Lucky's Lady (The Caversham Chronicles Book 4) (56 page)

She nodded. "I will love you always and pray for your family daily. When I have time I will write."

"Please do," Mary-Michael said, adjusting the wimple. "I'll do the same. Give all the children and Rachel my love as well, and thank Sister Euphrenia for the potion."

Sister Elizabeth nodded. "That wimple is perfect. No one can tell you're a red-head."

Mary-Michael kissed her friend's cheeks. "Please ask George to forgive me for leaving without saying goodbye, but tell him I promise to return soon—as soon as possible." She wiped her hands down the front of her frock and smoothed out the fold. "I guess it's time," Mary-Michael said.

The nun nodded. "Keep your head down as you leave the room," her friend whispered. "The hall is dark. Should the guard inside stir, he'll not know the difference. Sister Anne is in the kitchen waiting to help you leave since the constable now has all the doors and your window guarded. She'll give you some of your husband's favorite pie that was left from last night and tell the guard that you are bringing food to the rectory kitchen for the priests' breakfast." They squeezed hands. "Remember not to stop until you reach the rectory. Your captain's nephew is waiting there with another change of clothing for you. He will escort you safely through the village to the docks." The young nun kissed Mary-Michael on the cheeks. "Whatever you do, do not stop, do not turn back."

As Mary-Michael stepped over the sleeping guard's legs on her way to the kitchens, she remembered how much she loved this place. It had been her home as a young girl, and the girls she'd grown up with were her family, no matter the chosen paths they'd taken. She loved this home, and the people inside. As she walked toward the rectory, she prayed that God would keep them all safe until she returned.

 

L
ucky paced the inside of the tiny cell inside the village's jail. Three steps. That was all it took to go from the iron-barred window, facing the back side of the brick courthouse to the iron-barred door. There was no bed, only a pile of straw and blankets in the corner of the room that he wouldn't lay his head on if his life depended on it. The earthen floor muffled the sound of his steps as the nearly full moon through the fog-shrouded night cast an eerie blue light outside the bars.

The entire jail had the noxious odor of damp, moldy straw and wet dirt. He was thankful that Mary's attorney and priest had the forethought to move her from here before their daughter was born. The smell alone was enough to make him ill. Then he remembered Mary saying she'd had spent several days here before they allowed her to go to the children's home. For that alone, he could kill Barlowe.

He reached for his pocket watch, and realized yet again he didn't have it on him, the constable had taken it when he'd been arrested. But even without it, Lucky knew it wouldn't be much longer. He scanned the courtyard, as he did with each lap of the tiny cell. This time he thought he saw something move in the shadows near the building across the way. He squinted, trying to make out what it was through the fog. He recognized the dark blond hair when it crossed close to a lamp in the glowing fog and knew. It was time.

He smiled in the dark cell, an undercurrent of excitement coursing through him making him eager to be gone from here and with the woman he'd fallen in love with over the past two years. Mary. In less than one hour, he would have her in his arms again. In less than two hours they would be hanging every sail his
Lady M
had and as the sun rose, he hoped to be past Sparrow's Point and in the bay. From there, another ten hours and they would reach open ocean.

Only then would he relax, for he knew no one could catch them. They just had to make it past the mouth of the Chesapeake.

Minutes after Lucky saw movement in the shadows, Ren came through the front door to the jail-house, Ian behind him. There was a momentary scuffle as the guard tried to reach for a weapon. With one swing of his meaty fist, Ian rendered the man unconscious. Ren took the keys off the guard, as Ian lifted the man over his shoulder.

"The door Your Grace," Ian said.

When the iron-barred door swung open, Lucky walked out and Ian went in, dropping his baggage on the pile of filth in the corner.

"Thank you, gentlemen," he whispered to his two brothers-in-law, men he couldn't love and respect more.

As quietly as he was able, Ren locked the door and pocketed the keys. Lucky led the way through the village, as he, Ren and Ian clung to the alleyways behind the businesses in Indian Point, heading toward the dock where a boat waited to take them out to the
Lady M.

Once they were away from the center of the village, and safely on Watkins property, Lucky asked, "Were you able to get a crew of men to tow us out?" During the past week, he'd been a frequent visitor to the offices, and had messages for Mary-Michael from her employees. The men who made Watkins Shipyard wanted her safe return to Indian Point, and he was charged with getting this message to her. It was something he looked forward to sharing with her.

Ian nodded. "Becky and David gathered men who were sympathetic to Mary's cause, most of whom are her employees," he whispered. "We have two tow boats from the shipyard, and strong, loyal friends of Mary's."

"Is Mary on the
M
yet?" Lucky asked the question uppermost in his mind.

"She and Marcus should be at the dock waiting for us," Ren said. "We had to time this so no one had to stand about waiting."

At the dock, the trio met Michael, Marcus and a trouser-clad Mary, her hair piled under a boy's cap. This was the first time he'd seen her in her trousers since the year before. Her lean frame was more womanly now that she'd had a child. Their child. In the glow of a nearly full moon, she was the most beautiful woman in the world to him—and she was his. He knew he was mostly to blame for the trouble she'd been in the past few months, and as he'd told Father Douglas earlier that day, he would happily spend the rest of his life showing her how much he loved her, and apologizing for what had happened. But first he had to get her on the M, and get the ship out of the smaller Curtis Bay and into the Chesapeake.

Lucky could make out the form of two other women next to her, likely her friends. When she spied him headed her way, she ran into his arms and he held her as though his own life depended on her next breath. He lifted her off her feet and swung her to and fro before remembering they had company and setting her down.

Her smile, more brilliant than the stars on cloudless ocean, shined up at him and he kissed her repeatedly. "I told you I was not leaving here without you," he said between kisses. "Do you believe me now?"

She nodded into his shoulder, and it was then he realized she was crying. She pulled away from him and pointed to the two longboats below, filled with men who'd once worked for her and Spenser Watkins. "Look," she said through her tears. "They all came to help."

Lucky took the hat from her head and her braid fell down her back. She had to know there were hundreds of people in her little village of Indian Point who loved her, who would help her, and who wanted her to return. But, for some reason, she was still the little girl trying to keep her world from falling apart when she felt abandoned. She had such a difficult time with trusting others to care, and Lucky knew that the situation with Potts and Barlowe was likely not the first time.

He would have to prove to her that not everyone left forever. Sometimes people leave and return.

"Mary-Michael, don't forget your pies." Becky handed her two linen-wrapped bundles.

Looking up at him, Mary said, "One is from Sister Anne, the other is from Becky."

Cady shot a cautious look toward her husband, deep in conversation with David and Ian, then turned to Lucky and whispered, "My husband doesn't know it, but I buy my pies from Becky. With five children, I don't have time to bake."

"I have a favor to ask you both," Mary addressed her friends. "Please have the house here opened for Captain Ross-Mackeever and Lord Camden since they are staying. Send for Sally, Victor and Ezra to tend the gentlemen, and provide them with whatever they need for the time they remain here."

"Keep an accounting and we will repay you upon our return," Lucky told the two women who were his wife's best friends.

"I would never, Captain. You don't understand..." The dark-haired Becky Parks' voice cracked with emotion.

Cady Humphries took up where her friend left off. "Captain, there are so many of us here who are thankful that you arrived when you did and saved Mary-Michael from Barlowe's reach. We will do everything in our power to see to it that your kinfolk are taken care of until they can return to their families."

Lucky reached for her hand and pulled her close to his side. "My wife and I will return as soon as we are able." He kissed the top of her head. "My home is with Mary, and her home is here." Next to him, Mary began to tremble just as Ian called for them to climb down into the long boats. She hugged her friends a last time, and Lucky led her to the bulkhead where steps led down to the boats.

Once seated he gave a slight chuckle, unwilling to laugh just yet even though he was overcome with joy to be leaving with his wife and daughter. He recognized the two men who worked in Mary's office, Robert and Andrew, both men he'd thought might not be supportive of this abduction. The men all nodded in silent greeting, and Lucky decided in that moment how he would repay these men.

When they reached the
M,
Mary sped up the ladder first, running to Lia and gathering their daughter to her and holding her tight. Lucky went to his cabin and returned carrying a large pouch and climbed back down to the boats.

"This is the gold I brought here to purchase Mary's freedom if necessary," Lucky said to the men in both tow vessels. "I am giving it to Robert, to split between you all. My family means everything to me, and I can never repay your kindness this night. We will return as soon as we are able."

The men all smiled and began to chatter. Ian motioned for them to whisper if they must say anything. "You'll be giving us away before we tie our lines," he said.

Lucky, Mary, Lia, and Ren, said goodbye to Ian and Michael who promised to write as soon as they had news.

"It won't be long," Michael said. "Especially when Barlowe learns of the transfer of the trust. He will have no way of getting his hands on your property, Mary."

Ian reminded them all that high tide was in thirty minutes and they had to leave. Lucky promised to send a boat back for them as the two men climbed back down the ladder. Even in the dark, it was only a matter of minutes before his crew had the anchor weighed, bringing the
Lady M
to life as quietly as possible. His experienced men took their places, preparing to unfurl the sails once they cleared the jetty, bringing them one step closer to freedom.

An hour later they were free of the longboats and under the power of the wind, and being carried by the outgoing tide. Mary-Michael climbed the three steps up to the poop and stood silently by his side.

He reached for one of her hands and brought it to his lips. "Is our daughter asleep?"

She nodded and turned her head away. He knew she'd never left her home, in fact had never traveled except to the farm owned by Watkins. He wished there was a way to calm her fears of the unknown, but knew the only way would be to remain constant and be understanding.

"You should try to sleep as well. You've had a long night—not to mention a difficult year."

"I have several weeks ahead of me to rest." Her voice cracked as she held back her tears.

Lucky thought she was the most beautiful woman in the world, standing next to him in boy's trousers and shirt. In the gray early morning light, her hair was blowing free from her plait, and she tucked the loose strands behind her ear in a move he'd seen her do frequently when she was nervous. He could understand feeling this way. Heaven knew she had plenty to worry over now.

"I love you Contessa," he said, "You will never again have to fear the future. I will always protect you, and I will never leave you."

"I hope you
do
leave, to sail this boat I designed for you! You said you wanted to import tea, not be a slug-a-bed."

He laughed. "Eager to be rid of me so soon, wife?" Gray-pink skies began to streak the horizon as they neared Sparrows Point.
Right on time
.

She laughed, too, for the first time since he'd returned to Indian Point. Lucky knew all was well when she looked at him with those glowing amber eyes and a smile that warmed his soul. He called the order to add more sail, and Mary quirked a brow at him. "I will not slow down until we clear Annapolis, and I cannot rest easy until we hit the Atlantic in about ten hours."

She watched his sailors unfurling the cloth. "I do want to continue to design, Lucky," she said. "Even if we leave the running of the yard to Andrew and Robert, they seem to be doing a fine job." Her gaze followed the men walking the footropes on the yards as they did their job. "I have never felt such a sense of accomplishment than I get when I sail on one of my own creations." She thought a moment, then added, "Except when I hold Lucy. She is more perfect in my eyes than any ship I designed.

"And I honestly never thought to marry again. In my head, I feared losing who and what I am if were to marry again. Especially to someone who didn't understand me or my relationship with Mr. Watkins."

"You have nothing to fear now," he said, then corrected himself. "Except perhaps someone chasing us. Though, whoever it might be, it won't be the new constable. Not for some time anyway. That man is currently locked in his own jail cell."

Mary laughed again, a sound that he discovered he enjoyed hearing. "Oh dear. He will not appreciate that."

Now it was Lucky's turn to laugh. "Then I'm glad we brought the keys with us."