3) The Ghost

A woman chained and blindfolded. He heard her breathing quicken with freight as he approached. He saw her hold her breath as bent in front of her. She winced at his touch and when he removed the blindfold, he saw nothing but fear in the blue eyes that stared back. He took out her gag and unchained her. Once she was free, she slid back and away from him. He attempted to calm her down.

“I won’t hurt you.”

“You’re a pirate. Probably the one who owns this ship.”

“I’m not. I’ll take you to where ever you want. So, you don’t know the man who took you?”

“No. I never saw his face.”

“The crew?”

“Masked devils who raided my ship.”

“Why were you on a ship?”

“Heading to meet my betrothed.”

“What’s your name?”

“Lady Kiera Falcoz, daughter of Duke Simon Falcoz.”

“I’m Captain Shane Reynolds. It’s an honor to meet you, my lady.”

“Will you really take me home?”

“Of course. Come.”

He extended his hand and she cautiously took it. Shane led her to his ship and let her use his cabin to clean herself up. Meanwhile, Shane ordered the ship to be towed and taken back to port with them. He ate a meal with Kiera and found out that this was her first time out at sea and that she would probably never come again. Shane apologized for what had happened.

“I am so sorry for you. By now, word of what happened must have reached your fiancé. He’ll never believe you were untouched.”

“I know. It is not a loss, though. My fiancé was an old man my parents were marrying me off to. They had debts that needed to be paid.”

“I am sorry to hear that.”

Shane thought this woman was very lovely and it was a terrible thing that happened to her. He would be a man of his word and bring her home. After they ate, he told her she could use his bed and no one would touch her. She saw him place blankets by the door for himself and the candles were put out.

After a few hours, when she knew everyone was asleep, she crept over to Shane and put a pistol in his face. Shane woke with a start and sat up uneasy. He had no idea what was going on.

"My lady?"

"Open the door and keep silent."

Shane did as she told him and they walked over the where the other ship was. Shane saw crew members climbing the tow rope and climbing aboard. Once all the crew was there, Marvin came up to them. He tied Shane's hands behind his back and gagged him. Marvin then turned to her.

"Another successful capture, Captian."

"The rest of the crew should be easy enough."

"Of course."

Shane looked on in horror as he now understood everything. She was a woman and that's why no one knew who Captian Reddick was. Then, he grew pale. No one ever survived to tell the tale of her. She snickered and led him to the cabin as his own crew was tied up on the deck. Once inside, she ungagged him.

"We searched the ship."

"Hidden panels my late husband had built in case I was with him."

"Kevin?"

"Yes."

Before another word was said, Marvin came rushing in.

"Forgive me, Captian, but we have a problem."

Kiera led Shane out and they saw the hurricane bearing down. She thought for a moment and turned and untied Shane and ordered her crew to do the same. After they were untied, Shane told them to let them go. 

Her crew scrambled along the tow line and returned to the ship. Now the rain, waves, and the wind picked up. She saw her crew with Marvin awaiting her turn to come across. The wind was merciless, but she grabbed the rope and stepped up. Shane grabbed her wrist.

"Are you out of your mind? You won't make it."

"I will if you let go."

The rain grew heavier and both crews struggled to keep the ships afloat. Then, without anyone noticing in the hurricane, a wave washed both Kiera and Shane off the deck. They plunged into the black icy waters and they both struggled to keep their heads above water as the waves continued to bring them down. The waves separated them and in the night, they couldn't see. She was being weighed down by her skirt and she tried to find a way to tear it off, knowing she had pants underneath. She took her dagger and struggled to rip it off when a wave drug her underneath. With the weight of her skirt, she could feel herself being brought further and further down. As she realized she wouldn't be able to fight her back as her skirt was now her anchor, she closed her eyes. Before she opened her mouth to let death in, she felt a tug on her arm and she was being dragged to the surface. She gasped for breath and looked over and in the night, made out the frame of Shane holding her afloat. She thought she heard him speak, but the storm was too loud. He got closer and screamed in her ear so she could hear him.

"What do I need to do?"

"My skirt. It's like an anchor."

Without a second thought, Shane dove under and she could feel his hands at her waist as he ripped her skirt off and she could finally float without the struggle. Once she was steady, she looked around. When Shane came out of the water, he saw her panicked looked and noticed what she did. The ships were nowhere to be seen.