Free The Ship of Lost Souls 1 by Rachelle Delaney Page A

you’re . . . talking about,” the boy said between gasps as he rose and fell, his hair grazing the dirt.
    â€œLiar,” the sailor sneered. “I saw you steal those coins, and I’ll shake you till they fall out of your ears if I have to.” He laughed and shook the boy some more.
    Scarlet scrambled to her feet, her sympathy for the King’s Men at an all-time low. Cheeks burning, she marched up to the man until she stood nose to toes with the shaken boy.
    â€œPut. Him. DOWN!” Scarlet hollered up at the man, startling him so much that he stopped shaking the boy.
    â€œGet out of here, miss,” the man spat back once he’d recovered. “This boy’s a thief and no business of yours.”
    â€œA thief.” Scarlet rolled her eyes. “I’ll show you.” And with that, she kicked his shin as hard as she could. He dropped the boy and hopped on one foot toward her, cursing.
    â€œYou little witch! You’ll pay for that.”
    But before he could reach out and grab her, the thief-boy rolled to his feet, grasped Scarlet’s arm, and yanked her out of the way.
    â€œCome on!” he cried. Together they scampered off down the street, leaving the King’s Man limping and cursing behind them.
    The boy was still laughing when they stopped to catch their breath moments later. “Now that was jolly!” he said. “I owe you one. I’m Ben Hodgins.”
    â€œScarlet McCray,” Scarlet replied. She shook Ben’s hand.
    He was about a head taller than her, with brown eyes under a flop of dirty, brown hair. “Do you live here?”
    â€œYes. Well . . . I mean, that is, I’m not . . . ,” she stammered, then sighed. “For now.”
    â€œSo you’re leaving soon?” he said.
    â€œI plan to.”
    â€œWhere are you going?”
    She paused. “I . . . I haven’t gotten that far yet.”
    Ben nodded, and Scarlet looked down at her feet. She liked his brown eyes but didn’t like them studying her. “Maybe I can help,” Ben said.
    At first she didn’t believe him—a ship full of pirate children? Impossible. But Ben insisted that such a ship did indeed exist, for he, only fifteen years old, was its captain. Still not convinced, but hopeful that he’d at least have the decency to leave her on a deserted stretch of sand somewhere, Scarlet followed him and boarded the
Margaret’s Hop
that day.
    Over the following months, she learned to tie knots, weigh anchor, steer the
Hop
, read the skies. She dressed like a demon and terrorized ships, praying she’d never have to board Admiral John McCray’s. She made loads of new friends on board, and as the weeks turned into months, Scarlet decided that the
Margaret’s Hop
was the best home she’d ever had.
    Then one day, about a year later, Ben called a meeting in Castaway Cove. Scarlet stood at his side as she often did, trying not to think about the funny feeling that she’d recently begun to have in his presence. It was a feeling of gratitude, yes, but something else, too. Something that made her gut squirm. She had just chalked it up to all the fried squid she’d eaten lately when Ben began to speak. “First I want you all to know that the Ship of Lost Souls is worth more than its captain. A captain, you see, is no better than his crew. And this is the jolliest crew that ever sailed.”
    The pirates murmured their thanks, a little embarrassed, and shuffled their bare feet in the sand.
    â€œBut as you know, the
Margaret’s Hop
is only for the young. I’m sixteen now, and I’ve decided it’s time for me to leave.”
    Some pirates gasped. Some groaned. Some remained deathly silent. Scarlet felt like she’d swallowed a rock. Ben
couldn’t
leave. What would she do without him?
    But it got worse. Ben went on to explain that one day, while stealing supplies in