Besieged

cause him any difficulty, but he was indeed concerned. He tendered an invitation to Kieran and the ship's captain for dinner so he might learn more. Kieran gave his colonists leave to visit the island, but warned them they must cause no difficulty, or they would be sent back aboard and forced to remain.

'We must await Lord Calvert. I would be far more comfortable doing it ashore than aboard ship. We still have a long way to go. Any man found drunk will not be allowed ashore again until we reach Mary's Land.' Then Kieran Devers went with Captain O'Flaherty to the governor's home.

They were greeted cordially, and sat down to table. Kieran was fascinated by the long bunches of yellow cucumber-shaped growths hanging from trees outside the governor's dining room.

Seeing the direction of his gaze the governor chuckled. 'Bananas,' he said. 'They are called bananas. Peel away the yellow outer skin, and inside is a sweet fruit not unlike the taste of marmalade. I'll give you some to bring back aboard ship.'

'We're remaining on the island while we await the arrival of Lord Baltimore's expedition, my lord. If we have your permission, of course,' Kieran answered him. 'We have been at sea for weeks, and are not sailors used to the water. My men are mostly farmers.'

'Where are you bound for, if I may ask?' the governor inquired.

'Lord Baltimore's new colony of Mary's Land,' Kieran told him.

' 'Tis only for Catholics, I am told,' Sir Thomas replied.

'Nay, sir, Mary's Land is for all men of goodwill, be they Catholic or Protestant,' Kieran told him earnestly. 'None will be persecuted. That is why we are going, my lord, but many who travel with Leonard Calvert are Protestants.'

'Don't like the idea of a Catholic colony,' the governor grumbled. 'We've got too much trouble with the Spanish here as it is.'

'Mary's Land is not a Spanish colony, my lord. It is an English colony. We are all loyal subjects of his majesty. Did you know that my wife's half-brother is the king's honored nephew?'

'Indeed?' The governor looked a bit skeptical.

'Lord Charles Frederick Stuart, the duke of Lundy,' Kieran said. 'They call him the not-so-royal Stuart.'

'Ah, yes, I recall something about Prince Henry having a bastard,' Sir Thomas responded. 'The mistress was a pretty wench as I remember now. Dark hair, and eyes like the turquoise sea.'

'My mother-in-law, the duchess of Glenkirk,' Kieran said, 'although she was not wed to James Leslie when she was the prince's beloved friend.'

'You're welcome to remain on the island itself as long as your people don't cause us any difficulties,' the governor told Kieran.

'Thank you, my lord,' Kieran said politely, and turned his attention to his meal.

'Nicely done, sir,' Captain O'Flaherty said softly with a wink. 'The family would be proud of you.'

Kieran looked at the captain, and the eyes twinkling back at him were familiar. 'God's blood!' he swore softly. 'You're one of them, aren't you?'

'Ualtar O'Flaherty, son of Ewan, grandson of the great Skye, great- grandson of Dubhdara himself,' was the smiling reply. 'Your wife and I are cousins, although I have never had the pleasure of meeting her or any of her nearest kin. I only met my grandmother, Skye, twice in my lifetime. My father is the Master of Ballyhenessey in Ireland. I'm the only one of his sons who felt the urge to go to sea. My grandmother saw to it that I could have my heart's desire as she did for several of my cousins. Various of us have been master of the Cardiff Rose. She's a fine, safe vessel. Mostly I've been on the Mediterranean run. We call in at various times at Algiers, San Lorenzo, Marseilles, Naples, Venice, Athens, Alexandria, Istanbul.'

'Why didn't I know who you were?' Kieran wondered aloud.

'Was it important to you, sir?' Captain O'Flaherty asked.

Kieran laughed. ' 'Tis a strange lot, this family I've married into, Ualtar O'Flaherty,' he said.

'Aye, sir, and that's a truth,' the captain agreed cheerfully.

***

It had been early December when they reached Barbados. They kept their Christmas there. There was no priest to celebrate the mass for them, so they sang songs and said their prayers quietly. A feast was arranged for the men on the beach where a pit was dug, and a large pig was purchased in the marketplace for roasting. A platter with bananas, muskmelon, pineapple, and watermelon was served along with roasted yams. Other than the pig, these were foods unfamiliar to the colonists. They tasted them reluctantly, and then discovering that they were good, ate with enthusiasm.

In early January the Ark reached Barbados, and was welcomed by the men aboard the Cardiff Rose. As Kieran Devers and his men before them, those aboard the Ark were amazed and enchanted by the exotic and brilliant flowers and trees growing on the island. The raucous and wildly colored birds were also fascinating. A mass of thanksgiving was held aboard the Ark which was attended by all the Catholics. The Protestant colonists went ashore to attend the governor's church.

Over the next few weeks they loaded up the vessels with seed corn, potatoes, and as many other food supplies as they could find room for, squirreling them away in every available nook and cranny. The water barrels were all refilled. To their delight the Dove arrived in the harbor along with a large merchantman, the Dragon. When the storm had hit, they had returned to shelter in a safe English harbor until it passed before beginning their journey again. Everyone who had started out with Leonard Calvert's expedition was now accounted for, and they were now ready to head north for Mary's Land. The governor of Barbados was openly relieved to see them go. He, like so many others, could not rid himself of the idea that English and Irish Catholics were loyal to their Catholic brethren in Spain rather than England's Protestant king.

They reached the Virginias in March. Although Lord Baltimore had advised against having anything to do with the Virginians, whose representatives at court were doing all in their power to stop the Mary's Land colony, Leonard Calvert had a message for Virginia's governor from the king, as well as some gifts for him that he wished to personally deliver. The colonists stayed nine days in Virginia, and the Virginians were extremely cordial much to Governor Calvert's surprise. When they left they took along a local fur trader, Captain Fleet, to serve them as a translator with the Indians, and a guide, for he knew the Chesapeake country well.

As their ships traversed Chesapeake Bay, the colonists stood at the ship's rails viewing their new home for the first time. The forests were magnificent, filled with both hard and soft woods. Kieran Devers knew he had finally come home, and was astounded by the certainty and confidence he felt in his heart. How he wished that Fortune had been able to come with them so they might see it for the first time together; but when she did come, he would have a home ready for her. He knew she was going to love it every bit as much as he already did. He hurried to his cabin to write her a letter. Once they were settled, the Cardiff Rose would be returning back to England, and he wanted it to carry his thoughts to Fortune. He had written them down each day so she could share all she had missed. He wondered if his son was born yet.

They made their first landfall on an uninhabited island that they called St. Clement. The Indians that had lined the shores to the east and the west the past few days were gone now. A