Chapter 10

Act 2

Scene 3

Paul clenched the tiller with a white-knuckled grip. Every time he had to loosen his grip, either to tighten or loosen the sheet for the main, his hands shook virtually uncontrollably. He glanced at the kids, his crew. They looked shocky. So, he deepened and steadied his voice, and began to tell them something to focus on and redirect their attention from what they were feeling.

"There's an old saying. 'Nothing focuses the mind like the prospect of hanging.' Everybody take a deep breath. Now, let it out. Breath deep and steady. Your bodies are reacting to the danger, they realize that you were just under attack, and in threat of death, so they want to get you ready for 'fight or flight'. Adrenaline is great, but you need to channel it when you can't fight or run. Right now, I want you to focus on getting the most speed out of the Dragon Lady, because, in case you didn't notice, those folks over there have sailing ships. Big ones, and they are going to be chasing us."

"Pam, can you get back on the radio and keep an eye on Becky for me? Tammy, get Becky a cup of hot tea, then put that soup into mugs and serve everyone a good helping. We don't know when we'll have the chance to eat again, so we'd better do it now."

Clark's eyes locked onto his father. He looked a bit green about the gills. Shakily, he asked, "Who are these guys? Why would they fire cannons at us, without warning?"

Paul answered, "I don't know who they are! I don't know why they fired on sight!" He paused and took a deep breath. "But I do know I really don't want to give them a chance to tell us about it today! So, could you pay attention to the trim of the sail? I've got to get us out of the lee of the island."

Lewis looked up, and asked in surprise. "Why do we need to get out of the lee of the island? Won't it cut the wind they get too?"

Paul smiled. "Good you're starting to think! But, you're used to thinking in terms of racing sailboats of similar size and sail configuration. What I saw through the trees with the binoculars were tall-masted, square-rigged ships. I couldn't tell if they were galleons, brigs, brigantines, or barks, but I do know that they weren't big enough to be called frigates."

"So, what difference does that make dad?"

"Well, the wind shadow of the island is really only down near the surface, below tree level. So the higher your mast goes, the less the wind is blocked. Also, I know you don't think much of those old fashioned sail plans, but because their hulls are so much bigger then ours, their top speed will be nearly double ours."

The next several minutes were quiet, as they all went about their appointed tasks. Pam's continuous Mayday was barely audible from below over the sound of Dragon Lady cutting through the water. Then, the first ship broke past the point, obviously in pursuit. Both boys blanched. Lewis almost wailed, "How do you expect us to get away then?"

Paul ignored the question and pulled the binoculars to his eyes. He fought for several seconds to catch their pursuers in his field of view, using only one hand to offset the roll of the Dragon Lady's deck. He swore, fervently under his breath.

Clark looked shocked, his dad never swore. Not where he could hear. "What is it dad?"

"I think it's a damned brigantine! And she's flying the goddamned Jolly Roger!"

Lewis looked confused. He asked, "Jolly Roger?"

"The pirate flag! You know, skull and crossed bones?"

Pam overheard them and stuck her head through the hatch, still holding the Marine radio handset in one hand. Puzzled, she asked, "What are you talking about?"

"We are being chased by three Pirate ships! Don't worry. Now that I know what we have after us, I can answer your question. We are going to get away by using our strengths and minimizing theirs. They are faster, true, but only going downwind or on a broad reach. We can go both closer to windward and faster. Also, that large of a ship needs lots of water and it isn't as nimble. So, we can go much closer to shore then they can, and every time they tack, we'll gain ground."

He frowned, pulled on his chin, and continued, "But it looks as if they have at least one hundred men on board each of those ships, and we can't let them get too close. Since they'll probably fire the cannon on us, and I hate to think of what a twelve-pound cannonball would do to the Dragon Lady."

Listening, Pam stared in disbelief at the following ships. Turning to Paul, "Where in the hell are we Mr. White? What do you mean, we are being chased by pirate ships with hundreds of men and cannons?"

Paul looked at Pam and responded with frustration, "I know it sounds completely ridiculous, but that appears to be what is happening. Pam, get on that radio and get in touch with the Topaz Fire. If they are here somewhere with us, we have to warn them"! Swallowing hard, Pam quickly ducked her head back down and renewed her fervent calls to their sister ship.

Staring back at the ships in an attempt to see the flag and guns on board, Lewis raised his voice to ask, "Aren't all the cannons on the side?"

"No son." Paul replied, setting his mouth in a grim line. "True, most of the cannons were on the sides, but every ship had some of what they called chase guns, for firing ahead or behind. In fact, the so-called chase guns were bigger and had longer range. Normally, the chase guns only numbered about a tenth of the number in a broadside, that was why tactics of the day called for maneuvering to cross your enemy's T."

"Crossing the T?" Clark asked, in obvious confusion.

Paul let go of the tiller with both hands, hooking it with his foot to hold it in place. He made a horizontal motion with his left hand and then a vertical motion intersecting it with his right. Paul was pleased to note that going into teacher mode had worked well; his hands were steady as a rock. And, it seemed, it had worked for both of his sons as well, since they were paying more attention to his explanation then to the mortal danger they were all in.

"When you crossed your enemy's T, then you could bring to bear all of your broadside cannons, whereas he could only reply with his chase guns. Thus giving you the heavier weight of fire, by ten to one." Paul motioned Lewis over. He said, "Here Lewis, you take the binoculars and keep an eye on those ships. I need to look at the charts again."

Clark said, "What good is us crossing their T? We don't have any cannons at all!"

"You're right. It won't do us any good Clark. But, it does help us to bear in mind what the enemy is thinking. Still, as they say, a stern chase is a long chase."

In a skeptical tone, Clark said, "Sure, ok dad."

Looking up from the depth charts, Paul sighed. He answered, "What that means is that with our lead, we should be able to round the southern tip of the island before they can close to effective range with their chase guns. Still, they might try a few long range potshots."

Lewis whooped a victory cry. "Dad! One of the ships is turning to! She's falling back, out of the chase!"

Paul's eyes snapped to the third of the pirate ships, and saw that indeed, she had turned into the wind. With his naked eyes, he couldn't make out what they were doing. Paul stepped over to Lewis, snatched the binoculars and snapped them to his eyes. He hunted for the distant ship in the field of view, and when he at last captured it long enough to make out what all the activity was, he swore explosively.

"Son of a bitch! They're launching longboats. Clark, go below and grab an extra box of shells for the thirty aught six."