Read Steel for Free Online Page B

eyes needed a moment to focus on the dense writing, black ink on a yellowed page. The handwriting was crooked, cramped, and hard to read. S ’s looked like f ’s and whole words were abbreviated, and the author seemed to assume she’d know what it all meant. But she’d said she could read and refused to ask for help. The others didn’t comment on how long it took her.
    The articles stated that the crew elected the captain and quartermaster and could remove them at any time by an organized vote, which seemed awfully orderly and civilized. There were punishments—flogging—for crimes: Theft, murder, and rape were specifically noted. The articles also laid out the compensation a crew member would get for injuries sustained in battle—different amounts of gold for hands lost, legs lost, and blindness—and described how prizes were to be split—everyone got an equal share, even the captain.
    “You’re pirates,” Jill said, reading the page again, approaching full-on panic. She had to get out of here.
    The captain laughed. “Pirates! We’re enterprising business folk!” The men around her chuckled at the joke, and Jill blushed. “Lass,” the captain continued. “If you’re not on the crew, then you’re a prisoner and you’ll stay locked up below.”
    This was crazy. Could she tell them just to drop her back off at Nassau? But their Nassau wasn’t her Nassau. Nothing but water surrounded them. Where could she go?
    What were the chances that any of this would apply to her? She could be careful and follow the rules, avoid offending anyone—though according to the articles fighting among crew was prohibited and she’d already broken that one in her duel with Henry. But she hadn’t been crew then. And she wouldn’t fight in any battles and be in danger of losing limbs. Surely she’d get home before that happened. Somehow she’d wake up from whatever dream this was.
    If she were on deck—not locked up—she had a chance of escaping. They had to stop at land sometime. Then she’d run. Then she—she didn’t know, but she’d figure it out.
    The captain turned to the next page in the book, revealing rows with a few names, but more X ’s. Most of the people who’d signed couldn’t read. Jenks had also brought a pen—no, a feather, a long quill with most of the feathers shaved off—and a little bottle of ink. He held the ink while Marjory dipped the pen in it, then handed it to Jill.
    “So what’ll it be? Crew or no?”
    Jill didn’t know what other choice she had. She took the pen and signed her name on the next open space. Her writing looked large, round, and clumsy next to the other signatures. The others leered like they’d won a victory.
    Surely it didn’t mean anything, she thought.
    Cooper blew on the ink to dry it and handed book and quill back to Jenks.
    “Welcome aboard, Jill. You’ve met me. Your quartermaster is Abe”—she nodded at the smiling black man—“and first mate is Jenks.” The bald man snarled. “Now you’ll scrub the deck.”
    Jill stared. She didn’t even know what scrubbing decks meant. Scrubbing with a mop? A brush?
    “And give me that sword, won’t you? And you’ll say, ‘Aye, sir’ when I give you an order.”
    If this was a joke, she was the only one not laughing. They were teasing her, and she couldn’t do anything about it. Anger made her straighten and look Captain Cooper in the eye. The woman might not have been so tall; she didn’t even look strong. But Jill wouldn’t want to fight her. Cooper wouldn’t fight fair. In the captain’s mind—and in the minds of the crew—by signing that page she’d agreed to obey the captain, no arguments. She wondered if pirates really did make people walk the plank. This time, there might not be anyone to fish her out.
    “Aye, sir,” she said softly, offering the rapier, handle first, to Cooper. The woman’s smile was thin, satisfied.
    Cooper turned over the wheel and shouted, “Henry! Show the new recruit