Corvus (Stars and Sails, Book 1)

Thirty

Jade looked at the fore topgallant mast. It lay in the middle of the deck where Oliver had set it once he took it down. For a kid with torn up hands, he did quite a bit. Jade bit down on her lip. If she had been better at sailing, Oliver wouldn't have injured himself. He'd spent many a frustrated day learning how to climb with hands wrapped up tight like lobster claws.

"Do you know how to fix it, Jade?" he asked. He poked at the mast with his foot.

"I think Acie does," Jade sighed. She got down on one knee and swatted Oliver's foot away. The mast did have a crack in it, just like Lucas Wiater had said in the log. It had to be sealed or replaced before they set sail again. It would be difficult to make that repair on the water, especially with the seas as tempestuous as they'd been.

"I see that neither of you suppose that I could fix it," Sabik said, leaning against the main mast.

"You could?" Oliver asked.

"Of course not." he said. He walked over to the larboard side of the ship and looked out at the wharf. Jade wondered if he made it a habit of dressing in his handsome Jhataran tunics while sailing. It didn't seem very practical, not that she had any experience in wearing one.

"We have guests." Sabik ran his hand across his forehead.

Jade turned and looked at the wharf. A carriage was approaching, followed closely by a wagon filled with four naval men. They were stern-faced, their muskets pointed at the sky. Jade placed a hand on her pistol. It was instinct, if not downright safe. She didn't trust the Navy as far as Oliver could fly. The carriage reached the gangplank and the doors opened. A young man stepped out dressed in a blue naval uniform that added some bulk to his slight frame. His hair was curly and buoyant, moving with the wind. She recognized him immediately. He had been protecting Sir Admiral John Baines with an umbrella the day the Coronis first arrived. He reached into the cab and helped someone out. Jade stiffened her jaw but was not surprised as Baines stepped out. She couldn't fight him and his foreign lackey, so she put her pistol away. Even if she did manage to mortally wound him, she would be running for the rest of her life. It was hardly worth the fun.

"Go organize the men," Baines said to the young man. He turned to Jade. "Ms. Harris!"

Jade crossed her arms. "Good Afternoon, Sir John Baines."

"I have marvelous news for you. You will be most astonished and thrilled."

She could only wonder what trials he had planned for her. Jade turned her head slightly to see Sabik's baptismal reaction to Baines, but he had disappeared from her side.

"I am delighted to say that the charges against your father have been withdrawn due to a lack of material evidence," Baines tapped his cane on the ground and snapped at the naval men. They gathered bags from the wagon twice as fast. They were gathering bags? For what?

Jade raised her hands to object, but Baines was the first to open his mouth. "Despite this, I fear that you have a mind of your own. We need focus and trust in protocol more than ever. As a show of my good faith and implicit confidence in you, I have assembled a most trusted group of naval experts to guide you and your captain." He stepped up the gangplank.

"That is unnecessary." Jade crossed her arms.

"Men, please put your things in the cabins below," he said. "And Harris, this very distinguished group leader will need a cabin of his own. Do see to it yourself."

The young man nodded at her. From the looks of it, he was Baines' favorite project—a foreigner turned lieutenant from the Shanying Islands. That wasn't very common in Longport. A rosy blush colored his cheeks and nose. He looked awfully sweet. Jade doubted whether he was as great of a Naval captain as Baines had suggested.