Chapter 1

27 Years Later - 1818

The young man stared broodingly out on the vast expanse of water, the deep blue an endless continuation until it met with the red horizon of the dawning day. He had been looking forward to this trip ever since he was a lad and had learned that he was adopted and had family somewhere in England. Now, however, he was apprehensive and having second thoughts.

His surrogate parents had very little knowledge of his English family, so he was basically searching for a needle in a haystack. For all he knew, they could be dead and this trip could be a waste.

But he couldn’t deny that ever since he had learned that his parents, in fact, were not truly his parents, he had been dead set on searching for those who had given him up at birth. He wasn’t sure if it was anger or curiosity that drove him to make this trip, but one way or another, he was going to discover his past and finally put all the pieces of the puzzle together.

The little he knew of his journey to America, he knew by heart.

As an infant, he had traveled with an older couple – whether they were his grandparents, nobody knew – to escape political upheaval in a divided and weary England. When the couple had died of disease trying to cross the Atlantic, he had been cared for by Julie Bennington, an English peasant who was traveling to America to meet up with her husband, who had sailed over years earlier, and settle into life helping run a cotton plantation.

When no relatives had claimed the young lad when the ship pulled into Boston, Julie had decided that it was her duty to take care of the infant she had come to care for in the weeks aboard the ship. Her husband, Peter Bennington, after hearing the story, readily agreed to raise the child as his son and so the couple soon set out for their home in Georgia with a new son, Justin Bennington, and plenty of hopes and dreams. That was the start of his life in America as he knew it.

The years had passed unobtrusively and in comfort on a cotton plantation in Georgia, which Peter Bennington owned. At 12-years old, Justin had the love and protection of two wonderful parents, a younger sister named Sofie, and a baby brother named David, all the family he could ask for. But that year, he had learned that all that he held dear was not his.

The devastation had been acute, the anger passionate. At first he had been mad at Julie and Peter Bennington, for not telling him sooner and treating him so much like a son. But as the years passed and he became a young adult, the anger had turned from them to the biological parents that had so readily given him up at birth.

Had they not loved him? Was he possibly a bastard child, and therefore an embarrassment to his true family? Or was there some perfectly good reason that he, as an infant, had been shipped away from his parents and to a completely different country?

He had vowed that one day, he would make the journey across the sea and search for those who had not wanted him. He would get an answer to his questions, come hell or high water.

Now, at twenty-seven years old, no longer a child but a serious and considerate young man, with immense wealth from the success of his shipping fleet, Justin was ready to face his past head-on. With the good wishes of his surrogate family, and a promise that he always had a home with them, he had set out on his journey. His heart was heavy, his mind filled with unsettling thoughts, as his fastest ship, the Merry Georgian brought him ever closer to the coast of England, his true home.

But, if his family was found, would he ever be able to honestly call England home?

All he had ever known was life on a cotton plantation, where the hot sun scorched the back of slave and owner alike. Life was uncomplicated and unrestrained – a far cry from the stiff, restricted life led by the people of the British upper class. While he had been educated at some of the finest schools, had a good head upon his shoulders and the manners of a truly refined gentlemen, he still felt out of place whenever he ventured with his crew to English shores to do business.

The stiff upper lip, as he was wont to think of the British upper class’ attitude, never sat well with him. He had had many dealings with peers of the realm, and had found many of them haughty, cold and with an arrogant attitude. He couldn’t count the number of times he’d been called a bloody Yankee behind his back, so how was he to accept, much less be accepted by this country and its people?

Justin sighed as he ran a hand through his tousled curls and jolted himself from those thoughts. He was tired, yet found he was unable to sleep, and had resorted to pacing the decks and keeping a night watch while the rest of the men slept. His nerves were taut, his mouth set in a grim line, and his normally bright blue eyes were a somber pale hue.

“Bloody hell Justin, you look like you are about to contemplate what the best course would be to drown yourself,” a voice suddenly spoke up from somewhere to his right.

Grinning, Justin turned as his second-in-command, Dexter O’Keefe, ambled towards the aft of the ship, where he stood with his hand on the wheel, confidently directing their course toward English shores. The two of them were the best of friends, had been since they were young lads, and Justin was sorely thankful for his presence on this journey.

Standing at just over six feet, with reddish-brown curly hair and blue eyes, Justin was the more serious of the two men. Dexter, who was shorter at 5’10 and had jet-black, straight hair where Justin’s was curly, was always ready with a smile and a joke, thus counteracting his friend’s serious nature. As family and friends could readily attest to, the two men complimented each other perfectly, which was why their friendship was so strong.

“Not quite that drastic I am afraid,” Justin returned, his teeth flashing in the early sunlight as he grinned, “I am just planning the best way to throw you overboard.”

Dexter’s mouth fell open in shock at his best friend’s words before he recovered and gave Justin a good-natured punch in the arm. It was rare for Justin to crack a joke, yet when he did, he did so with full force, usually rendering his audience speechless before they cracked up in laughter. Dexter, having known Justin for so many years, was used to his friend’s sense of humor and thus had become somewhat immune.

“I see where I rate nowadays,” Dexter grumbled good-naturedly as he lounged against the railing of the ship’s deck, “I go from being your best friend and second-in-command to the target of all your jokes. If only your mother could hear you now, she would give you quite a tongue-lashing.”

“Need I remind you that we are hundreds of miles from Georgia, and thus those words, as well as my mother, have no power over me whatsoever?” Justin dryly countered as he turned the wheel of the ship a fraction of an inch to the right.

“Touché,” Dexter responded as he gazed thoughtfully into the horizon at the rising sun, “Do you suppose we will make it into port by evening?”

“If we keep up this pace, I have no doubt that we shall arrive in Southampton before the sun sets,” Justin confidently responded, his mouth turning once again into a grim line of determination. Dexter noticed the change in his friend almost immediately.

“Please do not tell me that you have been up all night,” the shorter man stated as he closely watched his friend’s reaction. Justin guiltily stared down at his hands, not really wanting to get into this familiar argument with his friend for the umpteenth time on this journey.

“Would you like the truth or a lie to make you feel better?” Justin asked.

“Bloody hell Justin,” Dexter swore, using his favorite phrase as he straightened and went to stand by his friend’s side, “You are going to make yourself sick if you do not get some sleep soon.”

“And you are going to drive me crazy if you keep acting like a woman,” Justin retorted, rolling his eyes at his friend’s over-concern with his well-being.

“Somebody has to act the part,” Dexter responded, grinning in an attempt to lighten the mood, “Just do not expect me to don some frilly dress and curtsey for you for I shall seriously contemplate jumping ship.”

Justin laughed as silence fell over the pair.

“So how did Sofie take your leaving?” Dexter suddenly questioned as he abruptly walked away from his friend. Justin raised a surprised eyebrow in his friend’s direction at the unexpected change in topic.

“Well you know Sof. She put up a fuss about not being able to come along to see London, and then when she realized why I was making the journey, she refused to talk to me before we set sail,” Justin stated as he ran his hands over the rough wood of the ship’s wheel. A frown marred his features as he thought of his sister.

“She doesn’t like the fact that you may leave her behind and never return,” Dexter stated as he stared off into the distance on the starboard side of the ship, “She seems to think that if you find your true family here, she will no longer be able to call you brother and you will forget all about her.”

“How do you know this?” Justin sharply demanded, his hands now clenched on the ship’s wheel, his heart thudding painfully in his chest for the distress he was causing his only sister.

“She came to me a few months ago, when you first decided to make the trip to England. She was extremely upset and crying, and you know how I can’t stand the sight of a female crying,” Dexter responded in a somewhat bemused tone, “I asked her what was wrong and she told me. I tried to tell her that she was being silly, but I think that just made her upset with me.”

“Oh?”

“She slapped me,” Dexter revealed as he rubbed a palm across his left cheek as if remembering the blow the upset female had landed upon his face.

Justin chuckled as he pictured the scene in his mind. Dexter and Sofie were too much alike in some things that it put them at odds with each other. However, that had never deterred them from ganging up together on Justin, who most of the times was lost to their sense of humor.

“Cap’n, ye best come quick,” one of the other crew members suddenly interrupted as he joined the pair at the ship’s wheel. Justin immediately straightened, all sense of humor gone from his face as he discerned the urgency in the man’s voice.

“What is it Quincy?” Justin asked as he noticed the man was unable to meet his eye and kept shifting from foot to foot.

“Just come quick cap’n and ye will see for yerself,” Quincy responded.

“Dexter, take the wheel and keep us in the current direction. I shall be back as soon as possible,” Justin instructed as he relinquished his hold on the wheel and began to follow his crew member below decks.

“Certainly captain,” Dexter responded, all business as he turned his full attention to the ship and put their earlier joking aside for the time being.

As Justin followed after Quincy, he quickly wondered what it was that needed his attention. Being captain of the ship, he was normally not bothered with the small problems, especially those which occurred within the crew. Justin fully trusted Quincy, the third-in-command and a big, burly man who had seen many years on the seas, so for him to be unable to deal with whatever was going on, meant that it was serious.

Fully thinking that they would be heading to the bowels of the ship where the crew’s quarters were located, the young man was surprised to see Quincy heading for the captain’s cabin, which Justin presently resided in. Without a word, Quincy opened the door and allowed the captain to enter ahead of him, before shutting the door after him.

“Quincy, what…” Justin began, but was cut off by a flash of color before a distinctly female form launched itself into his arms.

“Justin! Please tell them that you will not send me back home! I would not bear it if I had to return and face papa’s wrath for sneaking away on your ship,” the feminine voice cried, much to Justin’s utter dismay.

What the hell was his sister Sofie doing hiding aboard his ship…a ship that was almost to England at this point? It was as if because the two men had been discussing her, she suddenly appeared as if by magic aboard the Merry Georgian.

“We found ‘er hiding with some o’ the food stores early this morning,” Quincy stated in response to the questioning look from his captain, “Figured ye would want to know immediately.”

“Thank you Quincy. If you would please give us a moment alone, I would appreciate it much,” Justin blandly replied, his sister still in his arms. A muscle ticked in the corner of his jaw, showing the signs of his displeasure at this new development.

“As you wish cap’n. I will be on deck with Dexter if ye should be in need o’ me,” the third-in-command concluded before quietly leaving the room and shutting the door tightly behind him.

Once the burly man was gone, Justin turned his attention to his sister, who still stood silently in his arms. Abruptly, he set her away from him and began to pace the floor of the cabin in agitation. This was not something he needed, much less wanted, to deal with at this precise moment, with so much on his mind already, but this was his sister. He couldn’t very well lock her in his cabin and forget about her the rest of the trip.

He sighed, knowing that this was going to be a long day, if nothing else. By this time, his parents must be frantic with worry over Sofie’s disappearance and without a doubt, had no clue where she had gotten to. He groaned as he realized that there was no way he could send word to them until they docked in Southampton’s port, not unless they encountered another ship going to America on their way to the port, which was slim at best.

“Sofie, dear sister, what in bloody hell do you think you are doing here?” Justin finally began, his voice stern, his eyes staring directly at her tall, slim form.

“Justin, I can explain,” Sofie Bennington began, her chin set in a determined line, her blue eyes flashing with a spirit that Justin knew got her in trouble more often than not.

“Well then by all means, do explain,” the captain stated as he took a seat behind his large wooden desk before offering her a chair opposite him. Without a word, she took a seat and stared at her hands.

At twenty-four, Justin knew that Sofie should be married by now. And it was not that she lacked where looks were concerned. No, Sofie Bennington was quite beautiful; the envy of many girls and the object of many a bachelor’s affections. Standing at 5’8, with thick, light-brown hair, expressive blue eyes, and a very fine figure, Sofie had never lacked for admirers.

It was her spirit, her need for adventure, and the fact that she had declared to their parents that she would marry nobody else but Dexter O’Keefe, Justin’s best friend, which had discouraged suitor after suitor. Dexter, unaware of her true affections, considered Sofie to be the younger sister he never had and thus breaking Sofie’s heart. And being caught in the middle of it all, loyal to both parties, Justin was at a loss for what to do.

He knew without a doubt that Sofie and Dexter were two of a kind. Both passionate and loyal to a fault, with a wry sense of humor, it was no surprise that growing up, the two of them had constantly teamed up to play jokes on Justin and many of the children from surrounding plantations. But Dexter’s one and only love was the sea and his partnership with Justin in their trading company, O’Keefe and Bennington, Inc. which Justin had tried to explain many a times to his younger sister.

But she didn’t seem to understand that, and was constantly chasing after the oblivious Dexter, often times embarrassing herself and sending her possible suitors running for the hills. Justin knew his parents were becoming impatient for their only daughter to marry, settle down and raise children of her own. But Sofie’s will was strong, which is why she remained as of yet, unmarried.

“I know that you think I am just chasing after Dexter,” Sofie began as she finally looked her older brother in the eye, “But truth is, I could not stay in Georgia anymore. Mama and papa insisted that it was time that I married, and since I have snubbed every suitor I have had so far in the hopes that Dexter will look my way, they have chosen somebody for me.”

“I tried to warn you Sof. Dexter is married to the sea, just as I am, while you on the other hand, must marry. Papa and mama are not always going to be around to look after you and they just want to see you suitably married and cared for by a man who is your husband,” Justin kindly reminded her, quickly taking in the fact that she was genuinely upset.

“As much as I wish that Dexter would look my way and was not so in love with the sea, I understand that now,” Sofie dejectedly stated, her hands clenched tightly in her lap.

“Sof…” Justin began, his heart wrenching at the sight of his sister so upset.

Unfortunately, there was nothing he could do to ease her heartache short of forcing his best friend to marry his sister. And he drew the line at forcing himself into the affairs of others, even when they happened to be his best friend and his only sister.

“I have tried to close my heart to my wants and do as mama and papa ask of me, but the man they have chosen is so dull that I fear I would be driven to insanity if I were to marry him,” Sofie responded, her blue eyes wide, her lip trembling.

Justin didn’t know whether to laugh or to gather his sister into his arms and hug her until the pain in her eyes went away. She was always bluntly honest with those around her, a quality that was not so valued in the female race, but he, nevertheless found it worked for her. Unfortunately it was that same trait that had her in hot water with their parents, who had been shocked when their daughter had boldly announced that she wanted none other than Dexter O’Keefe for her husband. He could verily understand their need to see her safely wed.

“Sof, running away is not going to get you out of marriage. If anything, it will only make mama and papa more convinced that you must marry immediately,” Justin said, his fingers drumming idly on the wood of his desk, “Now, the moment we get to Southampton, I shall send them a letter with the fastest courier ship, and then I am booking you passage back to Georgia as soon as a ship is available to make the trip.”

“Please do not send me home, not now!” Sofie protested, quickly rising to her feet, her pain suddenly hidden by a mask of panic, “I have known nothing of life outside of the plantation while you have had the luxury of traveling the seas, visiting many foreign countries and experiencing the thrill of other cultures.”

“Need I remind you that all the trips I make are for business purposes?” Justin began, but Sofie quickly waved away his words with her hand as she continued on.

“At least you have had the chance to see the world. Please Justin, just one week. Give me one week in London and I promise I shall go home without a fight,” Sofie stated, her eyes pleading with him to relent. He sighed, wondering where the saddened girl of a few moments before had disappeared to.

“I hate that you have me wrapped around your little finger,” Justin said with a roll of his eyes as he found himself agreeing to her demands, “One week in London, and then you are on a ship back to Georgia. I shall send a letter to mama and papa the moment we dock in Southampton so they do not worry, but do not expect me to protect you from their anger once you return home.”

“Oh thank you, thank you, thank you!” Sofie squealed as she quickly went around the large wooden desk and threw her arms around her brother’s neck in an overjoyed hug. Justin merely grunted at her display of affection.

“I expect you to be on your best behavior until we arrive in Southampton later this evening,” Justin stated as soon as Sofie had disentangled herself from him and began to look around his cabin with open curiosity, “No climbing the rigging, no bugging any of the crew, no wearing breeches, and please just leave Dexter alone.” Sofie couldn’t help but grin at his words.

“Do not worry, I shall be a perfect angel,” she assured him. Justin groaned.

“That is exactly what I am afraid of since our definitions of an angel differ so vastly,” Justin responded, rolling his eyes as he surged to his feet, intent on returning to his duties on-deck, “Now, I must ask you to stay here while the crew and I go about cleaning the ship and preparing for this evening’s entrance into port.”

“Yes of course, go right ahead. I am quite capable of amusing myself dear brother,” Sofie replied as she took a seat in the comfortable chair behind his wooden desk.

“Sofie…” he warned.

Just then, the door of the cabin burst open without warning. Justin looked up in surprise as Dexter stood in the doorway, an extremely serious look on his face. He didn’t even notice Sofie, his eyes trained solely on Justin.

“We are under attack,” Dexter spit out, his eyes wide as if he was still trying to comprehend that fact. Justin almost groaned aloud. What more did this day have in store for them? It was only half over!

“What? By whom?” Justin finally spoke as he began to follow his best friend and second-in-command back out to the deck of the ship and looked back as an afterthought, “Sofie, stay here and do not open this door for anybody, do you hear?”

“Yes,” she quickly got out before the door was slammed and the two men left her alone in the large room that was her brother’s cabin.

“What is Sofie doing aboard?” Dexter demanded as he followed after Justin’s long strides, the two of them heading quickly toward the helm of the ship and the wheel where Quincy stood in charge, “I take it that this is her idea of not allowing you to forget about her?”

“You could say that. It’s a long story that I will explain later,” Justin ground out as he raised a spyglass to his eye and focused on the fast approaching vessel that was flying no colors, its guns trained on the Merry Georgian. “No colors on the ship, could be pirates.”

“But these waters are patrolled by the English navy,” Dexter protested as he ran a hand through his hair, “How could a ship as large as that, and not flying any colors, escape notice by the patrol boats?”

“Your guess is as good as mine,” Justin said as he put the spyglass away, “Quincy, prepare the guns and tell the men to stay at ready. If they intend on taking over the ship, then we shall go down fighting, is that understood?”

“Aye cap’n, I will alert the men straightaway,” Quincy agreed as he surrendered the ship’s wheel to Dexter’s care and left to carry out his orders.

“What are your plans?” Dexter questioned as he glanced at his friend.

“We shall attempt communication at first, on the small chance that we have misinterpreted their intent,” Justin began, pacing the deck as he spoke, “If that does not work, we will fire when fired upon.”

“But that means…”

“Yes, I know it means that we risk weakening the Merry Georgian, but it is a risk we must take. I will not openly fire when I do not know the true intent of the occupants aboard that ship,” Justin harshly stated, his eyes an angry blue.

Dexter sighed as he raised his eyes to the horizon, where the sun spilled from overhead. He had been through many a journey with Justin at his side, and though they’d had a few run-in with pirates before, none had seemed as serious a threat as this. He could only hope that luck would run in their favor and they would make it to Southampton without fail. After all, Justin and Sofie, two of the people he most cared about, were aboard, and he’d be damned if he let anything happen to either of them.

Suddenly, the second-in-command noticed a small object flying in the sky. As it neared, he realized it was a falcon, and that the bird seemed to be carrying something in its mouth. He thought perhaps it was just returning to its nest with food for its young, but as the falcon came closer and closer to the ship, Dexter realized that it intended to land on the deck.

“Justin…”

“The only people I have seen make use of falcons as messenger birds are the Scottish,” Justin mused to himself as he watched the bird make an elegant landing a few feet away.

“That is impossible. Why would a Scottish ship be on this side of the English shores when they have their hands full keeping the peace within their own country with all the clans that reside there?" Dexter demanded as his friend bent and retrieved the folded parchment from the bird’s beak. He received no reply from the captain.

Justin stared at the parchment in hand, a puzzled expression crossing his face. It was a Scottish ship alright, that much he had confirmed with the use of the bird, but what they wanted, he still had no clue. The message on the parchment was short and to the point, but nevertheless confusing:

Surrender Captain Justin Bennington to us and the ship and its crew will be allowed to go free and shall remain unharmed. Failure to do so will result in unfortunate consequences…

“What does it say Justin?” Dexter demanded as he noticed the pallid color his friend’s face had turned, “Have you figured out what they want?

“Me,” he quietly replied.