Battles and Secrets (Queen of Piracy Duology #2)

Chapter 18: I'm not the only weird one

Although Joaquim and Giacomo helped me immensely, the battles wouldn't stop. The SHA only got stronger with time... God, they were the worst! How could they be so stubborn? At least nobody had died after the alliance. Luckily, Nuria and Joaquim never mentioned the secrets again, so one less problem to worry about. However, sailing hadn't been enjoyable... The evening had arrived and the sky was orange. Six SHA ships decided it was a good moment to attack us. There were two galleons and four men-of-war... I was having so much fun! Who am I kidding? I breathed heavily while running on the main deck. My crew fought fiercely with their cutlasses, blunderbusses, and cannons against the bastards. As always, the kids were safe on the lowest deck with a female crewmember. My vessel rolled when more cannonballs struck us. I ground my teeth as men invaded our main deck while yelling like maniacs. They seemed drunker than my crew... What? Navy sailors drank more than pirates! My dad was proof.

"I can't believe it's been four months since that crazy day with Faria, Dirk, and everyone else," I smiled mischievously and turned to my cousin. "Despite the endless battles, at least we have your anniversary to celebrate. Are you enjoying the day?"

"Absolutely!" Maartje laughed sarcastically. "This is a dream come true!"

"Congratulations to us!" Laurens gently kissed my cousin's cheek. "Time indeed goes by quickly."

My cousin raised her brows, "We can't celebrate it on a sunken ship, so let's fight these idiots."

"Besides, it's time for you to do what you love, which is changing the fore-topsail!" I grinned. "Isn't that fun, Maartje?"

She huffed, "I couldn't be more excited!"

I turned to my quartermaster, "By the way, how's Miguel doing? I haven't been to the gun deck recently."

Laurens chuckled, "He's fine, just like on the five other times you asked."

"That's not true!" I glanced away. "It was only four..."

He raised his brows, "You know what I mean."

"Come on!" I crossed my arms. "Can't a captain worry about her crewmembers?"

I hope the kids are alright as well...

Laurens rolled his eyes as if I was a stubborn child. Francis barked, seemingly agreeing... Awesome! Even my dog was against me! I sighed, trying to give more attention to the conflict. At that instant, an RNN man came running... It was time for some action! I grabbed my broadsword and my dog growled. Our blades clashed as I took several deep breaths. The man dodged two of my blows, but my blade sliced his left shoulder on the third attempt, making him flinch. He attacked me again twice. I blocked him and made a massive cut on his neck. The guy quickly crashed against the floor while bleeding.

I wiped the blood off my sword, "This is what you get for murdering my uncle and bothering my family!"

I sighed in relief as two men-of-war sank. Their wood was quickly consumed by the flames... I loved my gunners! How could they be so awesome? Anyway, I smiled as two more enemy ships were hit by several cannonballs. However, I couldn't take credit for that since Giacomo and Joaquim were the ones who sent them to hell... We can't win everything, right? I winced as Ocean Storm rolled again. Hugging the foremast, I hoped I wouldn't fall.

I walked to the quarterdeck, "Ashton, steer starboard!"

My navigator nodded, "Aye, Captain!"

I breathed faster as a man-of-war slowly fell towards my main deck. When I thought we'd be smashed, Ashton took us to safety... That was close! At that instant, a Royal Navy man attacked me with his sword, but I blocked all his blows and kicked him between the legs. The man grimaced and yet kept attempting to hurt me. I dodged every time and sliced a massive cut on his waist, spilling blood. My hands were flooded with sweat as I blocked two blows and plunged my blade into his stomach, making him collide against the ground.