The cabin boy had fallen overboard again .
A shouted curse, followed by a resounding splash, jolted the captain from contemplative stillness to sudden action . silhouetted against a vibrant blue sky , balancing at ease on the steeply canted deck of the port now, the ship commander had been idly tracking the path of a dapple -gray gull as it circled the top gallants high above . Gold -burnished red hair framed the hollow -cheeked face ,and a billowing silk shirt fluttered in the sultry breeze , molding itself to a slender yet strongly muscled torso . Tight black breeches encased lean, perfectly formed legs and a heavy sword belt was buckled low across slim hips .Power and grace fairly emanated from the captain's lithe figure .
A figure that had never , ever been mistaken for a man's reacting instantly to the disturbance , the captain turned her attention down gently lapping waves below, where a quick scan of the situation told her all she needed to know .
The ships youngest crew member slipped his tether , tumbling headlong into the aqua waters of the bay for an unexpected bath .
Lynnette swore she'd never met another human being quite so clumsy as young Davie, nor one so prone to making the same mistake twice . she 'd told the boy a hundred times to have someone else tie the knots on his makeshift sling when scraping the hull, or she would make him do it the hard way by keelhauling . Davies own knots weren't worth the rope they were made from , this was the third time she had fallen and the last time she was going to save him.
She sighed , stripping off her high boots quickly , when the got back onboard , she was going to have someone teach him the correct way to tie a knot . she have no time to mollycoddle her men. Damn" Lynnette swore, from all the splashing , it sounded like she better hurry ,or he would tire himself out before she could get to him . She could have had one of the men go after him but in truth , she was the strongest swimmer on the Maiden's Revenge (ship) , and besides , she was their leader , it was her duty to protect her crew, and that , unfortunately , included fishing them out of the drink (water) when necessary. Unbuckling her sword belt letting it clatter on the deck , she leapt to the railing, balanced for a second , then drove cleanly into the crystal clear waters of the Caribbean far below .