Sarah Zettel - Miss Underwood and the Mermaid

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2024-11-23 0 0 28.53KB 12 页 5.9玖币

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Miss Underwood and the Mermaid

Sarah Zettel

As told by Captain Latimer of Her Majesty's privateer Nancy's Pride for the general

edification of all Their Majesties' subjects by land or sea.

First, let me say, she was not the kind of woman one normally saw in the Debauched Sloth. No

mother who produced that straight spine and those squared shoulders should have permitted her

daughter to know that dim, smoky, dockside tavern where unmarried men with open shirts and braided

hair mingled freely with women of the Queen's navy, and the Queen's privateers.

For all that, the young lady in exquisite, but wholly modest, green silk walked a straight and

determined line. She seemed wholly undeterred by the silence that fell like leaden weight around her.

Without pause she approached the table where I sat with, it must be confessed, Jimmy Harte, an

amiable, ample and generous lad employed by the Sloth's mistress-and occasionally by her customers.

The stranger looked right at Jimmy and I swear before Goddess, her eyes flashed with a cold blue light.

Jimmy stumbled to his feet, splashing beer and mumbling excuses, and retreated.

Neither event warmed me to this person.

She turned those eyes to me, and I saw they were huge, ice blue and judgmental in her

fair-skinned, rich woman's face. After the barest instant, I found I had to drop my own gaze to my beer.

This also did not encourage my favor toward her.

The young lady cleared her throat. "You are, I believe, Captain Latimer, of the Queen's

privateer, Nancy's Pride?"

I raised my gaze and straightened my own shoulders. "I am, and you, Miss, are interrupting my

personal business."

I saw it then, the light shining beneath the blue. Without a doubt there was power here. A

witch, then? With those manners and that Dress? Whoever heard of a prudish witch?

"Then I must apologize for my actions, which without my knowledge or intent have been rude

and an affront; but I must say, I believe that when you hear me out, you will both forgive and understand

the reasons for those actions, as I am on an errand of both delicacy and urgency."

"And you, Miss, were obviously traumatized by a grammar book in your youth."

The quip failed to put her out. Uninvited, she sat, and her spine did not bend an inch with the

act. As there was no immediate prospect of a brawl, or a shooting, the noise around us gradually

returned to its normal levels.

The young lady raised her voice. "I wish to hire your ship, your crew and yourself."

I looked again at her clothing in all its silken splendor, and the diamond and sapphire necklace

around her throat. "My ship has a letter of marque and reprisal," I said, a touch reluctantly. "My

commission is to capture, burn, sink, or destroy all of Their Majesties' enemies by sea. I can take no

other work until the war is over."

That took her back for all of one heartbeat. "What would you say of a personage who accosts

one of Their Majesties' ships? Abducts one of Their Majesties' officers? Would you say this personage

could indeed be considered an enemy to the peace and security of Their Majesties' kingdom, territories,

and possessions?"

I did not like the turn this was taking. "I would be hard pressed not to."

I would not have believed it possible, but she actually sat up straighter. "Then, Captain Latimer,

it is my duty to tell you of the work of one of Their Majesties' greatest enemies by sea, a cunning, ruthless

and destructive enemy, one who terrorizes at will, and who is also magnificently rich."

All at once, you could have heard a pin drop in the tavern. All my sailors looked at me, as

wolves might look upon hearing the words "wounded deer nearby." My own monetary hunger rolled

hard through my privateer's blood. Glowing eyes and prudish Miss or no, this woman had word of a

prize.

I wiped at my mouth before I could start drooling, something this woman would surely consider

uncouth, and tried to reassert my powers of reason. "What enemy would this be, Miss . . . ?"

"Cecilia Underwood," she answered primly. "As to the enemy, you have perhaps heard of the

King's ship Magnificent?"

I choked on my own breath. The Magnificent had set out early in the year five to cruise the

northern waters and protect Their Majesties' shipping. As a King's ship, the frigate was crewed by men

and captained by one Jack Tremor, a young fellow but a prime seaman by all accounts.

Six months later, the Magnificent returned to the Kingdom, a broken hulk. The ship foundered

off Whitefish Point, and only one sad wretch was pulled from the water. No matter what the doctors and

wizards attempted, all he could say was, "Go and tell her he will marry the mermaid. Go and tell her he

will marry the mermaid."

"Captain Jack Tremor is my fiancé," said Miss Underwood. "Your enemy is the mermaid."

Very slowly, I set my tankard down. "Your enemy is the mermaid, perhaps, Miss Underwood,

as it was your fiance who was stolen. My enemies are all mortals, and dry-skinned ones at that."

Miss Underwood did not bat an eye. "She is rich."

Damn the woman! My blood sang as I thought on all the treasure that went to the bottom of the

sea: ingots, plate, fine jewels, not to mention the wealth in pearls that grew down there of their own

accord. All for the taking. The Queen's ships were bound to assist the King's, as the King's were the

Queen's. The Magnificent had been foully attacked, an officer dragged away, to all that wealth, chests

of it, casks overflowing with it. . . .

I wiped my chin. Reason made a last, desperate bid for victory. "How could we find the

mermaid, Miss Underwood? She is said to be a secretive creature."

Again, the light shone behind her eyes. "I will find her, and her treasure, for you."

Reason collapsed, beaten. I lifted my gaze to my sailors, standing still as statues around the

tavern. "What say you, good women?"

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Sarah Zettel - Miss Underwood and the Mermaid

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