Teach’s eyes moved over the crowd, but they paused briefly
on the familiar sight of William and Patience standing together, William’s arm draped protectively around her. Teach’s mouth tightened slightly, but he gave no other response.
Swinging his bag of belongings onto his back, Teach pushed
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through the throng. In his bag were the things he’d packed from the house, and in Teach’s pocket was the ring he’d planned to give Anne.
As Teach approached the boarding plank, he reached for the
papers in his waistcoat and handed them to the stocky young
man near the plank. On Teach’s instructions, John had paid
the original first mate a tidy sum not to report that morning, allowing Teach to take his place. The first mate was a represen-tative of the merchant owner, and in most cases, he could not be removed from his office by the captain of the ship.
A cheer went up as the assembly dispersed, people jockey—
ing for a better position to watch the mighty Deliverance set sail.
“You’re late,” the man said, giving Teach a once-over.
“I know,” Teach said shortly. It hadn’t taken much for him
to mimic his father’s signature on his papers. He’d mastered
the art when he’d been a schoolboy and Drummond had taken
Teach to his office once in a while, before Drummond had
decided that a merchant life was no life for his son.
“I wonder what Richard Drummond would say if he knew
you cared so little for your post,” the man said doubtfully.
Teach nodded. “You’re free to go and ask him yourself, . . .”
He waited for the young man to supply his name.
“Jack Thurston.”
“Well, Jack Thurston, you’re free to go and ask him yourself, but he’s a very busy man. If you want to waste his time—”
Jack shook his head. “No, that won’t be necessary.”
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Teach was an imposing figure, and he knew how to use his size to his advantage. He was quickly learning that he didn’t need to employ force to get what he wanted.
“Are you as good a first mate as they say?” Jack asked.
Teach didn’t know what kind of rumors John had spread,
but he could imagine they’d been slightly exaggerated.
“Aye, I am.” There was an undercurrent of danger in Teach’s
nearly blank expression.
Jack obviously assumed that Drummond had employed
Teach at the last minute, knowing what a target the Deliverance would provide out on the open sea. Any sloop out there would have heard of the galleon’s maiden voyage and know what a coup it would be to capture such a ship. Most of the Deliverance’s crew was former soldiers, prepared to fight if any pirates dared show themselves. “Well, then, what’s your name?” Jack asked. “I can’t read this chicken scratch.”
Teach studied Jack for a moment. “The name is Edward
Teach.”
Jack nodded. “Good enough, although I think ‘Edward’
is too fine a name for you. If you intend to look like a street urchin and smell like a sow, I shall have to call you something else.” He looked Teach over from head to toe, noting his shabby black hair and beard. “You’re no dandy. I’ll call you Blackbeard.
Welcome aboard.”
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A C K N O W L E D G M E N T S
It’s both incredible and humbling to think of all the people
who helped make this book possible. First of all, an enormous
thank-you goes to my amazing editor, Sara Sargent. Working
with you has been a privilege and an honor. You understood
what I wanted to write from the beginning, and without your
valuable insight, Anne and Teach’s story wouldn’t be what it is today.
To the remarkable publishing team at Simon Pulse, who
helped make this dream of mine come true: Mara Anastas, Mary
Marotta, Liesa Abrams, Kayley Hoffman, Carolyn Swerdloff,
Teresa Ronquillo, and Nicole Ellul. Thank you so much for all
of your support! Karina Granda, you rendered me speechless
with the beautiful design for the cover. I couldn’t have asked for a more accurate symbol of Anne and Teach’s struggle. And to Sarah McCabe, Rio Cortez, and Danielle Esposito, thank you
for taking the time to read the manuscript and making sure I
told Anne’s point of view the way it should be told.
Quinlan Lee, I will never forget the day I received your
e-mail asking if we could have a chat. You were an answer to my prayers and I will always be grateful to you for being such a huge champion of this book.
Thank you also to Tracey Adams, agent extraordinaire, who
took me on. Your knowledge of and passion for the industry lets me know I’m in very capable hands. A special shout-out to Josh Adams who came up with the brilliant title for this book. And
to Samantha Bagood, your feedback was greatly appreciated.
I’m incredibly blessed to be a part of the Adams Literary family.
There have been many writerly friends who’ve supported
me on this journey. I’m grateful to Anne Perry, über-talented
murder-mystery author and longtime family friend. I’ll never