Saved By The Pirate (Book One)

1. The Thing About Pirates

Getting captured by pirates was not my idea of the start of my adventure in life. I often dreamt of going where the characters in my novels went, but I never thought of getting captured by disgusting and malicious pirates were going to be the start of it all.

And I never thought I would be tied up in a dirty room either, but there I was, just that.

The ropes that acted as my restraints began to hurt and annoy me as I sat there for my third day on that ship. Yup, three long and tedious days of sitting in a room that should only have animals in it.

How wonderful.

If you thought I wasn't scared during my time in that little room, think again. I was terrified. Though I tried not to seem that way, deep down, I was frightened to my core.

Getting kidnapped and not knowing what was going to happen will do that to you, to anybody.

I'm sure of it.

Anyway, the restraints left burns around my wrists, and it's not like I could ask to have them loosened, so I sat there, thinking of a way out of that mess.

I was thinking frantically, my thoughts scattered. What was going to happen to me? Was I going to be used, sold?

The curses that came from the crew on board distracted me as I thought of ways to escape. They were cursing about their captain, a favorite topic among them, I learned early on.

"Cap'n doesn't pay enough," a crew member complained. His fellow companions grunted in agreement and complained about other things about their captain that I don't care to mention.

I wasn't a pirate expert or anything, but I did know that cursing out your captain to your friends did not seem wise. I was surprised that they still could curse with the things they were saying about their retched captain.

After some time of hearing that, I listened to the sound of heavy footsteps approach my door. Oh, great.

The door opened, and you know who came in? It was the man that fed me. It was clear on his face that he hated his job. Hell, I wouldn't want to feed me either.

He was a broad-shouldered man with the nickname Salty, and yeah, the name fit as from what I've learned, he was the most hot-tempered man on that ship. Funny how he was the one to be the one to feed me.

"Supper time," he said with the usual hoarseness in his voice.

I glanced down at the food he had served me at that time and almost threw up right there. Meal Time had never been my favorite time. The food they served me was the scraps and leftovers of the food they had to eat, and that night, I had stew, yet again.

Salty placed the bowl of stew in front of me and commanded me to eat, a typical pirate move. I rolled my eyes because of it.

"Oh, don't roll your eyes at me!" He growled.

I knew I was playing with fire, but you know, if I was going down, I was going down with at least some confidence in me. I didn't want to appear weak in front of the band full of stupid pirates.

"Yes, sir," I mocked. How pathetic that all was.

Salty provided me with a toothy smile. "Aye, that's what me like ta hear," he said and left the room, leaving me to my so-called edible supper.

I glanced down at the dish and picked it up, sniffing it. It smelled edible, but could I eat it? I took a tiny taste of it using my finger. It was hot, at least. I was thankful for that.

I held the bowl up to my lips, taking tiny sips at a time. "Could use some seasoning," I mumbled to no one but myself. I got used to being by myself in the days I was on that ship. I didn't think I could be so alone.

Or lonely.

I finished the stew and used the back of my hand to wipe my mouth. Oh, boy, if my father ever saw me then. God only knew what kind of fit that man would have had seeing me use my hand for a napkin.

But he wasn't there, so what he didn't know couldn't hurt him.

I put the bowl down and leaned my head against the wall behind me. Since I had nothing to do in my time in that room, I often listened to the waves, crashing against the ship. Other than the curses that came from the crew, it was the only thing that kept me from screaming and crying bloody murder.

Where would that get me? Only in more trouble than I wanted to be. I had to keep my appearance of being brave or else who knew what might have happened to me if I acted cowardly. Those men might have messed with me if I even let a tear roll down my cheek.

The waves and rocking of the ship were soothing in a way I would have never expected. The talk of the crew died down, so I was left only to fall asleep.

But I found it hard to do just that not only because of what was going through my mind but the lack of activity I was doing. Sitting and doing nothing was getting to me, but that feeling didn't last for long.

Heavy footsteps approached my door, and they were unlike any of the other crew member's footsteps. They had a certain sound to them that made me know who was coming to my door. It was that captain.

"Did ye give our darling lass supper?" The captain asked outside my door.

I heard a sigh. It was probably Salty. "Yes, Cap'n," was the reply, followed by a stream of mumbled curses. Good for him knowing what the word foul meant.

Grunting with approval, the captain opened the door and came in. I hadn't learned his name, there had been no talk on what man's name might be, so I only acknowledged him as the captain and nothing more.

If you had seen the man that stood before me, you would probably notice the heavy amount of hair on him. Dark long hair grew on his face in a scruffy and nest looking beard. And his hair looked greasy and was tied in a rat's tail braid.

I don't think the man even washed, let alone knew what personal hygiene was. Disgusting.

He looked down at me, amused. "Ah, ye finished yer supper," he said.

I looked up at him, giving him a bored look. "I have."

He didn't seem to be appreciating my tone, but he wasn't the only one. My father wouldn't either. He said I have a mouth like a man and should learn to keep it shut if I was ever going to be a lady, but I couldn't help it with those men, it was in my divine nature to say what I said.

"How dare ye speak to me that way!" He shouted. My, how dramatic.

I gave him a smug look. "What did I ever do? I was answering your bloody question," I snapped.

I swear, he looked like he was going to go into flames. "How dare you!"

"Yes, how very daring of me to do such a thing."

His eyes pierced through mine. "I command ye te stop talking this instant!"

I closed my mouth, scared of what might come next if I said anything else. After a moment to see if I would say anything else, the captain spoke.

"Good, now ye listen to me, lass," he said, smirking behind his nest of a beard. "We will be there soon."

I cocked my head to the side. "Where are we going? I hope to a beautiful tropical island." The captain laughed at that, instead of scolding me for talking. It couldn't have been good.

"Good one, lass, but that's for me ta know, and you te finds out, ye see."

"Well, could you perhaps tell me so I would know?" I said bravely.

The man's face turned red. "Ye lucky, lass that I won't strangle the life out of ye," he growled. "Else, ye be dumped over sea already."

I shrugged my shoulders. That was fair.

"Well, captain, what do you intend to do with me?"

A wicked smile widened his lips viciously, an evil look in his cold eyes.

"I'm gonna sell ye, of course."