The Duke's Daughter -Wattys2014 Collector's Dream Award Winner-

Chapter Twenty Three

Viscount Whitmore came to with the rocking of the ship. The noise above him made him guess that it was day. He moved to stretch from his horribly uncomfortable position. His wrists were tied.

He tried to move his feet. Damn, they were tied too.

His head was throbbing, from what he assumed, was a swollen knot on the back of his skull. He felt his blood pulsing at the spot. Perhaps he was bleeding from the wound. Without his hands, he could not tell.

What had happened? Where was he?

He remembered going on deck to smoke his pipe, then he remembered seeing Lady Kent's ghost disappear into the hallway. He had tried to follow her. So clear of form she had been. Whitmore had never believed in ghosts in all his years, yet how could a dead woman appear before him under any other explanation?

Mayhap it was true that she had been the one to cause Miss Bridger's ill fortune. Surely if her ghost could walk the deck, it could trip a cabin boy carrying soup.

She had almost glowed with last night's moonlight. When she had turned in his direction, she had not seen him, though he had been in plain sight. Instead, her bright eyes had looked through him, before she turned and was gone into the hallway.

His memory ended there. Glancing around, he realized that he was in a cell. An iron gate closed off the opening and thick wooden boards made up the three other walls. There was very little light, he could not see much through the spaces in the iron bars, only more cells lining the opposite wall.

Whitmore attempted to maneuver his old frame into a more comfortable position and waited for his captors.

*****

Arianna awoke to a pounding on her door. It was something she had never experienced before this voyage, yet waking up to sudden activity had become almost regular aboard this ship.

She called out for a moment in her cabin boy's voice and tied her wrapper around her. She quickly looped her braided hair up on top of her head and pulled on her hat. Peeking around the door she saw Alejandro awaiting her.

"Señor?"

His attention snapped to her.

"Hurry, lady, we must hide you. Grab your costume and come with me."

Arianna spun from the door and collected her breeches, shirt, bind, and boots. She turned to Alejandro and he quickly led her to his own cabin.

"Hurry, dress in here. I shall join you shortly and explain."

Alejandro moved past her, back to her cabin, and began to throw things all about. Arianna raised an eyebrow, ready to question his ill treatment of her belongings, but footsteps on the stairs silenced and hurried her into Alejandro's cabin, shutting the door firmly behind her.

She knew not what was transpiring but she trusted Alejandro with her life and was certain that it would all make sense once he explained it.

*****

Derek led the group down into the hallway where his, Alejandro's, Betsy's, and Arianna's cabins were accessible through. Damn fool of a girl.

She had been seen on deck last night. Luckily for her, those aboard the ship were already convinced that it had been her ghost, and not truly her in the flesh. Two crewmen had seen her as well as Miss Jessica Bridger. The young lady had etched a drawing after the 'sighting' last eve. Arianna stood at the rail of his ship in her night clothes with her eyes closed, her face tilted into the moonlight, her lips parted, and her breasts pushed forward with the force of the breath that she was obviously drawing in deeply.
It was a truly beautiful drawing. Her hair was loose and flowing around her in the breeze. Miss Jessica Bridger was quite an artist. Derek wondered how to ask her to sell him the sketch without raising any suspicions.

The two crewmen had both confirmed that Miss Bridger's sketch of the glowing beauty, was exactly what they too had seen last night on their watch. The group wanted to inspect the hallway she had disappeared into. When they had approached Derek at the helm, he had sent Alejandro ahead with a look to clear Arianna from sight.

As he stepped down to the level floor of the hallway, he noticed her door was ajar. He held his breath hoping he had stalled enough to allow her to hide.

He moved down the hallway with the procession behind him and pushed open Arianna's door. Everything was in shambles. The bedding was flipped from the bunk, there were dresses strewn about. An empty basin had fallen with the overturned washstand and lay broken upon the floor. The table was on its side, the chairs were as well. It looked as if a huge beast had been let loose in her cabin.

Oddly, the curtain covering the window seat was closed and intact. Derek supposed Arianna was hidden behind it.

"Oh, my." Jessica breathed as she glanced around the room. "It seems she was disturbed last eve."

Derek looked over his shoulder to watch his crewmen cross themselves in the catholic manner, before they turned tail running from the hallway.

"Can you not feel a presence here now, captain? It feels as if she is still here and upset."

"I feel nothing, Miss Bridger. But, just to ensure that she does not get the wrong idea and begin pestering you as well as your sister, we had better leave her to her personal space."

Jessica giggled up at him. She was far too young for any to think anything improper was happening. "Captain, Lady Kent struck me as an intelligent woman. She would not torment me because I have no designs on you."

Derek laughed, "That may be the right of it, Miss Bridger."

******

Whitmore had almost nodded off again when he heard a key grate in a lock. The sounds of a door swinging open reached his ears as the small room flooded with sunlight. Whitmore squinted his aged eyes against the light's vicious attack. A moment later, a door slammed and he was plunged back into darkness.

He heard footsteps advance towards his cell. At least, Whitmore assumed they were coming towards him, but his old ears liked to play tricks on him. Suddenly the light was back, but contained in a lantern this time. The lantern was held by an arm clad in the red of the King's navy.

He now knew who his captor was. But what did the Admiral want with him?

*****

Arianna listened at Alejandro's door as Derek and the younger Miss Bridger left the hallway. She was thoroughly confused. She heard Jessica giggle, then heard the girl's sweet voice say something to Derek. Arianna was not able to make out the words. Derek laughed and has rich baritone answered the girl. She heard their footsteps pass then ascend the stairs leading to the deck.

Arianna moved from the door and took in the cabin around her. When she had first come in, she had ran immediately behind the dressing screen and changed once more into Rian, her alter ego. Now she glanced around with an interest as to who Señor Alejandro was, other than the ever trustworthy first mate.

His cabin was sparsely furnished. A double wide bunk was set into the far wall, a washstand, wardrobe, and stove sparingly occupied the rest of the space. There were no knickknacks or memorabilia anywhere.. Except..

Next to the bunk there was a portrait on the wall. A very fine portrait from the look of it. Arianna moved closer to inspect it.

It was a beautiful Spanish girl, her features were strong and proud, yet tempered and made extremely feminine by her soft, small nose. Her dark hair flowed loose around her shoulders and appeared teased by the wind. Perhaps she was a gypsy, her patched skirt and off the shoulder peasant top definitely reminded Arianna of the gypsy women she had met. But in her arms was a small blanketed bundle with dark hair sticking out.

Who was this woman and her child?

The cabin door swung open and Alejandro stepped into the room. Arianna made no attempt to hide her interest in the portrait.

"She is beautiful, Alejandro. Who is she?"

Alejandro's smile faded from his face and his eyes became cold hard spots of obsidian. They then hollowed out and the pained look she had thought she had glimpsed a time or two was undeniable. Alejandro sighed, his shoulders visibly dropped, but he moved closer and joined her at the portrait. He stared for a long moment, his eyes obviously caressing the woman and child depicted before him. He turned his back to the painting and faced Arianna. His eyes would not quite meet hers though.

"She was my wife and she holds my son."

"Where are they now?"

"Hopefully dead." Arianna started at the anger in his voice. "There was a raid upon our village. I was shot and beaten before they left me for dead. There was no trace of Carmelita or of Roman."

"I am so sorry, Alejandro." Arianna did not know what else to say.

"It was a long time ago, Señorita." Alejandro's eyes were as far away as his voice had been.

Arianna's brows knit in concern and she attempted to change the subject.

"Why did I have to hide, Alejandro?"

He looked at her,but it seemed to take a moment for her words to penetrate his thoughts.

"You were seen on deck last night. All were speaking of your ghost this morning, the actual witnesses wanted to see in your room, as you were seen to disappear into the hallway."

"Why did you throw my things all about?"

Alejandro shrugged, his easy smile once more crossing his face. "Why not feed their fear?"

Arianna laughed, shaking her head at him.

"Come, Señorita. I heard Mickey complaining that you missed some of his dishes last night."

Arianna allowed Alejandro to lead her from the cabin. At the door, she glanced back over her shoulder before she exited the cabin, taking one more look at the portrait.

What she would give to know the full story.