When, the next morning, I left my cabin on bent legs, Adaira was there, waiting for me. I'm sure it was a pure coincidence. Just like it was a pure coincidence that she was grinning from ear to ear.

"And?" she enquired. "Enjoyed yourself last night?"

"Absolutely," I said with the confidence of a woman who had grown up with five sisters and was long since immune to teasing. "How about you and the captain?"

Adaira blushed like a whole vat full of tomato juice. "You...! We...we didn't... We aren't yet..."

Ha! Lilly – 1, Adaira – 0!

"Ah, right." I nodded sagely. "I'm sure when you two were cuddling in that cupboard, everything that went on in there was perfectly innocent."

"Yes! Yes, absolute—"

"Even the kissing."

"Err..."

"And the part where he ended up lying on top of you."

"I, um—"

Lilly – 2. Adaira – 0. Yay!

"Just in case you didn't know, Mrs Ambrose," a chilly voice came from right behind me, "I would prefer you not talk about men lying on top of my sister in my presence."

Oh. Ehem.

"Then you should probably leave?" I suggested in an innocent tone. "I was planning on discussing that subject with dear Adaira in quite some detail."

A firm hand grabbed me by the scruff of the neck. "Are you trying to get me to drag you back to bed?"

I glanced towards the west. The direction where, far too far away, Berty was waiting for me. If he was safe, that is.

Honestly? Yes.

If he were to drag me back into that room and resume our previous activities, at least I wouldn't have to think. I wouldn't have to constantly worry. It hadn't been so bad back in India, when we were still constantly fighting for survival. But now that I had actually time to imagine what might be happening to my son at this very moment?

Bloody hell! Why can't this ship move faster?!

Somehow, Mr Ambrose seemed to hear my unspoken words. His hand shifted to my shoulder and gave a gentle squeeze.

"He is going to be all right."

"H-how do you know?"

"I have faith."

I turned to stare up at him incredulously. "You? Faith?"

"...in the several dozen heavily armed bodyguards I secretly stationed there. And the small fleet of ships hidden nearby."

One corner of my mouth twitched. "Now that I can believe."

I heard him move closer and, a moment later, felt a strong pair of arms wrap around me. He didn't say anything, not even a word. But I could practically feel the comfort and care flowing into me with every single second. Sighing, I closed my eyes and relaxed into his embrace.

"Ehem..." I heard Adaira clear her throat. "I'm just going to go and...and..."

"...find a cupboard for yourself and the captain?"

"Yes! No! I mean...I...I'm just going to go now."

I smirked as she hurriedly skedaddled—until I felt my husband's arms tighten around me. "My little ifrit...did you actually just suggest to my sister what I think you were suggesting? In my presence?"

"Hm...maybe."

"You know that the only reason I am not putting you over my knee right now is that there are not actually any cupboards on this ship, right?"

"Indeed?"

"Indeed, Mrs Ambrose."

"Then maybe I should add a few." I wiggled my behind. "Might keep things interesting."

I could feel him stiffen behind me. And I wasn't just talking about his body.

"Intriguing proposition, Mrs Ambrose. But as much as I would like to lock you up and chastise you for several years' worth of disobedience to your employer, I think it will have to wait. Look."

I followed his outstretched arm with my eyes, and there it was: the mouth of the river, opening wide onto the ocean. A whiff of sea breeze entered my nostrils and I felt my heart lurch at the knowledge that I was one step closer to my son. Except...there was a large, four-masted ship between us and the ocean. One armed with lots of cannons.

Instinctively, my hands clenched into fists. "Please tell me that ship belongs to you?"

"No."

My breath hitched.

"I just rented it. Much cheaper."

Son of a...!

I elbowed him in the gut—and regretted it a moment later, when my elbow hit something akin to an iron plate.

Bloody hell! By now, I should really know better!

"You nearly scared me to death!"

"And yet you are still more than alive enough to come to work next Monday."

"We'll still be at sea next Monday!"

"Your point being?"

Suppressing the urge to elbow him in the gut again and break my bones in the process, I sent a glare over my shoulder. "You're trying to distract me from worrying again, aren't you?"

"How did you guess?"

"Female intuition. For future reference, relieving my worries about my son by making me worry for my own life is not a good way to comfort your wife."

"In—"

"And if you say 'indeed', I'm going to find a piece of steel armour for my elbow!"

Wisely, he closed his mouth after that—at least until we approached the sailing ship and he started shouting commands at his men. In short order, a rope ladder was thrown down from the larger vessel, and soon we were on the deck of the new ship. The moment we were on board, the ship began to move, and we sailed away from the coast and out onto the open ocean. Only when the last sign of India vanished from the horizon did I finally feel a heavy weight drop from my heart.

Not all the weight, mind you. That would only happen once Berty and I were safely inside Mr Ambrose's office on the top floor of Empire House, behind thick doors and with dozens of Mr Ambrose's guards between my baby boy and the rest of the world.

"How long?"

Mr Rikkard Ambrose didn't need me to say what I was talking about in order to know. "Three days."

"Is there any way to make this ship go faster?"

"Short of putting up an extra mast? No."

"Do you have wood and ropes?"

"Oh," came a far-too-cheerful voice from behind us. "I'm pretty sure he has wood, since it's still morning."

I turned around just in time to see Adaira whack her intended on the back of the head. "Ignore him! He was dropped on his head as a baby."

"Oy! You didn't even know me back then!"

"You seem to be labouring under the delusion that you're not still a giant baby."

He gave her a brilliant smile. "And yet, you still love me, don't you?"

"Ehem!"

At the sound of my husband clearing his throat, the two of them looked like children caught with their hands in the cookie jar.

"So nice of the two of you to remind me." His eyes narrowed ever so slightly. "With everything happening, I had almost forgotten. But now that we are safe and secure, and we have three days of idleness ahead of us, it's the perfect time for us to have a little talk about your intentions for my sister, Captain James Carter."

"Ah." The captain's smile became slightly hesitant. "I would love to—"

"Let's see if you still say that in ten minutes."

"Um, well..." Taking a few steps back, Adaira looked for the closest escape route. "Looks like you two don't need me for this discussion. I'll just go and—"

"Not so fast, Missy!" A granite-hard hand closed around her upper arm. "While the captain does his best to find ways to convince me not to shoot him in a duel, you can explain to me what on earth possessed you to run off without telling anybody. Into a warzone. On the other side of the world!"

"Err...love?"

My dear husband's grip on his sister tightened.

"I don't think that was the right answer, Adaira, dear," I informed her with clear pity in my voice. "Good luck."

Then I stepped away.

"What? Wait, Lilly, you can't leave me alone with him! You can't—"

Those were the last words she got out before the door to Mr Ambrose's cabin slammed shut behind the three. Unable to suppress a smile, I turned back towards the railing. Was I still anxious? Was I still feeling queasy? Well, yes. But at least there were people in the world who were far, far worse off than I was.

***

Three days. Three torturous, interminably long days. They were the longest days of my life, with the possible exception of that one time Mr Ambrose tried to redefine a day as "forty-eight hours" per internal company decree, so he would only have to pay half as much salary to his employees.

Time dragged on like a gigantic, overladen wagon pulled on by a single, lazy pack mule. When the dawn of the third day finally came, I was the first on deck, staring off towards the west with narrowed eyes, trying my best to pierce the morning mist with my gaze.

And then, I saw it!

"It's here! We're here! We've arrived! Everyone! Come out, come out! We've finally arrived!"

No answer.

Well, not until a few moments later, when a door to a nearby cabin creaked open and a certain sister-in-law with heavy bags under her eyes stuck out her head.

"What?" she croaked.

"It's here! We're here!"

"How...yawn...fabulous!"

"Yes! Oh, yes, yes, yes!"

"Now, where is 'here'?"

I sent her a glare. "The island, of course! The island of...oh, I forgot what it's bloody called! The island where Berty is!"

"Ah, right." Adaira blinked. "You'll have to forgive me. The last few nights..."

"What's wrong? Plagued by nightmares?"

"Worse. I didn't get to sleep at all." She shuddered. "Let's just say that when my brother wants to make you see the error of your ways, he can be quite...thorough."

"Come on, now! I couldn't have been that bad, could it?"

Just then, the door to another cabin—located at the other side of the ship—opened, and Captain James Carter stumbled out, his face as pale as death.

"Yes," Adaira confirmed. "It could."

"Ehem, well..." I tried my best to find the words to express how sorry I was to hear that...only, I couldn't. Right now, I couldn't feel sorry about anything. All that I could feel was exhilaration. Well, that and impatience as the distant island drew closer so incredibly slowly.

When, finally, the pier came into view, I was nearly vibrating with tension, hands clamped around the railing.

"You, Mrs Ambrose," came a cool voice from behind me, "are not to jump overboard to get to shore faster."

"I wouldn't have—"

One deep look from those dark eyes of his silenced me.

"Ehem. Anyway...it was a perfectly reasonable idea."

"Considering that the ship moves faster than you can most likely swim? Not as such." A familiar hand landed on my own, giving it a gentle squeeze. "It won't take long now. Just—"

"—if you say 'be patient', I'll be holding this moment over your head till the end of time."

"—just forget what I said."

"I thought as much." I glanced at him and opened my mouth to say something else—when, suddenly, my words stuck in my throat.

Why?

Because I saw them.

Granny Aatifa, standing on the beach, surrounded by the horde that was her family. And in her arms, wrapped in a soft blanket, lay something small. Something pink. Something that looked just like—

Before I could finish the thought, I was already moving. Throwing a nearby rope down the side of the ship, I slid down the thick cord, landing in the water with a splash.

"Mrs Ambrose!"

Turning back for just a moment, I sent an innocent smile up at my husband. "Hey, I didn't jump into the water, did I? I used a rope. Bye!"

And with that, I let go of the rope and kicked away from the ship. I had only swum a few yards when I heard Mr Ambrose's barked command, and the anchor came crashing down into the water, bringing the ship to a sudden halt. I didn't bloody care. I just continued to swim towards the shore.

Just so you know? He had been wrong. I was faster than the ship. Not sure how exactly, since I was pretty certain it was physically impossible, but somehow, I managed it. By the time I reached shore, I was a sodden, panting mess. But that didn't stop me. With three swift steps, I was beside the old lady, and, heart pounding, I fixed my gaze on what she held in her arms. Or rather, who.

------------------------------------------------

My dear Readers,

Sorry to those among you who would have liked this chapter to pick up exactly where the last one left off. I always tried my best to balance my stories between having, ehem... "interesting" scenes on the one hand, and not going too far on the other, so my writing won't get relegated to the adults-only section.

Countdown: Five chapters left!

Yours Truly

Sir Rob