“Idiot,” Kalisaid.
A woman’s scream sounded, then was cut offwhen the hatch clanged shut. Kali’s indignation faded. Kali couldbe experiencing a far worse fate at the moment. And she might stillhave to worry about that, if she didn’t escape.
The guard jerked his shotgun toward her.“Get to work.”
Kali opened the furnace door and squinted asheat rolled out. Next to the gloom of the boiler room, the flamesthrew off an inferno of light. While she scooped coal from the binand into the firebox, she debated her options. She could fling ashovelful of burning embers at the guard, but he was too far awayfor her to launch a follow-up attack. She hadn’t seen the captainpass him the keys for her leg iron either. Something on theworkbench might help her escape, but it too was well out ofreach.
Kali eyed the heavy black chain attached toher ankle and didn’t see any weaknesses. It would take a blacksmithto break one of the thick links. At the other end, the chainattached to an eyelet secured with a hinge to an iron plate mountedflush in the deck. She couldn’t have been the first prisoner to bechained in the boiler room.
She kept scooping coal into the furnacewhile she contemplated that hinge. In its present state, shedoubted she could wedge the tip of the shovel into the crease topry the eyelet free, but she’d loosened many a rusted old bolt byapplying heat to break the bond.
The next time she dumped fresh coal into thefurnace, she slipped a few burning red embers out. The guard waswatching her, but the door hid the shovel, and the furnace itselfblocked the eyelet from his view. Kali laid the glowing coals onthe metal plate around the hinge. Making certain not to take toomuch time and rouse suspicions, she repeated the process until apile of hot coals lay all about the eyelet.
Kali continued to load the furnace for acouple more minutes, giving the iron time to heat. Even if she wasable to loosen the hinge and pull the chain free, she still had todeal with the guard.
“It’s getting prettyfull.” She paused to mop sweat from her brow. “How much more shouldI put in?”
“When it’s full, close thedoor and start loading the other one.”
“Whatever you say, boss.”Kali considered her words, then added, “I don’t suppose there’sanything I can do to talk you into letting me go?” If she was toogood of a worker and didn’t try to wheedle her way out of her fate,that might make him suspicious. “I’ve got money stashed at home.How much do you make as a pirate?”
“More than you’vegot.”
“I doubt that,” Kali said.“My partner is a proficient bounty hunter, and he shares hisearnings.”
“Men who give money towomen are stupid. Get back to work.”
Kali rolled her eyes but didn’t argue. Shecertainly wasn’t going to explain what she did to earn her half. Noneed for him to think she might have a crafty side.
“It’s powerful hot inhere.” Kali wiped her brow again and leaned on the shovel. “Anychance I can get some water?”
“You’ve barely beenworking five minutes. You’re fine.”
Kali made a show of letting her shouldersslump and tried to look weary as she went back to shoveling. Aftera few more rounds, she said, “I just need a little break.”
She slipped between the furnaces, nudged thecoals off the eyelet with her shovel, and eased the tip into thehinge crease. She wiggled the blade in deeper, relieved when therewas enough give to do so. Then she leaned her weight onto it. Thehinge pin eased upward, but it made a telling creak.
“What’re you doing overthere, woman?” Footsteps thudded on the deck.
Kali shoved downward with all of herstrength. The hinge popped free. Kali scattered the hot embers,smacked the shovel against the furnace, making a loud clang, thendropped to the floor on her back, hiding the popped hinge with herbody. She closed her eyes and didn’t move.
The guard stomped around the corner. Kaliwatched through her eyelashes as he surveyed the mess. “Stupidwoman, what’d you do?”
Passed out from heat exhaustion, or so shehoped he’d think.
The guard came close enough to kick her bootwith his foot, then, when she did not respond, he leaned in closer.He reached down, probably intending to take the shovel from herreach. Before he could grab the shaft, Kali whipped it up andslammed the pan into his face.
The pirate reeled back, but the blow was notenough to drop him. He lunged for the shovel. Kali hit him againand scrambled to her feet. The guard, blood running in twinrivulets from his nose, started to lift his gun. She jammed herheel into his shin, and he yowled and went down. Kali snatched theheavy iron chain from the floor and swung it at his head. Itconnected with a solid thud. The man’s shotgun drooped in hishands. Kali tore it free and backed away, aiming it at hischest.
“On your belly,” shebarked.
The man groaned and slumped to the floor,eyes crossing. She found the rope the pirates had tied her withearlier and hurried to bind his hands and legs while he was stillwoozy. If she could find the key to her leg iron, she’d stick thaton him as well and see how well he liked being tied up.
“You have any morebuckshot?” Kali asked after checking the shotgun. She could fire itonce, but that was it.
“Not down here,” thepirate growled, his eyes focusing again. “Why don’t you wander upand look for some above decks? I’m sure someone can help youout.”
“With a bullet to thechest, I’m sure,” Kali said.
Figuring she didn’t have much time, sherushed over to the work table. She decided the iron band on herankle wasn’t a priority and left it on while she searched throughher tools for, yes, there was the vial of flash gold. She wassurprised the captain hadn’t taken it with him, but maybe Conradwas the only one who knew what it was, or maybe he’d warned themnot to take it. Now if Kali could come up with something useful todo with it before someone came and checked on her….
Another feminine cry of pain echoed throughthe ship, muffled by the closed hatch, but not muffled enough. Kaliclenched her jaw. She had more than one reason to hurry.
Kali checked the machine shop drawers andtoolboxes. She doubted she would stumble across something asobviously handy as ammunition for the shotgun, but maybe she couldfind raw materials to make-she did not know what yet. But she hadthe flash gold, so she could power something. She just had tofigure out what.
A tin of kerosene sitting in a bottom drawermade Kali pause. A slow smile curved her lips. That certainlyincreased the possibilities. Another drawer offered a bunch offunnels and strainers of various sizes. They must fill the ship’srunning lamps down there.
Kali tapped the shotgun thoughtfully. “If Icould find some kind of pressurized tank…the flash gold could beturned into an ignition system. It’s an energy source, after all.”While she muttered to herself, she rifled through the rest of thedrawers. “Piping, hm. I could make a pump to pressurize a tank withair…like with my spud launcher.” She snorted, imagining herselfracing through the corridors, pelting pirates with potatoes. Thisnew weapon would have to be a little more inimical. She grabbed ascrewdriver and started disassembling the shotgun’s firingmechanism.
Minutes ticked past as she hunkered over thetable, sweat dribbling into her eyes and dropping from her chin. Ithad to be over a hundred degrees in the boiler room. Still, she’drather be there than in Sparwood’s cabin.
Muffled grunts came from between theboilers, and Kali jumped. She’d forgotten about her prisoner. Withher new project in hand, she rushed over to check on him. He wasstill bound, though he looked like he’d been trying to saw hisropes off using the corner of the coal bin.
He gaped at Kali when she came into sight.Actually he gaped at the shotgun in her hands. It still had thesame body, but the two salvaged tanks attached under the barrelwere definite upgrades. One held kerosene and the other pressurizedair. A slender tube fed the flammable liquid into and through thebarrel. The flash gold flake was tucked out of sight, inside themuzzle, but she’d imprinted it with a command to ignite thekerosene when the trigger was pulled.
“Whuf iff it?” the piratedemanded, his words almost indistinguishable through the gag Kalihad stuffed into his mouth.
Kali doubted her weapon would work on thefirst attempt-given the way the day’s luck had gone, she might evenblow herself up-but she pulled the trigger, figuring she had to tryit eventually anyway. And wouldn’t it be great if it worked withthis stunted vegetable looking on?
