A gasp escapedmy throat. They really were pirates, then. In a sense. “Henry!”
He hushed meand placed a hand over my mouth. “Now, now. It’s not like that. Wetook no lives. We waited until the ships had docked and we raidedthem at night. We returned what we knew to have ownership and keptwhat didn’t. It’s as honest a life as a pirate could live,Dianna.”
I let it sinkin and realized that Henry was right. What did it hurt? He saidthey took no lives. They were like pirate ninjas, like the RobinHood and the Merry Men of the sea, stealing from the bad guys andgiving it back. So, I nodded in agreement and he let me go. But heseemed unsure.
“Youthink ill of me now?”
I examined hisglorious face thoughtfully, smoothed his hair back, taking in asmuch of him as possible and collecting the information in my brainto paint the picture later. When I needed it. How could I think ofhim in any other way but fondly?
I shook myhead and replied, “No. Never.”
“Youknow more about me than any living person on this Earth, Dianna,”he pointed out.
“Is thata bad thing?”
“No, Iquite like it, actually,” he assured me and planted a warm kiss tomy forehead. “But I know nothing of you. Tell me.”
Panic set in.What could I possibly tell him that would even make sense? “What doyou want to know?”
“Anything. Everything.”
My mindflipped through memories of my life like a picture book, trying tofigure out what to say and how to say it. “Well, my mother–”
“Whatwas her name?”
“Constance,” I answered, careful not to say her last name.“She came to Newfoundland and met my dad, Arthur Sheppard, and fellin love. She was a baker and taught my dad everything she knew.They opened a bakery and then had me, they taught me everything, hoping I’d oneday take it over.”
“And youdidn’t?”
“I was adreamer, I guess you could say?” I laughed at the thought. “Iconvinced myself there was more out there in the world for me thanto stay home in our tiny, small-minded community and be abaker.”
“Andwhat happened then?” Henry had rolled to his side to face me,propping his head up on one arm, enthralled in the words I had tosay.
“Shedied,” I replied with barely a whisper. I single tear escaped myeye and Henry’s thumb reached out to catch it as it rolled down mycheek. “She… drowned at sea. When I was a teenager. I had beenconsidering staying home for a few years to help with the bakery,but after she was lost, when we never found her body, my fathersort of lost his mind. Went mad with grief. I felt so alone so I…ran away. Became a cook for rich people.”
To mysurprise, Henry replied, “I can imagine what he felt.”
“Becauseyou went through it with your parents?”
“Well,yes, in a way. I cried for months over their deaths, but I wastrapped in a void of constant fear, I’m not sure I ever properlygrieved for them.” The man next to me leaned in and pressed hisbody to mine. “But the thought of losing you…”
I told myselfI would refrain from letting things get deeper, but I couldn’t helpit, Captain Barrett had my heart in his hands and could so easilymold it to his will. I let a slight whisper escape my lips, “Iknow.”
“Itwould end me.”
I only noddedin reply and Henry grabbed my head, holding it to his chest where Ihappily remained, comfortable and satisfied in his warm embrace. Wetalked for hours, discovering one another in a whole new way. Then,we eventually drifted off to a world where I knew we both couldlive, in our dreams.
Together.
Chapter Fourteen
The next day we met landfall near the smallcommunity we planned to stop at for the night. After we checked inat a tavern, I found myself in the room Henry and I was sharing. Iwanted to rest, but he held out my jacket and smiled.
“Are youready?” he asked and then looked to the clock in the corner of theroom. “We don’t have much time.”
“What,is there a time limit to when the treasure is available?” I askedsarcastically and grabbed my coat from his arms, slinging it overmy shoulders. I no longer thought of it as Maria’s. This jacketcame back through time with me, kept my skin from burning in thesun while I clung to that chest and bobbed in the sea, and it’skept me warm on cold nights aboard the ship. It was every bitmine.
“As amatter of fact, there is,” he replied with allseriousness.
We skippeddown the stairs like two children eager for an adventure, with noworries in the world. Finn approached us before we got to thedoor.
“Where’re the two of ye headed off to?”
“We havesomething to tend to, Finnigan,” Henry replied, and I tried to hidemy grin at the use of Finn’s full name. I could tell it botheredhim by the slight twitch his face gave, but not enough to sayanything when his captain used it. “Mind the men and take Gus tosuss out the word on land. See if you can find some new informationabout The Cobhams.”
Finn nodded.“Aye, Captain.” Then he shot me a look I knew I was going to miss.The kind an older brother would give his kid sister when he wantedto tease her but couldn’t in front of the parents. “Milady.”
“I brought somefresh rosemary buns with me. I put some on your bed,” I toldhim.
He lit upbefore hopping away and bounded up the stairs, his long legs easilytaking three at a time. I was going to miss him dearly.
***
Henry led theway as we scaled the rocky shore near the small community. The sunshone down from high in the sky, and it sparkled on the ocean likewet crystals.
“Howmuch further?” I asked him.
“Notfar,” he replied and reached back to take my hand. Not that Ineeded it. Growing up in a coastal community meant that I spent themajority of my early days playing down by the water, hopping acrossrocks, building rafts, jigging for squid with nothing but a stickand some line. I loved the sea and everything that came with
