Swept to Sea (13 page)

Could he have found them, and was he here to take her away from Caspian, take her back to London where he would marry her and beat her for the rest of her life?

Suddenly, Eden had trouble breathing.

Caspian handed her the spyglass to look through. "Milady, it — it… I think…” He sighed and ran a hand through his black hair.

Eden frowned at the way he stuttered. That was not like the powerful Captain Archer at all. She peered through the glass and spotted a tiny gray and red flag hoisted atop the main mast. "We — we aren't going to attack them, are we, Captain?" Eden breathed, chewing on her bottom lip in terror.

"I am afraid we might have to, milady," he muttered, tearing his gaze from the fast-approaching enemy to her face. “I pray all goes well.”

"Pray?" She positioned her hands on her hips. "And you had me believing you did not believe in God. You said He does not care for you, did you not?"

He huffed. "I apologize for the confusion, milady. Hope. I meant to tell you I
hope
all goes well." And with that, he turned his back to her and joined his crew on the forecastle deck.

Eden paused, placing her hand on her chest and worrying her bottom lip. Why was Caspian so worried about attacking this ship, when it was what he was paid to do by the king?

"I say we take 'er, Cap'n," one member of the crew yelled as he dared a defiant step closer toward his captain.

"Aye, we haven't in far too long!" Another grimy man cried, raising his hairy fist in the air.

"No, we can't," Caspian said quietly as he shook his head, looking sick.

"Ah, the captain says 'no'." A wicked leer was spread across Kelton’s face. He winked at Eden. She shivered and glared back at the jackanapes, as Caspian had called him once in passing.

"We must take her!"

"If you object with your crew, why do you hesitate on putting them in their place,
Captain
? I’m beginning to doubt yer made of captain material anyway, with that little bit of fluff around. Nay, I take that back. I doubted your captaining abilities long ago." Kelton sneered and jabbed a finger at Eden.

She shivered, remembering clearly the day the man had tried to take her below when she had first stepped up on the main deck. Thinking of that brought back even more jarring memories of what Lord Rutger had done to her.

Annoyed by the gnat of a man, Caspian sighed. "If you doubt my abilities as your captain, by all means, man, challenge me to a proper duel. May I remind you I have yet to be bested in swordplay?"

"Nay,
Captain,"
he snarled.

Eden glanced at the ship that was growing closer by the second as the men argued.

“We should take her, but…” Caspian started.

The muscles in Caspian's broad, strong chest tightened and flexed underneath the cotton of his shirt. His handsomely firm jaw clenched in anger. Eden would have normally been frightened, but she knew he was upset with his contrary crew and the anger was not directed at her. She had nothing to fear from him, as he had told her many times in the past.

“Captain?" Gage approached Caspian, who was staring at the ship as if he was transfixed by it.

"Yes?"

"If you don’t mind me saying, it should be an equal fight. I think we are better off doing what the crew wants, as long as there is a good chance we’ll win. The crew
did
sign your articles saying that if a disagreement arose, then they could take a vote," Gage reasoned.

Eden felt pity for their enemy course through her body at those words. What if something like this had happened to Adam’s ship? What if he had been attacked and… and that was why he had not contacted her or her father in so long?

"I do not recall inquiring as to your opinion, Master Thompson!" the captain spat as he violently whirled about.

"I apologize, Captain," Gage mumbled, studying a wooden floorboard, the usual smile no longer brightening his face.

"Very well." Caspian whirled around and barked orders to his crew and then took one of Eden's hands in both of his and squeezed it as Gage relayed the orders. The men sprung to action.

"You must go below, milady."

****

He knew without a trace of doubt it was Moore this time. No mistake about it.

Caspian kissed the creamy skin on the girl's forehead, trying desperately to shake the thought from his head that she could come to harm this day on his account.

She frowned. "But why must I? I wish to stay up here, Captain. Besides, why must we attack them? They have done nothing to harm us."

"I am the captain of this ship, woman. They are pirates and therefore our country’s enemies. You will do as I tell you," he reprimanded sternly, brushing away a stray lock of hair that had been blown in front of her face by the brisk sea wind.

She pulled away from him, an expression of pure defiance written on her face. He hated nothing more than that look at the moment. Foolish woman.

"Can I not stay just for now? It is not like we are in the midst of a battle or anything. We are not even close to them. I can hardly even see any of the people on it." She crossed her arms over her curvy chest in defiance.

"I suppose you are right. But you can only stay up here for a little while.” If she caused any trouble or distracted his men, however, he vowed to carry her to their cabin and lock her below even if it was against her will. He had already lost one precious woman to a battle at sea. A battle with this exact same man.

He took her delicate hand in his. "Stay safe for me, all right, milady?"

She nodded and took a deep breath. Caspian saw they were almost within firing range of Moore. His heart pounded with a violent force.

The woman would not be safe all on her own, however brave she was. He had already lost one precious lady to Moore.

He intended to exact revenge, not harm another woman.

Caspian’s eyes scanned the deck for Reed. The child was amidships, watching the gunner prepare the cannons. Reed was young himself, but at least Lady Trenton would not be all alone this way.

"Reed, come up here immediately! I warned you not to wander about on the gun deck by yourself. You could be hurt! What kind of fool are you?" Caspian barked.

Caspian regretted his harsh tone when he saw the grin on his son’s face drop. It was about time he learned to be a better father. Surely he should not just yell at him like that. He did not want to be like his own father.

Eden laid a gentle hand atop Caspian's arm, the smoothness of it almost unbelievable. "That is no way to call for the boy, Captain. There is no need to be so harsh on him. Reed was not causing any problems down there. Please be gentler with him. He is only six years old.”

Caspian frowned. He had already realized he treated Reed too harshly, but what right did the girl have to question his skills at parenting? Lady Trenton had no children of her own. She probably knew nothing about youngsters at all. Who did this young woman think she was?

"I will do as I wish when it comes to the boy, Lady Trenton. You are not his mother." Although the thought did hold some appeal…

Caspian shook the pleasant thought from his mind. What was he doing, allowing himself to think of such things, especially with a battle that threatened their lives fast approaching?

He moved to face his son. "Reed, I want you to stay with Miss Trenton at all times. You must keep her safe and give her your company. Do you understand me? And I don't want either of you on the main deck during the battle. Take her right down to the cabin if I tell you you need to. I can't afford for either one of you to become hurt." Or worse.

Reed nodded and grinned at Eden as Caspian placed the woman's hand inside of his.

"Now I must go see to my duties as captain." He paused, realizing he was giving his five year old son a hefty responsibility. Well, he would send a sailor he trusted with Lady Trenton rather than leaving everything on the young child’s small shoulders.

****

Gage Thompson strode about the deck, relaying his captain's orders to the crew as they were being given. His gaze reached the starboard rail. Lady Trenton was leaning on it, and Reed was loyally standing next to her like a little dog. The woman's curls flew around her like a coffee-colored halo in the wild gusts of wind. She giggled like a child when sea spray drenched her. A woman did make the ship a much homier place. He could see why Caspian seemed to admire her so.

In the past few weeks she had seemed to grow even more the beauty. Gage could tell Caspian had taken some sort of a special liking to her by the way he looked at her and spoke of her. She was truly a special woman.

Gage had heard his crew gossiping like a bunch of hens. Most were convinced the woman was Caspian’s mistress, but Gage knew his captain and best friend better than that. He would never do such a thing to any woman.

Ever since his wife had died in a tragic accident, Caspian had hardly so much as looked at another woman; he had been so drowned in his grief. But since Lady Trenton had come aboard, the man had changed. He smiled more readily, and he interacted with little Reed more often. The lady had changed his captain for the better.

Gage's thoughts were interrupted by a cannon being fired. Their guns replied, fracturing Moore’s hull. He sucked in a breath, fully realizing they were attacking Moore, which had been Caspian’s goal for the past few years.

Again, Gage's thoughts were jarred back to reality. Lady Trenton. He had to get her and Reed below to safety before they were harmed!

His captain seemed to share the same thought. "Mr. Thompson! Take Lady Trenton below immediately. I want you to stay with her to keep her company so she is not frightened during the battle. Make sure she remains safe," Caspian ordered. By the desperate look in Caspian’s eyes, Gage’s suspicions were confirmed. Clearly the woman held a special part of Caspian’s heart.

"Aye, Captain."

Caspian nudged the beauty forward. She glanced back at Caspian, obviously reluctant to move below with a man she barely knew.

Captain Archer nodded to her reassuringly and then turned to his son.

"Come along, milady." Gage tugged on the young lady's arm. She followed him, shrinking away from his tight grasp. He softened his grip when he remembered Caspian had told him she had been abused in some way before. "I am not going to hurt you, dear. Caspian would never have placed you in my care if he did not trust me with you. I’m not the kind of man who would assault an innocent woman, I assure you. Now come on. Reed can join us if you want. That’s what the captain wanted anyway, I’m sure." He motioned for Reed to follow them below.

****

Eden smiled warily up at Mr. Thompson as he opened the door to the captain's cabin. A glance behind told her Reed was following right behind them, a scowl on his little face.

He most likely had not wanted to go below, and she did not blame him one bit. Not only did she not want to go below because she did not want to be stuck below if the ship were to sink, she wanted no part in being ordered around by Caspian. Who did he think he was to tell her where to go and when to do it?

Fuming, Eden sank down onto one of the leather arm chairs at the rear of the cabin, and Gage sat across from her. Reed plunked himself down on the bed.

She frowned.

"What is wrong, milady?" Gage moved to sit in a chair next to her.

Eden glanced around the darkened room, not able to control the shiver running up her spine. If something terrible happened during the battle she would have no way out. She hated being cornered. Finally she realized her solution to everything had always been to run. Well, she had nowhere to go in this little cabin, on this little ship, in the center of this vast sea.

And Caspian had forced her down here.

She had no doubt if she had refused to go below at his bidding, he would have carried her over his shoulder and locked her up in the cabin himself. Even when she had vowed to never let another man control her life, or have any part in her life, for that matter, she had just let the captain dictate her.

Eden held back a growl. "I absolutely hate being down here. What if the ship sinks? I can't stay down here and drown! Oh, but I hate being so helpless!"

****

Caspian watched as Gage led the pretty lady below decks, Reed trailing along behind them.

He prayed she would remain below unlike Isabelle. Because he knew Gage would restrain her, he had no need to worry about her coming up on the main deck.

The battle would be tougher without Gage by his side, but Caspian could not trust anyone else to take care of the lady. Besides, he needed someone strong enough to protect her if the ship was breached in battle.

What concerned Caspian, however, was that there was a real danger of taking a shot to the hull of the ship, and a hit like that could damage the captain’s cabin where Lady Trenton and his son were. He shuddered to think about it.

Caspian shook his head. His mind needed to be clear during this battle. There was no chance he would let Moore defeat him again.

****

Gage chuckled at the frightened young woman. He could see she was angry also, by the deep line of a frown in her forehead and the way her little fists were clenched.

There was nothing to be afraid of. "I can assure you, Lady Trenton, we shall not sink. Now quit your talk like that. You are worrying little Reed. Besides, I have known Caspian since we were little boys. The man is a wonderful captain.” Gage took a good look at the woman and could not help but wonder what the captain did with her. “That reminds me… I wondered what has gone on between you two.” He glanced over at the young child whose blue eyes had grown wide with fear of their talk about sinking ships and pirate battles.

"Whatever do you mean? Nothing at all has gone on between us two. Nothing in any way. What do you mean?" She raised a perfectly arched brow. Her voice got faster and higher-pitched with each sentence, disproving her innocent questions. He suspected the lady knew full well what he was asking her. She just wanted to deny it.

"Well, I can tell that he… likes you quite a bit. He has not been like this — especially this protective — around a woman since his late Isabelle. And he was quite young then. I know you two haven’t known each other for long, but… I just was wondering if you two have… uh… feelings for each other." Gage felt like a big, bumbling idiot. He had no business at all talking to a lady of such things, and yet he had hoped to take her mind off of the battle outside by doing so. Instead, her cheeks were a bright pink, and she looked distraught. What kind of idiot was he?