Most of the crew now looked to Teach once Murrell and Peter stalked away. Teach gave them a slight nod if they were to indeed follow the captain’s orders or he would give them brief instructions once the older man was out of earshot. Murrell was too agitated to make sure if his directions were carried out or not.
Teach’s behavior was a criminal act, but there was no other option. He’d tried to reason with the captain, but Murrell wouldn’t heed anyone’s advice. Murrell had made enemies of almost everyone on board the Deliverance, and very few would think to speak against Teach. They seemed to understand that now was not the time to switch direction or lower half of the sails. Teach intended to meet the other ships head-on and not show any signs of weakness or vulnerability.
“What do you make of the ships?” John asked, standing at Teach’s side as Teach viewed the approaching vessels through a spyglass.
“The smaller one has eight cannons, all of them six pounders. I count twelve cannons on the larger one.”
John whistled beneath his breath. “They’ve come looking for a fight.”
Teach lowered the spyglass and attached it to his belt. From a distance he could see men scurrying back and forth across the decks of the two approaching ships. Unconsciously, he reached for the thin leather cords hanging around his neck. They were attached to a small leather pouch containing the ring he’d intended to give to Anne. Teach kept it with him at all times, often toying with the twine. “We can’t outmaneuver them; they’re too small. But they won’t try to sink us. They want our cargo.”
“They might not want to sink us, but I’ll wager they’d be only too happy to take out some of our crew.”
“We’ll have to do our best to stop them, then, won’t we?”
Jack Thurston approached, his expression harried. “Teach, we need you belowdecks.”
Teach frowned. Jack never called him Teach. He’d given Teach the nickname Blackbeard when he first boarded the Deliverance. “What’s wrong?”
“Murrell is trying to send our cannons to the bottom of the sea.”
Turning, Teach rushed to the stairs that led below. He found the captain along with Peter and another of his loyal sailors crouched on the gun deck. Murrell gestured wildly to the cannons. “I want them gone! All of them! Everything that isn’t strapped down needs to go!”
The two men moved to follow the captain’s instructions, but Teach snapped his fingers and sent Jack Thurston and another sailor to bar their way. “Captain! It’s too late to get rid of our guns and supplies. We can’t outrun them!” Teach insisted for what seemed like the hundredth time, the blood pounding in his head. From his vantage point on the stairs between the top and the gun deck, he took in the worried looks of the crew. It was clear to most of them that Murrell was close to collapsing beneath the stress of the impending battle. The two ships were practically upon them, their decks swarming with men.
“We’re a merchantman! We have no need for so many cannons!” Murrell shrieked, looking worriedly out the port side.
“We’ll need them to fight!”
“I’ll raise the white flag! I can negotiate with them.”
“If you surrender, we’re dead. There’s no guarantee any of us will live.”
Murrell whirled, pointing an accusing finger at Teach. “You tricked me into this! This is your fault!”
It took all of Teach’s self-control not to slam the man into the wall. “You said to ready the ship for battle!”
“Because you told me we couldn’t outrun them!” Murrell shouted back.
“We can’t! Throwing the cannons and cargo overboard would only have delayed the inevitable and left us defenseless!”
“Mutiny! This is mutiny! I’ll have your head for this! See if I don’t!”
The telltale shot of a cannon in the distance prevented any response. It was accompanied a few seconds later by a resounding splash next to the hull of the Deliverance.
It was only a warning shot. The next one would not miss.
“Captain! Captain Murrell, what are your orders, sir?” Peter asked.
All eyes turned to the captain.
Teach clenched the railing, convinced it would splinter beneath his grip.
“Raise the flag. We’re going to surrender,” Murrell said.
“No!” Teach bounded down the rest of the stairs and shoved his way past the captain.
Peter grabbed Teach by the arms to restrain him, but Jack Thurston threw a punch, catching Peter squarely in the jaw. In the cramped space, Peter fell into Murrell and the two tumbled to the floor.
Nobody moved to help them as they struggled to their feet.
Murrell pulled his pistol and pointed it at Teach, his hand shaking like a leaf in the wind. He motioned to the nearest gunners. “Take him. Lock him in the hold.”
The air was thick, the low beams of the upper deck pressing down on them. The two men hesitated. Peter was the only one to attempt to restrain Teach, but Teach easily shook him off, while Jack drew his own pistol, pointing it at Peter.
The hammer of Teach’s pulse caused his head to hurt. He knew what disobeying Murrell would cost them. They would be tried and executed for mutiny.
“Captain, please. Trust me. I know what to do. We can come out of this alive.”
Murrell stood there with his mouth gaping. He looked out through the gun ports, at the two ships, close enough now that they could see the men preparing their muskets. His eyes drifted over the gun crews before him, the cannons secured with thick ropes as the men of the Deliverance waited for their orders. Finally, he met Teach’s piercing gaze with a vacant look of his own, and shook his head. “We’re all doomed,” he whispered, his voice hoarse. He stumbled toward the stairs, with Peter close on his heels.
Not waiting to see where he went, Teach turned to the gunners, crouching low in the dimly lit space. Adrenaline coursed through his veins. “As soon as they come broadside, fire on the upward roll. They don’t expect us to fight. The only chance we have is to take out their rigging and canvas and make our escape.”
The men nodded, their bodies tensed as they waited for the first true shot to be fired. It didn’t take long. The Deliverance shuddered as two cannonballs crashed into her hull. Teach’s heart leaped in his chest, but he knew that his father had prepared for this and had purposefully reinforced the ship’s structure. Teach didn’t wait for the others to take another shot.
“Fire!” he yelled as the Deliverance rode up on the swell. The gunners jumped, touching their sizzling torches to the fuses.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Teach’s teeth shook with the impact as cannons went off in quick succession. He nearly choked on the thick smoke encircling his head. The deafening sound left his ears ringing as smoldering scraps of soft cloth drifted upward.
He did not see the flight of the balls, but in a matter of seconds, a hole appeared in the middle of the topsail of the closest ship. Another ball hit the bower anchor with an echoing clang.