his attention to her. His brow scrunched. “You look like you haven’t slept in a week.”

She began gathering lengths of collapsed sail, twisting and tying them down to the spar. “I’ve had an upset stomach the past few days, so I haven’t been sleeping well. It’s probably just stress from having to wait so long to get underway. I’ll be fine.”

He didn’t look like he was taking the bait, but after a moment he shrugged. “If you say so.”

The ship lurched to port beneath the force of a large wave. Ellie grabbed hold of the lines, riding the roll of the swaying hull. Her gaze shot to Daniel, who pulled hard on the rudder, steering the ship into the walls of dark frothy water. Sea spray exploded upward as
The Siren’s Call
smashed into the next swell, chilling Ellie’s cheeks. Black clouds grumbled with dissatisfaction, threatening any who dared approach.

“It doesn’t look too pretty out there,” Nelson said.

Fastening the last tie on the sail she’d bundled, Ellie moved to the other side of the yard. Hanging tight to the rigging, she leaned against the wind and began to gather the sails on the other side. The less air caught in the canvas, the better. “Aye, but we’ve been through worse.”

Another mountain of water crashed into the ship, washing unprepared crewmen from one side of the deck to the other.

Ellie’s stomach twisted and lurched violently. Before she had time to react, it revolted, splattering her stomach contents onto the deck below. She swiped her hand across her lips and cast a meek glance at Nelson.

He studied her for a long moment, head tilted. His eyes narrowed. “Get your arse down from here right now, El. You’ve got no business being here in your condition.”

She prickled at his accusatory glare. “I told you, I’m fine.”

“You may be able to bat your lashes at Daniel and get him to believe anything you say, but I’m not falling for it. Your stomach condition has nothing at all to do with being sick.”

“I can still do my job. I’m not about to shirk my responsibilities and cry sick. I’m perfectly capable of working through a little stomach ache.”

Nelson’s words hissed through clenched teeth. “We both know you aren’t sick. Get down.
Now
. I can’t believe you would risk your unborn child this way.”

Ellie blinked, panic climbing her throat. If Nelson could recognize the truth so easily, she had no chance of keeping the baby a secret from Daniel. “Don’t you dare say a word about this to Daniel. Do you understand? I’ll tell him. I just need some time.”

He sighed, shoulders dropping. “I won’t say anything, but you’ll not be able to hide this for long. He isn’t daft, El.”

“I know.”

The Siren’s Call
swayed hard as Daniel navigated the harsh thirty-foot seas.

Ellie’s stomach responded to the motion, tightening into a ball. She swallowed hard, blood rushing from her face. “Gotta go.” She scrambled down the mast.

As soon as her feet hit the deck boards, Ellie sprinted for the captain’s cabin. She ignored the wide-eyed looks from the crewmen she passed, intent on her goal. There would be time to explain her strange actions later, when she wasn’t in danger of retching on the deck for all to see. It would be nearly impossible to convince Daniel she just got a little seasick in the storm.

Once within the private confines of the cabin, Ellie released a ragged sob and threw herself on the bunk. She drew her knees up to her chest and hugged herself tight. Eyes scrunched closed, she took deep breaths through her nose and blew them out with puffed cheeks, willing away her desire to vomit.

***

Daniel watched Ellie race across the deck and disappear into their cabin as if pursued by an angry mob with pitchforks. Even with the howling winds, he heard the portal slam shut behind her.

What the hell is going on?

With a storm bearing down on them, he didn’t have time to investigate his wife’s odd behavior. Daniel held tight to the wheel as wave after wave crashed against the ship. His biceps burned from the effort needed to keep on a steady course.

Lightning lit the sky, illuminating the men scrambling across the slick deck between giant swells. They worked furiously to secure lines whipped free by the wind, only to scurry back to more stable positions before the next barrage of water arrived.

“Steady as you go, men,” Daniel shouted into the growing tempest. He pulled hard on the wheel, steering the ship into the next crest. The bow burst through the frothy peak, shooting spray into the air.

If this was just the leading edge of the storm, Daniel had no interest in experiencing its heart. He’d head for open waters and hope to skirt the outer edge.

“Hard to port, boys!” Daniel warned the crew before he spun the wheel, veering the ship at an angle to the next wave. If his timing wasn’t spot on, he’d be exposing the ship to a broadside impact capable of capsizing them. He gritted his teeth and held tight as
The Call
responded to his command, slicing through the oncoming swell. The bow dipped as the ship rode down the back slope, headed for calmer waters.

***

It took a solid hour of fighting the angry sea, but with the help of his seasoned crew, Daniel managed to steer the ship through the worst of the sudden gale. Muscles screaming with exhaustion, Daniel handed the helm off to Jacobs and headed for his cabin, thoughts centered on some dry clothing.

While he was there, Daniel planned to find out why Ellie had left her post. She was stubborn, but she wasn’t one to just abandon her duties. Something had to be wrong. Clinging vines of worry threaded their way into his chest.
What if she’s taken ill?
They were days from the nearest port.

By the time Daniel reached the door, he’d worked himself into a lather. He swung the portal open, gaze sweeping the interior of the cabin.

Ellie lay curled in a ball on the bunk, sleeping, the blanket tucked tight under her chin.

He crossed to the bed and looked down at her, emotions wavering between anger and desire. Daniel reached down and gave her shoulder a light shake. “Ellie?”

When her eyes fluttered open and she offered him a blazing smile of welcome, he almost gasped at the rush of warmth spreading through him.

Just as quickly as it had appeared, her grin wilted and uncertainty clouded her eyes. “I got sick all over the deck. Nelson sent me away.” She sucked her lower lip between her teeth and dropped eye contact, reminding him of a scolded child. He thought he heard her mutter, “I never get sick.”

Daniel leaned over the bed and placed a hand on her forehead. “No fever. Have you been like this since the wedding?”

Ellie nodded. “Something I ate, maybe.”

“You offered that excuse days ago. If you were sick, you should’ve told me. We could have delayed our depar–” The flow of words trickled to a stop when she bolted upright in the bed.

“We don’t need any more delays! We’ve already waited long enough to get underway.”

Ellie’s blatant disregard for her own welfare irritated him almost as much as the rain-soaked clothing plastered to his body. He measured his next words. Getting her worked up was the last thing he needed. “Jashir isn’t going anywhere, El. It’s more important that you’re well. You’re no good to anyone if you can’t get out of bed without spilling your guts all over the deck.”

She let out a groan. “I’m well aware of that.”