Raven Quest (24 page)

“Just barely.” She laughed as he kissed her. Then she pulled back. “But, Nathan, are you sure you want to marry me?”

“Very sure.”

“I know you have worried about how I would be received in Maryland.”

“You do?”

She laughed again, unable to restrain her joy. “I know what I would have been thinking if our places had been reversed.”

“Then you know that I don't care a rap what anyone else thinks of my wife because I love her.”

“And do you care any longer what they'll think of you?”

“Sweetheart, I found the gold. I did what I said I would, but they'll never know because I'm not going back.”

“You aren't? Where will you—we—be going?”

Before he could answer, a call from the hall told them Dr. Heath was ready. Five minutes later, on the terrace with Ernest and one of the house servants as witnesses, Dr. Heath married them. He told Nathan he would obtain a license for them and would arrange for the proper date to be written on it. When she was asked to sign the church's register, Rory proudly signed, for the first and last time, “Aurora Raven Powell” beside Nathan's name.

The rector was called away as soon as the quick ceremony was completed. He told them to make themselves comfortable on the terrace while they waited for the boy to come back from his search for Olive.

Rory's happiness ebbed when she saw Ernest's sorrow. When he walked away to another section of the terrace, Nathan put his arm around her. He stroked her cheek. “My dear Rory Aurora Raven Mullins Powell Lawler, you have more names than any person I know.”

“I think I will be simply Rory Lawler, Nathan. I like that name. When our child is born, I want him or her to have a very common name. Mary or James or something like that.”

“Whatever you wish, sweetheart.” He brought her lips to his. Her hands slipped behind him as she returned his kiss with all her love.

A woman's cry tore Rory out of his embrace. “Rory! Rory Mullins! It really is you!”

Rory whirled to see Olive standing by the door with a smiling Dr. Heath behind her. Olive had a bandage wrapped around her head and along her elbow. That did not keep her from flinging her arms around Rory.

“I never expected to see you again.” Olive grinned so broadly her cheeks puffed out. “Yellow Hal said—”

“Look!” Smiling, Rory pointed to the other side of the terrace where Ernest stood.

Olive ran to him, nearly knocking him from his feet as she kissed him.

Tears clung to Rory's eyes as she heard Ernest say, “There, there, Olive, my dear. Don't cry. Didn't I tell you I'd come back for you when I was a wealthy man? I'm not rich, but … will you come away from here with me?”

“Yes, Ernest. Oh, yes. I will go anywhere with you.”

Ernest took her hand and walked across the terrace with her. “Cap'n, can we delay sailing for one more wedding?”

“Marry?” Olive flung her arms around him, kissing him again soundly.

As soon as Dr. Heath performed the second ceremony, Rory asked about Caroline. Olive's smile vanished.

“They're dead, Rory. All of them.”

“All of who?” Nathan asked. “Yellow Hal, too?”

“Yellow Hal returned to Port Royal just before the calm struck, keeping everyone in the harbor. He didn't come to the tavern, for he did not dare to leave his gold. He sent for us to come out to the ship. Or I should say, he sent for Caroline. I was told to run the taproom.” She frowned. “She told me that the men on the
Scourge
were flush with gold and bragging how they'd tricked you and Cap'n Lawler.” She glanced toward the harbor and shuddered. “They were on the
Scourge
when the earthquake came. I heard someone say the ship was so heavy with that gold that the wave tipped her right over to the bottom.” Closing her eyes, she whispered, “I didn't see that. I was too busy trying to escape.”

“Yellow Hal is dead?” Rory whispered, not daring to speak the words more loudly, afraid they might call the pirate back from hell.

“They all are. I was lucky a man in a small boat picked me up out of the water and got me to shore.”

Nathan took a deep breath and released it slowly. “The gold is back where it should be, inaccessible beneath so many fathoms even the wreckers will not be able to recover it. Too many have died for it. Let Warwick keep it with him in hell.” He raised Rory's fingers to his lips. “Let's go back to the
Vengeance,
Rory. Let's go home.”

“Is the ship going to be our home?”

“Can you think of a better place than the one where we fell in love?” He grinned. “I think it's about time I took your suggestion to use the
Vengeance
to trade between the islands. That will give us the life we love.”

With a smile, she took his proffered arm. After thanking Dr. Heath, they walked toward where the ship waited in Chocolatta Hole. She realized, with a pulse of amazement, that Yellow Hal had saved the
Vengeance.
If they had moored in the main harbor, it would have been destroyed. She knew her father and the Blindman would have enjoyed this final twist of irony.

Only an hour later they sailed away from Port Royal. Leaning on the rail at the high stern, Rory rested her head on Nathan's shoulder. Neither of them glanced back at Port Royal. They looked toward the horizon where the sun was being extinguished by the sea.

Softly she said, “‘Look for the blackbird of the dawn, the shepherd's tale will give you the clue to steer on between the low gods and Spain, seek the coral key if treasure you yearn to gain.' We solved the riddle, Nathan.”

“And found what we were looking for from the beginning, sweetheart. Stuart Powell's most precious treasure—his daughter.”

She laughed. “Isn't it amazing that we found our love when we weren't even looking for it?”

“Typical Lawler luck.” He placed his fingers under her chin. “How do you feel about spending our honeymoon on Raven Isle, Rory?”

“Raven Isle?”

“Can you think of any place more private? We'll build a shelter on the beach, far from anyone else, and make love in the moonlight … and the sunlight. Don't you agree?”

“What do you think?” she asked with a laugh of joy. “Yes!”

In the rosy glow of the sunset, their two silhouettes merged to become one. Their lips met to share the love which brightened two hearts with a sparkle finer than the purest gold.

All rights reserved, including without limitation the right to reproduce this ebook or any portion thereof in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of the publisher.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, events, and incidents either are the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, businesses, companies, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

Copyright ©1998 by Jo Ann Ferguson

Cover design by Neil Alexander Heacox

ISBN: 978-1-5040-0890-7

Distributed in 2015 by Open Road Distribution

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