Blackhearts (Blackhearts, #1)(65)

on any naval vessel. But if the crew of a pirate ship doesn’t like their captain, they won’t hesitate to select a new one.”

“I felt pity for those men I saw yesterday, for the waste and

ruin of their lives. It almost sounds as if you respect them.”

He leaned back, crossing his long legs in front of him. “I

don’t respect them, but neither can I judge them too harshly.





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If I were put in the same situation, I’m not so sure I would act differently.”

“You would not become a pirate,” Anne said, shaking her

head. “They act without authority. They’re scoundrels and

crooks—”

“And is your brother so very different?” Teach asked. “I’ve

seen some rather questionable characters who claim to be educated and well-bred act far more maliciously than any pirate.

Nobles claim that the poor and uneducated cannot govern

themselves, yet I’ve witnessed destitute men do just that, obeying their own laws like a priest obeys the word of God.”

Any further argument Anne might have made was forgotten.

A high-pitched scream sounded from the courtyard outside, and

Anne rushed to the window, noticing a dust cloud churning near

the barn.

It took her a moment to realize that it wasn’t due to the

wind. Two figures wrestled on the ground, while Mary and

Margery stood nearby, both of them shrieking at the men to

stop.

Teach was already out of the library when Anne picked up

her skirts and rushed after him. He strode through the house

and out the back door, toward the commotion, his expression

grim. Anne recognized only one of the participants, Tom, the

young groom, his shirt torn and his breeches covered in dirt.

The other individual was a stranger, but he was strongly

built. Teach grabbed his arm in an effort to pull him off





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the prone figure of the groom, but his efforts were rewarded with a fist to the gut. Teach doubled over, and Anne rushed to his side.

Mary sobbed, clutching her apron. “Stop it! Stop it, I tell

you!” she cried.

It didn’t take a stretch of the imagination for Anne to realize that the other person must have been John, Mary’s beau. If

someone didn’t act fast, who knew if the fools would stop.

Anne raced to the barn and grabbed a pail full of water.

Charging out into the fray once more, she flung the contents

onto the combatants. The force of her swing sent her flying,

and she landed on her backside, next to Teach.

Everyone else froze, as if they, too, had been doused. Too

shocked to move, Anne simply sat there. Teach heaved her to

her feet and wrested the bucket from her hands. He turned on

the two men—boys, Anne quickly told herself, for they couldn’t

have been more than three years her senior—and dragged them

apart. Water was dripping down their shirtfronts.

“What happened, John?” Teach demanded, looking between

the two.

John pointed a thick finger at the groom. “I caught him taking liberties with my Mary,” he snarled, a pained look on his face.

Anne’s heart ached for him.

Teach turned in the direction of the plump maid. “Is this true?”

Mary twisted her mouth, clearly trying to think of a way

out of her present situation.





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It was enough of an answer for John. He lunged for the groom once more, but this time Teach was ready. He grabbed John around the shoulders from behind, leaning back to prevent

the two of them from toppling over. “You are both dismissed,”

he said to Tom and Mary through clenched teeth, struggling to

hold John back.

Margery, seeing the need to intervene, pushed Mary toward

the back door. “You heard him. Mr. Edward says it’s time for

you to go.”

Tom stood there for a moment. “But his father hired me—”

Teach’s face was bright red from exertion. “Go now!” he

bellowed.

It took Tom less than two minutes to gather his belongings

and leave the property. Mary quickly followed suit, in a rush

to catch up to him. She left without so much as a good-bye in

John’s direction.

Teach released John slowly, his back tensed in case he needed

to intervene again. He needn’t have worried. John’s shoulders

slumped forward, his face crumpling with grief.

Although Anne had never lost a beau, she felt an overwhelming amount of sympathy for the young man. She could

not imagine how he must feel, watching his love walk away

with another.

On the other hand, she was relieved that Mary was gone.

The girl had always been trouble.

Anne turned, wanting to give John some semblance of pri-





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vacy. Her eyes met Teach’s, and she saw the same emotions she felt mirrored in his.

“I’ll go see about some food,” she said to no one in partic—