Read Online The Voyage of Lucy P. Simmons by Barbara Mariconda - Free Book Online Page B

“Well, a man—this horrible man—grabbed me, well, there were two men—they snatched each of us, me and Georgie, tried to drag us off! To kidnap us! Force us into duty aboard their ship!”
    The color drained from her face. She sat perfectly still except for the tightening of her fingers around the carved lion’s heads on the wooden arms of her chair. Her very large silence pressed in on me. To fill the void, my words tumbled out. “Dirty scoundrels, they were—the one that got me had a scar—a big one . . . like this . . .” I drew my finger diagonally across my face, chin to opposite cheekbone. “A red scarf around his head. I kicked! Bit! He threw me to the ground! It was the . . .” I stopped abruptly before the word cap’n rolled off my tongue. I realized I didn’t want to bring the captain into it. But it was too late now.
    Expressionless, Marni coaxed, “It was the . . . ?”
    â€œCaptain,” I said.
    She sprang from the chair, her jade eyes turned to ice.
    â€œNo! No!” I corrected, waving my hands, trying to erase what I’d implied. “No, it was the cap’n who rescued us! Stepped in and pressed those vile characters to unhand Georgie and me!”
    At this she eased into her seat, her back ramrod straight. Her steely gaze cut right through me. “Attempted kidnapping is a serious offense. He had a responsibility to report it to the authorities, regardless of whether or not they took it seriously.” She placed her elbows on her knees, rested her chin in her hands. Disappeared inside herself for a few moments. She continued softly, almost as though she’d forgotten I was there, reasoning it out. “Although he might have speculated that an investigation would ensue—which could take weeks, delaying our departure. Or, perhaps he did report it, without involving you and Georgie.” She sat up straight and dropped her hands. “I’ll be asking him about this, you can be sure. But there’s more, isn’t there?”
    I nodded, my head bobbing like a wobbling top. “Yes. The cap’n realized we couldn’t—wouldn’t . . .” I stuttered, shaking my head. “He realized we hadn’t told you about it. And was kind not to . . .”
    â€œNot to share information that he clearly knew I’d want to know?”
    My heart sank. “It wasn’t that, it was . . .”
    â€œWhat else do I need to know?” she snapped.
    â€œThe other day—the day we set sail?”
    â€œYes . . .”
    â€œQuaide said he had some last-minute business onshore.”
    â€œUm-hmmm . . .”
    â€œWell, I was up on the poop deck with my spyglass, watching people up close along the pier. One looked like Mother—well, not really, but anyway, the spyglass suddenly moved on its own until it came to focus on Quaide! I saw him talking to the one who tried to kidnap me, the one with the scar—to him and another man, a man with these green eyes . . .” I realized his eyes were not unlike hers at the moment—steely and uncompromising. I went on, words tumbling like waves. “He—Quaide—pointed to our ship. Then, the green-eyed man gave them each a pile of money. I watched him count it into their hands! Then Quaide left them and rejoined us. And the ship—the one the pirate tried to drag us to? I’ve spotted it on the horizon, sailing a similar course.”
    Marni’s lips were pulled taut. A fleeting, faraway look sailed across her face and she absently fingered the silver locket at her throat. “What else now? Put it all out there.”
    â€œJust now, before you saw me in the companionway? I saw Quaide in the chart room fiddling with Father’s safe! Kneeling there, trying to open it. The door to the chart room moved by itself, preventing me from being seen! He didn’t