Page 33 of Pirate's Intent
Hannah would never be able to keep her mouth shut.
His mouth watered at the thought of Hannah being so close. Of finally having her right where he wanted her. He could already feel her silky pale blonde locks as he dug his hands into her hair. Hear her denial followed by moans of acceptance.
He enjoyed the luscious sights as they strode into town. The air smelled of sweat, perfume, and sex. The wenches were willing and eager. He would miss this place and its deviant ways. But not so much that he wouldn't trade it all to claim his prize.
To have his payback.
They headed into the tavern and kept to rowdy talk of bidding and the wonders awaiting the chap who claimed Rose. Yet all the while, he envisioned Hannah, eager to claim what she had taunted him with for so long. Before they headed out of the tavern a short time later, rum in hand, a trunk was carried in. Its crest verified the rumors were true.
The McCullen sisters had been captured.
And, just as he suspected, Rose was being auctioned off.
“We hang back,” Thomas murmured out of the corner of his mouth to Luke and Charles. “Lest she spy us.”
He was right to suggest it. He and his brother were taller than most and stood out in a crowd. More importantly, they drew women’s eyes. So they stopped at the fringes and leaned against the overhang of a building that shielded them from the dais.
Moments later, Rose was dragged onto it and held on display.
Naturally, men hooted and hollered.
“Where’s the other one?” Luke scanned the windows of the brothel, barely able to contain his excitement and perhaps a smidge of concern. As it were, Hannah was his. The thought of anyone else having her was inconceivable. “Has Blackbeard let anyone at ‘er yet?”
“Not yet, don’t think.” Charles licked his lips, playing his mock role well. “Rumor has it she’s tied up and waitin’ for her first customer.”
Luke’s heart leapt in fresh anticipation, and he grinned. “Is that right?”
Thomas shot his brother a warning look reminding him that they had a mission. He better not get distracted when the time came but get her out of there. If he faltered, it would cost them both their lives.
He and Thomas plus men they could trust from their ships had talked at length about this. Everyone knew what was on the line and understood the various things that could go wrong. Luke getting hung up on finally having Hannah at his disposal on a bed could put a serious kink in their plan in more ways than one.
As it happened, Rose was sold to a pirate named Big Devil, which in itself could cause issues. After all, his crew, or rats as they were called, had a way of knowing everything all the time.
Either way, they had to move forward with their plan.
A plan that became far riskier when they joined the pirates riffling through the sisters’ trunk and realized what was in there. Worse yet, that one of Big Devil’s rats likely figured it out too.
ChapterOne
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“WHAT DO THEY INTENDto do with her?” Hannah tried to yank her arm away from the pirate pulling her along. “What are they doing with my sister?”
“Same thing as ye, wench.” He tossed her a lecherous grin, his blackened teeth almost as disgusting as his foul breath. “Puttin’ her to good use.”
Somehow she highly doubted that. Rose was being led in a different direction.
“Tell me where they are taking her this very minute,” she demanded. “Or you will suffer the consequences.” She nodded once. “Mark my words.”
“How’s that then?” He eyed her over. “Ye don’t look infested.” He yanked her close, inhaled her hair and groaned. “Nay, ye’er as fresh as a flower. So what are these consequences ye're yappin’ about?”
“Get ‘er upstairs,” another said in passing. “Or Blackbeard’ll have yer hide.”
Blackbeard? Well, that did not sound promising. But then none of these swines did. Nor the women they kept company with. One of which blew her a kiss in passing before Hannah was dragged upstairs in a building full of painted women and leering miscreants.
Hannah notched her chin. “Do you know who I am?” She gave the lout pushing her into a room a self-important look. “I am the niece of a well renowned Virginia plantation owner.” She gave him a knowing look and told a bald-faced lie. “One who would pay a handsome price for the safe return of his nieces.”
She could not imagine a world in which her uncle cared that much, but this brute didn’t need to know that.
