Love's Fiery Jewel (2 page)

1775

A cold, pitiless wind slapped icy swells against the
weathered hulls of the ships docked in Charleston
Harbor, rocking the huge, tethered maidens of the sea
with awesome ease. Overhead, dark, angry clouds
whirling across a bleak February sky effectively obliterated the last meager rays of afternoon sun. Shouts of
harried sailors loading cargo, their breaths frostily visible
on the frigid winter air, grew louder as they cast
occasional apprehensive glances upward at its threatening visage and accelerated their pace in an attempt to win
their race with the impending storm. Their gruff, anxious
voices contributed to the steady din of street peddlers
hawking their wares, the snorts and whinnies of skittish
horses, and the shrill laughter and calls of determined
harlots bidding their faithless beaus goodbye while
keeping a surreptitious business eye in search of quick
and willing replacements.

Moving slowly amongst the milling throng, their
progress hindered by the confusion of liveried carriages
carrying some of the more affluent passengers, the crush
of rough freight wagons delivering cargo and provisions,
and pushcarts heavily laden with all manner of barter for
the imminent voyage, a small group clutched their hand
baggage and made their resolute way toward the tallmasted Sally. Heads bent against the bite of the wind,
they cast occasional worried glances at the fast moving
clouds, apprehension obvious in their wind-reddened faces. One drop.. .then two...and the bustling scene
appeared to freeze for a fraction of a moment before
bursting into frantic activity as the heavens suddenly
opened to release a freezing deluge on the tableau below.

Dashing for cover, departing lovers moved their lastminute caresses into the shelter of doorways, small
business transactions were brought to premature halts as
vendor and customer alike scampered for temporary
shelter, and lingering goodbyes within the elegant
carriages were hastened to allow for rapid retreats from
the fury of the storm. Within minutes the driving rain
had swamped the street, forming huge, dirty puddles on
the slippery ground, creating yet another series of
obstacles for the hapless pedestrians.

Caught in the ensuing melee, the small group's sudden
rush toward the Sally was blocked countless times before
they were able to begin a headlong dash toward the
distant gangplank and eventual shelter. Separated
temporarily from the group as it finally succeeded in
working free of the crowd was a frail young woman
tugging a small, shuddering girl behind her, their cloaks
flapping wildly in the piercing wind. Within a few
minutes' time the driving rain penetrated their inadequate protection to plaster their sodden apparel against
their bodies like icy shrouds, and almost blinded as the
full force of the storm blew into her face, the woman
struggled to keep her fellow travelers within sight.
Clutching her daughter's cold, chapped hand even
tighter, she raised her voice over the fury of the storm.

"Hurry, Amethyst. They're over there! Run, darling,
run!"

Following the direction of her mother's glance with
her own, Amethyst saw the other members of the troupe
moving quickly up the gangplank of a ship docked a
considerable distance away and unprepared for her
mother's sudden surge forward, she fell painfully to her knees on the sodden ground. Biting her lips against the
sting, the child righted herself within seconds to take her
mother's hand and run unfalteringly toward the ship
behind her.

When at last Amethyst's water-blurred vision allowed
her a glimpse of the ship merely a few yards away, her
mother's hand was unexpectedly jerked from hers.
Horrified into immobility, she saw her mother pitch head
over heels along the water-soaked ground, jerking and
tumbling like an absurd mechanical toy, to fall finally in a
small, sodden heap at the base of the gangplank.

Not realizing the shrill, prolonged scream echoing in
her ears was her own, Amethyst had just reached her
mother's inert form when rough hands pushed her aside,
and a huge seaman assumed the place at her side. Enraged
by the stranger's presumption, Amethyst shoved hard at
the man's broad shoulder, and when her supreme effort
had no effect on his massive frame, she began pounding
on his back as she screamed shrilly, "Get away from my
mother! I'll take care of her. ..get away, I said!"

Turning suddenly, the man leveled a menacing glance
in her direction.

"Behave yourself, little girl, before I take a hand to
you! I'm trying to help your mother, little fool!"

Turning back to her mother, he took just a moment
longer for a quick assessment of the woman's condition
before scooping up her unconscious form like a
weightless rag doll. Turning, he started quickly up the
gangplank, hesitating only a second to throw a brief
glance over his shoulder at Amethyst's forlorn, motionless figure and growl impatiently, "Are you going to
stand there in the rain all day? Pick up the bag and follow
me, you little idiot! MOVE!"

Hidden in the darkest corner of the small cabin, still
clothed in her dripping garments, Amethyst watched as the stranger administered to her mother's semiconscious form. Without a moment's hesitation he
stripped away the woman's drenched cloak and wet
shoes, and reaching up beneath her skirts, pulled off her
torn and bloodied stockings.

Glancing to her mother's bruised and swollen face
resting against the pillow, Amethyst knew a moment of
almost paralyzing fear, and swaying with momentary
weakness, finally managed to steady herself by sheer
strength of will just as a familiar figure bustled through
the doorway.

"Captain Straith, is Marian alright? Oh, I'll never
forgive myself for abandoning her in the crush like that. I
should've waited for her...I know how frail she is..."

"There's no time for hindsight now, Miss Hallam."
Bluntly interrupting the young woman's gushing regrets,
Captain Straith continued in an urgent tone. "She seems
to be badly shaken and bruised, but no bones appear to be
broken. Her heartbeat is strong and her breathing
regular. I've sent one of my men for the doctor, but she
must get out of these wet clothes quickly before she
develops a chill."

Obviously embarrassed by her brief lapse of control,
Nancy Hallam answered quietly, "We'll take care of that,
Captain. Thank you." Turning, she shouted over her
shoulder, "Margaret... Margaret! Come in here and
help me! Quickly!"

Rising to his full height, Captain Straith relinquished
care of the injured woman and was almost out the
doorway when a small movement in the corner of the
room caught his eye and he spied the child. Shuddering
convulsively as she stood in her sodden garments, her
hair plastered darkly against her small elfin face, she
stepped further back into the shadows of the corner as his
glance turned in her direction.

Experiencing an unreasonable surge of annoyance, he growled with obvious impatience, "Have you no sense,
girl? Why haven't you removed those wet clothes? Are
you waiting for them to dry on your body? You will
become ill, and your mother will be relying on your
help..."

Stopping abruptly, he was at her side in two brief
strides as the child swayed weakly. Grasping her arms to
steady her, he realized she was painfully thin and freezing
cold, her body quaking so hard that she was unable to
speak.

"Don't waste your strength trying to talk." His voice
was gruff. "Just help me get these clothes off you now."

In a quick, efficient movement, he stripped away her
cloak and proceeded to work at the buttons at the back of
her dress. Suddenly pulling away from his hands,
Amethyst turned wide, violet eyes to stare at him with
horrified maidenly modesty.

Glancing back toward the bunk, Captain Straith saw
the two women working diligently to remove their semiconscious patient's wet clothing and realizing no help
would be forthcoming from their direction, he mumbled
disgustedly, "In a few years, little girl, that outraged
expression will have some merit, but right now you are a
Child. You can't be more than eight or nine years old and
from what I've seen so far, you're not a very bright child,
either!"

Jerking her back toward him again, he resumed
unbuttoning her dress, muttering under his breath as he
did, "Only a fool would stay in wet clothes as long as you
did!"

Finally pulling off her dress, he followed with the wet
petticoat, wincing slightly at the sight of the small, badly
lacerated knees peeking through the holes in her shabby
stockings. Reaching around her slender shoulders, he
pulled the blanket from the unoccupied bunk and
wrapped it tightly around her.

"Now, take off those wet underdrawers!" His sharp
command was accompanied by a direct, steely stare into
violet eyes which succeeded in finally wearing down the
brief display of rebellion on Amethyst's small, pinched
face. Wriggling and squirming inside the voluminous
covering, she finally raised the bottom of the blanket to
produce a small pair of underdrawers hanging wetly
around her ankles. In a swift movement, the tall captain
had scooped her up and depositing her heavily on the
unused bunk, proceeded to pull off her wet shoes and
stockings.

Finally realizing the girl was still struggling to speak
through quivering lips, he stopped long enough to say
with extreme exasperation, "What is it you're trying to
sayr

Directing a surprisingly heated glance into his eyes,
the child stammered through blue, defiant lips, "Then
y...you must b...be a f. ..fool too, Captain,
b.. .because your clothes are as w...wet as in...
mine and y...you haven't y...yet had thes...sense
to ch...change!"

His only answer the slight narrowing of silver gray
eyes and the raising of one dark, arched.brow, Captain
Straith, in a very slow, deliberate movement, took a
corner of the blanket and began vigorously rubbing her
hair dry, shaking her small frame in Amethyst's
estimation unnecessarily roughly as he did.

After a few seconds, he mumbled tightly, "You're a
cheeky little brat, aren't you? Didn't your mother ever
tell you children should be seen and not heard?"

When silence was his only reply, he said imperiously,
"Well?"

"Yes, she did," was the hesitant, small-voiced
response, "...but she didn't t...tell me I sh...
should 1...let anyone c... call me stupid!"

For the briefest second the broad, tanned hands drying her hair slowed, and a small unseen smile hovered
around the corners of the captain's mouth.

"Lassiter!" His sudden shout startled Amethyst
almost into jumping off the bunk, but the captain held
her firmly as a small, gray-haired man came rushing into
the room.

"What is it, Captain?"

Still effectively holding her captive in his strong grip,
he growled in a tone Amethyst was beginning to believe
was his norm, "Bring this young... lady a cup of hot
broth. She needs something to warm her insides and dull
her sharp tongue."