Demons & Pearls (The Razor's Adventures Book 1) by P.S. Bartlett Page A

days put me in mind of Uncle William. McCormack’s tales and lore mixed with the glow in his eyes when he spoke, and it reminded me of why I’d longed for this mound of sand and thrills. Only now, the reality of what I’d seen so far was nothing at all like the stories I’d heard.  But even if it killed me, I was going to seek out the charms I’d long imagined.
    “Speak for yourself, cousin. With our luck, we’ll be struck by lightning. Look at those clouds,” Keara said as she climbed up with Watts’s assistance.
    “‘Tis the rainy season, lass. Should rain at least a few hours a day from now ‘til late autumn, but since there ain’t really no autumn here, ye have the dry season and the rainy season. Welcome ta’ Jamaica.”
    Captain McCormack carried on with his tales of the town in her untamed yet glorious days prior to her many disasters.  I watched Miranda out of the corner of my eye speaking softly with Watts before he gallantly lifted her by the waist and sat her on the end of the wagon. I shifted my view to Cass, who met my eyes simultaneously, and I could easily discern by her raised eyebrow, our thoughts were the same.
    Watts was in big trouble, but he wasn’t my problem. My problem was the cooing seventeen-year-old dangling her bare calves at him and not even making an effort to cover them. For a moment, I had to chuckle to myself. She was such a joy. She was always a bubbly little thing. Her lighthearted and childish nature was something she hadn’t lost after all we’d been through. Only now, instead of coaxing the boys to her with her giggles and green eyes, she was playing with fire and stealing their hearts.
    Cassandra slid next to me and nudged me while giving me that concerned eyebrow again. I whispered to her, “I’ll keep an eye on her,” and shouted to Miranda to cover her legs and sit back.
    Watts looked up at me and gave me a smirk of disappointment, but she did what she was told, like always.  A minute later, I noticed Master Green leading two large chestnut horses to the wagon.
    “Our mounts, Captain,” he said, and he handed the Captain the reins.
    “Ye comin’ fer supper, Green?” he asked.
    “I will be along before dark, after I settle our dealings here. Will you be staying at home, or will you be returning after supper?”
    “‘Tis near supper time now, and ye know Missus McCormack.” The Captain cocked his head to the side and rolled his eyes at Master Green. Green let out the most delightfully rich and deep laugh and patted the Captain hard on his back.
    “I will see you ladies again I am certain. If I do not arrive in time for supper, perhaps I will see you another day.” Green rested his hands on the wagon and, dare I say, he smiled at us, but his eyes met only Cassandra’s.
    Green gave Captain McCormack a leg up and into his saddle. Watts took his seat to drive the wagon, and we were off down what Watts called Market Street on our way to meet Missus McCormack. I wasn’t sure what this town was like before the tragedies, but if it was anything like what we saw on the way to the Captain’s home, I couldn’t wait to get out and explore. It appeared to me as if every third or fourth building was a pub or a whorehouse. They made no effort to conceal any of it. Right out here in the daylight, or at least what was left of it that wasn’t smothered by the incoming clouds as the first drops of rain began to fall, I counted no less than five bare breasts, ten intoxicated fools, and a dozen beggars.
    “This place is like hell on Earth,” Keara said, interrupting my lost thoughts and bare breast count.
    “There’s nothing that says this is our last stop,” I said as I pulled up my knees to my chest and rested my head there.
    “Dear Lord in Heaven, I hope not. What kind of work could an honest woman find in a place like this?” Keara asked.
    “Cookin’, cleanin’, washin’ and the like, I s’pose, miss,” Watts chimed in from his perch.
    “Lovely.