AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Several looks were passed around the room and again laughter erupted. “I don’t think anyone knows,” Mia said and Coventonshrugged.
“Well how typical, blame it on the poor girl but not even have her name to credit.” Alicehuffed.
“So the captain has a wife, the first mate loved her and he shows that by wrecking the ship and killing everyone?” Philip said shaking his head. “This is how women will conquer the world. How many men on aschooner?”
“Twenty, twenty-five. Though it can be done with far fewer,” Jonah informedthem.
“So one woman ended twenty-five men. If they keep taking us out twenty-five to one, we are doomed.” Philip said and clutched hischest.
“As it was meant to be,” Mia said, laughing again and lifting the last books from the counter. She paused to sip her now tepidtea.
“So when might we see this ship again?” Aliceasked.
“It is due to ride the tides along Goodwin Sand, February 1848, so twenty-one more years,” Coventon said and everyone had a good laugh at her very disappointedexpression.
“You needn’t wait so long, there are a good many ghost ships near those shoals,” Mia said, “perhaps we can go out and hunt a few. Maybe we’ll find the FlyingDutchman.”
“Oooo,” Mr. Hong almost wailed. “You no go find Dutchman, eat you, drownyou.”
Mia laughed as she turned towards the sound of the bell and watched the woman walk in. She vaguely heard Philip ask which it was eat or drown, then her hands went limp and the books dropped to the floor. The woman raised her eyes and met Mia’s stare directly and the world wentblack.
* * *
The throbbing painin the side of her head made her stomachroll.
“Gentlemen, gentlemen.” Lady Alice’s harsh whisper didn’t help, and Mia tried to roll to her side. “She’s wakingup.”
The dull scraping and the heavy tread of feet on the floor swamped her and she moaned with the roll of her stomach. Why did her head feel like she’d been hit by the boom? Where was she? She tried pushing up only to have hands settle on her shoulders and hold herdown.
“Easy now,” an unfamiliar voice warned. “Move slow.” The hands left her shoulders and eased behind her back. “Fetch a pail just incase.”
“What happened?” Mia asked, blinking to try to focus hervision.
“You fainted,” Alice said and Mia sensed her move closer and adjust the pillows behind herback.
“I don’t faint,” Mia huffed then swallowed down the bile moving her head caused to riseup.
“Well, you did. Hit the deck hard,” Jonah said as she tried to look around. “Gave yourself quite aknot.”
Mia lifted her hand to the spot to the side but more towards the back of her head. Hissing at how tender it was. “Where am I?” the last thing she remembered she was putting logbooks away and talking ships with herfriends.
“You’re at Doctor Crane’s office,” Alice supplied. “He’s our family physician. He’s verygood.”
“Thank you, Lady Alice,” the unfamiliar voice Mia presumed to belong to the doctor, said. “Let’s have a look at you.” Mia’s vision was fuzzy, but she knew when the doctor and Alice exchanged places. She felt the gentle pushing aside of hair then the painful pressure of fingers. “The bleeding has stopped. I don’t think stitches will benecessary.”
“Here Mia,” Alice said pressing a cup into hand. “Try taking a sip. It’s justwater.”
“Whathappened?”
“You just fainted,” Coventon said. “One minute you were standing there talking about finding the Flying Dutchman, then next you were on theground.”
“Ghost ships, yes,” Mia said and tried to bite back the groan as lifting her head to swallow sent a shooting pain through her skull. “I remembersee—”
“Where is she?” Devin’s panicked voice cutin.
“She’s here,” Jonah called. “Where’ve youbeen?”
“I wasn’t at the school I was at the admiral’s house meeting with the board,” Devin said. Shrugging out of his coat and stepping up to the bed, he eased his arms around her and leaned her against his chest. “Mia, are you all right? Whathappened?”
