Read Online Hart's Passion (Pirates & Petticoats Book 2) by Chloe Flowers - Free Book Online Page B

would surely burst out.  
    “Release me at once!” She fought to keep the terror from shaking her voice, but failed.
    He shrugged his broad shoulders in indifference. “I do the bidding of me Cap’n. He’ll deal wi’ ye.”
    Her voice shook with barely contained fury. “What’s his name? I demand to see him.” Her words echoed in the chamber.
    The man faltered back. “Cap’n Gampo will see you when he’s good an’ ready.”
    Gampo…that was a familiar name. Why? She remembered. Conal O’Brien and Landon Hart had told a story about the man during breakfast several weeks ago. Gampo was a pirate, with whom they had an ongoing feud. He was the one responsible for killing Conal’s uncle, Fynn.  
    He pointed at the bundle he’d put on the floor. “I brought you somethin’ to eat. You’d best get at it before the rats take it.”
    “I demand you release me!” She raised her voice, but it sounded more like a warble than a shout.
    He backed quickly to the door.
    Keelan reached down, grabbed the knotted piece of cloth, and angrily threw it at him. He flung his pudgy arms up to protect his face and ducked. The bundle opened and a piece of bread and two chunks of molded cheese rained down on her captor. The cloth floated crazily to the floor at his feet.
    Realizing the worst was over, he straightened and pointed at the scraps littering the floor. “Them is all the rations you get, woman!” He stepped nearer, careful to stay out of reach. “You’re lucky I brought you anything at all after you cracked me bloody nose!”
    Both of his eyelids were purple and the man’s nose was indeed slightly askew.
    The sight was grimly satisfying. “What kind of reception do you expect to get when you enter a lady’s chamber in the middle of the night and attack her?”  
    He touched his nose gingerly. “Well, it hurts like bloody hell.”
    “Good.”
    Growling, he opened the door, pausing first to hang the lantern on a large iron hook on the wall. He scowled at her over his shoulder then strode out, slamming the door behind him, and muttering words that were probably best she couldn’t clearly hear.
    Her head was spinning and she closed her eyes. She must have managed to doze off for a short while. Awakened by the low rumble of hunger from her stomach, she stared longingly at the cloth still crumpled in a small heap. The food had disappeared. The bottle of ale still sat nearby, and she quenched her thirst gratefully then placed the bottle close to her blanket and hugged her knees to her chest. An overwhelming despair unfurled within her chest. She choked back a desolate sob; she shouldn’t allow herself to cry. If she started, she might never stop. She had to escape and find Landon. But how?

    It was nightfall when Landon and Conal met Commodore Hall and Sheriff Pinkerton outside a pub near the waterfront. They walked along the pier rather than meet inside. Spies were everywhere, and extra cautions had to be taken to avoid being overheard. A small sliver of a moon occasionally darted from between quick-moving clouds. The wind had picked up and was caressing the land below with gentle gusts hinting of rain.  
    Sheriff Pinkerton spoke in a low voice. “We have a total of twenty able men between Captain Hart’s crew, my four deputies, and your seamen, Commodore Hall,” he stated. “If Captain Hart is correct about the men in the warehouse, we should have them outnumbered. Let’s hope they surrender without much of a fight.”
    “We’ll meet there in an hour’s time with our men,” Landon said. “With only the night watch up and about, we should be able to catch them off guard.”
    “I like those odds.” Commodore Hall clasped his hands behind his back. “In an hour then.” The three men walked along together for a short distance then the Commodore parted company.  
    Landon and Conal walked for several moments in silence.
    Landon’s musings drifted to Keelan Grey.  
    Again.  
    He’d tried to banish the