you what could happen. Don't let me forget to blow out the flame when Matthew comes to fetch us.'
The ship suddenly felt as though it had just let out a giant belch. It shook from aft to stem. 'Do you think they hit us with that shot?' Sara asked.
'It certainly felt as though they did,' Nora answered.
'Nathan had better finish this quickly. My nerves cannot take such an upset. Nora, you and Matthew have become very close, haven't you?'
'What a time you've chosen to ask me that,' Nora said with a little chuckle.
'I just wanted to take our minds off the worry at hand,' Sara replied.
'Yes, that might be a good idea. And you're right, Matthew and I have become quite close. He's such a gentle, understanding man. I'd quite forgotten how comforting it is to be able to confide my thoughts and worries in someone who cares about me.'
'I care about you, Aunt.'
'Yes, dear, I know you do, but it isn't at all the same. You'll understand what I'm saying when you and Nathan become a little closer.'
'I fear that day will never come,' Sara returned. 'Does Matthew confide in you as well?' she asked.
'Oh, yes, often.'
'Has he talked about Nathan much?'
'Several times,' Nora admitted. 'Some things were given in confidence, of course, and so I cannot speak about-'
'Of course you can,' Sara interrupted. 'I'm your niece, after all, and anything you would tell me wouldn't go any further. You do trust me, don't you, Nora?'
Sara kept up her prodding for another ten minutes or so before Nora finally relented. 'Matthew told me all about Nathan's father. Did you ever meet the Earl of Wakersfield?'
Sara shook her head. 'It's said that he died when Nathan was just a boy, Nora. I couldn't have been more than a babe. I did hear that he was knighted, though.'
'Yes, he was knighted. It was all a sham, though. Matthew told me that the earl actually betrayed his country while he was in service. Yes, that's true, Sara,' she added when her niece let out a gasp. 'It's a horrifying story, child. Nathan's father was in cahoots with two other infidels, and the three thought they could overturn the government. They called themselves the Tribunal, and as Matthew related the sequence of events to me, they almost pulled off their treacherous scheme. Nathan's father had second thoughts, though. His conscience got him killed before the truth was let out.'
Sara was horrified by what she'd just learned. 'Poor Nathan,' she whispered. 'The shame must have been unbearable.'
'No, not at all,' Nora returned. 'You see, no one knows the full truth. It's still believed that the earl was killed in a carriage accident. There hasn't been any scandal. I warn you that if your family got wind of this, they'd use the information to get the prince to overturn your marriage contract.'
'Oh, it's too late for that,' Sara returned.
'You're being naive if you believe that it's too late, Sara. The circumstances were so unusual, what with the king not feeling at all well.'
'He was daft,' Sara whispered.
'And you were only four years old,' her aunt whispered back.
'Still, we are living as man and wife now. I don't believe the prince regent would dare overturn-'
'He can dare whatever he wants to dare,' Nora argued.
'Your worry doesn't signify,' Sara interjected. 'I'm not going to tell anyone about Nathan's father, so my parents aren't ever going to find out. I won't even let Nathan know that I know, all right? He'll have to confide in me first.'
Nora was appeased. 'Do you know I also found out how Nathan's back was injured?'
'I believe someone took a whip to him,' Sara returned.
'No, it wasn't a whip,' Nora countered. 'His back was scarred by fire, not a whip. You only have to look to realize that, child.'
Sara felt sick to her stomach. 'Oh, God, was it deliberate? Did someone burn him on purpose?'
'I believe so, but I can't be certain. I do know a woman was involved. Her name was Ariah. Nathan met her when he was visiting a foreign port in the east.'
'How did Nathan meet this woman?'
'I wasn't given the details,' Nora admitted. 'I do know that this Ariah has rather loose morals. She dallied with Nathan.'
Sara let out a little gasp. 'Do you mean to say that Nathan was intimate with this harlot?'
Nora reached out and patted Sara's hand. 'Nathan was just sowing his oats, dear, before he settled down. There's no need to get yourself all worked up.'
'Do you think he loved her?'
'No, of course he didn't love her. He was already pledged to you, Sara. Nathan strikes me as being terribly sensible. He wouldn't have allowed himself to fall in love with the woman. And I'll wager you my inheritance that when Ariah was finished with him he most likely hated her. Matthew told me that the woman used Nathan to manipulate her other lover. Yes, it's true,' she added in a rush when Sara looked disbelieving. 'According to Matthew, Ariah was a master at her game. For that reason I do believe Nathan was tortured by her command. Thank the Lord, he was able to escape. It was during a small revolution, you see, and those sympathetic to the anarchists aided him when they released the other prisoners. Then Jimbo and Matthew took over Nathan's care.'
'Nathan has certainly had a time of it, hasn't he?' Sara whispered. Her voice shook with emotion. 'He must have been very young when that horrid woman betrayed him. I believe he loved her, too, Nora.'
'I believe he didn't,' Nora countered.
Sara let out a weary sigh. 'It would be nice if it was just a dalliance,' she said. 'And if they did share the same bed, well, he wasn't really being unfaithful to me, because we hadn't started our married life together. You know, it's all beginning to make sense to me now.'
'What is beginning to make sense?'
'I hadn't confided this to you before, but I have noticed that Nathan seems to be very concerned with protecting his feelings. Now I think I understand why. He doesn't trust women. I cannot fault him. If your fingers are burned once, you won't put your hand near the fire again, will you?'
'It was a long time ago,' Nora replied. 'Nathan is a grown man now, Sara, and surely he has sorted all this out in his mind.'
Sara shook her head. 'How else can you explain his attitude? Nathan doesn't like it at all when I tell him I love him. He stiffens up on me and goes all cold. And he's never once told me he cares for me. He just might still hate all women-except me, of course.'
Nora smiled. 'Except you?'
'I believe he does love me, Nora. He's just having difficulty knowing that he does.'
'Give him time, dear. Men take so much longer to figure things out. It's because they're such stubborn beasts, you see.'
Sara was in wholehearted agreement with that remark. 'If I ever chance to meet this Ariah woman, I'll-'
'You've a good chance of meeting up with her,' Nora interjected. 'She has been living in London for the past year or so. Matthew says she's looking for yet another sponsor.'
'Does Nathan know she's in England?'
'I would imagine so,' Nora countered.
The noise became too loud for the two of them to continue the discussion. While Nora fretted about the battle Sara worried over the information her aunt had just shared with her.
Another twenty or thirty minutes passed. Then a chilling silence filled the ship. 'If I could just see what's happening, I wouldn't be so worried,' Nora whispered.
Sara thought that was a fine idea. 'I'll just sneak up to the cabin level and see if everything is all right.'
Nora was vehemently against that suggestion. The hatch opened in the middle of their argument and the two
