eleven then.”
Trenton’s voice softened as he warmed to the tale, no doubt as
eager as she to keep their minds off their present anxiety. “He was
a powder monkey, and the quickest one I’ve ever seen. At first, the
other men teased him about his arm. They liked to rile his temper,
and Nathaniel’s got a good one.” He chuckled. “But through the
years he stood toe-to-toe with every last one of them until no one
dared say anything about his arm or anything else, especially as he
became stronger and quicker with only one than they were with two.
He certainly earned my respect. I was a bit older than he when we
met, closer to seventeen or eighteen—”
“You don’t
know?”
Trenton shook his head. “I
grew up as an orphan. My mother abandoned me when I was young, and
I was raised in a workhouse. That place was hell,” he murmured, his
words holding no self-pity. “I ran away to join the navy early on,
and believe me, I’ve never looked back. Nathaniel’s all the family
I’ve got.”
Alexandra couldn’t help
but feel a twinge of empathy for the tall, brown-eyed man in front
of her. When he fell silent, she tried to draw him into
conversation again. “How long did you serve together?”
“Nearly five years, until
our ship was decommissioned. Then we struck out on our own. We
worked for a Swedish merchant for a while who took quite a liking
to Nathaniel. Said he was the son he never had. When Sven died, he
left his ship to us.”
“So why would you risk
your lives and your ship stealing other people’s cargo?”
Alexandra’s words caused
Trenton to glower. “I don’t expect you to understand. You were
raised with all the money you could ever dream of, with finery and
plenty to eat. Nathaniel and I had nothing, some days less than
nothing.” He paced in front of the door, brooding. “Even still, for
Nathaniel, it’s not the money.”
“What about the
housekeeper who rescued Nathaniel? You said she raised him as her
own. Certainly he knew love.”
“Martha did her best, but
servants don’t make much, and she had to live with her employers.
Nathaniel stayed with her sister, Beatrice, and Beatrice’s eight
children. I guess Bee was none too kind... or generous.”
“I see.” Alexandra tucked
a loose strand of hair behind her ear, understanding to a small
degree what might have formed Nathaniel into the bitter man he was.
“Is Martha still alive?”
“No.” Trenton spat into
the empty chamber pot and arched a brow at her. “Your father staged
an accident. Nathaniel was nearly killed, too. It happened just
after Martha took him to meet the duke—”
“Meet him?” Alexandra
repeated in surprise.
“Aye. He was only seven or
so, and she thought Greystone might change his mind when he saw how
capable and clever Nathaniel was. Evidently he didn’t.”
Alexandra shivered. “How
did the, er, accident happen?”
“They were traveling post.
Someone ran their carriage off the road, and it overturned. Martha
was pinned beneath it. Another fellow was killed, too. A stranger.
But Nathaniel managed to crawl out.”
“Did he go back to
Martha’s sister’s then?”
“For a while. But without
Martha’s income, times got even harder, and Beatrice became more
resentful of his presence. He ran away several times. Lived on the
streets for almost a year. Then he joined the navy.”
“By the law, Nathaniel is
the duke’s rightful heir. There is nothing Greystone can do about
that,” she pointed out.
“There is if no one can
prove the duke is lying.” Trenton gave her an aggravated look that
told Alexandra he didn’t believe she hadn’t heard any of this
before, but he continued with the story anyway. “Your father claims
the son his first wife bore him died the day of its birth, only
minutes after his mother. Martha was the only person who knew
otherwise, besides the midwife, who was old at the time and died
shortly after.”
“But why didn’t Martha try
to establish the truth while
Trenton’s voice softened as he warmed to the tale, no doubt as
eager as she to keep their minds off their present anxiety. “He was
a powder monkey, and the quickest one I’ve ever seen. At first, the
other men teased him about his arm. They liked to rile his temper,
and Nathaniel’s got a good one.” He chuckled. “But through the
years he stood toe-to-toe with every last one of them until no one
dared say anything about his arm or anything else, especially as he
became stronger and quicker with only one than they were with two.
He certainly earned my respect. I was a bit older than he when we
met, closer to seventeen or eighteen—”
“You don’t
know?”
Trenton shook his head. “I
grew up as an orphan. My mother abandoned me when I was young, and
I was raised in a workhouse. That place was hell,” he murmured, his
words holding no self-pity. “I ran away to join the navy early on,
and believe me, I’ve never looked back. Nathaniel’s all the family
I’ve got.”
Alexandra couldn’t help
but feel a twinge of empathy for the tall, brown-eyed man in front
of her. When he fell silent, she tried to draw him into
conversation again. “How long did you serve together?”
“Nearly five years, until
our ship was decommissioned. Then we struck out on our own. We
worked for a Swedish merchant for a while who took quite a liking
to Nathaniel. Said he was the son he never had. When Sven died, he
left his ship to us.”
“So why would you risk
your lives and your ship stealing other people’s cargo?”
Alexandra’s words caused
Trenton to glower. “I don’t expect you to understand. You were
raised with all the money you could ever dream of, with finery and
plenty to eat. Nathaniel and I had nothing, some days less than
nothing.” He paced in front of the door, brooding. “Even still, for
Nathaniel, it’s not the money.”
“What about the
housekeeper who rescued Nathaniel? You said she raised him as her
own. Certainly he knew love.”
“Martha did her best, but
servants don’t make much, and she had to live with her employers.
Nathaniel stayed with her sister, Beatrice, and Beatrice’s eight
children. I guess Bee was none too kind... or generous.”
“I see.” Alexandra tucked
a loose strand of hair behind her ear, understanding to a small
degree what might have formed Nathaniel into the bitter man he was.
“Is Martha still alive?”
“No.” Trenton spat into
the empty chamber pot and arched a brow at her. “Your father staged
an accident. Nathaniel was nearly killed, too. It happened just
after Martha took him to meet the duke—”
“Meet him?” Alexandra
repeated in surprise.
“Aye. He was only seven or
so, and she thought Greystone might change his mind when he saw how
capable and clever Nathaniel was. Evidently he didn’t.”
Alexandra shivered. “How
did the, er, accident happen?”
“They were traveling post.
Someone ran their carriage off the road, and it overturned. Martha
was pinned beneath it. Another fellow was killed, too. A stranger.
But Nathaniel managed to crawl out.”
“Did he go back to
Martha’s sister’s then?”
“For a while. But without
Martha’s income, times got even harder, and Beatrice became more
resentful of his presence. He ran away several times. Lived on the
streets for almost a year. Then he joined the navy.”
“By the law, Nathaniel is
the duke’s rightful heir. There is nothing Greystone can do about
that,” she pointed out.
“There is if no one can
prove the duke is lying.” Trenton gave her an aggravated look that
told Alexandra he didn’t believe she hadn’t heard any of this
before, but he continued with the story anyway. “Your father claims
the son his first wife bore him died the day of its birth, only
minutes after his mother. Martha was the only person who knew
otherwise, besides the midwife, who was old at the time and died
shortly after.”
“But why didn’t Martha try
to establish the truth while
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