Brianna heard the commotion in the passageway outside her cabin and left her charts and maps abandoned on her table. She opened the door to find Joe and Patrick talking, and between them on the wooden planks lay Nicholas’s unconscious form.
“Joe?” Brianna rested her hands on her belt, her cutlass within easy reach.
“We have a problem, lass.” He nudged Flynn with the toe of his boot. “And it’s him.”
“What do you mean?” Part of Brianna wanted to run to the fallen man, but she didn’t dare. Instead, she raised an eyebrow, waiting for an explanation.
Joe shrugged. “The lad’s fine. I knocked him out is all.”
Patrick gave Joe a concerned look, and Brianna knew she was going to need to be more direct about all this.
“All right. Why did you knock him out?”
Why“Because he’s no pirate. He’s a
