I’d been mulling over the idea of one more crew member. I’d downsized the crew by more than half since we’d changed our ways. The idea of bringing a woman on board wasn’t very common. However, it was sewing, mending, and cooking that we needed the most help with.
Reaching out my hand, I smiled as warmly as I could. “Come here, lass. Let’s have a look at you.”
Her delicate hand was trembling, but she took mine and walked up the plank to stand before me on the deck. I realized that my size seemed to frighten her a bit. There was no way to know what sort of tales she’d heard of sailors and our ways.
“I won’t hurt you, little one,” I said softly.
The way her eyes glanced up at me nervously, then jumped away was almost amusing, but I couldn’t stand that I was terrifying her.
“What’s your name, lass?” I said as gently as my gruff voice allowed.
“Flora,” she said softly. Her voice was nearly carried away by the breeze. The poor thing seemed to be in a state of shock, and rightly so. In this backward town, she’d likely met very few strangers.
“She’s quite the pretty little thing, and seems healthy,” I announced.
Her father’s eyes burned with hatred as he glared at her. “She’s a disgrace to her family, and doesn’t belong with decent folk.”
I turned to raise an eyebrow sternly, until he realized his dangerous error. “I’m sorry, sir. Village folk. Er, you know what I mean.”
The rest of my crew were howling with laughter, crowding closer to ogle the woman who might be joining our travels. Their amusement was shared by local dock men who were cautiously drawing closer to witness the entertainment.
“Boys, she’s a beauty, ain’t she?” I roared to the crew.
“Aye, Captain!” my five men hollered back.
“How many gold pieces would a lovely lassie like this be worth to ye?” I demanded. If I was going to shame this bastard of a man, I wanted to make a public spectacle of it that would follow him forever.
A darkly tanned man with gold teeth leered. “Her sweet blue eyes look so innocent. We’d have to teach her everything around here, Cap’n. Perhaps three gold pieces.”
“Thank ye, Teeth. O’Doule, what say you?”
“That lovely white skin will sear in the sun, Captain. We’d have to keep her below decks most of the time. Three gold pieces.”
“Dirty Davy?”
A tall, lanky man in a dusty gray headscarf stepped forward. “She’s a tiny one, Cap’n, but I think I see a spark of gumption in ‘er eyes. Five gold pieces. That be fair.”
“Aye,” called out a stocky man at the back. “Five be generous.”
“Thank ye, McGee.”
The poor lass looked like she wanted the sea to swallow her, and make her disappear. Having this talk in front of her was not very gentlemanly, I’d admit.
I looked behind me, searching out the last crewman. “Little Larry,” I asked more gently, “What do you think of this delicate gal?”
A giant of a man, nearly seven feet tall with the well-worn face of a thug walked slowly forward. I was impressed that the girl didn’t flinch. His gentle eyes examined her quite seriously. “May I see your hands, Miss?” he asked politely. She seemed a bit unnerved by his deep tone, but she lifted her hands to him.
Larry turned them so her palms were up, so careful it was if he were afraid of hurting her. Bending forward, he examined her fingertips. “She can sew, Cap’n. Likely quite well, as she’s put in many hours. She could help me make our new sails, and clothing.”
He let her hands fall. Then he wrapped his fingers around her waist, determining how much of her silhouette was from the puffed layers of her dress, and how tiny her slender body was within. His huge hands completely encircled her. “She’s a bit thin, Cap’n. She won’t require much food at all, but we should likely try to fatten her up just a hair. We’ll need her to become a bit more sturdy to survive the winter.”
I was listening intently to every word. My first mate’s opinion was the most important.
Larry tipped her face up with his finger to look deeply into her eyes. He lowered his voice even more so that only she and I could hear him. “She’s not afraid of us, specifically. She’s afraid of the whole world. Someone has told her she’s worthless, and she doesn’t realize how lovely she is.”
I nodded, contemplating. “And your price, mate?”
“Seven gold pieces, Cap’n,” Larry announced. Flora gasped in shock, then quickly stared down at her feet. Larry stepped back to join the crew at a respectful distance. A crowd had been steadily gathering on the pier, and the villagers gasped as well.