Wings of the Morning (Kensington Chronicles) (12 page)

"In other words, we won't be getting much work out of

him."

Smokey shrugged. "I hope that's not the case, but I can't

make any promises. I don't want to talk you into this, Darsey."

Smokey's voice changed suddenly, and Darsey knew his captain

was speaking.

"Because if I do talk you into this, you'll say 1 told you so' if

it doesn't work out. So speak up now or keep still."

"I'll abide by your decision, lass, but hear me well. I'll not

brooka moment of improper conduct out of him where you're

concerned."

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the next day darsey gathered the officers of the Aramis as they set sail from their home port in Kennebunk. He explained

that Nate would not be sailing with them this trip, and

that they would be picking up a man Smokey had hired to take

his place in Kennebunkport.

"Does Nate know he's being replaced?"

"He's not being replaced, Mic," Darsey patiently told him.

"It's just for this one voyage."

"He wants to study the Aramis," Smokey interjected when

she came across the group gathered on the deck. "Since he

won't be sailing with us again, I'd like you to be of help to him

if you can. Answer any questions he may have. Outside of that,

it's business as usual."

The men nodded, and Smokey's eyes lingered on their

faces. There wasn't a man under 40, and most were nearer to

50. Darsey was that and then some. Each of them--Darsey,

Mic, Robby, Pete, and Scully, who was the ship's cook--had

sailed with her father for years before he died. She knew them

to be capable, reliable, and loyal to a fault. What would they

think of Dallas Knight? Indeed! What would Dallas think of

them?

Hers was not a normal group of sailors. Most men enjoyed

full-time work, but Smokey had a tendency to stay closer to

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home than her father had, so she could be in port more often.

| The older these men became, the more that seemed to suit

them. She was a generous captain, and they always shared in

the fruits of her labor, which Included time off for weeks at a

stretch.

The men dispersed while Smokey was still deep in thought.

She walked to the bow, her body moving to the rocking of the

ship with the ease of a willow tree in the wind

Once at the front of the ship, the sight of the waves and the

speed with which the Aramis moved did not thrill her as it

usually did. She barely noticed either. Her mind was already

in Kennebunkport and on the man who would be waiting in

port to meet them.

"I've never seen you like this, Dallas," Tate commented to

his nearly delirious brother-in-law. Buck was quick to agree.

The three men were standing on the dock Sunday evening,

awaiting Smokey's ship.

"It's hard to explain," Dallas told them, his eyes still alight

with pleasure even as he tried to calm down. "It will mean so

much to the business, and I think this is a once-ina-lifetime

opportunity."

"I hate to be a prophet of doom," Buck interjected, not

unkindly. "But have you thought about what will happen if you

don't get along with Smokey or her men?"

"What's not to get along with?" Dallas asked in genuine

confusion. "1*11 do my job, observe the workings of the ship,

and come home rich with knowledge." Dallas' voice was so

matter-of-fact that neither man commented.

Dallas himself was still thinking on his brother's words,

but the more he thought about Smokey Simmons' personality,

the more assured he felt that they would get along fine. After

all, she was very shy and quiet, keeping mostly to herself, and

that would suit him fine.

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He reminded himself that she had talked more on the

beach than he had ever heard her, but that was obviously

credited to the fact that she was more comfortable talking

about ships than any other subject.

Dallas hoped that if she were really knowledgeable, he

would learn some things from her, but he had no illusions. She

was young and timid, and Dallas believed he would learn

more from her ship and her men than he would from her.

He wouldn't have admitted it to his family because they all

liked her so well, but in the brief time that he had known he

would be sailing with theAramis, Dallas had convinced himself

that Smokey must be little more than a mascot.

The big man he had seen with her in London was her first

mate, a man named Darsey Dallas knew he was almost as well

known as Smoke. As soon as Dallas remembered who the man

was, he realized that he must be the driving force behind

Smoke. It was like this with many ship's captains--Smokey

owned the ship, Darsey did all the work, but as owner and

captain, Smokey took the credit.

An hour later, as Darsey introduced himself to Dallas and

showed him to the crew's quarters, Dallas was more convinced

than ever about Smokey's uselessness aboard ship. In

his thrill of being on theAramis, he forgot just how much his

own first mate did for him on the Zephyr. His mind even went

so far as to feel a bit of disgust that Smokey couldn't stay home

where she belonged.

She hadn't really struck him as that kind, but she was

clearly the type of female who had to have attention. He

figured she must have inherited the ship from her father and

then gotten it into her foolish, female head to be a captain. He

tried to adjust his attitude as he stowed his gear for the voyage.

Dallas would have been amazed to learn that Smokey and

Darsey had run into sentiment like this before. He would have

been surprised beyond speech if he had known that Darsey

had interpreted most of his thoughts on their first meeting.

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As the first mate made his way topside, he hid a smile

Mr. Knight would have to find out the hard way that

loke Simmons was no figurehead

Their first morning at sea, Smokey sat at the desk in her

cabin and pored over her maps. She had to be in Savannah by

tomorrow morning and then into Florida the morning after.

That would mean their trip to China Island would have to wait

until the end of next week A knock on her cabin door interrupted

her thoughts.

"Come in," she called Darsey entered and shut the door

behind him. The chair he took creaked under his weight as he

made himself comfortable in the small space.

"Did Dallas get settled?" Smokey wanted to know.

"I believe he did"

"What did you think of him?"

Darsey grinned. "I think we've got another one who's

giving me more credit than I deserve."

"Oh, no." Smokey's look was one of exasperation. "I really

thought better of him than that. Oh, well, we won't be out that

long."

"Long enough for him to learn he's wrong," Darsey said, a

mischievous glint appearing in his eye.

'You don't really think we're going to tangle, do you? I

mean, he will take orders, won't he?"

"That's up to himvnow, isn't it, lass?" Darsey spoke honestly.

Smokey agreed with a nod "I guess it Is, but you know,

since I'm not out to prove anything, you could simply handle

all problems on this trip."

"That's true, but it's unlikely that such a plan would last for

more than a day."

Smokey laughed He was right. It was just as she'd said to

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no

Dallas, captains did not make good crewmen, and she was

exception.

By the time the Aramis pulled into the port of Savannah,

Dallas had all but forgotten Smokey's presence on board,

which only confirmed his earlier belief that she was quite

useless as a captain. With this in mind, he was surprised to

hear her greet him as she came onto the deck. He had begun

to think she preferred to spend all her time in her cabin.

"Good morning, Dallas/' Smokey said congenially as she

moved past him and approached Scully He noticed that she

was dressed as she had been in London--baggy clothes, black

boots, knit cap, and all. She stopped next to Scully and waited

for him to face her. Dallas, without effort, overheard their

conversation.

"You've got a few hours, Scully, to make sure you're ready."

Her voice was a bit stern. "If you don't have proper food on

this trip, I won't be at all happy."

"Aye, missy," Scully said with a frown, and Smokey turned

away.

Dallas had to duck his head in order to hide his expression. So, she*saprima donna to boot/He didn't knowwhen he

had been more repulsed. He watched as she went below. A

minute later Darsey appeared Darsey handled the load and

later the casting off, and although Dallas did his Job silently

and efficiently, he was beginning to feel a strong aversion to

his captain.

malice 2 * P "" ^^^ Dallas> duties were mini'

mai once they were out at sea, and he found himself feeling a

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little bit of heaven on earth. In just a few days' time, he had

become adept at ignoring Smokey and at the same time studying

her clipper.

Dallas had never been on a ship that could move with such

speed. The Aramis was a yare vessel, and he had never seen

her equal. She cut through the water with the ease of a sharp

blade against tender beef. If he hadn't understood before, it

became increasingly clear now why this boat was in and out of

port before the Zephyr could even get moving. The cut of her

bow, the placement of the sail--in fact everything Dallas

could see--contributed to her grace and speed

He smiled to himself on more than one occasion as he

worked There may he aspects of this job I don't enjoy, but

studying this craft more than makes up for every one of them.

The afternoon of the sixth day saw Smokey on the deck

more than any other day previous. Quiet as they sailed, she

allowed Darsey to handle most everything, but her eyes were

watchful. Everyone on deck knew that the ship would be in the

midst of a storm before the night was through. What remained

a mystery was how hard it would hit, and for how long.

The afternoon was swiftly disappearing when they moved

into heavy cloud cover. The north wind seemed to pick up as if

by magic, but still no rain fell. The wind had begun to whip the

craft as though the magnificent clipper were but a toy. Hoping

to beat the rain that was sure to come, the crew was lowering

the sails as fast as they could

They worked fast and hard, but the wind was stronger and

trouble came. Smokey had never left the helm, so no one had

to summon her when the rigging of the mainsail would not

come loose. The sail had to come down or be ripped to shreds.

Dallas, who had been working with Mic and Robby securing

the other sails, turned to offer his services to Darsey. He

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had climbed the mainmast dozens of times in his day and