TORTUGA AUGUST 1694
They partied well into the night. Long Shadow wasn't sure how much rum she consumed. She only knew it was a lot. Being the young, innocent ship she was she knew nothing about the effects of alcohol on a ship's body. Eagerly, she consumed any bottle in sight.
"Drink up me hearties yo ho!" She sang.
"Now you're thinkin' like a pirate, lass!" Carolina chortled, downing her own bottle and smashing it against the dock. An outbreak of feminine swearing was heard from the pair of lasses sitting there. Carolina merely shrugged it off and took out another bottle.
Long Shadow downed the last few drops of her own bottle. "You have another one?" She asked.
"Thought you'd never ask." Carolina replied, handing her the one she was going to open. The sloop then pulled out a second, fresh bottle.
"Where do you hide those?" Long Shadow asked.
"Below decks. They're stored as cargo. Perfect place for them if you ask me." She grinned.
Long Shadow nodded. "Any chance I could load my own hold up?" She asked.
"Not unless you've got some booty to share." Carolina replied.
"Well next time I'm out, I'll see what I can find." Long Shadow promised.
"Just don't let Britannia know. And for goodness sakes stay away from British shipping." Carolina growled.
"As if I'd dare cross that line. I won't harm the Dutch either. But the French and Spanish better watch themselves." Long Shadow grinned.
"Now you're talking!" Carolina laughed. "Let me know when you find some and I'll bring you me rum. Do we have an accord?"
"Agreed." Long Shadow said. "Agreed." Carolina said.
They toasted on it. Carolina took a long swig. Long Shadow copied her, deliberately drawing out her own drink a bit longer. Carolina noticed.
"Oh you don't want to do that lass." She said.
"Try me." Long Shadow said cockily, taking another swig.
"Ooh!" said a few ships nearby.
A mischievous light entered Carolina's eyes. "Challenge accepted." She said.
The pair downed one bottle after another, the whole time getting drunker and drunker and as they did, their tongues loosened. "I remember a time, when I was a little thing, fresh out of the shipyards." Carolina began. "I was a naughty thing then and I am so now. The first thing I did was steel a whole man's purse."
"Really?" Long Shadow laughed.
"Really." Carolina agreed. "But when the man found out, of course he was furious and of course he was going to the authorities. Next thing I know, Sir John Beckett showed up at my dock. He said 'Carolina, I've heard from a good friend of mine that he lost his purse recently. You wouldn't happen to know where it is would you.' I replied 'You already know the answer to that my good John because if you didn't you wouldn't be here.' Then he ordered me to hand it over. I did but in addition to the coin I left him a nice parting gift."
"Oh?" Long Shadow asked.
"Aye, I left him a nice big fat seagull stuffed inside!" Carolina laughed. They both broke down laughing.
"Oh Ancients, that's too funny." Long Shadow gasped, taking a swig of her rum to calm herself down. "One time, when I was still being built, the workman were painting over my hull with a fresh coat. It was about 2 weeks before the launch. I was feeling cocky so I set a trap for the men and by the end of the day, they all went home to their wives and mothers covered in gold and blue."
YOU ARE READING
The Founding Sisters #1 The Damned
General FictionRedoing my original and tying it in with the main series. We go back to the beginning, before the founding of the United States. Several ships were key players in this founding and this is their story.
