The Prize (16 page)

She looked as if she
might strike him.

"Do not,"
he warned softly.

She clenched her
fists. "I am sorry I missed," she said suddenly. "I'm a fine
shot, and if only I had waited, you would now be dead."

"But I'm not
dead, alas," he mocked. Her words had an edge he refused to feel, cutting
deep. "Patience, Miss Hughes, is a virtue. And you, my harridan, lack it
entirely." He strode away.

"Why are you
doing this? O'Neill!" she cried after him. "
Harvey
says you are rich!"

He pretended not to
hear.

"Bastard,"
she said.

Jack
Harvey climbed the three steps to the quarterdeck. Although his semblance
remained cheerful, as was characteristic for him, he was still stunned that
Devlin had abused his hostage—stunned and disturbed. But he'd given up trying
to understand his captain. He'd served under O'Neill long enough to know that
he would never understand him.

Devlin was at the
helm and he turned at the familiar sound of the surgeon's short, surprisingly
light footsteps. "How is she?" he asked.

"The gash could
have used a stitch or two last night, but it's healing nicely now. She hasn't
had a headache since she received the blow, which, according to Miss Hughes,
was during the storm last night."

Devlin nodded at his
first mate. 'Take the helm," he said. He stepped away and he and Harvey
moved to the deck's larboard side. "You are eyeing me oddly," he
remarked coolly.

Harvey
no longer smiled. "Damn it,
Devlin, I hope she got that blow as she claimed, by falling, and not from some
other means."

He stared, instantly
comprehending
Harvey
's meaning. "By God, you
think I hit her?" He was genuinely surprised. He had never hit a woman in
his life.

"I don't know
what to think,"
Harvey
grimaced. "Not now."

Oh, ho, he had a very
dark inkling, indeed. "Really?" He gripped
Harvey
's arm and they stepped down to the main
deck, away from prying eyes and listening ears. "You are a fool, Jack, to
allow a clever vixen like Miss Hughes to so sweetly tie you up and wrap you
with a pretty bow."

Harvey
appeared flustered. "What
does that mean?"

"That
means," Devlin said tightly, "that she has enticed you into
disobeying me, has she not?"

Harvey
blinked, paling.
"Devlin..." he faltered.

"What do the two
of you intend? And tell me, how can you justify thwarting me, defying me, when
I am your captain?"

Harvey
stiffened. "Damn it, you
seduced her."

For one moment, he
felt as if
Harvey
had spoken a foreign language,
one he had never before heard. "I
what?"

Harvey
blinked another time, now
looking worried and uncomfortable. "You seduced her," he said less
certainly.

He stared as red-hot
fury swept over him. Damn that woman with her clever machinations, her foul
lies! "So that is what she told you?" he asked, as if completely
calm.

"Er."
Harvey
hesitated. "Yes."

"You know, it is
good luck for you that we are, for the most part, on good terms. Otherwise you
would not be wearing such a straight nose. I don't seduce virgins. Innocence
does not tempt me." And as he spoke, he was aware of that having changed.

Harvey
paled. "Oh, dear," he
said.

"You have always
been taken in by a pretty face," Devlin said.

Harvey
grimaced. "Devlin, I beg
your pardon, I am so sorry!"

230                           

Devlin didn't know
whom he felt the most umbrage at— Jack Harvey or Virginia Hughes. He certainly
felt like throttling the latter. "What did the two of you plan?"

Harvey
remained white. He shook his
head. "I was to bring her a sailor's clothes from one of the boys below
decks. Then, when we made port, I was to distract and preoccupy you and she
would simply walk off the boat with the others."

"Very
clever," Devlin said, and he meant it. The plan would have undoubtedly
worked if he had not sensed the conspiracy between his ship's surgeon and his
little captive.

"Devlin, I am
sorry, terribly sorry. I knew it was not in character for you! But then, this
entire affair makes no sense—you've never ransomed a woman before. Please forgive
me. She was so convincing! She wept, for God's sake,"
Harvey
cried, his gaze filled with anxiety.

There would be no
forgiveness for anyone. Devlin said, "When we reach
Limerick
, you will have to find another ship. As of
this moment, you are relieved of your duties."

Harvey
's mouth opened, as if to
protest.

Devlin stared,
silently daring him to utter a single sound.

Harvey
decided the better of it—then
amended that decision. "I am sorry," he said.

Devlin walked away.
He no longer cared what
Harvey
said, thought or did, because
their relationship was over.

Virginia
smiled as she strolled the deck,
uncaring that she had no parasol. In fact, she relished the strong, bright sun.
It felt wonderful on her face—it felt wonderful to be alive— and in that moment,
she had a sense of why the siren call of the sea was so enchanting. The ship
tacked lazily across the wind, the seas were as unhurried, but the breeze was
fresh and clean, the skies scintillating, infinity somewhere beyond. She smiled
happily, reaching the railing and gripping it. Late

tomorrow they would
make port in
Limerick
—and Jack Harvey was going to
help her escape.

She laughed out loud,
throwing her head back, thinking of how she wished she could see the expression
on Devlin O'Neill's face when he found her gone. She had been wrong to think
that she would never be able to win any battle between them. Oh, no. There
would be a battle tomorrow and her plan was foolproof. Tomorrow she would be
the victor, oh yes.

She knew she was
gloating—savoring a triumph she didn't quite have—and she could almost hear the
headmistress at the
Marmott
School
admonishing her. "Ladies do not gloat.
In fact, Miss Hughes, ladies do not have battles with avaricious, unscrupulous
sea captains, either—a lady does not battle anyone, ever, at all."

Virginia
had to chuckle again.
"Well, this lady does do battle, Mrs. Towne," she said aloud, to the
wind and the sea. "In fact, she is rather enjoying herself!"

She realized she had
meant her every word and she became reflective. How had she come to this place
and time, where she so wanted to outwit Devlin O'Neill? Where the idea of doing
so brought her such a thrill? Was it because she still recalled that terrible
aching moment when she had desperately wanted his mouth to cover hers? She
refused to feel any more desire—and she did not—but she could not escape the
singular memory. It had somehow become engraved upon her mind.

Virginia
turned to lean her back against
the railing, thoughtful still. She glanced toward the quarterdeck and was
surprised not to see him there. Why hadn't he kissed her?

She started, wishing
she had never asked herself the question. But she knew why! She was a skinny
little thing, with tiny, shapeless breasts, a sharp, angular face and hair that
resembled a rat's nest. Suddenly
Virginia
felt despair.

It dawned upon her
that she wanted her handsome captor to find her beautiful. How foolish could
she be?

She drew herself up
straighter as the ship rocked over a swell, reminding herself that soon she
would be free again, and eventually she would be back at Sweet Briar. Then she
would no longer even recall Devlin O'Neill, not by face and not by name. He
would not be even the most distant memory.

Somehow she was not
reassured.

She suddenly saw Jack
Harvey crossing the deck.
Virginia
's heart leapt and she waved at
him.

He started and
changed direction, not waving back or acknowledging her in any way.

Virginia
froze.
What was that?

Filled with unease,
she did not hesitate to rush after him. "Mr. Harvey!" she cried.
"Mr. Harvey, do wait!" Surely he had not seen her; surely he had not
snubbed her!

Harvey
's steps slowed and
Virginia
caught up to him.
"Hello," she said brightly, but he did not return her smile.
"What a glorious day. Didn't you see me wave?"

He halted, facing
her. "Indeed I did, Miss Hughes."

Something was amiss,
terribly so. "But you did not wave back...or even nod," she said
slowly, with dread.

"I am extremely
upset," he said bluntly. "You see, I have been relieved of my duties,
and when we arrive at
Limerick
, I am to be cast off this
ship."

"Oh," she
managed to say, her heart pounding.

"You lied to me,
Miss Hughes. You accused Devlin of a terrible crime."

She held her head
high. "He
has
committed a terrible crime—I am innocent of any
wrongdoing, and he has taken me prisoner against my will."

"You claimed he
seduced you!"
Harvey
exclaimed. "So that I would
defy him and aid you in your escape!"

She had lost after
all, she thought miserably. How she wanted to weep. But she did not. Keeping
her chin high, she said, "He has abused me, Mr. Harvey."

Harvey
cried, "But not in the
manner you claimed. You have never—and I beg your pardon—been in his bed!"

"I never said
any such thing. It was a conclusion you drew yourself—those were not my
words."

He blinked. "Does
it matter? You understood the conclusion I came to—you encouraged it!"

"The man is a
criminal," she said.

"He is—was—my
captain. Now, because of you, I shall have to find a different ship. Miss
Hughes, I wish you well. Good day." He turned and strode away.

Virginia
then trembled. Perhaps it had
been wrong to let Jack Harvey think the worst, but she was desperate. She had
to escape, she had to reach her uncle, she had to save Sweet Briar. Now she
succumbed to guilt, but only because
Harvey
was a very decent sort and he seemed upset at losing his duties upon the
Defiance
.