'We have eight cannons in all,' Jimbo announced. 'That's way below the usual number for most ships, but our aim is always on target, and we don't need more. This ship is a scaled-down version of a frigate the captain took a liking to,' he added. 'The ammunition stores are kept below the water level in the event of an attack. They're safer from explosion that way.'
'But Mister Jimbo, we aren't at war now. Why would the captain have such weapons on board? What is the need?'
Jimbo shrugged. Sara's eyes suddenly widened. 'Pagan.' She blurted out the name of the infamous pirate and then nodded. 'Yes, of course. How cunning of our captain to be prepared for the villains who roam the seas. He thinks to defend us against all the pirates, doesn't he?'
It was a mighty effort, but Jimbo was able to hide his smile. 'You've heard of Pagan, have you?'
She let him see her exasperation. 'Everyone has heard of that villain.'
'Villain? Then you don't like Pagan?'
She thought that had to be the oddest question ever put to her. The sparkle in his eyes puzzled her, too. He seemed to be vastly amused, and that didn't make any sense at all. They were talking about the horrid pirate, not sharing the latest jest making the rounds in London.
'I most certainly don't like the man. He's a criminal, sir. Why, there's a bounty the size of England on his head. You're obviously given to a romantic nature if you believe all those silly stories about Pagan's goodness.'
The piercing sound of a whistle interrupted her lecture. 'What is that noise?' she asked. 'I heard it earlier when I was dressing.'
'That's the boatswain piping the change,' he explained. 'You'll be hearing the sound every four hours, night and day. It's the notice of the change of duty.'
'Mister Jimbo?' she asked when he started to turn away from her.
'Lady Sara, you don't have to call me mister,' he grumbled. 'Jimbo will do fine.'
'Then you must quit calling me Lady Sara,' she countered. 'We are friends now, and you may simply call me Sara.' She grabbed his arm. 'May I ask you just one last question?'
He glanced over his shoulder. 'Yes?'
'Last evening… or was it the night before? Well, I noticed that you seemed to be in my husband's employ. Is that correct?'
'Yes.'
'Do you happen to know where Nathan is? I would like to have a word with him.'
'He's aft.'
She looked startled but was quick to recover. Then she shook her head at him. The censure in her expression gained his full attention. He turned completely around. 'He's aft, I'm telling you.'
'Yes, he might very well be daft, Jimbo,' she began. She paused to pick up her parasol and then walked around the big man. 'But you're most disloyal when you voice that thought aloud. I'm Nathan's wife now, and I won't listen to such talk. Please don't show such disrespect again.'
Matthew came down the stairs just in time to hear his friend mutter something about respect. Lady Sara smiled as she made her way past him.
'What was that all about?' Matthew asked his friend. 'I thought I heard you-'
Jimbo cut him off with a glare. 'You aren't going to believe this, but I just promised not ever to tell anyone Nathan was aft.'
Matthew shook his head. 'She's a strange one, isn't she, Jimbo? I'm wondering how such an innocent could have come from such a mean-hearted family.'
'Sara isn't anything like our Jade,' Jimbo announced. He was referring to Nathan's younger sister. 'In all our travels together I never once saw Jade cry.'
'No, she never cried.' There was pride in Matthew's voice. 'But this one… I didn't know a woman could carry on the way she did that first night.'
'Screaming like a hellion, too,' Jimbo interjected. 'Now, Jade,' he continued, 'she never screamed.'
'Never,' Matthew agreed. His voice was emphatic.
Jimbo suddenly grinned. 'The two are as different as fire and snow,' he said. 'Still, they do have one thing in common.'
'What's that?'
'They're both damn fair in looks.'
Matthew nodded.
The comparison between the two ladies was cut short when a shrill scream reached them. They both knew it was Sara making all the racket. 'She's a piece of work, isn't she?' Matthew drawled out.
'A damned loud piece of work,' Jimbo muttered. 'Wonder what's got her all riled up this time.'
Odd, but both men were eager to get back up on deck to see what was happening. They were both smiling, too.
Sara had just located Nathan. He was standing behind a spoked wheel. She was about to call out to him when he turned his back on her and pulled off his shirt.
She saw the scars on his back. Her reaction was instinctive. She let out a shout of outrage.
'Who did that to you?'
Nathan immediately reacted. He grabbed hold of his whip and turned to confront the threat. It didn't take him any time at all to realize there wasn't any enemy trying to harm his bride. Sara stood all alone.
'What is it?' he roared at her while he tried to calm his heartbeat. 'I thought someone was…'
He stopped himself in mid-bellow, took a deep breath, and then said, 'Are you in pain, madam?'
She shook her head.
'Don't you ever scream like that again,' he ordered in a much softer tone of voice. 'If you wish my attention, simply ask for it.'
Sara's parasol fell to the deck when she walked over to her husband. She was still so stunned by what she'd seen, she wasn't even aware she'd dropped it. She stopped when she was just a scant foot away from Nathan. He saw the tears in her eyes. 'Now what is it?' he demanded. 'Did someone frighten you?' Damn, he didn't have the patience for this, he told himself.
'It's your back, Nathan,' she whispered. 'It's covered with scars.'
He shook his head. No one had ever dared mention his disfigurement to him. Those who'd seen his back pretended not to notice.
'Thank you for telling me,' he snapped. 'I never would have known…'
Hell, she started to cry. His sarcasm was obviously too much for her, he decided. 'Look, Sara,' he muttered in true exasperation. 'If the sight of my back offends you, go below.'
'It doesn't offend me,' she answered. 'Why would you say such a mean thing?'
Nathan motioned to Jimbo to take over the wheel, then clasped his hands behind his back so he wouldn't grab her. The urge to shake some sense into the woman fairly overwhelmed him. 'All right, then, why did you scream?'
His voice was as brisk as the wind. Sara guessed he was a little sensitive about his marks. 'I was very angry when I saw the scars, Nathan. Did you have an accident?'
'No.'
'Then someone deliberately did this thing to you?' She didn't give him time to answer. 'What monster inflicted such pain? My God, how you must have suffered.'
'For God's sake, it happened a long time ago.'
'Was it Pagan?' she asked.
'What?' he asked.
He looked startled. Sara thought her guess had been right after all. 'It was Pagan who did that to you, wasn't it?'
Jimbo started coughing. Nathan turned to glare him into silence. 'Why in God's name would you think it was Pagan?' he asked Sara.
'Because he's mean enough,' she answered.
'Oh?' he asked. 'And how would you know that?'
She shrugged. 'I heard that he was.'
