Novel 1974 - The Californios (v5.0) Read Online Free PDF Page A

itself to the sea, and how the rough timbers become translated into a kind of poetry.
    Sean said as much to Mariana, and she listened more to the man than to the words. He felt it and was disturbed. He was not quite sure what was the right thing, and he wanted to do the right thing. His years at sea had not made him a cynic, nor had they hardened him, and he knew what proximity on shipboard could do to people and how quickly it could disappear once they were on the beach again.
    “We’ll be going in,” he said, “as soon as it is dark.”
    “Isn’t that dangerous?”
    “Not for us. We’ve sailed this coast many times, and I’d rather they not see us until we’ve met and talked to my family. I want them to have a chance to meet you and understand what has happened.” He hesitated for a moment. “We may have to leave then. Have you any friends up this way? Any relatives?”
    “No.”
    He hunched his shoulders inside his coat, staring at the rough shoulder of Santa Barbara Island.
    “Why not let me take you back to your uncle?”
    She turned to stare at him. “Do you want me to go back?”
    Uncomfortably, he avoided her eyes. “No. Whatever is best for you.”
    “If I went back to him he would simply hold me for Andres. They made an arrangement.”
    He turned away from the subject, thinking about what Machado might do. Would he sail up the coast? More likely, he would come overland to the ranch, and that could mean a fight.
    What was Sean doing to the Señora, anyway?
    Maybe they should run for it, up the coast to Monterey, and go to Alvarado. He was no longer in power but he had influence, and even the governor would hesitate to invite trouble with him.
    The schooner moved out from behind the island, caught the wind, and began a run for the coast. Behind them the sun declined, the peaks on the island took on a reddish glow, and the sea grew darker.
    When Tennison came on deck to relieve him Sean said, “Nothing in sight, but keep an eye open for Indians, some of them may be running in for the coast now.”
    “Cap’n?” he said suddenly. “I’ve put by a few dollars. If the Señora—”
    “Thanks, Ten. We’ll make out. We need a big chunk, several thousand dollars, and that kind of money is scarce on this coast.”
    “Don’t you be takin’ that Machado lightly,” Ten said. “He’s killed a half-dozen men in duels, and some of them for little or nothing.”
    “Hold her steady, Ten. If the wind holds we should be up to the kelp by midnight or a little after. I’ll be up to take her in.”
    The coast lay dark along the horizon now, the Santa Monicas a serrated blackness against the sky and the stars. It was warm and still in the cabin, the brass lamp turned low, swinging gently with the movement of the schooner.
    “Tomorrow,” he said softly, “tomorrow we’ll be home, and I hope all’s well.”

 
     
    Chapter 4
----
     
    I T WAS COMPLETELY dark when Sean returned to the deck. He closed the door behind him so that no light would show, and the schooner’s lights had been extinguished. They were moving slower now under a jib and fo’c’s’le.
    There was a light breeze, and the clouds were broken, allowing a glimpse of stars from time to time. Before them the shore was a black, ominous wall.
    “We’re coming up to the kelp,” Tennison said. “The point is yonder.”
    A light appeared suddenly atop a ridge back of the point. “There it is,” Tennison muttered. “Your man never misses.”
    “I hope he never does,” Sean replied, “but tonight we could take her in, anyway.”
    The light atop the ridge, as both Tennison and Sean knew, was actually in a niche in the rocks that could not be seen except from the sea, and at that only from certain angles.
    Taking the wheel Sean guided the
Lady Luck
along the edge of the kelp. The cove was about two miles northeast of the point. There was a reef to be avoided just south of the point, and a breaking rock closer in. Where he wanted to anchor