The Blue Diamond (The Razor's Edge Book 1) (11 page)

“My best man? For what?” His
face grew stern and his brow lowered as he, too, stood.

“To fight me. Any weapon
other than guns, of course.”

“You’re not only foolish,
you’ve a death wish, woman. Now, why don’t we stop all of this nonsense and
take a walk into that room over there to settle this as a man and a woman
should,” he growled, kicking his chair aside as well and pouncing on her from
behind, tying her up tightly in his arms.

“Get off of me, you
disgusting pig!” she cried out as he lifted her into the air and carried her
into the bedroom, pinning her arms at her sides as the sword fell to the floor.

“Why are you making this so
entertaining, Ivory? You really must stop this. You’re resistance is only
making me want you more.” He grunted, tossing her down on the bed and slamming
the door closed.

Ivory sprang up and leapt
from the bed onto his back, knocked off his hat, and grabbed two handfuls of
his greasy black hair, nearly losing her grip as the scraggly mane slid through
her fingers.

“Any last words, Captain?”

He continued to laugh as he
crashed backwards into the dresser, trying to free himself, but she held on and
latched onto his cravat, pulling it tight against his neck until the laughing
stopped when she cut off his airway. He clawed at the scarf, trying to get his
fingers under it, but Ivory wrapped her legs tightly around him and laid back
as if pulling a horse to a stop, using most of her body weight to hold on as
she hung from him.

He continued trying to shake
her off, but fell back onto the bed on top of her. He reached back and clawed
at her nightgown, pulling it hard, tearing the fabric away from her body.
 
Yet Ivory would not relent.
 
Finally, the Captain began to fall limp on
top of her. She released the scarf with one hand, snatched the cutlass from his
belt and pushed the point to his throat until a trickle of blood covered the
tip and rolled slowly around and down the back of his neck.

“Get…the fuck…off… me,” she
said through panted breaths and gritted teeth as she pushed him, rolling him to
his left—just enough to where she could scoot from beneath him. Gradually, air
began to pass through his compressed wind pipe and refill his deflated lungs.
He coughed hard, repeatedly, and rolled completely to his side, gagging and
choking for air.

Ivory leapt to her feet,
panting hard, but still breathing. Her heart thumped in her chest as if she’d
just run a mile. She leaned forward, catching herself by the knees for a
moment.
 
Then, she stood straight and
raised her arm slowly with her hand faced down, clutching the knife.
 
Ivory pointed it directly at him. “I
certainly hope…you are your best man, because if so…you’re taking us with you.”

“I should kill you for
this,” he whispered, pulling the cravat from his neck and blotting the blood
that still seeped from the puncture in his gullet.

“So typical. You attempt to
rape me, and when I fight back and best you, you want to kill me. In case you
missed the past few minutes, Captain, I could have killed you twice, but I let
you live because I need you alive. You will take us with you, and you will
instruct your crew they are not to lay a hand on any of us, or I can promise
you that the first man who tries to do so will feel my razor slice through his
throat.
 
The last thing he’ll see is my
eyes before the Devil welcomes him home.”

“And what’s in all of this
for me? Kill me if you wish, but there is no way you can expect me to walk out
there and tell those men what happened here. They’ll never respect me again,
and they certainly won’t abide by any rule I give not to have a turn with each
of you by sundown tonight.”

Ivory walked to the dresser,
never lowering the cutlass or taking her eyes off of Barclay, and pulled open
the top drawer. She reached in and recovered a white neck scarf, shook it out,
and tossed it to him. “Put that on over the other one. Yours can stop the
bleeding. Mine will conceal the bruise around your neck. I’ll not divulge to
your crew what transpired here, and you can have everything on this farm except
for the personal items that belong to my cousins and me. You get what you need
to cover your honor, and we get what we want. I don’t care what you have to
tell them, but we’re getting on that ship, and you will protect us. Give us
thirty minutes to pack our things but…we’ll also need sailing clothes—same as
the men wear.”

“This is insane,” he
croaked, tying the scarf around his neck and rubbing his throat gently.

“I let you live. Life is not
insane. Expecting it to always go the way you think it should however, is
lunacy. Now get up and let’s move. I suspect what you’ve taken so far from the
people on this riverbank, as well as what I’m giving you, is more than enough
to set sail immediately.”

“You have no idea what
you’re getting these women into, Ivory,” Barclay spoke as he stood.

“You have no idea what I’m
getting them away from either. If we stay here, eventually we rot for the rest
of lives under some fat, filthy farmer who hasn’t an inkling of what we’ve been
through, or what we’re worth. Worse than that, we might not be as lucky the
next time your sort comes along in the night, and we end up drawing our last
breath with some smelly, dirty pirate beast on top of us, stealing what’s left
of our dignity before he slits our throats. I’m giving us our freedom. I’m
saving us no matter what it takes! I’ll never die at the hands of some pirate
bastard, and I’ll kill any man who ever tries to hurt one of those girls, too.”

“My sort…I find it
remarkable that a woman as smart as you cannot see the irony in all of this.”

“What irony?
 
That you walked into my house believing you
were just going to take what you wanted, go back to your ship, and move on to
the next? Obviously there’s irony in the fact that I now hold you hostage.”

“The irony, my dear, is you
calling me a pirate when you’re the one holding the knife and forcing me to
give you passage on my ship. Just between you and me, Madame, it appears there
is more than one pirate in the room.”

Chapter
Twelve

Cassandra was a brilliant
organizer, manager, and the unofficial mayor of their little community, but she
had no desire to captain a ship. Miranda was their accountant and keeper of the
trade of goods, but she was more comfortable on land and negotiating the value
of plunder…as well as the value of a good time. However, neither of them was
unable to rise to any occasion when called upon, and both had joined Willy on
deck to assist with their voyage home.

Keara was back on her watch
and had stepped inside only for a moment when she heard James call from the
beach, “Sail!”

It felt like an eternity
before the crew of the
Carolina Cutlass
was finally reaching the shore. Keara and James waited as the longboats
unloaded and Miranda and Cass were safely on the beach.

“Where’s Ivory? You didn’t
find her?” Keara asked.

“It’s a long story, but
she’s aboard the
Black Cat
, or
Le Chat Noir
as that pompous ass,
Blacksnake, calls it. We need to load up the
Cutlass
again and go after them, Ke. He’s headed for Nassau to
collect a bounty that’s been placed on Ivory’s head,” Cass explained as they
rushed up the beach to the house.

“What a strange name for a
ship,” James remarked.

“Oh, he’s eccentric, that
one, and has ice in his veins,” Cass replied.

“But to name a ship after a
black cat? Any pirate knows that a black cat aboard ship is bad luck.”

“Well, let’s hope for Ivory’s
sake that any bad luck aboard that ship falls upon him and leaves her be,”
Miranda said.

“Let’s get inside, and you
can fill us in. I’ll have Willy get the
Cutlass
ready, and we’ll need a consort now that we no longer have the Diamond. There’s
no way in hell the
Cutlass
can take
on Blacksnake’s ship,” Keara stated.

Cassandra and Miranda shared
their stories of what transpired in Kingston, which both shocked Keara, as well
as confirmed some of what she had surmised, except that fifty thousand pounds
was nothing compared to what they had hidden away in their house. She explained
to them what her suspicions were, but they all agreed that regardless of the
bounty, or the diamonds, they needed to set sail by sundown to either catch
Blacksnake or save Ivory before the Royal Navy got their hands on her.

“We need a captain for the
Lady Jade
. Any suggestions?”

“Jesus, Ke, is she even
seaworthy?” James asked.

“The
Cutlass
needs a consort, and she’s all we’ve got.”

“She’ll do just fine. She
could use a careenin’, but there’s no time fer that,” Willy said, entering the
room.

“So we still need a captain.
Ke, you were quartermaster of the
Diamond
,
so it’ll be acceptable to the crew for you to take over the task as captain of
the
Cutlass
,” Cass said, clearing off
the kitchen table and rolling out the navigation maps. “James, map us a course
to Nassau. Willy, you’re a damn fine bosun, and you’re highly respected by the
crew. What say you of taking on acting captain on the Lady?”

“I’m too old fer that.
 
What about Phineas Jackson? He lost his ship
a month ago off Florida in a storm. I figure if God seen fit to spare his life,
He must a’ had a damn good reason fer it.”

“Where is Phineas now?” Cass
asked.

“He’s right here in the
Port. Last I heard, he was drownin’ his sorrows at a pub in town. Shall I send
out a search party?”

“Just go find him and bring
him here. I don’t care how you do it, but I need him here and sober before
nightfall,” Cass stated, leaning over the table at Willy with fire in her
eyes.
 
“Fucking pirates drive me insane,”
she murmured. “Present company excepted, of course.”

“Ke, may I have a word with
you outside a moment?” James asked from the doorway.

Keara rose and followed him
outside and down to the beach. “What is it James? We have a lot to do, and
there’s no time for nonsense.”

“I’m very worried about this
Blacksnake. His reputation, as well as his record, is untouchable. He’s never
pursued a prize he hasn’t won, and he’s certainly never pursued a ship he
didn’t board or sack. I don’t want you going out there and getting yourself
killed.”

“Seriously, James, you act
as if I’ve never done this before,” she replied, turning to head back to the
house when James reached out and snatched her by the arm.

“I…I don’t want to lose you.
I feel absolutely ridiculous, Ke, but I have this knot in my stomach, and I’ve
learned to listen to it. It’s telling me if we attack him at sea, we’ll be
blown out of the water.”

“You should feel ridiculous.
No, the
Cutlass
isn’t the
Blue Diamond
, and the
Lady Jade
… well, we both know she’s seen
much better days.
 
But, what are we to do
James?
 
Just leave Ivory to die?”

“You’ve told me yourself
that you’d still be back in Charles Towne feeding chickens and farming if Ivory
hadn’t risked all of your necks and taken the
Demon Sea
from Barclay all those years ago. How are you responsible
for a mess she made in the first place?”

James had no sooner uttered
the words when a hard slap hit him across the right side of his face. “That’s
enough! I know how you feel about Ivory, and that’s none of my concern.
 
However, just because it gets rough here, or
the bugs are biting, or, God forbid, I’m just having a lousy day and I want to
blame someone for it, don’t take me to heart. This is the life we chose.
 
The life
I
chose.
 
I love you to death, James
Roberts, but I’ll bury you if try to stand in the way of this!”

“I’m not standing in your
way…I just don’t want to stand by and watch you die!” he shouted, taking her by
the shoulders and pulling her up on her toes against him.

“Then don’t watch me die. Do
your job and fight at my side, and if it’s our day to meet our maker, we’ll do
it together. I don’t need your protection, James. I need your loyalty, and
above all, I need you at my back if things go badly. Now let me go, and don’t
ever let me hear you speak against Ivory again. Love her or not, she is your
Captain and, as such, that kind of talk can get you killed.
 
And if I must say it, I don’t wish to watch
you die either.”

The setting sun was but an
hour away when Phineas Jackson was finally found and brought to the beach. The
ships were loaded and ready, but he was in foul shape and not yet suited for
minding a skiff, let alone a full crew, even on a small sloop like the
Lady Jade
. Jackson was disheveled and
still wearing the clothes he wore the day he went into the Gulf with his crew.
They had been out for weeks searching for the wreckage of the Santa Margarita
and the Nuesta Senora de Atocha, when the storm blew them off course, and they
were hit broadside by what he described as a wave as high as a mountain. There
was no doubt amongst those who knew him that this was an exaggeration, but the
fact remained his ship did capsize as they raced to shore. He and what remained
of his crew were left hanging on for their lives for a day and half before they,
and the ship, washed ashore.

After acquiring a small
sloop with what he had stuffed in his pockets when the storm blew up, he
gathered the stragglers—less than ten of them— and headed back to Port
Royal.
 

“What is this about
captaining one of your ships?” he shouted at them as Willy led him up to the
house where Cass and Miranda were still organizing the voyage and the crews
were tendering out to board.

“Exactly as you said,
Captain Jackson. We need a consort for the
Carolina
Cutlass
, but unfortunately, we’re fresh out.
 
At the current time, you’re all we’ve got,”
said Cass as she handed a bag to one of the sailors to carry on board.

“Women pirates. What a waste
of a good piece of ass.”

“Well, I’m sorry you feel
that way.
 
However, since we’ve no time to
argue, and you’re without a ship, I suppose this is not only your best offer,
but the only offer you’ll get today. Take it or leave it, sir.
 
And, by the way, who says anyone’s ass is
being wasted? Seems to me you’re the only wasted ass on this beach,” Cass
remarked, raising chuckles from anyone within earshot.

“Alright, alright
then…what’s her crew?”

“She’s forty men on most
hunts, but for this one, she’s only twenty, as we need at least forty on the
Cutlass
. Based on the size and needs of
the
Jade
, that will be more than
enough. I’m sorry she’s not the galleon to which you are accustomed, but she’s
all we’ve got for now.”

“What’s in it for me, then,
if you don’t mind me asking?”

“We must reach the
Black Cat
and board her, or reach Nassau
in time to save Captain Shepard. However we manage to do that, as long as we
succeed that is, then…the
Jade
is
yours.”

“What’s that you say? You’re
after Blacksnake?”

“I thought you knew that,
sir.”

“Fucking brilliant! I
despise that Blacksnake son of a bitch. I’ll take those terms with one
condition.”

“What might that be?
 
We are in a bit of a hurry,” Cass said,
turning and heading down the beach with Jackson following closely behind.

“If we board the
Black Cat
and take her, I keep her;
lock, stock, and barrel. You can keep the
Jade
.
I’m sure she has quite a bit of…sentimental value.”

“Fine, we have no use for
that beast of a ship anyway. Once Ivory is in our possession, safe and in one
piece, we’ll no longer require your services, and you can be on your merry
way.”

“I’ll take that as your
word, then?”

Cass turned around and
glared at Jackson. “You can sink the blasted thing for all I care, once we have
Ivory back. Yes, that’s my word. She’s all yours, but keep in mind, sir, you
work for me, and you don’t make a move on that ship unless I say so.
 
Understood?”

“It’s a pleasure, Madame.
Now, point me to my ship and let’s go find your captain.”

“There’s your crew, to the
east on the beach. Come on, I’ll introduce you, and by the way, she is not only
my captain, she is my cousin—my blood.”

“Madame, may I inquire as to
how you intend to get those men to follow me? Most of these men are barely half
my age, and by the looks of them, half of those don’t even speak English.”

“The Diamond was a big
earner, Captain Jackson. We buy our crew’s loyalty, and we aren’t ashamed to
admit it. Don’t read me wrong, these men follow Ivory because they’ve been on
the hunt with her many times, and they know they can count on her to fill their
pockets. They rely on her for their rum and whores, and they aren’t about to
stand idly by while she has her neck stretched. They’ll follow you if for no
other reason than to get their captain back.”

“Cass? We’re almost through
loading!” Keara shouted from the shoreline where she and James were handing off
the last of the bags of food and barrels into the longboats.

“Gentlemen! May I have your
attention, please!” Cass shouted, calling for the crew of the
Jade
. “I’m sure some of you are familiar
with Captain Jackson here. He’s been kind enough to lend his services to our
cause. If you wish to collect on the reward I’ve offered you all for Captain
Shepard’s safe return, then I expect your utmost loyalty to Captain Jackson
until we’ve reached our goal. Any questions?”

“I have a question,” said a
familiar voice in the crowd.

“Who said that?” Cass
shouted.

“’Twas me, Madame; your old
friend, Sandy.” Sandy stepped around the other men and came forward. He was
carrying what appeared to be everything he owned on his back, and although it
wasn’t much, he wore the expression of a man with purpose.

Cass stood straight and
crossed her arms beneath her bosom. “What the hell are you doing here?”