A Heart's Masquerade by Deborah Simmons Page A

so long that Cat thought he would not answer, but finally he spoke, his voice hard. "Devlin has made himself my particular enemy. It goes way back... to when I was young and cocky - or foolish, depending on your choice of words," he said, his expression grim. 
    "One of Devlin’s people approached me with an offer to invest in some island property, and I saw myself as a grand plantation owner," he said. "The promise of riches was enticing, too, as I was rapidly depleting my inheritance. The phrase ‘rich as a Creole’ had become so widespread that it was easy to imagine fortunes were easily made.
    "Unfortunately, I wasn’t the only one who labored under this delusion. Devlin, along with others of his ilk, brought down many a man through unscrupulous investment schemes in the West Indies, and they continue to do so.
    They tender the credit to purchase land, but once the land is cleared they call in their loans, leaving the hapless planter without money for stock or labour. These same moneylenders then offer to buy back the land, now cleared through no effort of their own."
    "How can they get away with this?" Cat asked, outraged.
    "Oh, it’s all perfectly legal." Ransom loosed a low breath. "There was nothing left to do but pay the man or lose the land. Although I could ill-afford the former, I was loath to give away the land so easily. Then Devlin was so kind as to give me a third alternative that he rarely extended to his other victims..."
    His words trailed off. "He was willing to extend the loan in exchange for sexual favors."
    Cat gasped, but the captain spoke lightly. "Oh, I wasn’t shocked. I had seen too much in my misspent youth for that,” he said. “But I never thought to be bought like a street whore." His laugh was humorless.
    "And I’m sure that was his intention. Despite my... charms, I suspect he was more interested in gaining power over me and all that I represented. I was too young to see that at the time, however, and lost my temper. He had to call in two of his men to tear me off him, and still I nearly broke his jaw."
    Ransom shook his head. "Devlin mistook his mark. I was a different bird from those previously plucked and not quite the witless carouser I appeared to be. Instead, I paid him off, put an end to my free-spending revels, and changed my life for the better."
    He was quiet, seemingly lost in thought as he looked out over the ocean, but obviously, there was more to the story.
    "Why does he continue to harass you?" she asked.
    "I can only guess at an answer," the captain said. "Apparently, Devlin is unused to being scorned - and bested - while my subsequent success rankles."
    Ransom frowned. "When the first sugar crop of my hard-won plantation was burned to the ground, I suspected, but had no proof, that Devlin was responsible. After that, there were minor incidents, and, of course, the spies, including a lovely young ‘widow’ intent on giving me the clap," he said.
    "It was not until I began the shipping business and found several cargoes damaged or missing that I was able to find out for sure, by putting some... pressure on the appropriate parties." Ransom’s expression grew grim again.
    "I sought him out, but he was not easily found. Finally, I came upon him in one of his warehouses overseeing the transfer of some cargo, which I simply diverted to one of my own vessels as payment due."
    Cat shuddered. "That cannot have pleased him."
    Ransom nodded. "But since I had a pistol aimed at his heart, he gave me no argument. I suggested that we call the game even and warned him that I had discovered some of his dealings, which would greatly interest the authorities. That was more than a year ago, and I’ve not been troubled by him since... until the warehouse was burned."
    "And now the ships," Cat said.
    "Yes, the ships," Ransom said. "I would like to learn more about Ben Pike," he added, finally turning away from the bulwark. “And I know just the place to look for information."
    Ransom