Free Stormy Persuasion by Johanna Lindsey

the sailors staggering to his feet. Nathan yelled, “Wait!”—but the man named
     James turned to the sailor, while the black-haired taller one put his steely arm around
     Nathan’s shoulder again.
    It was too much. Nathan swung, catching the black-haired man completely off guard
     and connecting with his chin, taking him down. He doubted he could do the same with
     the bruiser who was now staring at Nathan with a raised brow.
    Nathan stiffened. He could probably bolt as the sailor was now doing, but he didn’t
     want this one following him.
    He broadened the distance between himself and the bruiser and, pointing to the fleeing
     sailor, quickly said, “I need answers that you and your friend are keeping me from
     getting.”
    “Then run along and get them. My brother’s going to be in the mood for a fight now,
     but not to worry—”
    Nathan didn’t wait to hear the rest. With a nod, he ducked around the strange twosome’s
     carriage, which had stopped in front of the tavern, and took off down the dock, chasing
     down the sailor. He thought he heard someone laughing behind him, but it was probably
     just someone in the tavern, and he didn’t look back.
    The sailor had ducked around a corner onto a wide street. It was dark, but not deserted.
     A good number of sailors were making their way back to their ships, some drunkenly.
     Nathan ran down the street, glancing at each man he passed. It took him a few minutes
     to spot Hammett’s sailor just as the man turned another corner.
    Swearing, Nathan reached the spot only to find a narrow alley filled with broken crates
     and other garbage. A dog barked to the left. He headed that way. He found the dog
     but the sailor was nowhere in sight. He could have entered any number of buildings
     through their rear doors. A light suddenly appeared in an upstairs window of one of
     them. He tried the door to that building and found it locked. He moved on to the next
     building. The door was unlocked and he slipped inside. The corridor he found himself
     in was dark—but not so dark he couldn’t see the shadow crouched in it.
    Nathan leapt forward and dragged the sailor outside before whoever had lit the lantern
     could come down to investigate why the dog was barking. He didn’t stop until they
     rounded another corner and he shoved the sailor up against the side of a building.
    “I distracted that bruiser so you could get away, but I’ll be finishing you off m’self
     if you don’t—”
    “Wait!” the man pleaded. “I’ll tell you what I know, just no more punches.”
    “Where is Grigg?”
    “He ain’t in town yet, but he’ll be here tomorrow for the delivery.”
    “To who?”
    “Man on the west side, runs a fancy tavern. The cap’n’s been supplying him with brandy
     off and on for a year now.”
    “Who’s the man? What’s the name of the tavern?” Nathan tightened his grip on the man’s
     shirt.
    “Don’t know. All I know is this is a big delivery, so the captain is coming to town
     himself for it. He’s got quite a few establishments here eager for the finer stuff
     that he supplies now, those that cater to the gentry. Cuts them a deal they can’t
     refuse.”
    “I need names.”
    “I don’t know, I swear! Mr. Olivey does. You should be asking him—”
    “He’s not going to be answering anything tonight, but you aren’t telling me anything
     useful either. That better change, and quickly.”
    “It was the captain who set you up. He had a man watching your crew in Southampton. You shouldn’t
     be so predictable, boyo, always coming back to the same port.”
    Nathan ignored the gloating tone for the moment. “Is that how Grigg has managed to
     avoid me?”
    “Aye, he never docks in the same place twice. But since you do, it was easy to set
     a spy on your crew when they were in Southampton. He was there when you sent your
     men that message that you needed to reload your cargo to move it to a safer spot.
     He even overheard where they