Part Three: James' Secret

James’ forehead and eye were perfectly normal. But the thing that took my breath away was the fact that the face staring at me wasn’t the face of a boy younger than me, but a girl about my own age!   “You’re a girl?” I asked in surprise.   Quick as lightning, “James” grabbed the cloth and tried to jerk it away from me, but only succeeded in pulling me headfirst into the crow’s nest. “Give me that!” she cried in a panic. She snatched the bandanna from my fingers, pulled a knife from her belt, and held it uncertainly with the tip extended toward me as if she were ready to gut me like a sea bass. “Why did you do that?” she demanded.   Eyeing the knife, I tried to edge away. Unfortunately, the crow’s nest offered very little space for that. “I-I came up here so you could take a break,” I stammered. “Captain’s orders.”   “He told you to come up here?” she asked. Her voice sounded cold and ruthless, but I realized later that at that moment, she was as scared as I was. Which I gotta say was pretty darn scared. “And was he the one who told you to do this, too?” she demanded, holding up the bandanna. Her voice was a sort of alto, high pitched but not so much that she hadn’t been able to make it sound masculine.   “No,” I insisted. “I just did that as a joke, honest. I never thought that you were… well…”   She nodded. “Okay, I believe you. But you can’t tell anyone about this.”   I gulped. “I won’t tell, I swear,” I said. “Could you uh… put the knife away now?”   With a surprising air of relief, she stuck the knife in her belt. Then she sat down and began to cover her head with the cloth.   “So why did you sneak on board?” I asked.   She stopped in the middle of wrapping her head, looked at me contemplatively, then let out a breath. “I suppose I might as well tell you. I ran away from home because my father wanted me to marry someone I didn’t like.”   “Marry?” I echoed. She looked at least one, maybe two years too young to marry anyone. “But you can’t be any older than I am.”   “I tried pointing that out,” she answered. “It’s something rich families do.” “Figures,” I snorted. “Rich people never make sense.” She seemed offended. “Well, Mother tried to take my side, but Father said it was his decision.” I nodded. “Tough dad,” I commented, wondering if my father had been like that. I suddenly gained a new appreciation for the fact that I’d been born a boy instead of a girl. “So you ran away and got hired on this ship to get away from it, huh?” She nodded. “The dog he wanted me to marry was a real nightmare. My father said ‘he has a lot of money and a good pedigree,’ but just talking to him made me sick.” “Is he that bad?” I asked. She shivered. “Worse. He’s a monster whenever Father isn’t around. Our housekeeper used to say she thought he was Satan in disguise, and his friends were ‘a troupe of arch-demons.’” She glanced at the sun and added, “You’d better take the watch or the captain will send someone up here to check on us.” I nodded, picked up the spyglass, and stood up. She stayed sitting down. “Shouldn’t you be going?” I asked. She looked over the edge, glanced in the direction of the foredeck, then ducked down again. “Maybe later,” she muttered with a shiver. I looked in the direction she’d been looking, but didn’t see anyone on that part of the ship except Silver talking to the captain.  “How’d you get this job anyway if the captain thinks you only have one good eye?” I asked. She shrugged. “I just told him I didn’t have many skills, but I really needed the work and was willing to do it for half-wage in exchange for training.” With another tremor she added, “Now I wish I’d stayed home or picked a different ship.” I was embarrassed. “I didn’t mean to… well I didn’t know, or…” She shook her head. “No, it’s not you. The dog my father wanted me to marry is on this ship.” I almost dropped the telescope. “You’re joking!” “Don’t I wish. You work for him, sort of.” “I work for him?” I asked. Then it hit me. “He wanted you to marry Silver?!” I gasped in shock. Silver, who had to be over twice her age? “But that dog is old enough to be your dad!” “Why do you think I didn’t want to marry him?” she asked. “Besides, I could tell right away he was no good.” “No good?” I asked, feeling the need to defend my friend. “I’ll admit he’s old for you, but he seems like a nice guy.” “You'll never have to worry about marrying him,” she retorted. I had to admit she had me there. “Was he really that bad, though?” She nodded. “He’s nothing but a faker. His real name isn’t even Silver, it’s Steele.” I nodded. “Yeah, the squire said something about that.” She looked up at me anxiously. “You can’t tell him who I am, please,” she begged. Despite the risk of being caught off-duty, I bent down to look her in the eye. “Don’t worry,” I whispered. “Your secret’s safe with me. I promise.” She smiled. “Thanks.” Then she looked down and I felt her paw sliding out from under mine. I hadn’t even known it was there! Clearing my throat and trying not to meet her gaze, I glanced over the edge and surveyed the deck. “Looks like he’s gone,” I told her. “You’d probably better go now.” She nodded. “Thanks,” she whispered as she climbed over the edge of the crow’s nest and onto the rigging. I nodded and then realized something. “Hey!” I called. She stopped her descent. “Yes?” she asked in her usual male falsetto. “I don’t know your name.” She glanced around to make sure no one was listening, then mouthed, “Jenna.” I nodded. “OK. See you later.” She nodded back with a look of desperation on her face as if I needed to be reminded how serious the situation was.  Then she slowly climbed down the ropes. “Jenna,” I said slowly to settle her name in my mind. I knew it was dangerous, lest I let it slip and give away her secret. But I figured if I knew, I might as well keep it in my mind.   That night I dreamed I was the best man at a wedding. Jenna was the bride, and Silver… no, Steele was the groom. I stood there as the ceremony began. Then the priest asked, “If anyone has a reason why this girl should not be married to this man, let him speak now or forever hold his peace.” Jenna’s mouth seemed to be glued shut, but her face spoke volumes. “I do,” I said. All eyes turned to me. “And what is your reason?” asked the priest. I tried to answer. “He’s too old for her, and she’s too young for anybody,” I wanted to say. “She doesn’t want to marry him. It’s only her father who wants her to.” I tried to give a reason, any of the reasons on my mind, but no sound came out when I moved my lips. I was so unnerved I started to shake like someone having a seizure. “Balto?” asked the priest. “Balto, what is your reason? Balto? Balto…” “Balto!” yelled a voice, startling me awake. With a yell of surprise, I flipped and fell out of my bunk. “AAAH!” The “priest” from my dream was Togo. “You’re late, Balto!” he yelled. “Hurry up, I’ve been shaking you for ten minutes.” “Sorry,” I apologized, staggering to my feet and grabbing for my boots. “I guess I overslept.” He nodded. “Dreaming about someone back home?” he inquired. Still blinking sleep from my eyes, I drawled, “Wha…?” He smirked just a little. “You were saying some girl’s name or other.” I wanted to slap myself.  Bonehead! I could have blown Jenna’s secret wide open in my sleep! “Er, uh, yeah, just someone I… know,” I stammered. “But, uh, would you mind not mentioning it?” He smiled. “Young lad, I won’t breathe a word.” I breathed a sigh of relief. “Thank you, sir.”   I tried not to act like anything was amiss around Mr. Silver as I went about my duties in the kitchen, but I guess I didn’t do such a good job because he finally asked,

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