The Pirate Daughter's Promise (Pirates & Faith) Page 9

  After a moment, Skye sighed heavily and glanced at Kate. “What was the worst moment of your life?”

  Kate frowned. “Where did that question come from?”

  Skye shrugged. “I don’t know. I’m just curious.”

  So long a silence followed that Skye didn’t expect Kate to answer and was surprised when Kate spoke.

  “I was six years old,” she began. “Me an’ my mother were part of a group of slaves bein’ sold at a slave market. I was too young to fully realize that we might be separated, so I wasn’t prepared when it happened. She was sold to one person, and I was sold to another. I’ve been through a lotta things, but watchin’ them take my mother away has to be the worst.”

  “That is something we have in common,” Skye said with sadness in her voice. “The last time I ever saw my father was the worst moment of my life. I was aware that he could be captured and killed, but I failed to prepare myself for it because I never believed it would happen. Knowing that night that in a few hours I’d be all alone except for God was a feeling I never want to feel again.”

  “So you have no relatives?” Kate asked.

  “My grandfather lives in Kingston, but he has never acknowledged me as his granddaughter. Because of my father,” Skye explained.

  “And no one would adopt you for the same reason,” Kate said knowingly.

  Skye nodded.

  “There, another thing we have in common. Few people truly care about us ‘cause of who we are. You’re the daughter of a pirate, and I’m an African.”

  “But at least God cares about everyone, no matter who they are. As for people, well, I am blessed enough to have met two who have always cared a great deal about me.”

  “Who are they?”

  Skye looked at Kate, hesitance coming to her face. She trusted her, but she still was reluctant to give up the names of her beloved friends. Kate realized her reluctance and said, “I promise, I would never tell anyone.”

  By the sincere tone of her voice and the seriousness of her eyes, Skye believed her.

  “About two months after coming to the orphanage, I met a boy named Will. He has always been the closest friend I’ve ever had. He’s the one who made and gave me my necklace.”

  That piqued Kate’s interest. “How did you meet him?”

  “Some of the other children were tormenting me about my father having been hanged when Will stood up for me. He was the first one who ever did that,” Skye remembered fondly. “He’s always taken care of me and been there when I’ve needed him.” She paused, eyes focusing out at the ocean though it was not what her mind was seeing. “I miss him so much. It seems like such a long time since I last saw him though it really hasn’t been.”

  Kate witnessed the same look in Skye’s eyes that she too had once had while thinking about someone who’d meant everything to her. Not wishing to disturb Skye’s thoughts, she sat silent until Skye came back to reality and remembered she had been answering Kate’s question.

  “My other friend is a man named Matthew. Will and I met him in church when I was twelve. He reminds me so much of my father. They look and act so much alike.”

  “Why didn’t he adopt you?”

  “He wanted to, but his business is very poor, and he couldn’t make enough money to support both of us.”

  For a short time, silence fell between them again until Skye decided to ask Kate another question. “I hope you don’t mind my asking, but how did you become a pirate?”

  Kate was slow to answer, and her expression became sad as she recalled old and painful memories. Skye was going to be one of the few people ever to hear her story.

  “I was a slave all the years of growing up. Ten years ago, when I was about your age, I met another slave named Jim. We planned to escape together and when we were safe . . . we were going to get married. The night of our escape someone betrayed us and told our master what we were doing. Jim was shot as we tried to get away. He insisted that I keep running, so I did.”

  Kate shook her head as the pain from that night returned. Tears pooled in her dark eyes and her voice quavered a little as she continued. “I never saw him again after that. When I reached the sea, I disguised myself as a man and got a job on a ship, hopin’ I could finally be free. I soon found that the captain, a man named Joshua, had also been a slave. When he realized I was a woman, he told me I’d be safe on his ship. He was very kind and a very good friend to me. His crewmen were too. At the time I came to his ship, Joshua was very old and a year later, he died. When he did, he left me the ship and that’s how I became the captain of the Half Moon.”

  “I’m sorry about Jim,” Skye said after a moment, as her thoughts drifted once again to Will.

  Kate nodded. “Would you mind if I asked you a question now?”

  “Go ahead,” Skye invited.

  “Your treasure, is it as big as everyone says?”

  Skye nodded. “Yes, it is. My father and Caleb were greatly rewarded for what they did.”

  “Have you ever thought about what you’d do with it if you were to go and get it?”

  “Yes, I have.”

  “And?”

  “Well,” Skye began. “I always thought I’d build a bigger church in Kingston so that more people could attend. I’d give a lot of it to the orphanage in hopes that children like me could grow up a little better. And I’d also give some to Will and Matthew.”

  “Did you ever intend to use any for yourself?”

  “Only enough to stop working at the orphanage and try to find and buy back the Grace, my father’s ship. It was very special to us. He named it after my mother.”

  Kate nodded again. “Sounds like a good plan.”

  “Yes, although it all depends on whether or not I actually retrieve the treasure.”

  “If you get off this island, do you think you will?” Kate asked.

  “I don’t know,” Skye answered. “There’s never been anyone who could help me get there.”

  Before she could say anything else, a tired yawn escaped her.

  “You should get some sleep,” Kate said. “You have a lot to recover from.”

  “Are you sure?” Skye asked. “Don’t you need help watching the fire?”

  Kate shook her head. “I’ll put a bunch of wood on it before I go to sleep, and it should stay burnin’ ‘til morning.”

  Skye nodded and lay down, careful not to lie on her wound. She closed her eyes, thanked God for getting them safely away from Kelley, and fell into the first peaceful night’s sleep she’d had since being kidnapped.

  * * *

  The sun shone down warmly on Skye mid morning of the next day when she began to wake. As the deep, restful sleep slowly wore off, someone called her name. It wasn’t until it was spoken a second time that she realized it was not Kate’s voice. Her eyes opened instantly, and she sat up. At first, she wondered if she was dreaming.

  Chapter Eleven

  Will scanned the deck of the Fortune and sighed heavily. Since the storm, nearly all daylight hours had been spent making repairs to the ship, though to look at her one would see no progress at all. The knocking of wooden pulleys echoed around him as broken rigging swung uselessly from the masts. One had snapped off during the storm and a torn sail lay in a tattered heap at its base, which was now only a splintered stump.

  To make further repairs, John had said they would be able to make it to a port some three or four days away, but that meant temporarily giving up the search for Skye. With the time it was going to take to sail there and repair the ship, a chore that could take another week in itself, Skye could be in Kelley’s hands for another two weeks or more. Will was thankful that they had survived the storm, but the thought of what Skye could be going through was more than he could stand, and he was powerless to help her.

  Finally, Will turned and headed toward Matthew and John at the helm, but he slowed when he heard an argument brewing between them. John, who was very distraught over the condition of his ship, glared at Matthew and s
aid, “Oh, and I s’pose you’re gonna try to tell me that God even has a plan in all this.”

  Matthew sighed, not in the mood to go through this again with John. “Yes, John, He has a plan in everything.”

  “Now why on earth would God allow a storm like that and ruin us?” John demanded.

  “I never said I knew the answers to everything.” Matthew was trying hard not to get upset. “Some things you never know. But I think you’re forgetting that all three of us survived the storm, which you yourself said is a miracle.”

  “I did not,” John retorted with a scowl.

  “Before the storm, you said it would take a miracle to keep us afloat and we’re still here.”

  “Well, did you ever consider that maybe God is tryin’ to tell you to give up the search?” John questioned. “We’ve been sailin’ around for days, lookin’ for one ship in the whole ocean with absolutely no idea where she’s headed or how we’ll stop Kelley if we do find ‘im. Then we come upon this storm that nearly sinks us and it’s gonna take the next two weeks before we can actually start searchin’ again. Besides, knowin’ Kelley, the girl’s probably dead anyway.”

  Will’s heart thumped hard in reaction. He could hardly believe that John actually had the audacity to say such a thing. He glared at the pirate and then looked at Matthew who was not pleased with his friend at the moment.

  “I will not believe she is dead, John,” Matthew told him firmly. “And I don’t believe that God is telling us to give up. Whether it takes two weeks, two months, or two years, Will and I are going to keep searching. You can either stop at port, repair the ship, and continue to help us, or drop us off and we’ll find someone else who will help.”

  With these words, Matthew turned away, leaving John to contemplate what he had said. John muttered under his breath, but Will could not make out the words and turned to follow Matthew. As he did so, his eyes caught on the island he had spotted in the distance not too long ago. It was much closer now, and with a second look, Will realized that smoke rose above the trees. He turned back and made his way to John, who looked a little like a pouting child expecting some sort of lecture.

  “John, I saw smoke coming from that island.”

  The expression disappeared as John turned to where Will was pointing. Matthew joined them. John frowned and looped a rope around the wheel before walking to the edge of the ship. He pulled out his spyglass and trained it on the island.

  “There’s a fire on the beach, all right,” he declared.

  “Do you see anyone?” Matthew asked.

  “No,” John answered. He put the spyglass down. “The island’s pretty small and looks uninhabited, so it’s probably someone who got marooned.”

  “Shouldn’t we help them then?” Will inquired.

  John made a face. “I don’t know if that’s such a wise idea. A lot of men get marooned for betrayin’ the rest of the crew.”

  “Or because the rest of the crew betrayed them,” Matthew countered.

  John sent him a side-glance. “That’s possible. Either way, we may be askin’ for trouble. Few would take the chance.”

  Matthew looked at him, appealing to his humanity. “John, think if it were you. Would you want to be sitting on a beach thinking you were rescued and then have the ship sail off?”

  John rolled his eyes. “You just love to make me feel guilty, don’t you?”

  Matthew grinned slightly. “So you do have a conscience?”

  “Yes, I have a conscience,” John muttered defensively. “Now quit chitchattin’ and help me get this ship closer to the island so we can drop anchor and row ashore.”

  Will and Matthew traded quick smiles before hurrying to help John move the ship closer to the island. When they were as close as they could get without running aground, they dropped anchor and lowered one of the rowboats into the water. Just before they were going to climb to it, John handed them each a pistol.

  “You never know whatcha might find. I say it’s best to be prepared.”

  Will and Matthew took the pistols and climbed down. Several minutes later, they pulled the rowboat onto the beach not far from the fire. Before they had any chance to look around, a woman suddenly emerged from the trees.

  “John!” she said in surprise, hurrying toward them.

  “Kate!” John echoed, equally surprised. “What on earth are you doin’ here? Your crew can’t have marooned ya.”

  Kate shook her head. “No, I wasn’t marooned. I was washed overboard durin’ the storm along with a friend.” Her eyes narrowed questioning, “What are you doin’ around here?”

  “Well, I’ve been helpin’ these two. We’ve been searchin’ for a girl named—”

  “Skye!” Will exclaimed, looking off towards the fire.

  Everyone turned as he hurried to where Skye slept beside the fire. Will’s breath caught to see the bloodstained rip in the back of Skye’s shirt. He knelt down next to her and gently put his hand on her shoulder.

  “Skye,” he called softly.

  She stirred, and he said her name again. This time her eyes opened, and she sat up.

  “Will!” she breathed, her eyes wide with shock and joy.

  Will helped her up, and Skye immediately put her arms around him, hugging him tightly. He returned the hug, careful not to cause her pain from her injuries.

  “I can’t believe it’s really you,” Skye said, letting him go and looking into his face with a smile.

  Will looked her over carefully, wanting to know she was all right. He reached up, frowning, and tenderly touched the ends of her short hair.

  “Are you all right?” he asked, concern evident in his tone. “What has Kelley done to you?”

  Skye’s smile diminished a little. “I’m fine, Will. Truly. Kelley could have done a lot worse, but God protected me.” She shook her head, almost not believing all of this was true. “How did you find me?”

  “I had a lot of help,” Will answered, looking off to the side with a smile.

  Skye grinned. “Matthew!”

  He stepped closer, and Skye gave him a hug as well. After their greeting, Matthew turned to John, who stood close by.

  “Skye, I’d like you to meet an old friend of mine, Captain John Morgan,” Matthew introduced. “Without him, we wouldn’t be here.”

  John leaned closer to Matthew and murmured, “Oh, so we’re friends again now?”

  “John,” Matthew protested with a sigh.

  John finally turned his attention to Skye with a charming smile. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Miss McHenry. Your two friends here have thought of little else on our voyage the past eleven days. They’ve talked very highly of you, and it’s an honor to meet the daughter of Daniel McHenry.”

  Skye returned his smile. “It’s a pleasure to meet you as well, Captain Morgan. Thank you for helping them find me.”

  She turned back to Will and Matthew. “Now you must meet Kate. She helped me on the Finder. God used her greatly in keeping me safe.”

  Will and Matthew each greeted her warmly and were immensely grateful for her part in aiding Skye. Afterward, John looked at Kate with a deep frown of confusion.

  “What were you doin’ on the Finder?”

  “I’ve been a slave,” Kate informed him, her face pinching in disgust. “Kelley captured me at a port nearly a year ago.”

  “Oh,” John said, flustered. “Well, if I, uh, would have known that, maybe I could have . . . um . . . tried to do somethin’.”

  Kate shook her head to relieve his discomfort. “Your ship is a lot smaller than the Finder, John. I don’t think there was anything you could’ve done.”

  John only shrugged. “Still, I coulda tried.”

  He just stood quiet for a moment, but then turned to Matthew and Will with a grin and said, “Well, I don’t know about you two, but I say we get these two charmin’ women off this island and back to the Fortune.”

  “Good idea,” Will agreed.

  After gathering a good amount of fruit to t
ake with, the five of them climbed into the boat and rowed toward the ship. As they drew near, Kate observed its sorry condition.

  “Looks like you had a rough time durin’ the storm too,” she remarked.

  John nodded. That’s when Kate realized she saw no one on board the ship.

  “John, where’s your crew?”

  “Don’t have one,” John answered simply.

  “You mean it’s only the three of you?” Kate asked in disbelief.

  “Only the three of us,” John repeated.

  “What happened to your crew?”

  “Well, let’s just say when I mentioned we were goin’ after Kelley, they had some loyalty issues and decided that Tortuga was a little safer.”

  “I see,” Kate said. “So just how did the three of you manage to survive the storm?”

  Before he could answer, John caught Matthew giving him a look and refrained from using the smart-aleck remark he was forming in his mind.

  “Why don’t you ask my friends?” he suggested finally, glowering at Matthew.

  “God protected us,” Will spoke up confidently.

  Kate nodded thoughtfully, and they were all silent until they reached the ship. One by one, they climbed aboard. The men pulled the boat up and made ready to hoist the anchor and set sail.

  As John walked near, Kate stopped him. “John, do you have extra clothes that Skye and I can change into?”

  “I don’t have any dresses if that’s whatcha mean,” John answered.

  Kate crossed her arms, eyes flashing with irritation. “Since when have you ever seen me wear a dress?”

  Immediately realizing that he was treading on dangerous ground, John quickly raised his hands in submission. “Never. My mistake. There should be a trunk full of clothes below deck.”