The Secret Duke Read Free

eyed the weapons through slitted eyes, wary but assessing his chances. The ox chewed the cud, clearly wishing he were grinding someone between his teeth.
    Would they stop him again? He tested the situation by moving a step to the side. The two men moved to block him.
    The knife man said to the others, “Come on, mates. He’s one man, and a fribbly type, from the look of those weapons. Call that a knife! Let’s get him!”
    The group stirred but was undecided.
    Rose raised the pistol to point directly at the knife man’s left eye. “You die first.”
    Into the frozen silence, a voice rose at the back of the room. An elderly voice, but strong. “That’s Captain Rose, lads. Don’t know as I’d take him on, m’self.”
    Most of the room turned toward the speaker, but not the two dangerous men. Captain Rose kept his eyes on them.
    “A flower?” sneered the knife man. “I’ll pluck his pretty petals for him.”
    His companions sniggered, but they shifted like wet sand, uncertain.
    “Captain Rose of the Black Swan ,” the same helpful voice called. “Broke the arm of the last man to pull a knife on him.”
    The three other villains backed away a bit. Rose had no idea who the speaker was, but silently thanked him, though he hoped he wouldn’t have to live up to the billing.
    Captain Rose and his ship, the Black Swan , were well-known along this stretch of the south coast. Most of the time the Swan engaged in general trade, but sometimes she sailed off on illicit business across the Channel. He’d made sure that people along the coast knew the Black Swan ’s business didn’t benefit the French, especially during the recent war. Even the lowest Kentish sea rat wouldn’t take kindly to anyone who favored their ancient enemy.
    All the local people knew Captain Rose of the Black Swan was a loyal Englishman and a good seaman, but he was known for other things as well. For enjoying a fistfight, and yes, for objecting to anyone drawing a weapon on him.
    But there were two Captain Roses, and he was the other one.
    He was the Duke of Ithorne, known to his friends as Thorn.
    The other Captain Rose was Caleb, his illegitimate half brother.
    Thorn was as good a seaman as Caleb, and perhaps even better, but he had no taste for meaningless fighting and little skill in a brawl. Other than that, Caleb and he were as close in appearance as two peas in a pod. The slight differences in their features were masked by dark stubble that sometimes became a beard. To make the illusion complete, Captain Rose wore distinctive clothes—an old-fashioned black frock coat and a scarlet neckcloth—and an earring in the form of a skull with ruby eyes.
    People generally saw what they expected to see, so the outward trappings meant that the man inside was Captain Rose of the Black Swan .
    Most of the time, Caleb was master of the Swan , but that being the case, his reputation stuck to Captain Rose, who was generally known as a gregarious womanizer and fearless brawler. He leapt into a fistfight with glee, especially when he’d been drinking, and then afterward drank cheerfully with his opponents—as long as they’d not pulled a weapon on him. He took knives as a personal affront and would leave the offender in pieces. Perhaps Caleb’s reputation would tip the scales here.
    “I’m Rose, right enough, so heed the man and get out of my way.”
    The ox’s brow lowered. “Ye’re still only one.”
    “One of one can be more than one of another.”
    The ox stared, baffled.
    A nearby man said, “I’ve ’eard of Captain Rose, but never that he was married.”
    “Not quite blessed by the church,” Thorn admitted.
    Amid laughter one of the wary brutes sneered, “For that sort of lay, I’d pick a sweeter-natured ’un.”
    “Perhaps I enjoy a wench with spirit,” he parried.
    “Spicy in bed as well, is she?”
    “Exceedingly.” He tossed it out simply to annoy the idiotic cause of this mess, but then recognized his mistake. New interest