Chapter Eight

"Where are you from... If you do not mind me asking, that is."

"Perhaps you should ask that of me first before you find yourself asking of such things."

"I suppose that would be best... However, I must say that you are very guarded for a woman. Is there any reason for that?"

"At times such as these, I believe it's often better to say little than one's entire life story. Of course, it seems to me you are rather fond of speaking, and yet it also seems that you have very little to speak about."

"Ma'am, are you alright?" I blinked, the face of a young man coming into view, and though I knew he meant no harm, I scowled all the same. His face flushed, causing his freckled cheeks to redden a share or so darker than even his hair, and though he held my gaze for a time, his blue eyes soon darted off in another direction. He was young yet as I noticed before, and yet it was still no excuse for his interrupting my thoughts without reason. "Sorry if I startled you..." he apologized, bowing his head slightly.

"Is there something you need, Mr. Schmitt?" I asked, my voice stern. "I do not believe I summoned for you to be here.""

"Ah... that is..." I raised a brow to see the boy shift his feet, but after a deep breath, he began again. "The captain of the Encantador de Soltera would like to speak with you," he explained. "Of course, he understands if you wish to meet here... May I ask as to why?"

"You are not here to ask questions, Mr. Schmitt," I reminded him. "Give Mr. Viento my assurances that I am perfectly capable of seeing him whether it be on his or any other ship. I do not approve of being coddled as I am not a child nor do I have any desire to be treated as one."

With that the young man bowed again and took his leave, and judging by the hurried way in which he did so, I could tell he felt his escape came not a moment too soon for his liking. Not that I could truly blame him, for my patience had been rather short as of late... However, my reasons were justified as there had been very little time for me to find some sense of peace before I would find myself once again thrown into some course of action.

First and foremost was my appointment as captain of the Dove.

She was a beautiful ship, really, although I suppose I should have expected as much from anything that had belonged to William. He always did have a fancy for that which was pleasurable to the eye- one of his greatest faults in my own opinion- and his means of business was certainly no exception.

Her sides were clean, a brilliant white that reflected the waters below, and her railings polished with as much care as her decks. Her sails, too, were crisp and not a tear was to be found on them as far as I could see, and even the stitching that held them together was of the very best quality. To be honest, upon first seeing the fine vessel, I had expected to find solid gold on every door and fixture, and though that was but a fool's dream, the brass that stood in its place still shown to perfection.

To think she was now mine...

I shook my head at the thought. Dove could never belong to me, for even after his death, she still belonged to William's memory the same as I did. We were not our own, nor would we ever be. We could only rely on one another to right what had been wronged though never of us could do nearly enough.

After all, there was no means for us to bring the man back from the dead.

"To think that he is gone..." I whispered to myself. "Had I only known... Had I only known, perhaps I would have found a way in which to save you."

"Even if you had known, I don't think there was much for you to do in the way of saving him," a smooth voice replied, nearly causing me to jump with alarm. "My apologies... It seems I've frightened you, love."

"And it also seems that you have forgotten that I do not wish to be spoken to in that manner, Mr. Viento," I reminded him. The man only grinned, but if the gleam in his eye was any indication, then I could be sure he would make a point to forget it by the next time we met. A time which I hoped would be none too soon. "How is it that you came upon this ship then? I do not recall giving the order to allow you aboard."

"You needn't take any of this too seriously, Lourne."

"Mr. Viento." Though the way in which I spoke was sharp, his gaze did not waver as I said his name. He merely blinked, and had I known him better, I would have suspected he thought to smile just to irritate me further. "I will not tolerate you using my husband's name in such a casual manner. You will respect that name, or I shall see to it myself that you shall be severely reprimanded for it."

"You really should be more careful with that temper of yours," he warned though he continue to wear a well meaning smile. "It might get you in trouble one day, and then your husband's name will have no way of protecting you."

"I have no temper."

He laughed then, lacking any sort of tact or common courtesy, yet when he realize that he did so alone, he stopped. "Forgive me, lo... Chelsea. I only laugh because you remind me of someone else I happen to know."

"What business do you have with me?" I demanded, having suspected who he meant but not daring to ask. "If you only wish to aggravate me, I shall have to ask you to leave. I do not have the time nor the patience to deal with such nonsense."

"There is no nonsense here..." he assured me. "Only a broken woman and a man who wishes to see her fixed." I glared up at him, my eyes narrowing as I dared him to speak any further on the matter, but he paid me no mind. "I'm not afraid that is what you are," he continued, "and I can only hope you'll believe me when I tell you just how troubled I am to see you like this... Do you know why Will was hung?"

"Because he had been wrongly accused," I replied without hesitation. "You of all people should know that, Mr. Viento... for it was in your place that my husband died at the gallows."

"I can assure you that I-"

"Do not try to deny it!" I shrieked, taking a firm hold of the man's collar. "You were the one they were after, not William. It never should have been William... but because he stayed his tongue for you, he was hanged of as a guilty man for a crime he did not commit. He saved you, and yet God help me, I know not why!"

"Sabes... You know nothing!" My heart leapt to hear him speak to me so harshly to me, yet though I could not understand him fully, I still became quiet. Even so, I would not allow myself to even think of apologizing to the likes of him, for my accusations were just. I knew the rumors, and yet more so than that, I knew my husband. I knew William. "Tell me again. What were the charges against him then?"

"He was hung on the charges of piracy." I wanted to spit at the mere suggestion of the word, but though I knew he would not scold me for it, I would not allow myself to show any sign of indecency to this man. He was disgusting enough for the both of us without any crude behavior on my own part. "He was no pirate... He was a merchant. A victim of the very crime of which he was accused."

"Do you say this simply because you feel he was truly wronged, or is it because he never told you the truth?" My blood ran cold at the mere suggestion, yet he continued on as if speaking of the weather or some other idle means of conversation. "Then again, perhaps you knew all along he was guilty and only wanted to convince yourself otherwise?"

"William was an honest man..." I whispered, turning away from the man to calm myself. "It is true that he never... but I refuse to believe he would become anything of that sort. You cannot have me believe otherwise, Mr. Viento."

A man without compassion or morals... a common thief...

"There are other ways to become a pirate," Kai reminded me, his hand resting upon my shoulder. I anticipated for him to have me look at him, yet when I brushed his hand aside, he did nothing. "England offers much to a man willing to steal from her enemy," he continued to explain, his voice soft and kind. "Even I could be pardoned if I agreed to work under the king's name."

"What is that you are implying, Mr. Viento?" I glanced back at him only to find he wore no expression on his face. His eyes were dead, a brown as dull as mud, and his features unusually solemn. However, though he appeared to be serious enough and perhaps even sincere, I could not bring myself to believe him. "What was his crime then?"

Could it have been against the crown itself?

"His only crime was in doing his job," the man replied with a heavy sigh. "While it's true he knew of me, we met but twice, and I under false pretenses. If this was why he was hung, then I suppose I am the one to blame, but as he only knew of me as Kingsley, I doubt his accusers knew anything about our acquaintance."

I was numb as he spoke of this, having heard so much in so very little words. However, once I came to understand his meaning, I could feel the anger within me begin to rise.

"Do you mean to tell me he was hung by his own men?" I demanded. "If he was committing these acts under the will of the king, surely they would be more than aware of his trade and to what ends it would meet..." The other said nothing, leaving me to wonder all the more as to what may have happened. "Did he attack another British ship by chance?"

"Not that I know of," he assured me. "May I offer yet another suggestion?" When I merely nodded, he came close to me once gain to whisper in my ear as he had at the inn. His breath was hot on my neck, yet I shivered to have him so near to me. How I hated him... and yet I had no choice but to heed his word. After all, he was the only one to offer me much of anything in the way of answers. Queer though they may have been. "Could it be that he was hung out of fear?"

"Fear of what, pray tell?"

"Power," was the reply. "What greater fear would a navy as mighty as the British Empire have than a man with such wit and cunning? Especially one who can fool even his own wife into thinking him an honest fellow..."

"He did no such thing," I muttered, more to myself than the other. After all, I had never thought to ask him what business he attended to in the harbors or out to sea, so he could hardly be blamed for my not knowing. "But why fear a man with only one ship to his name?" I asked. "Surely there are others that would serve to be more than a formidable threat..."

"Aye, but it is better to strike before your enemy becomes an equal," he reminded me. "Admiral Hurst is no fool... Of that we can both be sure."

"What was done was nothing but pure cowardliness!" I wretched myself away from the pirate then, my eyes and heart set aflame by his words. "Tell me, Mr. Viento. In this why you procured this ship for me and the men upon it? Who are they, and how is it that they are all a part of this?"

"They all served under Captain William Lourne," he replied with a grin. "Isn't it strange how you know of the ship but not of the men who run it?" he pressed. "Don't you also find it odd that you weren't introduced to a singe man in his crew?"

"You speak as though you feel my husband wronged me."

"I said nothing of the sort," he assured me, the wry smile still making itself known. "Perhaps the truth is you are the one to feel as though he did... but I suppose it isn't my place to judge. After all, I'm not the sort of man who would understand these things especially when it comes to the likes of marriage."

He said nothing more to me before taking a bow and turning on his heel, yet when he left me in my cabin once again, I could not help but feel a chill run through me. It was as if the warmth of the room had been drawn out with his leaving, and though I tried to convince myself it was anything but the truth, I knew it was the very same feeling I had once before. The day when I had been told that William had passed...

The memory was fresh in my mind as I sat myself down in the captain's chair. It had been deep in the night when the message was brought to me, and though my slumber had not been restful for some time, the cry of the messenger was enough to wake not only myself but the servants as well. However, by some stroke of misfortune, it was I that answered the door.

The young man was the same that come to give word of Kai's arrival, yet at the time I only knew him to be the local boy of the name of Hugh. I knew nothing of his family or their trade and even less of himself, but I could scarcely find the words to ask him his reasons for being there before he explained what had happened. What pained me the most was not only that my husband had died, however. It was that he had passed away nearly a fortnight before that caused the ache in my chest.

The knowledge that he died alone with no last comfort. No lingering gaze of the one who loved him as no other could... with only the sound of a trap door and the tightening of the rope before-

I shut away the thought as quickly and securely as I could, but it was far too late. The wound had been reopened and left raw and ugly once again, yet there was a new pain which caused my very flesh to burn. Perhaps it had been the truth that had been revealed to me, or perhaps it was the realization that I had known the truth all along... The only thing I knew for certain was that I had been betrayed.

By both my husband and by the country he had served under.

I stood, hands shaking as my bitterness coursed throughout me and my frail body, yet though my strides were strong and sure as I approached the door and made my way up to the top most deck, I was also afraid. After all, if I chose to follow this path, there would be no means for me to turn back. I would have to sacrifice all that I had, perhaps even that which was not my own, and in order to do so, I would have to become something that could reach beyond my own limits.

Revenge... That was what Kai had offered me when he gave me this ship and its crew, and that would be what I would have. The only question was how to grasp it for myself.

"So have you decided then?" I recoiled back, my nails digging into the walls that led up the stairs, yet I soon found a hand held out for me. The man who offered it to me was still smiling though it was plain to see that there was a sadness in his eyes as he reached out to me. "If you chart this course... I can assure you there will be no chance for regrets. You may very well face the same fate as your late husband," he warned, lifting me up over the final stair. "Are you willing to risk so much for so little? After all, William is now dead, and there will be no changing that."

My gaze was steady as the men brought me alongside him in the light of the day, the sun bearing down upon us while the breeze brushed against the sails. He showed no expression, yet I saw the pity for me that lingered still in his eyes. However, it did little to move me, for I owned him nothing in return for what he had done.

"The only wish that I have, Mr. Viento, is to take the life of the man who betrayed my husband," I replied, my voice grave and unwavering as I spoke. "As for my life... that was given the very day I agreed to become Mrs. Lourne, and now that William is dead, I have no objection to my fate."

Not if it could bring me to his side once more...

--

Author's Note: Because of my class schedule this semester, updates will now be posted on Thursdays as opposed to Wednesdays, but there should be no reasons for me to miss another update. Thank you all for being so patient~