Siren Ch. 01

Hello again lovely readers! I had sworn to myself I wouldn't start posting before this was totally finished but I need to be held accountable to deadlines or I'm useless. The majority (read: the fun bits) are written and just knowing this is going up has got me writing the rest of it. More from me at the end...Enjoy!

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Kenna bit back a sigh as she stilled her hands from fidgeting. The captain had politely invited her up on deck but she was finding his company grating. He was everything she'd been warned he would be, licentious, persistent and with very little respect for propriety once they hit the open sea, but it was worth it for the fresh air and salty winds. The other families that traveled with them were mostly kind, but she found their proximity difficult to bear after two weeks. A naturally private person aboard a small ship, Kenna was finding the entire arrangement trying.

Agnes, the maid whom she had borrowed from the O'Neil family, trailed along behind them. Though the idea of the young girl acting as a chaperone was a bit silly, Kenna brought her along anyway. Anything to give the captain a bit of pause. A strong wave rocked the ship and Kenna stumbled slightly, allowing the captain to gallantly take her arm.

"Are you quite well, Mrs. Bell?" he said, smiling down at her, "I understood from Mrs. O'Neil that you have been seasick these last few days." He held her arm a bit too long and Kenna smiled tightly.

"Indeed it seems the open sea has been a bit much for me," she confessed to him.

"Oh ho! But were you not from a coastal town? Did you not spend time out on the tides before now?"

Kenna smiled at the man's teasing. "Indeed I did, though in the Eastern sea which agreed more with my sensibilities, it would seem."

The captain laughed heartily as though she'd made a fine joke. She smiled and turned back towards the damp air that blew across the deck. They had sailed out from the thickest fog that had hung about all morning. The clouds above were thin, and she hoped the sun would burn away the remaining mist.

But the air remained cool and moist even as the fog fell further behind them. The sea air wrapped around her, leaving its familiar chill deep inside. That too felt almost comforting, an ache that she had always carried in her bones when she was near the sea. It was her constant companion, bittersweet though it was.

The captain cleared his throat, "Mrs. Bell—" he began. The rest of his sentence was lost in his throat as a shout sounded from the starboard bough.

"Sails at starboard!"

The captain turned to a sailor standing above them at the forecastle gesturing at something in the thick clouds at their tail.

"I've got a ship, 4 points starboard coming out of that fog bank," the man shouted.

"Less than a mile off, captain!" The urgency in the man's voice was not lost on her. The captain jumped at once and made for the stern before turning back to her and Agnes

"To quarters! All hands!" he shouted as he came back towards her, sending the men on deck scrambling to obey. The captain grasped her about the arm most indecently and pulled her across the deck.

"Captain what is going on?" Kenna asked, surprised at the dark look in his eyes. He gripped her arm tighter and marched her towards the doors of his cabin, which sat below the captain's wheel. He ushered Agnes and her inside.

"Please, remain here for the meantime. There is nothing to be concerned about." He was not convincing.

Kenna looked at Agnes as the man shut and locked the doors behind him. The sound of running boots and shouting sailors echoed in the empty room.

"What on earth?" Kenna asked.

The maid looked properly afraid. "Mistress, I think it's pirates," she whispered.

"That's ridiculous," Kenna replied. "This is the major route between Britain and the Colonies. The entire area must be crawling with navy boats. How could pirates be active in these waters?" Agnes nodded, agreeing without any lessening of the fear in her eyes. Kenna sighed and went to one of the windows to see if she could make anything out through the wavy glass. "Why do you think it's pirates?"

Agnes leapt at the opening to speak. The Widow Bell had been so quiet and withdrawn she'd never had the opportunity to tell her all she'd discovered since they boarded the ship. Her Mrs. O'Neil never gave her the chance to speak and Agnes was fairly bursting with the need to tell someone. "Well it seems that Captain Jenkins has bad blood with a certain pirate and he's been nervous of an attack for some time now."

Kenna wrenched her head around sharply to look at the girl, ignoring her body's demands that she be more careful with her movements."I beg your pardon?" was all she could muster.

The girl looked properly enthused now. "An old shipmate from his time in the Royal Navy has taken to buccaneering, and Jenkins is afraid he might be a target from some old grudge they had once."

"Captain Jenkins," Kenna reminded her. "How on Earth did you learn all this?" She'd met Agnes thinking she was a simpleton looking for a way out of the crush in Belfast, taking employment with a family she barely knew on her way to the colonies. Perhaps the girl was more adventurous than she'd given her credit for. Kenna looked her unlikely chaperone over, appraising her with new eyes.

"Sorry Mistress." Agnes looked a bit sheepish. "It's just that given the lack of chores and such I've had so little to do so I'd taken to walking the lower decks some, just to stretch my legs a bit. The sailors are frightfully friendly!" she said in reassurance when she saw the concern in the older woman's eyes. "And they gossip worse than the old biddies back home."

"Well," Kenna said after a disapproving pause. "It is unlikely that we will engage them. The Captain will not risk the ship and the souls on board for some old fight." The thought occurred to her, even as she spoke, that the captain seemed just the kind of man to risk others to save his own neck. Agnes came to the same conclusion, and Kenna watched the fear return to the girl's round face.

Sure enough, the whistling warning shots from the far off ship sounded out nearby, followed by splashes far too close for comfort in Kenna's opinion. "It's fine," she began, moving towards Agnes, "he will surrender the ship and—"

They were interrupted by a massive boom emanating from the deck, which shook the entire ship violently. The wood trembled beneath them and Agnes shrieked. Kenna threw herself at Agnes and dragged the girl to the floor with her. A moment later there was an answering shot from farther off and Kenna held her breath. Their ship shuddered with the impact, the sound of crunching wood and screaming sailors ringing through the vessel.

Agnes immediately burst into tears. "Oh mistress! We're lost! They will sink us!" The girl trembled in her arms.

"Don't be silly," Kenna tried to sound braver than she felt. "They won't sink a ship they want to plunder." She held the girl tightly as more cracks from the cannons rang out around them. The shaking and shuddering of the ship was terrifying, as though it would break the vessel apart with every boom of the cannons. Suddenly the glass from the window Kenna had been at a few minutes before exploded as a cannon ball ripped through the deck above them. Kenna threw her body over Agnes as the girl screamed. She tried to quiet the younger girl, but in truth she was just as terrified as the attacking ship's guns drew ever closer.

After a short while, the booming stopped. Kenna held her breath, sealing her lips in a tight line. The quiet felt deceptive. Shouts rang out, louder through the hole that had been punched in the wall and ceiling of the cabin. Pistol shots punctured the air and the sound of steel on steel followed on their heels. There was no time to lose.

Kenna grabbed Agnes and hauled the terrified girl up, bringing them both around the side of the large table still set from the morning meal. Kenna had spied a large trunk belted down to the floor at the far wall of the ship. Swiftly she emptied its contents, sending clothing and tools scattered across the floor.

"Get in!" she ordered when it was mostly empty. Agnes scrambled in and Kenna made to lower the lid.

"Mistress! You must get in as well," the girl said urgently.

"There's not room for us both!" she hissed as the sounds of fighting came from just beyond the door. "Stay quiet, no matter what you hear Agnes! Promise me!"

The last she saw of the girl was her wide, fearful eyes as Kenna closed the lid.

Not a moment too soon.

A young sailor crashed through the doors, followed quickly by two unfamiliar men. Kenna stifled a shriek and crouched down, hiding beneath the table. Unfortunately it left her in sight of their boots as the two men circled the young man, and gave her the most hideous view of a fight already lost. One man distracted the sailor, who lunged, while the other came up behind him. She saw the boy's legs bow back as he gave a small shriek of surprise.

Kenna put her hand over her mouth, holding in a scream as the sailor fell to the floor. His eyes were wide with disbelief as the blood pooled beneath him. The pirate laughed and pulled his sword from the body and Kenna watched the boy's eyes go dark. She was so intent on his face that she didn't see the other pirate move around the table to where she crouched.

Suddenly a hand gripped her hair and hauled her up. Kenna gritted her teeth, not making a sound, though her heart beat wildly. Her hands flew to the fist currently pulling her hair from its roots.

"Look what we have here!" the taller one called, delight in his voice. "Didn't think we'd get a chance with this job but maybe there's time to spare!" The man's hands grasped at her chest over the black coat she wore. The other pirate didn't look nearly as eager.

"The captain won't be happy if we dally here," the younger man said, his eyes on her. "We've got to clean out the decks below."

The other man grumbled even as he continued pawing at her. His companion looked back at her intently. If she didn't know better she would think he was suspicious of her. Kenna strained as the taller man yanked her hair, sending the tightly pinned curls everywhere. She gritted her teeth against whimpering at the painful tug. She schooled her features to cold iciness as she had trained herself to do from an early age and cast a disgusted look at the second pirate who was still watching her face.

"Stop!" the one staring at her said, his eyes suddenly wide and almost frightened.

"Why should I?" his companion grunted as he searched for a way into the tight collar of her coat.

"It's her. We have to bring her to the captain." Kenna did not like the sound of that but the other man was loosening his grip and she used the opportunity to twist away from him, sending more hairpins flying. Her ruined hair fell down her back as she moved away from the two men, and they regarded at her with strange looks she didn't know how to interpret.

"What makes you think it's her?" the one who'd been molesting her asked, his eyes unsure. "She's just some doxy in a black dress. Don't look like nothing special to me." Their accents were thick with slurred syllables. They were English certainly, but southern perhaps, and unfamiliar.

"Look at her hair! And she fixed me with a look you wouldn't believe, made me feel the icy water in my lungs where I stood, it did." Kenna continued to back away from them as they advanced, tentatively now. She wasn't sure what they were talking about but she did not want to go with them. The bench at the periphery of the room brought her retreat to a sudden halt as it came up against her legs. The cool sea air came in from the shattered windows behind her, wrapping around her in a clinging embrace.

Suddenly a loud voice came from the door, its owner just out of sight from where she was standing. "Tim! Jasper! What are you two dawdling in here for? Get to work!"

"Mr. Roland! Look! We found her!" the younger one said, pointing eagerly at Kenna. She shifted her gaze as another man walked into the room, through the ruined door, and turned towards her.

A shiver of fear ran through as his amber eyes fell on her. He was larger than the other two and strong looking. Even at two paces she felt dwarfed. Surely proper sailors weren't meant to be so tall. His black hair hung behind him in a horsetail, though bits had come free around his rough and dangerous-looking face. All the hairs on her body stood on end. There was something distinctly predatory in his eyes and it terrified her in a way the violence had not.

"You found a widow aboard a passenger ship. Would you like a prize?" he drawled, his English accent clipped and precise.

"Not a passenger! It's her! The one the fortune teller spoke of."

Kenna realized the one who had stared at her was now completely convinced of whatever absurdity had gotten into his head. She remained silent though, unsure if speaking would help her case or damage it. The staccato beat in her chest increased again as the large man looked her over more intently than he had the first time.

His gaze was as terrifying as it was intense. He glanced at the other two. "How can you be sure?" he said, with an impatient disdain in his voice that the other two seemed not to notice.

"She looked at me when Jasper grabbed her and I swear on my mother's grave I felt the sea coming up to pull me down, felt the water fill my lungs, I did."

Jasper was nodding in confirmation. "I saw it too! She sent her sea magic out to him, angry that I was touching her, she was, and Tim here practically coughed up kelp from her look." Kenna looked at the men incredulously but saw no guile in their faces. She always knew sailors were an irrational lot but this seemed remarkable even for them.

The man at the door turned back to her and she tried to keep the cold look firm in her features. "Very well," he gestured to her. "Come along then."

Kenna couldn't decide if he was insane or just overly confident. There was no force on earth that could make her come to him willingly. He fixed her with his molten eyes and her legs trembled beneath her skirts, but she stoically held her ground. A desperate thought blossomed in her mind of throwing herself through the hole in the wall. She was a strong swimmer, maybe she could find a way back onto the ship and they wouldn't suspect a thing. Stupid and impossible, yes, but she was cornered and rapidly losing her ability to reason. The man before her seemed to see her thoughts on her face and made for her the moment her body tipped towards the gaping hole in the wall. Two quick steps put him directly in front of her. One large hand wrapped around her upper arm and he jerked her towards him.

"Careful Mr. Roland!" Jasper warned. "She'll fix you with the sea magic."

"You two, get to work!" the large man said and the two pirates scrambled away, eager to share whatever insanity they'd been talking of with the others. "This fucking job," Mr. Roland muttered to himself, then something more about idiots and hauled her with him as he exited the room. Kenna didn't spare a look back at the chest that held Agnes, though she sent a silent prayer to keep the girl safe.

Kenna lurched back when he dragged her out on deck, her eyes wide at the scene before her. The deck was washed red; pieces of the ship and its crew were everywhere, ripped apart by cannonfire. The strange metallic scent of blood pierced the sharp sea air. If she had been able to eat anything for the last two days she would have lost it then and there.

As it was, her captor gave her not a moment to pause before he tugged hard on her arm, breaking her morbid reverie and hauling her up the steps to the captain's wheel where another man grinned malevolently out on the scene that had caused her so much distress. He was older, and weathered from the ends of his beard all the way down to his worn boots, much closer to what a pirate should look like in her estimation. He turned his bloodshot eyes to her and she fixed him with the coldest look she could muster given the shock she'd just had.

"What's this Roland? We don't have time for that," the man said as he looked her up and down.

"I agree, Captain Dougrey, but it seems the men have decided she is the one to fulfill your prophecy." Agitation and frustration dripped from Roland's voice now, and the pirate captain looked back at her with sharper eyes.

The captain reached out and grasped one of the long tendrils of auburn hair that had fallen from its place. "I suppose she has the hair for it."

Roland nodded. "By now Tim and Jasper have probably told the others that she called on the waves to carry them off before they trapped her. It seems as good a time as any." He shoved her into the captain's chest. "You can have her in the captain's quarters. I'll make sure we finish unloading up here."

The captain breathed foully down at her as she struggled to get away from him. "I suppose it'll take the edge off of not getting to run Jenkins through myself," the man murmured, "rolling around in his cabin as it were." He ran his fingers down her cheek even as she wrenched away from his touch. "Quiet for a siren though, isn't she?" He laughed at his own joke, grasping her flailing arms in his fist.

Roland had already turned his back to them and gave no more than a grunt of affirmation before he was shouting down at the pirates below. "The captain's taking care of her, you keep your eyes on your tasks or you'll all be subject to the siren's stare."

Kenna fought the captain as he dragged her back to the cabin while the others stopped to stare as she passed. Why did they keep acting like she was some sort of witch? What on earth were they going on about fortune tellers and sirens for? He tossed her into the room and kicked the ruined doors closed as far as they could go.

She stumbled, trying to avoid the dead sailor and the pool of blood that moved with the pitch of the boat. The captain grabbed her and pinned her face first against the table with a hulking hand between her shoulders. She struggled wildly as she heard the unmistakable sounds of him loosening his belts and breeches.

"Hold still and it'll be done before you know it," he said with a casual tone that made her sick. Did he expect her just to stop fighting while he assaulted her? With her head pressed to the wood she saw a knife, left over from Captain Jenkin's last meal, within reach. The man's hands were drawing up her skirts and Kenna redoubled her efforts to throw him off, gaining only a tight squeeze on the back of her neck for her troubles.

"Not that I mind taking a minute to run you through, mistress," the man's voice was full of some jolly joke, "but this here is pure business, if it helps any." It didn't, and when he'd managed to raise her skirts enough, his grip loosened while he repositioned himself.

Even right after she'd done it, Kenna wasn't sure how she'd managed it. The feeling of his cock nudging against her thigh brought a deep anger simmering inside her to a roiling boil. She grasped the knife and slipped out from underneath his hand all in one movement. He chortled with delight as she darted to the side, no doubt enjoying a bit of chase, but when he caught her shoulder and turned her around towards him he didn't expect the blade she held in her fist. Providence surely guided her hand for Kenna had never struck anything more dangerous than a dirty carpet. She saw only a flash of metal and then it was lodged in his neck.

"No," he whispered, his mouth filling with blood. The man reached out to her, even as the red fluid bubbled from his open lips. She backed away from him, unable once again to rip her gaze away from the dying man's eyes. But she'd done this. Hadn't she? One minute the knife was on the table, and the next it was in his neck. By her hand, surely, and yet her mind could not recall the act. The captain stumbled towards her, grabbing at her as he fell forward, catching her wrist in his weakening fist. She nearly called out in disgust as the dead weight landed on top of her, throwing her to the floor, but Kenna gritted her teeth reflexively and made not a sound.