Carried Home (4 page)

 

Eden woke that morning to find sunlight streaming in through the window of the cabin. She sat up to discover she was the only person in the room; Caspian and Reed had already risen for the day without waking her.

Startled, she gathered and donned her clothing before she gazed out the porthole. The sun was already quite high in the sky, reflecting on the churning of the turquoise ocean. Eden quickly headed out of the cabin, eager to find her husband and son.

The sea freshened the air and the sun warmed her face as she stepped onto the deck.

“I wondered when you'd wake, my darling.” Caspian's voice sounded from behind her, and he chuckled, a deep and rich noise that made Eden's insides turn smooth.

Eden rotated around to grin at him. He wrapped both arms around her and pressed a kiss to her forehead. “Good morning, love.”

“Good morning.” She stood on her tiptoes to plant a kiss on his lips before turning away. “Where are we, Caspian?”

“We aren't too far from the Bahamas. Since we are so close, I plan to stop in New Providence to see if we can find information about your brother.” Caspian pulled Eden back against his chest when the ship rocked over a swell.

“But, Caspian, I know he has been in Port Royal. We should search there. I should have thought of it when we were married there. I should have done something.” Eden fidgeted with her dress.

Caspian squeezed her tight, stilling her hands. “Sweetheart, we were thinking of other things during our visit in Port Royal, and rightly so. Now, just because your brother has been to Port Royal does not mean that is where we will find him. We are practically looking for a specific grain of sand in the bottom of the ocean, so it will take some searching. We can start at the island closest to us first.”

Eden had to admit her husband was speaking sensibly. “Yes, Caspian, I think that's what we should do. I am sorry I'm so frantic about this. I just wonder if he is alive, or what he is doing. He never visited or wrote to me again, and I don't know why.”

Her husband brushed a curl of hair from her eyes and offered her a tender smile. “Well, love, remember you told me he chose the life of sailing to get away from your father. Maybe he didn't want to be discovered and forced back home. I, for one, believe it is more taxing to sit in a parlor room, doing nothing but business every day.”

Eden lowered her eyes, deep in thought. Everything Caspian said was true, but would her brother really let her think him dead just to escape a boring life? Maybe the price of freedom was worth it to her brother. She had run off from home to be free herself, very much like he had.

****

Agreeing to allow a woman to join him on his ship was one thing, and Gage certainly would be teased enough by his crew for permitting that. But a
babe?

However, Gage knew even if Lady Shaw were not with him, he probably would have taken the little girl on his voyage anyway. He hated to see the poor thing abandoned by her own mother. Families were meant to love and take care of a child, not leave them on the cold doorstep of a church.

Gage knew all too well the effects of an unloving family.

“Captain Thompson, for how long do you think you will stop in the Carolinas?”

Gage spun to see Lady Shaw still cradling the little child, Emma, in her arms. By the loving way she held the baby, Gage could tell she was familiar with little ones. Of that he was glad, because other than growing up with his sister a few years behind him, Gage knew nothing about children. He supposed he had taken a part in raising Reed, Caspian's son, but the boy had been raised by his mother until he was a little older. Gage had simply been guessing when he had taken care of the little guy.

He wondered if he would ever settle down to find a wife and have a child of his own. Gage certainly liked children, but he doubted a decent woman would ever want to marry a privateer like him. One glance at Lady Shaw made him wish even more for a wife of his own. She was so beautiful and she cared so much about the abandoned child that he had no doubt she would make a great …

“Mr. Thompson,” a soft voice interrupted his musings.

Lady Shaw peered up at him, patting her tightly wound orange tresses with a petite hand. Her legs moved rapidly to keep up with his pace.

He slowed a bit. “What is it, milady?”

She blinked. “I asked you how long you intended to stop in the Carolinas?”

“Oh. Please accept my apology, Lady Shaw. I suppose I was thinking of…other things. I'm unsure how long it will take. I will need to find Addie and see she has everything she needs, get her some money or a way to make a living. Mayhap a week? If that does not succeed, I would be happy to take her with me on my voyage. Then we would take less time.”

Lady Shaw nodded slowly as they continued walking. “Sir, you said your sister is only seventeen years old, and she is already a widow? Why, she's younger than I am, and I've barely considered marriage yet!”

Gage averted his gaze, not wanting her to see the anger in his eyes. “Yes, well, I would not say I approved of the marriage. I am not certain she did either. Our…our adopted father practically sold her off to the highest bidder. This highest bidder was a brute of a man who moved her away to the Carolinas. I am afraid to say I have not seen her since before her wedding. She wrote to me expressing her disdain for him, and I recently received a letter telling me of his death.”

****

Ivy knew this man's—and his sister's—private lives were absolutely none of her business, but she was intrigued by this woman who was so young a widow. With a glance at Captain Thompson, who seemed inclined to make the rest of their walk a silent one, Ivy repositioned Emma on her hip.

What on earth was she going to do with a baby once she got back home?

Oh well, there was nothing she could do about it. She refused to see this poor little girl abandoned. Emma gurgled and reached a hand out to slap Ivy in the face. The impact stung a little, but the baby was only playing with her. Ivy stifled a giggle. She already loved this little darling.

****

The moment Lady Shaw stepped on the deck, right ahead of him, the crew started laughing. Gage barely held back a grimace. Well, if the men had not thought him soft for bringing a woman on board, surely they would now that he had found a woman
and a baby.

It would be more of a struggle now to command like a true captain while his crew laughed at him.

“Cap'n, a woman and a baby?”

“Why, Cap'n Thompson's a real family man now!”

Gage tried to block the men's comments out of his mind as they continued to tease him. He knew he was doing the right thing by taking the child with him. Why, it was easy to tell Lady Shaw was going to be a good mother to her.

The woman backed up against him when one of his sailors stepped too close to her, peering at the babe before leering at the lady.
Gage grabbed her by the waist and moved her behind him. He stepped forward and nudged the man back.

“I will hear none of your complaints, men. This child was abandoned by her mother. It was only the Christian thing to do to take her in with us. Lady Shaw will help care for her.”

The men grunted and grumbled.

“If a woman's bad luck on a ship, then a woman with a girl-child ain't a good thing, neither! Especially a woman with red hair.” Rogers, a man with a hard face stepped forward, pointing a grimy finger at Lady Shaw.

“I demand you put an end to your foolishness this instant. Lady Shaw and Emma are here to stay.”

Adam Douglas, the man whom Gage had met at the port and hired as his first mate, nudged Rogers back. “What, are you all truly frightened of a little tyke? What kind of men are you? And you know the saying of a woman on board being bad luck is pure falsehood. I've sailed on a ship with the captain's wife on board and no harm came to us.”

Rogers glared at Adam, and then moved his glare to Lady Shaw and the babe.

Gage grunted in agreement and stepped forward. “Rogers, you weren't sailing with us when we were with Captain Archer, but we had a woman stowaway on board then. No bad luck plagued us. In fact, I gained this ship and Captain Archer gained a wife.”

Some of the men snickered at that. “Fine then, Cap'n. We shall see.” Rogers whirled around and disappeared into the crowd of men on the main deck.

Gage stilled for a moment before speaking to the rest of the men. “I'll hear no more complaints. Return to your stations and prepare to set sail. I want to leave this port in all haste, men.”

“Aye, Cap'n!” A chorus of men shouted.

Gage turned to Mr. Douglas, who had remained by his side. “Please oversee the crew while I take Lady Shaw down to her cabin.”

Adam bowed slightly. “Of course, Captain.”

Lady Shaw stepped forward, her eyes wide as she bounced Emma on her hip. The child reached her open hand out toward Gage, her fingers spread apart wide. He touched her tiny fingers and chuckled.

“Follow me, Lady Shaw, and I will escort you to your cabin.”

****

Ivy took the captain's proffered arm and followed him down the stairs he called the companionway. He passed a few doors before stopping at one at the end of the hallway. The man opened the door and motioned her inside with a grand gesture.

It was an odd sight to see a man of such low class acting in such a gentlemanly manner. He grinned at her, his eyes twinkling. “I hope you enjoy your voyage, Lady Shaw. I know the cot is not a comfortable place to bed, but it is all I have to offer you. Please, milady, just tell me or my first mate, Mr. Douglas, if you need anything.”

He walked into the room after her and held the door open.

“Will we still be departing tonight, then, Captain Thompson?”

“Aye, miss. I want to reach my sister in the Carolinas in all haste. I do not know where she is living or what she is doing, but I do know her wretched husband left her with a hefty debt. Even though she is a tough little thing, I don't want her fending for herself for too long.” A bright, fond look spread across Captain Thompson's face as he spoke of his younger sibling. The man truly seemed like a great brother.

“I understand, Captain. I hope she's all right.”

Captain Thompson chuckled. “Although I want to make sure she is well, I know how strong a young woman she has become. She should be all right. Thank you, milady. Are you sure there is nothing you need before I go back on the main deck?”

Ivy bounced Emma on her hip. “Yes, Captain Thompson, I am certain. Thank you very much.” She glanced at the child in her arms, who appeared far too thin for such a young age. “Well, I think it would be good for Emma to eat something before bedtime. Is there some fruit your men could spare for her? It's probably too much to ask for you to find some milk. Or perhaps something for me to eat, as well?”

“I will see what I can do, milady. We can't let either of you fine ladies go hungry, now can we?” He tweaked the child on the chin. “I will leave you two to get settled, Lady Shaw. I hope you rest well.”

****

After a bearded man brought in a banana for Emma and a biscuit for Ivy, Ivy settled herself and the child on the cot in her cabin and took a moment to observe her surroundings. The cot took up most of the room. A tiny table was pushed between the bulkhead and the cot, and a wooden, straight-backed chair rested nearby. The far end of the cabin—if it could be called the far end, because it was not far away—was graced with a little, round porthole. All in all, the room felt quite cramped. Ivy would be lucky if she could cross it in any direction with more than two or three strides.

Ivy balanced Emma between the bulkhead and her hip as she peeled the banana. She plucked off a section of the fruit and offered it to the child, who was babbling nonsensical words and waving her hands. Emma reached for the piece of food and devoured it within seconds. It appeared the poor dear was hungry. And, well she should be. Who knew when she had last eaten?

Ivy's own stomach growled. Now that she thought of it, she had not eaten in some time either. She broke a piece off the biscuit the man had also given them and moved it toward her mouth, but little Emma eagerly held her hand out for it. Letting out a giggle, Ivy offered the piece to the child, who gobbled it down. Apparently Ivy would be waiting to eat until tomorrow, but that didn't matter. It was best the growing child ate to her fill first.

****

Gage settled himself on his armchair and closed his eyes. They had finally set sail, and he was beginning to discover that captaining a ship was much harder work than Caspian had ever made it appear. He rubbed his forehead, where a nagging headache had begun to form. Not only did he have to deal with gaining the men's respect, but now he had to care for a woman and a baby. And that was no one's fault but his.

A night's rest would do him good.

He opened up his Bible to get a bit of reading done by lamplight before he retired for the night, but a shrill scream interrupted him. Every muscle in his body tightened. Was Lady Shaw being harmed?

Gage leapt to his feet, grabbed a pistol, and headed out of the cabin, intent on saving the lady. A child's wail followed the woman's scream. He skidded to a stop in front of Lady Shaw's door and barely avoided a collision with Mr. Douglas.

“What's going on, Captain?”

Gage ignored his first mate and pounded his fist on the door. “Lady Shaw?”

The woman didn't answer and Gage didn't give her much time to, either. He shoved the door open and peered inside, pistol at the ready. Adam trailed behind him, cutlass in hand.

A shrieking gasp met Gage's ears. The moonlight flickered through the porthole and illuminated the cabin. Lady Shaw sat upright on the cot, clutching a wriggling Emma to her chest. Emma released a heart-wrenching wail and Lady Shaw's eyes widened.

Gage glanced about the room, but saw no immediate threat, so he entered. The woman must have been dreaming, because no one was in her room to cause her to scream. He faced Adam once more. “I think I can handle this, Mr. Douglas. You may go back to your station. Thank you.”

Adam bowed and left the companionway. Gage closed the door behind him. He fumbled around in the dark for a moment before he finally lit a lantern that rested on the tiny table. Lady Shaw began to scramble to her feet, but Gage laid a hand on her shoulder to stop her. Emma shrieked and reached her little arms out to Gage.

“No, milady, there's no need to get up. I-I just came to check on you because I heard you cry out.” He stretched out his arms. “Could I hold Emma? Perhaps she would calm down and you can get some sleep.”

“Please do, Captain Thompson. I suppose I woke her up and now she just won't settle down.” Lady Shaw swung her legs over the side of the bed as she handed the girl off to him.

Gage hefted the babe up in his arms and bounced her against his chest. The child's wails morphed into giggles and squeals of delight.
He could not resist a chuckle himself. After a couple moments, he swung her back to his chest and snuggled her face against him. Lady Shaw flashed him a smile as she gazed at the baby.

Rocking the girl back and forth, Gage nodded to the woman. “What made you scream, milady?”

Gage dragged over the small, wood-framed chair and positioned it next to her.

The lady drew her coverlet up to her chin, and only then did Gage realize he had barged into a woman's bedchamber while she slept. And the lady wore only a nightgown. He felt his face heat at the realization.

“I'm sorry to have disturbed you, Captain. I simply had a nightmare. I am truly sorry; I have had that nightmare before, and I don't doubt I will again.” Lady Shaw pushed at a long strand of orange-red hair that had escaped its braid.

“No, no, miss, it was no trouble at all.” Gage bounced Emma on his lap and brushed his fingers across the little girl's face.
My, but this baby was sweet.
She giggled and grabbed his finger, then stuck it in her mouth. He grinned and observed Lady Shaw, who stared at him. “What was your nightmare about, miss? My mother used to tell me if I talked about whatever bad dream I had, it would go away.”