CHAPTER 27 “I’ll slice his knickknacks off.”
Renato strained against the foremast, making a great show of the fact his hands were securely bound behind him. Though the position had become familiar, the circumstances were dramatically different. He was now here by design, and no longer alone. Strapped to the mast at his side was a plump figure with long golden curls, a purple silk gown and an ample bosom. And joining them on deck were two freshly shaved men in landsman’s clothing, seated and bound to the iron capstan.
Renato himself wore a three-piece suit, complete with paper collar and cravat. Save for the artistically applied smears of soot and blood, and—of course—his grisly new visage, he was the very picture of a prosperous merchant.
A hundred yards away, Medusa sat with loosed sai
