Pokrewne

Start
Bitch in the Woods
Doctor MC Three More Wishes Be Kind To Y
Catherine Banks It Is Solved By Walking Poems
Cornwell, Bernard Die Buecher Der Erzfeind
Antes de la Prehistoria Gilles Thomas
Ashfall Mike Mullin
Doctor No Ian Fleming
CHERUB 7 WPADKA
Atwater Rhodes, Amelia Midnig Die Nacht der Daemonen
BLOGOSLAWIONA ELZBIETA OD TROJC DUCHOWOSC

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.In all probability he would just keep her safe until they reached port, assuming as an unmarried woman she was a virgin, which would greatly increase her worth.The odds of the captain taking her virginity were negligible, especially as he had also taken her young brother to his cabin.David sighed in relief as he remembered the whispered conversation, sure the older man was correct.* * * *Some of the other passengers heard David and the first mate talking and understood enough to know that they were more knowledgeable of their situation and asked for more information.Charles Winstanley explained what little he knew, describing how ordinary sailors feared the Barbary Corsairs and with just cause; they were fierce warriors whose appearance was enough to chill the blood.8STEVIE WOODSDavid told his fellow prisoners some of what he had read, unconsciously falling into teaching mode and giving them a potted history of the Ottoman Empire and the rise of the Barbary Pirates, how the sultans and pashas used the pirates to gather wealth along with the slaves necessary to keep their Empire thriving.David mentioned a couple of words he had overheard the pirates using, explaining what they meant.“You understand this heathen tongue?” one of the passengers asked, almost as though it were an accusation.“Yes, some.I am a student of languages.I was heading to Egypt to try and learn the ancient language of that land.”“Yer gonna hear more than ya like,” one of the sailors replied darkly.With that unhappy thought David subsided.He must have fallen into a fitful sleep because he roused with a thick head and an aching neck.Sunlight streamed through the cracks in the decking above.The heavy sound of the bolt being thrown back was heard as the trapdoor opened, everyone shielded their eyes against the strong sun invading their gloomy prison.Large buckets suspended on ropes were lowered down.One was filled with water and a ladle, two others contained chunks of bread.The hungry and thirsty men attacked the food and water, but David’s stomach churned at the idea and he turned away to find he was being watched by the first mate.“Can’t eat, eh boy?” Winstanley asked kindly.“No, sir, the idea turns my stomach.”“You should try.It’s quite the ordeal we’ll be facing when we dock.”“How much longer now?” David asked, heeding the advice and picking out a piece of bread.“We were blown slightly off course by that storm night‘afore last.The Captain, God rest his soul, did his best to get us back on course for Alexandria, but.However, if, as I suspect, we’re heading for Tripoli, it will be later today.”“I.erm, I am.afraid, Mr.Winstanley,” David admitted sheepishly.“So am I, Mr.Jordan,” acknowledged the first mate of the Windjammer.9BEYOND THE VEIL“You are?” David sounded surprised.“Oh yes.I’m not a fool and I’m glad to hear that you’re not either.Only a fool would pretend not to be afraid of such an uncertain future.”“At least you could accept the offer to join the Corsair fleet.I know they always offer that to sailors.”“Maybe, if I’m not too old, except that I have no wish to be a pirate.”“Would it be any worse than being a slave?”“No, but being a slave would leave me without a choice, but to become a pirate means I’d have made that choice.I believe in God, Mr.Jordan, and I’ve no wish to kill for profit and take men and women to sell into slavery.Being a slave I may be a victim, but at least I would only be forced to perform good honest work.”“Even honest work can become a purgatory; I have heard too many rumours of how cruel the Turks can be to their slaves,” David replied, the dread plain in his soft voice.* * * *Robert Charteris watched as the Ocean Pearl tied up at the dock.He had been expecting the ship to return to Tripoli for two days now.The Reis of the Pearl seemed to prefer to capture slaves than any other kind of cargo.Robert approached the gangplank and he was bowed on board as a Janissary, representing the Pasha of Tripoli.It was the perfect disguise for Robert to adopt.He spoke the language perfectly, having spent most of his life in the region, and he knew how to act and what to expect from others [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]