“Feels more like purgatory to me,” the largest man snarled through a clenched jaw.
In that moment, a shout from the distance caused a hush among the men. Abigail turned and caught sight of Captain Harris on horseback, like a phantom hero galloping out of the mist.
Her heart nearly burst out of her chest as he reached the station yard and reined the horse to a halt. Only then did she realize that young Emma Clarkson was on the back of the horse. Abigail’s gut squeezed like a fist.
They both dismounted.
The captain strode toward the ruckus. “What’s going on?”
None of his crewmen responded.
He turned to John. “Lower the weapon please, sir, if you will.”
John did as the captain asked. Captain Harris then approached his men and spoke to them privately. Abigail watched with a shortness of breath, mesmerized, not knowing what to expect.
To her surprise, before long, they were all laughing and joking, and the men dispersed and headed back to the staff house. On the way, one of the Sable crewmen patted aBelvedereman on the back, as if they were fast friends again.
What magic words has the captain bestowed upon them?Abigail wondered. He certainly had a way with people, herself included, because she couldn’t take her eyes off him as he was speaking to John.
But then Emma entered the periphery of her vision. As she led her horse to the barn, she pulled a ribbon from her thick auburn hair and shook it down her back until it blew lightly in the breeze.
What a performance. Abigail could have expelled the entire contents of her stomach. And where had Emma and the captain been that morning, obviously alone? Did no one else wonder this? Did her father not recognize the impropriety of it? His daughter was barely out of school, and the captain was a man of experience. Not to mention the fact that he had a wife. And a concussion. He was in no condition to be galloping around the island with anyone, much less a single young woman.
Turning to march home, Abigail struggled to set her thoughts on making more sandwiches—but damn them all to hell! She couldn’t get the striking image of Captain Harris on horseback out of her head. Nor could she forget the sight of Emma’s thick, beautiful hair. It wasn’t fair. She wanted to spit.
It was past noon when the captain finally returned to the McKennas’ house. Abigail was in the kitchen, slicing sandwiches. At the sight of him, she dropped her knife onto the worktable, wiped her hands on her apron, and hurried to greet him. “Captain Harris. My word, you look about ready to fall over.”
“I might have overdone it this morning,” he admitted, wincing with pain as he removed his coat.
“Any dizziness?” she asked.
“No, but the rib’s tender.”
“Tender?” She reached out and took hold of his arm to escort him toward the sickroom. “That’s got to be the understatement of the year. I saw you leaping off that horse earlier. What were you thinking?” she asked scoldingly. “You need to take better care of yourself. You’re injured, and you’ve had a serious concussion. You need to rest.” She led him to the bed. “Come and lie down. Yes, that’s right. Let me help you.” He carefully lowered himself to a sitting position. “Easy now,” Abigail uttered as she removed his boots. “Let’s get you under the covers, and I’ll bring you some hot soup.”
At long last, he laid his head on the pillow and let out a breath of exhaustion. “Thank you, Abigail. You’re an angel.”
She drew back with surprise and stared down at him, then quickly began to straighten the blanket at his feet before drawing it up over his shoulders. “Just doing my job,” she replied, feeling a strange tingling in her body and heart. “Get some rest now.”
He closed his eyes, and she stood for a while, watching him until he slept deeply. Then she turned and left the room, shutting the door softly behind her.
Chapter 5
Emma woke the following morning to more wind and rain. The telephone was ringing in the kitchen, so she rose from bed, pulled on her robe, and moved to the top of the stairs to listen as her father answered it.
“When?” he asked. “Have you notified the mainland? What about Captain Harris? Does he know yet?” Her father paused and listened. “Thank you, Joseph.”
As soon as he hung up the phone, Emma quickly descended the stairs. “What’s happening?”
Her father faced her with an expression of outrage. “Two of theBelvederemen snuck out last night and stole the lifeboat.”
“For what purpose?” she asked, stunned.
“We can only assume they made a run for the mainland,” he explained. “One of them was superstitious and thought this place was cursed. Evidently, he’d had some whiskey.”
“Dear Lord.” Emma sank onto a chair at the table. “They’ll never make it. Besides that, the other lifeboat was lost in the rescue, so they’ve left us with nothing. We can’t even go after them.”
“It was selfish of them,” he said. “And foolish. Now we have two men out there on the ocean thinking they can row two hundred miles, and the coast guard has to get involved.”
