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A six-pounder cannon, hunched low by the rail

He strode toward it, the boy hurrying to follow "Davy, do you kno to fire a cannon?"

"No, Captain"

After cutting the ropes with his knife, Gray swung the cannon one hundred and eighty degrees and shoved it to the center of the quarterdeck "You’re going to learn Put your thumb here"--he indicated the vent hole at the top, and waited until Davy complied--"and don’t re Davy had dropped earlier and broke it open with his knife, pouring a good third of its contents into the cannon No tie Better to err on the side of excess Now for the cannonballs "We’ll use a double shot," he explained to Davy

"We’ll only get one try at this" Gray reached for the row of shot stored in the bulwark, only to snatch his hand back The bloody things were still scorching to the touch And worse His heart sank as he gave the row an experiether A caterpillar of iron Every profane word Gray had ever heard, read, uttered, or invented spewed forth from his mouth Don’t panic, he told hio in a cannon Anything h the sails, now lacy with flaave a sudden lurch; the deck tipped And the s remnants of the ship’s bell rolled to rest at Gray’s feet, like the answer to a prayer

Using the cuffs of his shirt to buffer the heat, he threw the lump of metal into the cannon’s mouth

Gray gestured for Davy to remove his thue of those" Davy’s straight-faced quip gave Gray a sudden surge of deter to let this boy die Creith his good hu behind the cannon, he aligned the sights with the base of theflale shot could have the entire ship exploding into flame and ash It was a desperate risk, for a desperate situation

"Stand clear, to the side," he ordered Davy "And cover your ears" Gray scra sliver of wood from the deck He touched it to the fuse, clapped his hands over his ears, and ducked

Boom

The shot ripped from the cannon’s barrel A cloud of sulfed theht through Gray’s shirt and lodging in his flesh Blinded, deafened, choked, and gagged--Gray simply waited for one of his senses to return and let him knohether or not he’d survived

The powder slowly cleared, and through the dissipating cloud, Gray saw theStill afire Burning brighter still

Gray jumped to his feet "Fall, da sound pierced the air Slowly, drunkenly, the ainly dive into the sea, severed rigging slithering behind it like eels

"Jesus Christ" Gray slumped back to his knees

And then--as if God Himself had heard him and decided to drown his blasphemous soul and be done with it--the skies opened up and vo sheets of water scoured the deck, pelting theup water like sponges Gray’s limbs were heavy with shock At last, Davy sputtered and shook hi a horizontal spray of water to the vertical deluge "Thank God" His boyish grin broke the ice encasing Gray’s own reaction

He laughed What else could he do? He ought to have died He was going to live It was either laugh or weep, and he was already soaked with enough water to float a barrel

"Don’t relax yet We’re not done" He put a hand under Davy’s arm and hauled the boy to his feet "Find any able-bodied men still aboard and forer yet A slow fireup that rum from the hold and dump it overboard Then we’ll see to the injured"

Davy paused as theythe rum overboard … Can we at least drink sohed "So could I"

Sos over the rail of the Aphrodite Joss hurried to his side "Any dead?"

"Two And three ravely wounded" Gray raked his wet hair away froboat for them There doesn’t seem to be any fire in the hold, but you knoell as I do it’s too soon to tell These things are known to flare up hours later We’ve e incendiary, just to be safe"

Joss looked up at the sky "Well, with this downpour, it seeainst the rigging and wiped his broith his forearht here?" He tried to keep his voice steady

Joss nodded "She’s in o to her"

"I don’t think she’d want that" After the way he’d deserted her earlier, he assuain

"She’s been sick orry, Gray I had to order her to go below Even then, she’d only heedafter the rain doused the blaze She