Lady in the Mist - Laurie Alice Eakes [129]
Lord, grant me strength—
The first blow fell. White-hot pain seared through his skin like nine pokers from the fire.
Raleigh screamed.
Only the timbers and sea and rigging made noise. In the quiet, the whistle of the lash sounded like another scream. It bit into flesh. Raleigh sank his teeth into his lower lip hard enough to draw blood, then sagged from the ropes binding his hands.
“He’s gone off, the weakling,” a marine called. “Surgeon?”
A knife flashed. The ropes fell from Raleigh’s wrists. He slumped to the deck.
Near the bow, a shout rose. “Stop him. He’s—”
A roar like thunder soared from the throats of the sailors. They tried to run to the source of trouble. Guns and stays and fellow crewmen got in their way.
No one got in Raleigh’s. He rolled and sprang. His hand flashed out and snatched the cat-o’-nine-tails from the bosun’s grip, and Raleigh began to wield it. Heading aft toward where he’d last seen Donald Parks with his marine escorts, Raleigh applied the whip to anyone who got in his way.
“Man overboard,” someone yelled.
“Stop the deserter,” the captain bellowed. “Marines, stop him.”
They closed in around him, behind him. Raleigh caught their red coats, their shining bayonets. He struck one across the face with the handle of the lash and tangled another’s legs with the straps. The man went down. The handle yanked from Raleigh’s hand. Weaponless, he charged forward, lunged for the rail. His shoulder struck a third marine in the chest. The man stumbled. Raleigh grabbed his musket and raised it to club back the next man grabbing for him.
“Take him down,” the captain shouted. “Take him—”
A gun fired. Something like a hammer slammed into Raleigh’s back.
He tumbled over the railing and into the sea.
Dominick lost his ribbon somewhere between Tabitha’s house and Kendall’s study. His hair tumbled around his face and shoulders, and sweat plastered his shirt to his back. He wanted to slip up the steps and wash, but Kendall saw him coming and called for him to enter.
“Close the door,” Kendall commanded from behind his massive desk.
Dominick did so, then leaned against it, his arms crossed over his chest. “Dinah said you wished to see me.”
“I do, but not looking like you did when you walked off that transport ship.” Kendall frowned. “What have you been doing?”
“I’ve been with Tabitha Eckles.” Knowing that could be taken improperly, Dominick hastened to add, “I felt in need of an early morning walk, and found her lying on the beach. She’d been injured.”
“Injured? Tabitha?” Kendall’s face paled. “Sit down and tell me what happened.”
Dominick sauntered across the study to a chair near the desk. He let his gaze stray to the point in the bookshelves where he’d found the list of dates and Raleigh Trower’s name. At the same time, he attempted to observe Kendall’s reaction to the look. Kendall kept his eyes on Dominick, his face grim and revealing nothing. Either he knew about the notations and schooled himself not to follow Dominick’s glance, or he knew nothing and thought his bondsman appeared to be avoiding his eyes.
Again, nothing learned.
His own mouth set in a hard line, Dominick settled into the chair and made himself hold his hands on the arms rather than crossed against his chest, where his heart thudded so hard he feared his raised pulse showed at the base of this throat. Tabitha in danger from Wilkins. Him in danger from Kendall. The twenty-first of June far too close with no definite information available.
“Well?” Kendall prompted.
Dominick jumped. “Well what, sir?”
“Tell me about Miss Eckles. What happened?”
“Oh, yes.” Dominick shifted on the hard wooden seat of the chair. “She was on the beach and was assaulted. He left her unconscious on the edge of the water, but she came to awareness early enough not to be drowned in the tide.”
“And why was I not informed at once?” Kendall shot halfway over the desk. “What are you thinking,