The Devil's Necklace Read Free Page A

notch.
    “Looks like a schooner,” the earl said.
    The ship was long and low to the water, its tall, twin masts rising majestically above the sea. The earl spotted the British flag flying at the rear of the sleek black craft at the same moment Grace did and she could hear his sigh of relief.
    “Nothing to fear after all. The ship is one of our own.”
    “Yes, so it would seem….” But thinking of the reason for her journey, her unease did not lessen.
     
    “I’m sorry to interrupt your voyage, Captain.” Ethan Sharpe stood at the rail, speaking to Colin Chambers, captain of the Lady Anne. “But I’ve come on a matter of importance concerning one of your passengers.”
    “You don’t say? What sort of matter are you talking about?”
    “One of the passengers aboard your ship is wanted for questioning in regard to a breach of national security. She’s to be returned to London immediately.”
    “She?”
    “I’m afraid the passenger is a woman.”
    He frowned. “And you say this woman is wanted by the authorities?”
    “I’m afraid so, yes.” Not exactly the truth. The government had never heard of Grace Chastain. Ethan was one of the few who knew the woman was responsible for the escape of the traitor, Harmon Jeffries, Viscount Forsythe, the man who had betrayed him to the French and cost him his ship and his crew.
    But his sources were completely reliable. The Chastain woman had hired someone in the underworld to arrange for two of the guards at Newgate to turn their backs while Jeffries escaped. According to his sources, Grace Chastain was the viscount’s mistress. She was the woman responsible for saving the man from the gallows.
    No, the government didn’t want her for questioning.
    Ethan did.
    He was determined to find Jeffries—and sooner or later he would. At present, Ethan believed the man was safely living a life of luxury and ease in France, but he needed to know for sure. Aside from that, until he found a way to recapture the man, someone had to pay for what the viscount had done.
    That someone would be Grace Chastain.
    “I’ll need to see your papers, Captain Sharpe,” Chambers said.
    “Of course.” He was prepared to cooperate as much as he reasonably could. He didn’t want trouble—he wanted the woman who had aided a traitor. He showed the man his charter as an English privateer, placing him in the service of his country. It seemed enough to satisfy the captain.
    “And the name of this passenger?” Chambers asked as they walked along the deck toward the salon.
    “Grace Chastain.”
    The captain stopped dead in his tracks. “There must be some mistake. Miss Chastain is a young woman of quality. She couldn’t possibly be involved in something as heinous as—”
    “Aiding the escape of a traitor? Freeing the man responsible for the loss of dozens of lives? That is among the questions that need to be answered. Now, Captain, if you would be so good as to take me to Miss Chastain, we will proceed with our business and you may be on your way.”
    The captain still looked doubtful.
    A few feet behind them, Angus McShane rested a thick hand on the grip of the pistol stuffed into his wide leather belt. Ethan made a faint movement of his head, telling Angus to signal the boarding party to be ready. Grace Chastain was leaving the Lady Anne —one way or another.
    “This way, Captain Sharpe, if you please. Let us see what the lady has to say.”
    Following the captain, Ethan made his way down the ladder to the main salon. Passengers sat in their opulent surroundings, three of them perched on a tapestry sofa, two of them seated in front of an ivory chessboard. Others read or played cards. A man rose as the captain approached the gaming table.
    “What is it, Captain?”
    “Naught that involves you, my lord. This is Captain Ethan Sharpe of the Sea Devil. Apparently the captain requires a word with Miss Chastain.”
    For the first time, Ethan focused on the woman seated at the gaming table, a