Pirates of the Storm (Stranded In Time Book 1) by Fletcher Best Page B

Robinson growled back. Crabtree led
the group down to the boats and they carefully stacked the supplies
so that the loads were as balanced as possible before heading back
to the mercantile for more. After a few trips back and forth, the
boats were full and the crew struggled to push them back onto the
water for the trip back to the Wandering
Wench . The trip back seemed to take much
longer and the oarsmen on both boats had a much more difficult time
rowing the heavy loads. When they finally reached the ship, the
entire crew pitched in to offload the cargo before the boats headed
to shore once more.
    In all, it took four such trips to
re-supply the ship. In addition to loading and unloading, Jeff took
a turn at one of the oars for two of the trips and by the time the
job was complete, he was exhausted, soaked with sweat, and the
burning in his muscles was matched only by the burning in the parts
of his skin that had been left exposed to the tropical sun. The
rest of the landing party was in about the same shape, except for
the Captain who had not participated in any of the lifting or
rowing, and whose clothing provided substantial protection from
sunburn. “A good day’s work, men!” the Captain exclaimed. “If you
can summon the strength for one more trip to shore, I’ll cover your
expenses at the tavern for the evening.”
    “Huzzah!” shouted Crabtree, who was
also slightly more energetic than the others for not having done
any of the rowing. Jeff and the others were more subdued, but
nonetheless all were up for one more trip to shore. Though
exhausted, Jeff was looking forward to visiting the tavern, if for
no other reason than perhaps he could learn more about the storm
that had brought him to this time and maybe figure out how to get
back. Jeff volunteered to take one of the oars and Robinson and
Graves argued over who would take the other before the Captain
stepped in and assigned the duty to Graves.
    The boats reached the shore and the
crew tumbled out to follow the Captain to the tavern. As they
approached, the smell of smoke and food wafted through the air and
the sounds of raucous partying reached Jeff’s ears. The group
walked through the swinging doors of the tavern and the smell of
body odor and liquor mixed with the smoke and food to make a
strong, but surprisingly not unpleasant scent. Coming in from the
bright sunlight, it took Jeff’s eyes a few moments to adjust to the
dim light in the tavern. Though the furnishings were more rustic
and the clothing was of course of a different style, Jeff was
surprised at how similar the environment seemed to the dive bars of
his own time.
    The Captain walked over to a large
rectangular table that was already occupied by four rough-looking
men, who glared at him as he approached. The Captain placed his
hands on the table and leaned over. A short discussion with the men
followed, with the 4 men breaking into hearty laughter, but then
falling silent before nodding their heads. It was too far away in
the noise of the tavern for Jeff to hear what was said, but in
short order, the men stood up and took their drinks over to another
table.
    The Captain beckoned Jeff and the rest
of the group to take their seats. Jeff sat down next to the Captain
and Robinson sat beside him, as the others filled in the rest of
the seats with Crabtree and Graves across from Jeff and the two
Stevens across from each other at the other end of the
table.
    “What was that all about?” Jeff
asked.
    The captain smiled, “I told them that
if they didn’t move from my table I’d have you beat the four of
them senseless.”
    “I guess your crew has quite the
reputation,” Jeff nodded.
    “Oh, not the crew, I told them
specifically that my new crewman – you - would personally beat them
senseless if they did not move. That’s when they
laughed.”
    “You told them what?!”
    “Don’t worry, Mr. Greene, I added that
you were quite the fighter and they had the option of you beating
them