I nodded assent as, moaning softly, Pratt gave a last imploring glance to the captain and nodded reluctant acceptance. He fingered the scrimshaw mermaid that was suspended on a leather thong around his neck and muttered something under his breath.
Watching him closely, Captain Milne grunted but did not leave his position on the deck.
Both the small dinghy and the larger whaleboat sat bottom-up on deck, but it took only minutes for the hands to upend the dinghy and lower it over the side. While Thoms held the boat secure with a boathook, Pratt, nearly sixty but more agile than most landsmen of twenty, scrambled over the rail and took the forward oars. Mitchell followed, holding out a hand to help me. With every eye in Lady Balgay watching, I moved as quickly as I could to avoid becoming a
