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Cyrus stared down at her. She did not wave, and he could not read her expression. His fingers dug tightly into the wooden rail beneath his hands. She looked away. The rowboat had pulled alongside the ship and the two oarsmen held the boat steady while Margaret stood up and mounted the rope ladder.
The captain appeared at his side. “Master Lafayette, if you would step back, I will assist the young lady to climb aboard. I need to ascertain her state of well-being before I decide whether further action needs to be taken on Captain Cameron.” The captain patted the pistol that hung from his belt. He smiled, as if he anticipated the prospect.
That suited Cyrus. He nodded and stepped back, allowing the captain to stand by as Margaret climbed up to the railing. Two of the lower ranking men all but pulled her over it, setting her on her feet. She thanked them, but then looked back at the Libertas.
“Miss Lafayette, I am Captain Plimpton of the British navy. Welcome aboard. May I ask if you have come to any harm during your time on the ship known as the Libertas?”
“Harm?” She looked at the captain and seemed bewildered.
Cyrus’s suspicion grew. She was avoiding his eyes.
“Forgive me for being indelicate, but I must ask. Did they hurt you or...defile you in any way?” Plimpton pulled the pistol from his belt.
&n
bsp; Margaret stared at the captain as if distressed.
“Point out the man who defiled you and I will finish him.” He pointed his pistol at the crew of the Libertas climbing down to the rowboats beyond.
“No, Captain. None of those men hurt me.”
Plimpton nodded. “Well, it seems we’ll have no further sport from this one.” He sighed. “What a pity.”
Cyrus wanted him to blow the lot of them out of the water and have done with it, but before he had a chance to offer his opinion, Margaret spoke.
“Captain, is it your intention to carry out the threat to...make them all perish?”
The captain chortled. “If they haven’t harmed you there is no absolute need to do so. Unless you would prefer I did?”
She shook her head vigorously.
Cyrus’s mood turned sour. She wished to protect those brigands. “Margaret?”
What struck him most when she finally turned his way was her beauty, which seemed strangely enhanced out here in the wild ocean breeze with her hair flying free and her eyes wide and bright. She looked pale and tired, though, and her gown was damaged and torn in several places. She had no belongings with her. The foolish woman. Cyrus wanted to drag her below deck and berate her.
She closed her eyes a moment, and when she opened them she broke into a weak smile. “Cyrus, you are here.”
“Of course I am here,” he said with barely concealed anger. “You are mine and I will not suffer you or your precious...talents being squandered.”
Her eyes flickered with fear. She was still terrified of being exposed as what she was. Cyrus smiled. That pleased him greatly. He could work with that to keep her more strongly in check. As he approached, she held out her hands, beckoning him to her.
Cyrus cocked his head, trying to understand her actions. He’d expected her to reject him if she had run away, or fling herself at him if she had been kidnapped. However, she took his hands in her own, staring into his eyes as he joined her.
“You must tell the captain if there is any cause for concern.”
She held his hands tighter still. “Cyrus, no, I was not harmed, as I have already told him.”
She gave the captain a sidelong glance. There was a fretful look in her eyes and she kept peering back over her shoulder. She seemed restless or confused, and she whispered some words in Gaelic or Pictish, he was sure of it, but for some reason they were swept away on the wind. He was about to quiz her when his mood softened. It didn’t matter, because she was there and he was holding her. The very sight of her...it was pure and simple delirium to have her back after these days of rage and hardship.
Again she spoke, but he could not catch what she said.
Why did she keep looking at the Libertas? Cyrus followed her gaze and saw that the men from the ship were now clambering down nets into rowboats. There were some thirty of them, and they were watched over by one of the navy officers. Why did she seem so fretful? The question echoed in Cyrus’s mind, but he found it hard to voice it. Had some rogue frightened her, or worse still, stolen her virginity from him?
Captain Plimpton looked at Cyrus and frowned. “Are you quite well, Master Lafayette?”
In the distance, the sound of men jeering at the navy reached them.
Margaret pulled her hands free of his and ran to the railing.
