Read Online Fire on Dark Water by Wendy Perriman - Free Book Online

the skies began to gradually lighten and thin. The sun remained hidden, but after the wetness had melted from the deck the captain decided the crew was too exhausted to exercise the cargo that day, so the prisoner’s rations were taken below and dished up down there. And to keep the weary sailors happy an additional keg of rum appeared at the start of the second dogwatch. Just before dusk Mack returned to the cabin to find me ready and anxious. I was worried he’d detect my nervousness so I covered by saying, “I . . . I ain’t never done nothing like this before, Master.” He nodded a curt understanding, then took off his damp clothes and lay naked across the bunk. Waiting. He ran his good hand across his thinning crown and laid his head back against the wrist in a careless, decadent pose.
    I battled to still my quivering voice by humming the first verse before I began any movements, glad for the shimmering veils that disguised my shakes. I stood in the confined space and began the chorus.
    She sang la la, I beseech thee—listen what I say,
The man who can guess each riddle may claim my virtue as pay.
     
    Captain Mack’s pupils widened in their narrowing eye slits as his breathing turned raspy. I noted his stubby hand tapping time on his thigh as I sang the introduction,
    The Sultan’s gift arrived bejeweled across from dusky lands,
She hid herself in swathes of silk and talked with two fair hands,
Her dance was light as swan-down,
Her voice like a bubbling brook,
She stole the king’s heart easily—one glance was all it took.
She sang la la, I beseech thee, listen what I say,
The man who can guess each riddle may claim my virtue as pay.
     
    Now, if you ain’t never heard this song before, it unwraps the woman like a fancy gift. And the riddle’s dead easy to guess because each answer relates to the section of body revealed when that particular veil is dropped. For example, the first verse goes,
    This part of me contains the nod obeying your command,
It also holds the tender lips that pucker to kiss your hand,
The canvass flushed with blushes,
At the merest sight of you,
Two gems for dazzling my new lord—set in heavenly blue.
She sang la la, I beseech thee, listen what I say,
The man who can guess each riddle may claim my virtue as pay.
     
    I toyed with the first wrap, until the captain finally grinned he knew the answer and pointed to his own face. Then I carefully untied the headpiece and let the silk slide languidly to the floor, all the while swaying in tantalizing circuits. By the time I dropped the final veil I had obviously captivated my audience, and he spent the next spill of the hourglass feasting on his spoils. Eventually, however, Mack slipped a shirt over his head and pushed his face through the door to send Bristol for food. I put on my night robe. But while he dressed in sated contentment I couldn’t help wondering what was going on down in the hold.
    After we’d partaken of goat meat and rice I set about tidying the valuable cloth scattered around the room. Now, to this day I can’t never rightly remember what made him suspicious but all of a sudden the captain marched over to the chest and threw back the lid. He rummaged inside, and then tipped the box upside down so the needles and ribbon scattered like falling leaves and fell tangled against the materials. Then he meticulously began shaking each piece as I scurried to fold and tidy the discards after he’d finished. Finally, he stood up, banged down the lid, looked over the cabin surfaces and roared, “Where’s the shears?” I gulped. Then froze. Then gulped again. My tongue was dry and too scratchy to answer, but my body sprang to action and mimed a frantic search around the space. I looked under the blankets, groped round the floor, checked each container, and pretended to be clueless. Unfortunately my show lacked conviction and the next thing I knew he’d grabbed my wrists and bound them tightly with ribbon around