To Love A Pirate

Prologue

The woman held her baby protectively to her chest. She wore a hood and cloak as she slipped in and out of the dark. Her blond hair matched the infants, and her green eyes shone with determination. She had to get away. That was the only thing that was running through her head as she struggled to keep going. The baby in her arms squirmed and made a small whining sound. The woman willed her to keep quiet. One wrong move and he’d find them. Both of them.

How could such a great night go so wrong? Of course maybe this is what she deserved…she shouldn’t have been out here with him. Not when she should be back on that ship with her husband and sailing the seven seas. One can’t make their heart love someone they should when they love another, though. She shouldn’t have, she knew that, but she couldn’t keep away from him any longer.

The baby wiggled again, and this time let a yowl out. She covered its mouth and made a breathless shhh sound. The baby licked its lips and fell back asleep. The mother let out a sigh of pure relief. It wasn’t that she felt happy, but she felt that they may have a chance of escaping after all. That is, until the baby began screaming and crying.

Nothing could make this child calm down. The mother quickly ran as fast as she could, forgetting that she needed to be quiet. The man leapt from the shadows and pinned her down. A gasp left her throat as her body slammed into the ground.

“Now, now, Larissa, you didn’t think you could get away from me that easily.” She felt his breath on her cheek. “I want what I asked for, otherwise, little Andréa here will pay the consequences.” He had picked up the baby from where she had fallen. She was still screaming and crying out for help. The mother stared at her helpless, small, and completely dependant little Andréa.

“You can’t!” She cried out. “What happened to the man that I fell in love with?!”

“He never existed. Now, either do what I ask, or…” he shook her baby. Larissa let out a whimper and finally nodded. With triumph he stood, and allowed her to stand up with him. He looked at her and gently stroked her cheek. It took all she had not to cringe in both disgust and horror. “Be sure you don’t mess this up…” the love in his voice made even that threat sound like a lullaby. She started to remember what she’d seen in him when he turned and departed taking Andréa with him.

She let silent tears fall from her eyes. She, Larissa, never cried, yet as she picked up the pointed stick she turned it in her hands and with one more sob, sunk it in his chest. Only it never made it to his chest. He had dodged, unsheathed his sword, and swiped it, all in one graceful movement.

She fell without another word, blood sprayed from her sliced throat. She could feel herself slipping, and with one word, she departed this world forever, “Andréa.”

          The man looked at Andréa with a slight amusement. “All this because she supposedly loved your father more than me…I say, girl, you’d be wise to stay away from men.” He laughed as he took the child back to Larissa’s ship. He pulled out a piece of parchment and wrote a few words to the child. When she grew up, she’d be able to know what it meant. He hid it in her mother’s locket and put the necklace around Andréa’s neck. He looked at her and smiled, “Remember this, girl, I am Ray Sterling, also known as, your worst nightmare.”