Queen Of My Nightmare (Uncharted Secrets, Book 2): Endless Horizon Pirate Stories Read Online Free PDF Page B

time we talked these days was when I reported our pace. Though he was always friendly and funny, we hadn’t been alone since we left port. I understood this arrangement, and I was pleased that his plan had so far kept me safe and amused, but I couldn’t wait until the day that I could once again be his woman.
    Still, not wanting to be face to face with any of the men for too long, I fumbled with the dial on the backstaff as they carried on. As soon as there was a break in their conversation, I said, “Everything is going well, Captain. I’m going to take my notes to Seth and see that we stay on course.”
    “Hurry back. At this speed we might hit Panama afore nightfall.” He winked. Obviously joking. We were still many days away.
    Heading to the chartroom I saw Feather chewing on a rat. Petting his little head, I laughed. “Good job, gut guzzler.”
    It was killing me not being able to talk to my beloved cat as often as I wanted to, for it would have been all too obvious for Midnight and Mason’s whore to both favor the Feather Tailed Cat. But Feather saw Hannah right through Midnight’s disguise.
    Entering the hot little chartroom, I found Seth sitting at the desk with his face in his hands and his charts all scattered about.
    “Is something the matter, sir?”
    “What’s not the matter?” he wailed. The dazed look on his face showed me that he was drunk.
    He belched, and then flopped his head on the table. “So, where are we in the world, Midnight?”
    When I shared with him the information I had gathered, he melodramatically beat his head against the table. “Perfect! One day closer to death. That’s all.”
    As Mason had said, Seth was a whiner, but spending as much time with him as I had, I also learned that he was more than just a coward. He was a resentful cynic. He thought all the worst of the world around him and he hated his father as much as he hated Mason. Some days he hated one more than the other, and as I took a seat beside him, it was instantly apparent that today he hated Mason.
    “What did that murderous buffoon have to say about your progress?” He never lifted his face off the desk.
    “Uh, well, he is happy with our pace. That’s all.” While wiping the sweat from my brow, I wished I could remove the black cloth I hid my hair behind. It was so damned hot in this room.
    Apparently Seth felt the same. Ripping his shirt off, he blubbered, “It’s hot! It’s always so blasted hot in the Caribbean. I never wanted to be here.”
    “Where are you from, Seth?” I asked while fanning my face.
    “England,” he cried out.
    “How did you end up here?”
    “Stupid Bentley forced me aboard.” Finally sitting up, he started flailing his long skinny arms about. “He’s always talking about freedom this, and freedom that. Well, where’s my freedom, Midnight?” He grabbed my collar and stared at me with desperation blazing in his beady eyes.
    My first reaction was one of fright, but regaining my composure, I easily moved his hand off of me. “Keep your hands to yourself, mate.”
    Letting go, he looked at me as if I smelled bad, and then wiped the sweat off of his forehead. “Ah, you’re just as bad as the rest of them.”
    Incredibly insulted by that statement, I stood up. Once again channeling my father’s business tactics, I asserted, “Perhaps we can finish our business once you regain your sobriety.”
    “I’m never going to.” He let his face hit the desk again. “And the job never ends, Midnight. They need to know where we are every fifteen minutes. Oh! Look!” He flicked the hour glass over. “It’s almost time. It’s always time.”
    Understanding the importance of our time limit, I sat back down and informed him, “You know, I enjoy this line of work, and I truly appreciate the things you have been teaching me. I will be more than happy to do all the things you do not want to do.”
    After a loud belch that he didn’t even attempt to shield, Seth slurred, “Thank