“How dare you,” Patience said, her eyes narrowing.
Anne ignored her and nodded to Teach. “Your father would
like to see you in the library, sir.”
Frustrated, it was all Teach could do not to yell at the sky.
He swore his father planned his interruptions. “Tell him I’ll be there shortly.”
Anne pursed her lips. “He thought you might say that. He
said you are to come immediately. It is important and has something to do with the Deliverance.” Her message delivered, she turned on her heel and returned to the house, Ruth stuck to her side.
“Are you going to let her talk to you like that?” Patience
demanded, her hands on her hips. “If she were my maid, I’d
have her dismissed at once, with no severance and no recom—
mendation for another situation. Who does she think she is,
the little . . .”
Patience’s voice droned on and on, but Teach paid her no
attention. Anne had been quite discourteous, but he would
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have been more surprised if she’d been civil. She didn’t bother hiding her dislike, and would need to be reprimanded at some point.
But his mind was occupied with more pressing matters.
Like what his father wished to discuss with him. Teach had
often hinted that he would like to captain one of his father’s
ships, but his father had never taken him seriously.
Perhaps he’d had a change of heart.
Teach dismissed himself from Patience and followed after
Anne, vaguely aware of Patience hurrying after him.
“If I didn’t know better, I might begin to think you didn’t
want to spend time with me,” Patience said.
“That’s not true. I’ll come find you later.” Teach felt a twinge of guilt for dismissing Patience so quickly. He would make it up to her, he assured himself, but refused to dwell on the matter. It didn’t take much for Patience to get upset. Then again, it didn’t take much to make her forget her anger.
At the door to the library, Teach paused and took a deep
breath. Lifting his hand, he rapped three times with his knuckles.
“Come in.”
Teach stepped inside the book-filled room, inhaling the
familiar odor of leather and the clean, sharp scent of linseed
oil. The dark wood paneling gleamed in the afternoon sunlight
streaming through the windows. Drummond sat in his favorite
leather armchair decorated with brass studs. In his hands he
held his worn, dog-eared copy of the Bible.
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Ever since Teach had been little, his father had retired to his library at this time in the afternoon to read several chapters and drink his favorite tea. He must have just gotten settled, because the tea tray was noticeably absent.
“You wanted to see me?” Teach said, wishing his voice
hadn’t broken on the last word. At forty-three, his father was
still a formidable figure.
Drummond held up a finger and continued reading. When
he was finished with the last verse, he closed the book and set
it on the table beside him. “Yes. I wanted to ask you to keep an eye out for me.”
“An eye out for what?” Teach asked, puzzled. What did this
have to do with the Deliverance?
“I believe some things in the house have gone missing, and I
would like you to see if you notice any of the staff acting oddly.”
“Acting oddly,” Teach repeated.
“Yes. I’ve checked each of their rooms numerous times, but
I haven’t been able to find anything.”
“Father, you didn’t.”
Drummond raised his chin. “I most certainly did. This is
my house, and those are my things. Nobody steals from me and
gets away with it.”
“Have you asked Margery?”
“Don’t be ridiculous. She might be the one doing it.”
“But are you sure they’re missing? Perhaps you are mistak—”
“Do not insult me. I know what I’m talking about. A goblet
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is gone, one that I gave your mother that she admired. And I cannot find my favorite spyglass, the one with the silver-and-gold inlay. Someone in this house has taken them, and I intend to find out who it is. If you can’t assist me with that simple request, then you’re not the young man I raised you to be.” Despite the cutting edge to his words, fatigue showed in Drummond’s hollowed cheeks, and Teach felt a stab of compassion for him.
“All right, Father. I will keep an eye out for the thief.” Teach didn’t think anything would come of it, but it wouldn’t hurt to make sure nothing was amiss. It would also give him an excuse
to watch Anne more closely.
“Good. Thank you. Now I wish to discuss something else
with you. As you know, I’ve spent quite a bit of time working
on the Deliverance’s completion. Nearly two years of my life.”
“Yes, I know.”
“Now that its launch is almost here, I find myself looking
toward the future.”
Teach’s pulse accelerated, but he knew better than to say
anything. He remained motionless, his hands locked behind
his back
“I’ve decided to step down as the head of the company and
leave its maintenance to my solicitors.”