Truly, this was paradise.
Anne had always wanted to find a place where she could belong. Maybe this was it. With no one around, Teach’s greatest wish was to spend time with Anne here. Instead of trying to fit their lives into someone else’s mold, they could make their own place in the world.
With that thought in mind, Teach marched across the sand dunes and into the mangrove forest, leaving the ocean and the Triumph behind. Kitts kept pace with Teach while the rest of the crew followed in their wake. The soldiers no longer wore their uniforms, and Kitts’s men blended in with the others. There were thirty in all.
Teach watched the sergeant out of the corner of his eye, wondering if he was the one who’d searched the captain’s cabin and discovered Anne. Teach didn’t think so, otherwise Kitts would have confronted him before now.
Then again, Teach didn’t know Kitts that well. Perhaps he was adept at playacting. Trying to think of some way to trick a confession out of him, Teach was quiet as they entered the foliage.
“Have you always wanted to captain a ship?”
They’d walked for several minutes, and Teach was caught off-guard by the question.
“Aye,” Teach answered truthfully. This was a good enough start. Heaven knew they had plenty of time before they reached the cay where Easton was moored. “Have you always wanted to be a soldier?”
“My father and grandfather were soldiers before me.”
“But is that what you wanted?”
“I want to make my father proud.”
Teach could understand that desire all too well. However, in Teach’s case, it had come with too high of a price, one he hadn’t been willing to pay. “What would you be if you weren’t a soldier?”
Kitts gave him a blank look. “What kind of question is that? I’m a soldier. I’ve chosen my course.”
Teach had to give Kitts credit. He was single-minded and dedicated. From what Teach had seen of the man’s actions on the deck of the Triumph, and his interactions with the rest of the crew, Teach couldn’t imagine Kitts doing anything half-heartedly or against the rules.
They walked in uncomfortable silence for several minutes, broken occasionally by the shrill cry of a tropical bird. As they passed under a tall tree, something dropped from an overhanging branch and Teach pushed Kitts to the side. The thick corded length of a boa constrictor hung suspended between them, its forked tongue snaking out. Kitts eyes were wide and he gave Teach a small nod. “Thank you.”
With a slight shrug, Teach moved on. The rest of the men made a wide arc around the snake.
“I suppose if I weren’t a soldier, I might be a farmer,” Kitts said unexpectedly, sweat beading on his forehead.
Teach gave him a curious look. “Truly?” Kitts’s response surprised him. As did the fact that Kitts had given Teach’s question more thought.
“Yes. I would have five acres. Nothing large, but enough to support myself. I’d also have cattle, chickens, and an ox.”
He’d clearly given it some serious thought. “And would livestock be your sole source of companionship?” Teach couldn’t help himself. Kitts was so easily annoyed.
Sure enough, Kitts stiffened, his mouth turned down at the corners. He reminded Teach of a raccoon with his two black eyes. His nose was still swollen after his run-in with John. “It might surprise you to know this, but at one time, I cared deeply for someone.”
Teach couldn’t imagine the rigid Kitts doing anything as “impractical” as falling in love. “What happened?”
There was a pregnant pause, as if Kitts debated telling Teach the truth. A lizard underfoot skidded away, rustling amongst the fallen leaves of a nearby bougainvillea bush.
“Her father did not support the match.”
“Why not?”
“An earl’s daughter doesn’t marry a soldier.”
“Ah,” Teach said, feeling contrite. Although Teach’s circumstances had been somewhat different, he could understand Kitts’s frustration. “Is she already wed?”
“Not to my knowledge, no.”
“When you return to England, perhaps you could search her out again. After you’ve sacrificed your time and freedom for country and Crown, of course,” Teach said, ducking beneath an overhanging branch.
“Society would frown upon it.”
Teach gave an incredulous laugh. “Hang society. If you truly loved her, you wouldn’t let her go so easily.”
“There are rules—”
“Bugger the rules! I wouldn’t listen to anyone who told me to stay away. Only an act of God would be able to keep me from the woman I loved.”
Kitts’s lips twisted. “If there weren’t rules and administrations, the world would be in absolute chaos.”
“But sometimes the rules are made by unjust men.”
“If everyone rebelled, the result would be disastrous.”
“Do you realize how close you are now to overstepping the boundary between the law and lawlessness?”
“What do you mean?” Kitts snapped, stumbling on a mangrove root.
“For all intents and purposes, you’re a privateer. In my opinion, that’s only one step away from piracy.”
Kitts stopped, drawing himself up to his full height. “I am a soldier following the command of the sovereign governor of Nassau. I am not a privateer.”
A few of the men stopped behind them, their expressions curious as they watched the exchange.
Teach almost felt sorry for Kitts. He clearly lacked imagination and the ability to think for himself. “We’ve been sent to capture Easton. A letter of marque is the only thing separating us from them.”
“Except that we won’t be keeping any of the plunder. Webb is expecting us to return everything, and I am here to ensure that happens.”
“Do you honestly believe Webb is going to pay you?”
Kitts shifted from one foot to the other. The sunlight filtered down through the green canopy overhead. “He informed me we would be paid for our time and trouble.”
“How much?”
“That’s between the governor and my—”
Some of the men came forward. “How much?” one of them asked.
Scowling, Kitts shot Teach a murderous glare. “That information is confidential.”
“Tsk, tsk,” Teach said, enjoying the look of frustration on the other man’s face. “Is that any way to earn your men’s trust? Is that any way to lead them?”
“He takes his orders from Webb. He doesn’t lead anyone,” someone called out.
Kitts’s head whipped around as he searched for the source of the comment. Nobody moved. Turning back to Teach, he leaned forward and poked Teach’s chest. “Since you know so much, Captain,” Kitts said, his jaw clenched. “Why don’t you tell us what Webb said to you.”
Teach shrugged. “He told me he would pay me five hundred pounds if I bring Easton back alive.” A rumble rose through the men as they muttered amongst themselves. “And I pledge to share it with the crew equally. But I don’t truly believe Webb will pay us when we return.”