Page 107 of Storm over the Caribbean
I know, I told him.It’s not your fault.
He gave a brief, jerky nod as he brushed against me in passing—and suddenly, I felt something heavy settle into my hand. I jerked—then quickly slipped the thing into my sleeve, my heart hammering in my chest.
“Well, well, now…” Jackal stepped forward, twirling his blades, a smirk playing over his narrow face. “This is gonna be fun. What do you think, boys? When I cut some slabs of pork off the piggy, is he gonna squeal?”
Raucous laughter rose from the crowd. I made a mental note of the people who were laughing the loudest and tightened my fist around the object Mr Ambrose had slipped into my hand.
“Ifyou can cut me,” I hissed. “If.”
“My, my…” The pirate cackled. “The piggy has fire in his belly, does he?”
With legs that, I told myself, were definitelynottrembling, I stepped into the ring. “Why don’t you find out?”
The pirate smirked. “Aye.”
Then he dashed forward and, without hesitation, stabbed towards my unprotected belly.
***
A massive hand grabbed the wooden railing and pulled hard. A moment later, it was followed by a beard, and then by the man attached to it.
“Captain!”
In response to the barked command, the captain of the ship came quickly rushing over to the railing.
“Yes, Mr Karim! I’m here, Mr Karim!”
“We received your signal and came as soon as possible. What is the matter, Captain?”
“We sighted some pirate ships in the distance, Mr Karim.”
“Pirates!” The bodyguard spat out the word like it was a curse. “How many?”
“Quite a few, Sir, though they’re rather spread out. Mr Ambrose seems to have been correct. The whole region is infested by them.”
“What about the reinforcements?”
The captain swallowed. “They should be here in a few days.”
Karim’s beard bristled. “How many days?”
“Um…eight? Nine?”
“So, over a week.”
“Y-yes, Mr Karim, Sir.”
“Notify me the moment they arrive!”
“Yes, Mr Karim, Sir! I’ll do it right away, Mr Karim, Sir!”
With a growl, Karim whirled away from the man and stalked towards the railing, where he came to a halt and let his eyes sweep over the ocean.
“Pirates…” he muttered through clenched teeth. “Thrice-cursed pirates!”
***
Jackal moved so fast I hardly had time to blink. In a split second, he was in front of me, and his hand lashed out towards my belly, his knife glinting in the bright midday sun.
