The Duchess out of Time

IX

Pablo kept a close eye on Liz and made sure that she did remain in bed resting over the next couple of days. Each morning and evening he would bring her a cup of warm herbal tea that helped soothed any aches from her head or ribs. The knocks against the boat and from the canon fire had only angered her healing wound.

The Captain had made it very clear that he didn't like Liz very much. When she would take her afternoon stroll for fresh air on the main deck his eyes would watch her with suspicion and irritation. Liz guessed it was because he couldn't remove his mask with her on board the Golden Empress. Edward had explained to Liz how both he and the Captain had honourable lives on land and didn't wish to taint them with their desperation for an escape on the seas. He didn't trust Liz with his identity even though Edward vouched for her, the Captain wouldn't remove his mask. Edward was a Lord on land and had slowly built his fortune through a series of smart investments. Men had originally thought he was lucky but they slowly followed in his financial ventures. Having foresight of how history would unfold did make it easy to get rich quickly.

Majority of the men worked for their Captain on land when they didn't sail the seas. Liz hadn't noticed the diversity on the Golden Empress originally. Upon closer examination she saw men of all different race and colour manning the ship. Something she knew would have been considered unheard of during this time period. She had wondered what type of life they all had on shore, like Pablo, a man whose skin was dark like chocolate and had been previously branded a slave. Surely the world was kinder to him when he sailed the seas under a black flag then on land where he was considered to be a savage. Dirt underneath men's boots.

Or perhaps the Captain was one of those sailors who believed women were considered bad luck on a vessel. Women were considered to be a temptation to sailors and their distraction to the crew, would anger the seas, resulting in treacherous conditions as revenge. Pierre, the biggest man on the ship with tattoos covering every inch of his chest, was one of those very men. He was one of those men that you sent fear into your heart just by looking at him yet somehow he was terrified of Liz. Whenever he saw her on the ship he would do a series of crosses across his chest and face as though to ward off an evil spirit. He would mutter in French multiple prayers and curses but stopped when Liz had merely replied to him in his native tongue. Edward burst out laughing at Pierre's face when he realised that Liz could understand every word he had spoken about her.

Every man aboard the ship believed in his own superstition and they were respectful to each other's beliefs. No one dared to anger the Gods of the Seas in case they were wrong. The Captain wasn't a superstitious man but he did his best to keep the men of his crew happy. Bananas were banned at Cookie's request; he didn't dare touch the fruit even on land. The fruit are favored hiding grounds for spiders, some of which have nasty (and occasionally deadly) bites; he wasn't going to have any surprises in his kitchen. The men always stepped onto the ship with their right food first as your left foot brought bad luck for the journey ahead. Non-dared whistle in fear that they would stir up the wind and cause a deadly storm. There were many other superstitions the men believed in and sometimes it was hard to keep track of them all.

Finishing her herbal tea, Liz had decided she would not stay another day in bed. She was aching to stretch her legs and get on with things. Throwing the sheet from her body she was careful to pull off her brother's enlarged nightshirt. Reaching for her breeches and a dark purple shirt she tucked in into the waistband before she poured some fresh water into a bowl. It was cool and refreshing on her face as she freshened herself up for the morning ahead. Reaching for the stay she frowned looking at the laces at the back. Huffing she put it on the wrong way round and began to fasten the strings at the front. It wasn't as comfortable but it would have to do, she couldn't reach it otherwise. Opening her cabin door she almost stumbled back into her room as she looked up at an annoyed Captain who was in her way.