The Princess's Bride (18 page)

"What is amiss, Mister Martin?" Chelsey walked past him with no concern for her nudity and grabbed a big, fluffy white towel and wrapped her body in it. She grabbed another one for a blushing Daisy.

Martin gave Chelsey his full attention, barely looking at Daisy. "Captain, we may have a problem. There is a ship bearing down on us, and from the looks of it, they are heavily armed."

Chelsey walked back to Daisy and handed over the towel. She cupped Daisy's cheek and smiled down at her. "When you say heavily armed, how 'heavy' do you mean?"

"I saw eight cannons on each side and fore-aft sails much larger than our own. The last time I saw such a ship was when—"

Chelsey spun on her heels, clenching her fists at her side. "
Humphrey
."

Daisy stood up from the bath, wrapping the towel around her. She laid a hand on Chelsey's arm in concern. "Chelsey, what is it?"

She snatched her hand back when Chelsey looked at her with her lip curling. "Your Lord Humphrey has decided to attack us." She gave Daisy her back and gave brisk orders to her first mate. "Martin, have the men get to their stations and arm themselves. If he thinks he can trick me, he has another thing coming to him." Chelsey slapped her hands together and smiled in glee.

"Yes ma'am." Martin saluted Chelsey and walked swiftly from the room.

Daisy stepped out of the bath shivering, watching Chelsey pull on her clothes. She was suddenly very afraid.

"What does this mean?"
For us?
Daisy asked internally, standing there, unsure what else to say or do.

As Chelsey fastened her shirt, she walked back over to Daisy and gave her a hard kiss.

"This means Humphrey's days are numbered. I'm going to blast him with everything I have. He'll finally get what's coming to him."

"But he has more weapons than you do. Perhaps he is only meeting you to drop off the ransom and doesn't want a fight?"

Chelsey rolled her eyes.

Daisy stepped back, her face pale.

"Listen to me, dearest,” Chelsey said. “Humphrey wants to make me suffer. He is not going to hand over the ransom all nice-like and leave. He is expecting a fight, and a fight is what we will give him." Chelsey leaned down to give her another kiss.

Daisy pressed a palm over Chelsey's mouth. "And where do I come into this? What if Humphrey has come in peace and only wants to give you the ransom? Will you take your blood money and hand me over to him?"

"You are missing the point—" A loud boom shook the boat violently, making Chelsey and Daisy stumble.

"Shit! You need to get dressed now and remain in my cabin." Chelsey grabbed hold of Daisy's hand and rushed her down the hall into her room. Chelsey pulled Daisy in, and without another thought, pulled on her boots, tied her mask on her face and grabbed her sabre and a pistol.

"I'm not going to wait here like some scared little girl. I'm coming up above with you."

As Daisy looked around for something to wear, Chelsey took hold of her arms again.

"No you are not, princess. I can't have you in harm's way. You will remain here as I have told you to do."

Daisy opened her mouth to complain when the ship rocked to the side.

"Enough of this. I need to go now." Chelsey pushed Daisy back toward the bed. Daisy struggled, but she fell onto the crumpled sheets where only a short time ago her body had come alive with pleasure.

Chelsey cupped her face and gave her a hard, wet kiss. She released Daisy and left her shaking in her loosened towel.

"Remember, I will always love you. Nothing can ever change that." Chelsey gave Daisy a wink over her shoulder and walked out of the room.

Daisy sat up and covered her face as the sounds of the sea battle surrounded her. She refused to sit there and do what she was told. She was sick and tired of obeying and doing what was expected of her.

This time she was going to do what she wanted!

She went over to the closet to grab some clothes since her gown was ruined. As she pulled out one of Chelsey's black shirts, she spotted a sabre with a silver handle. She leaned down and grabbed hold of it, testing the weight in her hands. She did a quick jab forward and backward and, with a huge grin, let out a loud shout.

This was her fight as much as it was Chelsey's. She would stand side by side with her lover or die fighting.

****

"Hit that bitch with everything we have!" Humphrey shouted to his men as he stood high atop the main deck as cannons went off around him. The stench of gunpowder was thick in the air, and the cries of his fearless crew made his ears ring. He was so close to slamming a ball right into the helm of Dread's ship that would eventually lead to it capsizing. And then as
The Lady
Desire
sank to the depths of the ocean and the sharks tore apart the pirates' flesh, he would swoop in, save Daisy, and put Dread in chains for his own keeping.

"Humphrey!" Thomas ran out from his cabin, stumbling across the deck as the ship rocked from another round of cannon launches from Dread.

"Fire!" Humphrey shouted again to his crew below, raising his sabre high in the air. The loud booms from the cannons went off, and a big cloud of black smoke surrounded the ship.

Soon their visibility would be at risk by the amount of dark soot that covered their ship and Dread's.

Thomas climbed up to the perch where Humphrey stood and grabbed his arm. "When are you going to take over Dread's ship? And what if Daisy is hurt during this?"

Humphrey pushed Thomas to the side and took out of his telescope to see if the pirate sloop had sustained any substantial damage. "Can't you see that I'm busy here? I don't have time for your harping. Fuck!" Humphrey walked over to the edge and screamed down to his head officer. "Their sails are still standing and I don't see them taking on water. Hit them again with all that we have, and then we'll go in for the kill." Humphrey let out a wild laugh.

Thomas stood there with his hands behind his back, worried beyond belief for his poor, innocent sister who must be cowering in a corner somewhere in the pits of Dread's ship.

"Hang on, Daisy. We’ll save you," Thomas whispered as he covered his ears from the loud sound of the guns.

****

Dread lifted up her spyglass. She could barely see Humphrey's ship. She held onto the railing as it rocked and a large wave splashed on deck, soaking her and the crew. Another cannon fire from Humphrey would surely do them in. The time to act was now.

"Mister Martin!" Chelsey shouted up at where Martin stood near the steering wheel. She waved at him and he cupped his palm around his ear to hear her over the sounds of the crew screaming to one another and the gunfire that continued to go off around them.

"Ho, Captain!" Martin bellowed.

Chelsey cupped her hands around her mouth. "Bring her around and we'll hit her in the back. Humphrey will never see us coming with all this smoke." Chelsey turned and called out to her crew. "Hit him hard, boys. We end this now!"

Her crew gave a cheer and, after a few more cannon fires,
The Lady Desire
sailed forward.

"Chelsey!" Daisy ran over wearing an almost identical black shirt and baggy breeches.

She had rolled up the pants and was still barefoot unlike Chelsey, who wore black boots.

"Daisy." Chelsey walked over and grabbed her by her arms, shaking her none too lightly.

"What the hell are you wearing, and why are you up here when I specifically told you to stay down below?" Chelsey's mouth dropped when she saw Daisy holding one of her sabres. "Give me that. You’ll hurt yourself."

Daisy stepped back as Chelsey tried to take her weapon away. "I want to be up here and next to the woman I love." She swung the sabre around and almost jabbed Chelsey in the arm.

"Stop this." Chelsey grabbed Daisy by the wrist and pulled her away to a nearby corner.

Both women almost tumbled to the floor as another cannon ball hit close to the ship.

Chelsey turned and squinted, trying to make out Humphrey's ship. "He almost got us there. You need to go back down to my cabin. It is safer there." Chelsey tugged Daisy over to the stairs.

Daisy dragged her heels. "I'm sick and tired of you telling me what to do. I want to fight."

"Daisy—" Chelsey broke off as a harsh whistling sound flew over their heads, "Take cover!" Chelsey shouted, pulling Daisy to the ground. Chelsey landed on top of her as a cannon ball tore through the main top sail. Loud cries filled the air as the sail and part of the top mast came down around them.

Chelsey knelt and pushed Daisy back against the side of the ship. She looked over Daisy's face and swallowed a curse after seeing a shallow cut bleeding on her cheek.

"This is why I need you to stay down below. I can't worry about your welfare." Chelsey stood and pulled Daisy up by the lapel of her shirt. Daisy appeared to be in shock as she wiped her cheek and glanced up at the ruined sail.

"Shit… stay here." Chelsey pushed her under the quarter deck. Without another word to her lover, she climbed the ladder and rushed over to Martin, who was busy steering the ship above.

Martin swung the wheel in a tight grip, gritting his teeth. Chelsey looked out as the smoke lessened and saw the back of Humphrey's ship.

"Full speed ahead. We'll fire the last cannon and then ram him hard, and god willing, we will be able to storm the ship and take it over before he can do the same to us."

"Aye, Captain," Martin said.

Chelsey ran over to the side to yell directions down to the crew.

Another loud boom and a puff of smoke went off as one of
The Lady Desire's
cannon balls hit the back of
The Master in Arms
. A moment later her hull slammed into the back of Humphrey's wooden one and released an ear-numbing screech. Without waiting for word from their Captain, more than half of her crew rushed past and jumped or ran onto Humphrey's ship.

The rest swung high above from ropes.

Chelsey pulled out her sabre and cocked her gun. Martin did the same thing, and they nodded to one another, making their way down the ladder and onto the main deck. While her crew rounding up the enemy, a few men remaining on
The Lady Desire
began pulling out a specialized wooden plank with rope railings. Chelsey and Martin would then walk across safely from her ship and onto Humphrey's.

Chelsey climbed down the ladder. "Daisy?" she shouted, trying to locate her as she moved the black soot away from her face. Daisy was not where she had left her. She kept calling her name until she walked over to the railing and noticed Daisy, her long blonde hair swaying down her back, walking across the plank that had finally been set up.

"Come back here!" Chelsey shouted. A deep-rooted fear traveled from her head to her toes as Daisy waved and shouted something she couldn't catch.

"That woman will be the death of me." Chelsey ran over to the plank with Martin dashing behind her. They ran across and jumped on board. Her crew had rounded up Humphrey's men, tied them together, and left them sitting in the middle of the deck.

Chelsey looked around for Daisy and spotted her near the fore sail, holding an unconscious man with a head wound in her lap. She started to go over to her when Martin came up next to her.

"Humphrey is hidin' somewhere. No one can find him."

"Shit," Chelsey swore, tapping her sabre against her leg. "The bastard couldn’t have gotten far. I'll take a few of the boys and search the ship from top to bottom. Keep watch over Daisy and find out who that chump is lying in her lap. I will take care of her after we find Humphrey."

"Sure thing, lass." Martin nodded.

Chelsey went over to a group of her men to give them the orders when Daisy let out a bloodcurdling scream.

Chelsey's heart jumped into her throat and she spun on her heels. Humphrey had an arm wrapped around Daisy's waist and a gun held under her chin.

"Put down the gun, Humphrey. You're outnumbered." Chelsey cocked the trigger of her own pistol and pointed her sabre at him. Martin also pointed his pistol at Humphrey, while forty of her men surrounded him and held up various other types of weapons.

"Stay back or I will blow her brains out." Humphrey dug the barrel of his gun further under Daisy's chin. She whimpered. He stepped back until he was against the wall of his cabin.

Daisy mouthed Chelsey's name as she struggled in Humphrey's arms.

"Hush, my precious. I knew you have been horribly abused by this woman. Trust me, I will save you." Humphrey pressed the side of his face against Daisy's. She tried to kick him.

"Let me go. I don't want you. I love Chelsey!" she shouted.

Humphrey grabbed her arm and twisted the limb behind her back.

"Stop it. You’re hurting her!" Chelsey walked forward, trying not to tremble in both anger and fear as Daisy suffered at the hands of this monster.

Humphrey pulled Daisy in closer. She sobbed quietly. He continued to press unruly kisses against her check and whisper softly into her ear, words Chelsey couldn't catch.

"I said, put down your weapon. Your ship has been destroyed, your crew captured and you have been made a fool once again."

"You better say your prayers, you pirate cunt. His majesty has another one of his naval vessels coming this way. You really think I would come alone without a backup plan? I knew you would use underhanded means to get what you wanted."

Chelsey snarled and Humphrey cocked the trigger on his gun. "That's right, Dread, come closer. I won't kill Daisy, but I may just shoot in her a way where she won't be able to walk again. After I'm done with you, she will have no other choice but to marry me. I bet you are so very proud you have soiled her forever. I suppose I should thank you. Now her inheritance will be mine, and I will be the richest and most powerful man in all of Flaundia!" Humphrey let out a shrill laugh and grabbed Daisy's breast, giving it a rough squeeze.

"You b-bastard." Daisy jabbed her elbow into his stomach. In return Humphrey kicked her hard behind her knee, and she went down. He grabbed her by the hair and drove his gun into her stomach.