And her Captain? I was trembling, but there he was climbing into the boat.
The people were cheering madly. The news was all over the country. Bonfires were burning, bells were ringing. The Spanish Armada was broken and defeated. Some of those ships were drifting out into the ocean, some were being washed up on our shores. Few would return to Spain.
It was victory; and we owed it to our English seamen.
There was Jake. I ran to him and threw my arms about him. His eyes were shining.
“God’s Death!” he cried. “We’ve done it, Cat! We’ve wiped them off the seas! They’re finished. This is the end of Spanish power. It’s the beginning of ours. We’re going to be masters of the sea and the new lands. This is a day to be proud of. Yes, this is the day of triumph. The day of the Lion… My family, Cat, and my ships, my Triumphant Lion, this is the greatest day they have known. And the English Lion too, Cat, master of the seas! This is the triumph of the lions.”
I laughed at him. “You seem contented with your life this day, Jake Pennlyon.”
“Never more in my life.”
“If only you had a legitimate son, you’d be completely content.”
He looked at Linnet. “God’s Death!” he said. “I reckon my girl Linnet is as good as any son.”
She came to us then and slipped her arm through his; and the three of us walked home together.