Pirate's Revenge

By Marie Kelly

Captured by pirates, innocent Lady Elizabeth Palmer is given a choice: Sleep with the captain or die along with all of the other hostages. But Alex Hunter is no ordinary pirate, and she soon comes to know that their past and possibly futures are entwined. When Alex first sets eyes on the stunning Lady Palmer he is again faced with the treachery of her father ten years earlier, but now, thanks to a twist of fate, he has the opportunity to right some wrongs and to get back what was once his.
However, he quickly realises that Elizabeth is nothing like her father, and that he is in deeper than he ever thought possible. Meanwhile Elizabeth cannot help but fall for the mysterious captain, but there is much more to this man than he is telling. When events take a turn can they both survive the dangers and treachery which await each?
Excerpt
“Fortunately you have the means to save yourselves”, he drawled, his eyes fixed on Maria and Elizabeth. I have a tradition that if there are women on board and one of them pleases me, I let all of the prisoners go free. Both women looked at each other, neither understanding what he meant, as her father behind her gave a small gasp of hope.
“Take Maria, take the girl”, he cried, as Elizabeth frowned, still not understanding but uncomfortable with the way her handmaiden was being so callously thrown to the captain.
However, the man shook his head. Moving over to Maria he extended his hand to her. As she took it he helped her to rise once more to her feet. “Tell your friends what I promised to you a moment ago little one”, he murmured more gently, as Maria nervously looked at him then at the others.
“That no man would touch me while on your ship”, she finally answered, her small voice almost inaudible.
With that he directed her to go back and stand beside Gerald. “Now, I have given my word to the child”, he said softly, “And I would not like to go back on that. So that leaves only one, and it must be with her consent”, his voice full of determination, as his gaze once more slid over the woman stood silent and proud before him, before he smiled, a smile completely devoid of warmth or humour. “So please take a moment to discuss it with your daughter Lord Palmer, and I’m sure the irony will not be lost on you.” With that he once more moved to sit behind the desk, once more hidden in the shadows.
For a second the older man stood in shock, before he pulled his daughter over to him. “What is he talking about?”, she asked in confusion, seeing the hard look on her father’s face, impotent rage deep within his cold eyes, his words spat out.
“It would seem we have a choice, either you agree to bed him, or we all die.”
Elizabeth paled, her legs suddenly feeling so weak she thought they would surely buckle under her. “What?”, all she could manage, the shock evident on her beautiful face. “What do I do?”, she beseeched her father, seeing as he looked away, his eyes not able to meet hers.
“There is only one thing you can do”, he finally answered, a note of loathing in his voice. “You must lie with him.”
Shocked and stunned she stood silent for a few seconds, unable to speak, her mouth dry before she felt the small tears rise to her eyes. “But father...”
His voice, harsh and cruel silenced her, “There is no other way. The only other option is death... All of our deaths including those men on the deck – is that what you want?”, he hissed angrily.
Elizabeth reacted to that tone in the way she had her whole life. She closed down her emotions, her face becoming inscrutable, calm as she looked back at her father, replying, “No Sir”, before she moved to stand beside the desk. “I agree.”
The man’s voice from the shadows softly questioned, “Of your own free will and volition?”
Stood as proudly as she could, she nodded her head again, “Yes, of my own free will”, the words sticking in her throat at the falseness of them.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Marie Kelly
• Release date: Sep 13, 2014
• ISBN: 9781310236884

Marie Kelly

A hopeless romantic and weaver of words. While I live in Canada, Scotland will always be in my heart.

Book preview

Pirate’s Revenge

By Marie Kelly

Published by Marie Kelly at Smashwords

Copyright 2014 Marie Kelly

Smashwords Edition, License Notes

This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

Visit the author website:

www.romancemarie.com

Marie Kelly

Other titles

Blackmailed For The Billionaire’s Pleasure

Captured

Kidnapped The Wrong Sister

My Son

Blackmailed For Vengeance

Mia

The Unwilling Mistress

The Wedding Deal

The Billionaires Mistress

Blackmailing the Billionaire

Saving the Billionaire

Substitute Starlet

Her Two Tycoons

The Billionaire’s Blackmailed Heiress

Billionaire’s Second Chance

Secretary with Benefits for the Billionaire

Billionaire’s Revenge

Billionaire’s Society Mistress

The Billionaire’s Runaway Bride

Blackmailed Merger

Capturing Kate

Chapter One

Lady Elizabeth Palmer sat silently on the upturned box. Against her, the young handmaiden buried her head into her skirts, the young woman’s whole body shaking uncontrollably as the noise of the battle raged above them.

The acrid smell of gunpowder filled the small space, choking the four people who sat there. A thin nervous man and the young handmaiden coughed loudly, while the remaining two – both regal figures – held embroidered handkerchiefs before their noses and mouths, neither making a sound.

In the small space Lord Robert Palmer sat as composed as his daughter, not flinching as the booms of the cannon fire could be heard before the inevitable shot slammed into the wooden hull of the ship, shaking it with every strike. Beside him, Elizabeth Palmer gently stroked the head of the young girl, trying to sooth her before her hand stalled, becoming aware of the way her father glowered at her behaviour, stilling the comforting action.

While outwardly calm, inside she was terrified. The sound of the dying screams of the men above filled her ears, the blood-curdling cries their last sounds testament to the carnage that was going on overhead. As the volley stopped, new sounds reached their ears, the sound of grappling hooks as they hit the wooden decks along with the unmistakable sound of planks connecting the two ships.

Closing her eyes, Elizabeth knew the worst had happened – the crew had been unsuccessful in repelling the pirates and now they were being boarded. Hearing the loud metallic sounds of steel on steel she knew that the pirates had a great advantage in close hand-to-hand battle, knowing that all was lost. Looking over at her father, she saw his eyes mirroring the same thought, his cruel mouth set tightly, as she too remained still. With just the sound of the young maid’s terrified snivels, the small group sat, Elizabeth feeling both hopeless and fearful of what was to come.

Finally all grew silent before a loud cheer was heard, the nervous Gerald making a small whimpering sound of fear much to the annoyance of the man beside him who threw the wiry man a fierce glare, the smaller man’s mouth clamping shut. In silence the four waited, waiting for their inevitable discovery.

When the door was broken into, the pirates spilled in, stunned as they looked in surprise at the scene before them, their dirty faces breaking out into lecherous smiles as they took in the two women, one sat proud, her chin raised defiantly, the other cowering in abject fear.

Moving forward, they grabbed each of the occupants none-too-gently, dragging them unceremoniously from their temporary sanctuary. The cruel men laughed and jeered, making comments which caused Elizabeth and the young Maria to blush, the first holding her head up proudly as the younger girl cried in terror.

As they were pulled onto the deck of the ship, Elizabeth gasped at the damage and carnage before her, the shock for once showing on her lovely face. All around the bodies of men lay scattered, men she had known, men who had only hours previous treated her with such respect, now dead. In the middle of the carnage the remainder of the crew were on their knees, their hands above their heads as they were surrounded by the brutal pirates who stood over them laughing and throwing insults at the defeated survivors. With some relief she saw that the captain was one of those, somehow relieved that the kindly man was still alive, although for how long any of them would be alive she did not dare to even guess.

Her eyes flicked over the heavily armed men, all of whom where now looking in their direction. Aware of the looks on many of the pirates’ faces as they caught sight of the two women she shivered with fear. Mr Smithers… Look what we found, the pirate holding her father cried laughing, his eyes glinting with cruel humour, I think the captain is gonna be pleased. There was a loud cry of laughter from the others, Elizabeth grabbing her maid’s hand, seeing as the young girl seemed ready to collapse.

From the throng of men, one moved forward, his skin more olive than she was used to, his body rippling with muscles as he frowned down at the four before him, his expression thoughtful as his gaze travelled assessingly over each in turn. The man she presumed to be Mr Smithers finally spoke, his eyes resting on Elizabeth, as they travelled over her body as she held her head proudly, not allowing herself to waver under his scrutiny. Ay Mr Bain… She looks like the captain’s type.

Elizabeth swallowed hard not to let the fear gripping her be seen, determined not to show any weakness before the brutal men, as she kept her chin held high. Finally with a small nod he cried with a dismissive wave of his hand, Take them down below to the captain’s quarters.

With this the four were once more pushed roughly forward, forced to step carefully over makeshift planks thrown between the two ships. The women had found it most perilous, moving slowly so as not to trip over their long skirts, the young maid and thin man having to be threatened by the pirates as they shrank back from the terrifying walk over the shaky planks. Finally having reached the other ship, they were pushed unceremoniously towards a bulkhead where they then moved down wooden stairs, only stopping when they reached a large door.

One of the men then moved forward as the others stood nervously, the first man knocking loudly on the solid door. What is it? They could hear the irritated sound of a man’s voice, the guard nervously licking his lips.

Captain, prisoners Sir… We found passengers down below. After a second, the door was opened by a young man who peered out, looking surprised at the women before him, before opening the door wider. The boy was much younger than most of the crew, and more gentle she thought. His large intelligent eyes watched as they moved passed him into the room, not a person she would have expected to see amidst the brutish bloodthirsty crew.

Looking forward once more, she could see the room where they now all stood was large, more of a map room she thought, seeing the large desk at the end of the room covered in papers and navigational charts. They were directed to stand in a small group in the middle of the room, still some distance from the desk, Elizabeth becoming aware that a man sat in the shadows behind the desk, not able to fully make out his features.

Captain, the first guard spoke, his voice full of the obvious fear and respect he held for the man hidden in the shadows, We found these passengers on the ship… Thought you might want to see them.

She heard a sharp intake of surprise from the captain, before he spoke. You did well Mr Bain… Very well, the dirty bloodstained man smiling with pleasure.

Thank you Sir, he managed before the captain raised his hand, silencing him.

Elizabeth frowned, surprised at the man’s voice. She had expected his voice to be harsh, guttural like the rest of the coarse crew. Instead she found it polite in tone, as though he had been brought up in a good home, this causing her to strain her eyes to gain a better look at the man shrouded in shadow.

Send the young girl forward, the captain commanded, one of the guards nudging Maria forward. However this only caused the girl to cry out in terror and to grab at Elizabeth’s hand. With a sound of annoyance another guard grabbed her by the arm, tearing her from her mistress’s grip and pulling her closer to the desk where she stood shaking violently, her whole body cowering.

The sound of the cruel laugh from the hidden man reached Elizabeth’s ears, as she balled her fists in anger, her teeth gritting tightly to remain silent. Pretty little thing, the voice finally spoke, I’m sure she will give much pleasure.

As Maria threw herself to the ground wailing with terror Elizabeth moved forward, her colour heightened in anger, as her father reached out a hand, pulling her back, her mask of defiant coolness slipping. You coward, she cried, Leave her alone… She is just a child.

Her father hissed at her to be silent, his grip on her arm tightening painfully. There was another movement, the sound of a chair being pushed back reaching their ears over the crying girl, and the footsteps of the captain as he moved around the desk.

He was tall, well over six feet, with a slim muscular build. He wore leather breeches and an armless tunic which showed his well-sculpted arms. Weapon belts were slung around his slim waist and across his broad chest, the many knives and weaponry glinting evilly. His face was still partially covered by the hat he wore, angled slightly forward on his head. As he reached the young girl, he hunched down before her, moving his hand to gently hook his finger under her chin. Leaning in he spoke soft words to her, as she made small snuffled noises, the tears stopping. None of the rest of the group could hear the words, but the young girl was nodding, relief in her eyes, before he once more stood, this time leaning against his desk.

You, he pointed to Elizabeth. Come here. With all the pride she could muster, she moved forward, her eyes flicking to Maria, seeing as the girl had calmed down, and was wiping her tears away with the back of her hand. As she came to a stop only feet from the captain, he pulled his hat off, dropping it onto the surface of his desk.

Quickly looking back, she heard the shocked exclamation of her father, the fear evident in his voice, It can’t be… But you’re dead. Frowning, Elizabeth looked at the man she had known her whole life, this emotionless man who had brought her up to never show fear or any weakness. Now however, he was staring at the man before him with terror in his eyes, and for the first time she saw him shaking. Her eyes once more flew round to take in the man who was having such an effect on him, the breath catching in her throat.

He was stunning. Large black intelligent eyes with long lashes framing their darkness held hers, as he seemed to peer deep inside her, pinning her like a butterfly to a board. His mouth, now curved into a cruel smile, was full. His short hair, perfectly cut, unlike the rest of his crew, was thick, black and glossy, a small mustache shaped to a well groomed goatee giving him an exotic and sensual look. Elizabeth had never seen such a handsome man, and she stared back at him, both surprised at his appearance and at the way her father was behaving.

Softly, his voice washed over her, as he continued to hold her look, but directing his comments to her father. Well well. Lord Palmer, and I assume the illustrious Lady Elizabeth Palmer. Elizabeth’s eyes opened even wider in surprise, not understanding how he could possibly know their names, frowning slightly.

Behind her she heard the shock still in her father’s voice as it shook, But, it’s impossible… Are you some kind of ghost?, causing Elizabeth to turn back to once more look at her father, seeing the pallor of his complexion and the way the sweat hung onto his brow as he stared in complete disbelief. Her father had never been one for fantastical thinking and hearing him liken the man before her to a ghost filled her with foreboding and fear, her eyes once more darting to the man before her, seeing as his had never left her.

You know each other?, she managed weakly, seeing how the stranger stood calm and composed compared to the panic which filled her father.

The captain’s mouth quirked in a small smile, one full of harshness as he stood from the desk, towering over her. Elizabeth felt a small tremor of awareness as he moved around her, fighting the urge to turn with him as he examined her in detail, his voice almost caressing, You could say that Lady Palmer, he started, We used to be neighbours.

In total surprise, she finally looked back at him, her brow furrowed, Neighbours?

Aware of his men silently watching, he barked at them to stand outside. Silently, they shuffled out of the room, their faces showing confusion at the scene playing out with their captain. When they finally left, leaving the small group and the captain alone, he once more moved to stand before Elizabeth. This time he moved his gaze to look at Lord Palmer, his eyes cold and dangerous, the softness of his voice only adding to the barely-contained anger within it. You must remember your old neighbour Lizzy, his voice washing over her as she gasped at his use of her young nickname. My name is Lord Hunter, although you were very young when I left, the last word bit out harshly.

For a second she caught a fleeting memory of a young man handing her a puppy. Frowning in surprise she stammered, Queenie… You gave me Queenie.

For the first time she saw his expression holding some surprise of his own as his eyes once more flicked to her face, his tone growing more gentle, You remember that?

She nodded softly, not telling him that her whole life that had been one of the only acts of kindness shown to her, the face of the giver lost so long ago in her memory. A ghost of a smile played on his mouth as he too remembered. When you were ten I gave you the dog, the smile dying once more, Do you know why?

She shook her head, her eyes full of questions looking back at her father. No… I… I really don’t.

With a harsh snort he looked over at the shaken man behind her. Care to tell her LORD Palmer?, the captain gaining some satisfaction seeing the older man stood stunned, his eyes staring, full of fear and panic. The captain snarled, a cold cruel sound, No… I guess not, before he hooked his finger under Elizabeth’s chin, lifting her head higher so that he could explore all her features, making her nervous and strangely excited in equal measures as she remained still in his hold. You certainly changed from the gangly little girl I knew, he muttered softly, before almost pushing her head from him and turning back and standing against the desk once more. He looked smug as he laughed harshly. Just as I had given up believing in a God, he delivers you to me. I guess vengeance is mine after all, he spoke softly, the hatred evident in his voice.

Elizabeth turned to her father. Father, what?…, she began as the pirate’s whiplash voice cut across her.

Silence, causing her to turn around to stare at him once more, her mouth closing quickly, seeing the hardness in those dark eyes. Well enough of our little trip down memory lane, he carried on, before becoming almost businesslike. Now, we usually do one of two things to prisoners… We put them back on their boats and choose whether we then allow the ship to sail on… or sink it.

The four people stared at him in horror, Gerald throwing himself to the ground, snivelling and pleading, Don’t kill us, as the captain looked at him, his handsome face full of the contempt he felt.

Get up now, or I WILL sink your ship. Do not believe me to have forgotten your part in what happened, he growled angrily.

Gerald pulled himself quickly back to his feet, cowering under the scrutiny of the captain. It… It wasn’t my fault…, he whimpered pathetically as the captain raised a hand to silence him, his expression stony before continuing.

Fortunately you have the means to save yourselves, he drawled, his eyes fixed on Maria and Elizabeth. I have a tradition that if there are women on board and one of them pleases me, I let all of the prisoners go free. Both women looked at each other, neither understanding what he meant, as her father behind her gave a small gasp of hope.

Take Maria, take the girl, he cried, as Elizabeth frowned, still not understanding but uncomfortable with the way her handmaiden was being so callously thrown to the captain.

However, the man shook his head. Moving over to Maria he extended his hand to her. As she took it he helped her to rise once more to her feet. Tell your friends what I promised to you a moment ago little one, he murmured more gently, as Maria nervously looked at him then at the others.

That no man would touch me while on your ship, she finally answered, her small voice almost inaudible.

With that he directed her