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Thompson's Bounty: A Ship Out of Time
Thompson's Bounty: A Ship Out of Time
Thompson's Bounty: A Ship Out of Time
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Thompson's Bounty: A Ship Out of Time

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A ruthless pirate. An English admiral out for vengeance. A Coast Guard cutter out of time and thrust into the middle of a mortal conflict between two very angry men....

Today. Stephen Thompson is a man with a problem. You wouldn't know it by looking at him: A young, brash commander of the Coast Guard cutter USS Melbourne. By all accounts, he should have his whole life ahead of him.

1579. Captain Stone is also a man with a problem. The former XO to a ruthless English captain, Stone is now the captain of his own vessel, the Eustace, a pirate ship prowling the seas of the Caribbean. Now he spends his days eluding his former captain, now Admiral Deadmon, a man who will stop at nothing to wreak havoc upon his former XO as mortal vengeance. As both of them know, it is only a matter of time before Deadmon's ship of the line comes in contact with the Eustace.

But Stone has one card left to play before Deadmon catches up with him: A secret that allows the Eustace to travel through time, pulling an unsuspecting Coast Guard cutter back through time with it.

Thompson, out of time and out of place, finds himself in the middle of an ageless rivalry between two very angry men. Slowly, Thompson's intentions to survive and protect his crew begin to give way to crossing grey lines of morality, as the only way home lies in the trust of a very elusive pirate captain who may hold the key to the greatest bounty of history.

LanguageEnglish
PublisherDuane Gundrum
Release dateJan 2, 2014
ISBN9781497724914
Thompson's Bounty: A Ship Out of Time
Author

Duane Gundrum

Possibly the greatest translator to ever live, Duane Gundrum can speak 35 words of at least two different languages fluently. When sober, he can walk a straight line and not fall down once. Well, once, but he still thinks he was tripped. Always fascinated by the Greek Trojans, he wonders why they couldn't have gone with a different name instead of stealing USC's mascot for their own. He lives in Grand Rapids, Michigan, but don't tell anyone. You know that whole restraining order thing....

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  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    If you are a fan of Time Travel stories you'll enjoy this book. It's bout a pirate ship from the 1500's that discovered the secret of traveling into the future to lure a US Coast Guard vessel back in time to help a pirate, Captain Stone take revenge on an English captain of a Man-o-War who had killed Capt. Stone's family. Lots of action. Its a quick read and one that's hard to put done.

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Thompson's Bounty - Duane Gundrum

About Thompson’s Bounty

The book runs about 284 pages in book form and consists of 71,000 words.

Also by Duane Gundrum

NOVELS

THE TEDDY BEAR CONSPIRACY

INNOCENT UNTIL PROVEN GUITY

LOSER

DESTINY

ABSENT WITHOUT LEAVE (AWOL)

DEADLY DECEPTIONS

THOMPSON’S BOUNTY: A SHIP OUT OF TIME

THE AMERIAD

NOVELLAS

BETWEEN A LAUGH AND A SCREAM

ALL ROADS LEAD TO PINE BUSH

MAPPING THE SILENCE OF DREAMS

THE SHADOW PEOPLE

SHORT STORY COLLECTIONS

DARKENED PASSAGES

POETRY

LICENSE TO QUILL

SHORT STORIES

THE BEAST OF BEGMIRE

BURIED MEMORIES

NONFICTION

NEO REVOLUTIONARY MESSAGES

Thompson’s Bounty-TITLE PAGE

The character and events portrayed in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.

Text copyright 2008 © Duane Gundrum

No part of this book may be reproduced, or stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without express permission of the copyright holder.

PROLOGUE:  NORTH ATLANTIC OCEAN, 1592

The waves crashed against the frame of the wooden brigantine, splashing water over the main deck.  A young watchman, standing on deck with his eyes searching the dark waters that were dimly lit by the silhouette of the full moon, turned just in time to see the gush of water that had exploded over the portside rail.  The roaring waters grabbed him and threw him into the forecastle where most of the men were bedded down for the night.  Grabbing onto the stairway railing, he held on for dear life as more water roared over him, choking him as he attempted to breathe through its hindrance.  However, fate was with him on this day as the wind caught the forward sail and whipped the ship backwards, halting it as it moved forward, nearly ripping the main port boarding from its housing.  As the ship turned dead in the water, the water on deck rushed towards the stern, leaving the young watchman to cling to the rail for no apparent reason.

One of the crewmen from the forecastle rushed up the stairs, slipping several times over the water that had splattered in his path.  He reached the top of the stairway and looked down at the young watchman.  Charles, said the man.  Are you all right?

The young man realized his arm was still wrapped tight around the railing.  He looked up at the man, a middle-aged man in a red and white, horizontally striped shirt and standard black pants.  The man smiled, revealing the four teeth that remained in his mouth, as he realized that the watchman Charles was all right.

He climbed down the stairway, keeping an eye on the railing to insure the water didn't come charging over at him now that he was on deck.  At the bottom of the stairs, he put out his hand for Charles to take.  Prying the young man's hands from the railing, he helped him to his feet.

Damn, Englishman, said the man in the red and white shirt.  Your kind never learns, does it?  If the ship hadn't turned, you'd be dead by now.

I'm fortunate, said Charles.

You're stupid, said the man.  Haven't I told you before not to take any chances like this?

Yes, but—

He swung his fist and hit Charles on the side of the head, knocking him to the deck.  No, buts.  When the storm comes, you get your scurvy behind up in the nest.  It's the safest place on the ship.

He stood back up and glanced at the nest.  But it's so damn high.

The older man hit him in the same spot again, knocking him down one more time.  I said there will be no more buts.  You'll live longer in the nest than you will on the deck.  He reached down and grabbed Charles by the hand, helping him up off the deck.  Now, get up there and hurry before the ship turns into the wind again.  If this storm doesn't rip us apart, it will certainly throw you off the deck instead.

How come the captain's turning us into the wind? said Charles.  Isn't that dangerous?

Of course it's dangerous, said the man.  The captain wants to go north.  The wind is going south.  That doesn't give us much of a choice, does it?

Before Charles could say anything, the older man pushed him towards the rope ladder that reached up to the crow's nest, a little round box way above the ship that was used to spot land or nearby ships.  Without looking back at his friend, Charles climbed the ladder and kept his eyes on the surrounding sea.

Once Charles was in the nest, the older man smiled to himself and then climbed the stairs that led into the forecastle.  He, too, didn't relish the thought of being caught on deck during the storm, especially when the captain was steering the ship into the wind.

If there was anything that Charles hated about watchman duty it was the damn cold.  Regardless of whether it was Winter or Summer, it was always cold in the middle of the night.  That was a fact virtually anywhere on the North Atlantic Ocean.  The overcoat given to him by Dwight, his mentor at sea, helped but it just never seemed to be enough.

From the position of the moon and the stars, it was three hours until first light.  With the moon at full phase, however, he was able to see much of what was out on the water.

When the storm passed over them to punish the land to the west, land that would eventually become the landmass known as Upper Quebec, the water became very calm, and the wind started blowing to the north.  It was as if the gods had decided to finally show a little sympathy to the ragtag crew of the Eustace.

Before he could give that thought any more consideration, his eyes focused on an object that was closing distance behind the Eustace.  Looking again, he realized that the object was a ship, and a large one, too.

Ship! he screamed as loud as he could.  There's a ship coming from astern!

The first person to show himself on deck was the assistant navigator, one of the nine officers on the ship.  He glanced up at Charles for a couple of seconds before he climbed a rope ladder himself to where he could get a good view of what Charles was talking about.  Once he saw it, he jumped down from the rope and ordered one of his men to wake the captain and the first mate.

The captain, a large man, but surprisingly young, appeared on the deck several minutes later and brushed back his short blond hair, placing a cocked naval hat onto his head.  Dressed otherwise in only his pants, he threw on a white shirt and jacket and then took his place on the bow where he could see where he was going and also check the status of the ship coming from behind.

Charles climbed down from the nest as the rest of the men rushed onto the deck from the forecastle.  While no one knew for sure what was going to happen, each person was aware of the fact that a battle was probably about to take place.  Because of that, Charles took a position with his mentor near one of the portside 24-pound cannons.  Looking around, he watched as the rest of the crewmembers took positions around him, manning cannons of their own.

The other ship appeared to be much quicker than the Eustace as it closed the distance between the two ships.  The Eustace's captain, listening to reports from his battle officers, ordered the ship brought about, knowing that escape was not going to come to them on this date.  They were going to have to face the much larger ship.

The guidon bearer, a young man who remained near the captain's side, reached into a cabinet near the captain's battle position.  Captain Stone, which guidon will we be flying?

Captain Stone rubbed his fresh beard with his fingers for a couple of seconds as he stared out at the ship that was coming in towards them.  Dutch, he said.

The guidon bearer stared at him for a second before he searched and found the appropriate flag.  Lining it up on the flag rope, he used the pulley to set the flag in place.  In seconds, the Eustace was flying the Dutch colors.

Can you see their colors? said the captain to one of his battle officers.

The officer shook his head no.  No, captain.  They are coming straight at us.  The wind keeps the flag from being revealed to us.

Damn, he said.  Let us pray that it's not English.

Another man came up from the lower deck.  He stepped over to Captain Stone and spoke in a voice that did nothing to hide the Spanish heritage of the speaker.  We are not going to be able to escape if it is an English ship.  We might be able to handle a Spanish galleon, but not an English warship.

Rodriguez, said Captain Stone to his executive officer.  Could it be anything else?

He shook his head no.  Doubtful.  It's too big to be anything else.

A voice echoed over the deck from one of the lookouts.  Approaching vessel is flying English colors.

Captain Stone sighed.  Very well, he said to Rodriguez.  Prepare the men for battle.

Rodriguez stared at Stone for a couple of seconds before he spoke again.  Captain Stone, there is another way.

I'm open to any suggestion, said Captain Stone, the exhaustion of many previous battles showing over his face.

The ice continent is very close to this position.  It is possible for us to break into a pocket cove that is only several knots from here.

What good would that do us?

We can hide there until the English ship continues.  If we're lucky, it will give us enough time to escape.

If that's an English ship out there, it's probably looking for us.  It won't do us much good to hide.  Once we break out into open water, it will follow right after us.  We won't be much better off than we are right now.

If we can put some distance between our ships before they attempt a chase again, we might be able to reach the Spanish territories.  They would be crazy to follow us there.

That's because we'd be crazy to go there ourselves.  The Spanish admirals have no love for us either.

It may be our only chance, said Rodriguez.

Captain Stone sighed.  Very well.  Set course for the ice continent.  If we die, I hold you responsible.

Catching the sour attempt at humor, Rodriguez turned to relay the order to the men.

As Captain Stone gave out orders to his crew, he continued to stare at the shadow of the ship that was following close behind them.  With full sail, the Eustace was able to maintain a constant ratio of distance, but with each hour that passed, the shadow ship came closer and closer to them.

Can you see its name? said Captain Stone as he stood behind one of his lookouts.

No, Captain.  It is still too far.

Rodriguez walked up behind Captain Stone.  "It is very doubtful that it is he who mans that ship out there."

I beg to differ with you, my friend.  Captain Deadmon is very resourceful, and he has never given up the chase.  If there's anyone out there who is able to track us, it is he.

Crown affairs have surely brought him back home, said Rodriguez.  England is in a state of war.  Ever since Sir Greenville was killed in the fight of the Revenge, England has vowed to have its vengeance on what is left of the Spanish Fleet.

The Azores were insignificant compared to what England would let Captain Deadmon do if he had his way.  The Spanish Fleet at the Azores means nothing to him.  He wants to fight the French.  To him, there is nothing as honorable as the war England is destined to fight with France.

As you have just said, Captain Deadmon's affairs bring him completely out of our concerns.

Then who is manning that ship out there?

The Spaniard thought to himself for a moment.  It is probably some captain who spotted our vessel during the storm.  He is probably following us out of some type of curiosity.

But that is an English warship.  They don't follow Dutch vessels out of curiosity.

Rodriguez laughed.  But we are not Dutch.

He doesn't know that.

If he is a trained captain, he knows better than to take our Dutch flag as our bond.  In case you haven't heard, there are pirates in these waters.

A smile came to Captain Stone's face.  Mercy, my friend, let us pray we never come up against any of these pirates.

The two of them laughed as the guidon bearer walked behind them with a black flag in his hands.  As he unfolded it, the flag revealed the sinister icon of a skull with crossed swords, the pirate flag of the Eustace, a vessel of death.

The Eustace reached the first pocket of the ice continent later that day.  The sun was shining, so it was quite obvious that the ship was following directly behind them.  However, they skirted the land of the continent, knowing the other ship would follow.  Once night came over the skyline, the Eustace was pushed further north across the western coast until the landmass turned enough to be used as shelter against the approaching vessel.  During one of the turns, Rodriguez gave the order for the ship to turn into a pocket and continue towards the land.  Once they reached land, the crewmembers of the Eustace leaped off the ship and rummaged up what little foliage that could be found.  In only minutes, the Eustace appeared to be part of the pocket's coast.

The other ship made the turn several minutes after the Eustace was disguised.  The ship's captain, assuming the Eustace had continued northward in an attempt to escape by stealth, gave the order for his ship to continue north.  The captain was destined to catch the other ship before it was able to escape from him.

Captain Stone and Rodriguez watched the dark ship disappear around the cove until it could no longer be seen.  Knowing that they were only safe as long as they put as much distance between themselves and the English vessel, they left the pocket cove and continued in a southern direction.

For several of hours of darkness, the Eustace traveled in silence.  Not a single crewmember made a single noise, as if the English vessel would hear them over many knots.  After a while, the land curved northwards again.

Rodriguez turned to Captain Stone.  What do you think we should do?

Captain Stone thought to himself for a moment.  Once the English captain realizes that we tricked him, he's going to come flying back this way to look for us.  While I'd like to get away from this continent and go south, I'm apprehensive because I don't want us to be caught now that we've almost escaped.

From our charts, we appear to be very close to the English Isles.  We could make a break for them.

Captain Stone leaned against one of the cannons.  No.  That's exactly what an English captain would expect us to do.

Then what do you plan to do? said Rodriguez.

Continue north up the eastern coast of this continent.  We'll find a place to rest for the rest of the night once we've put enough distance between this spot and ourselves.  After that, we should be safe.

But we know nothing of this area.  Our scouts have never even traveled here.  We would be completely without information of these waters.

That's what makes it the logical choice for us.  If we know nothing, they know nothing.  They won't follow us.

Very well, Captain, he said as he turned and gave the order.

Several hours later, Captain Stone gave the order for the Eustace to turn into a cove where the crew would spend the night before traveling the next day.  While the atmosphere was cold, the crew remained on board and worked scheduled guard shifts, but there was no sign of the English ship.  On the next day, they continued moving north.

Captain Stone turned to Rodriguez.  Insure that our navigator is charting these waters.  We are probably the first.

And probably the last, muttered the first mate under his breath.

When the second day started turning to night, the captain ordered the ship into another cove.  As the ship moved forward, the crewmembers realized there was something about this cove that was different than the rest.

In this cove, there was a cave that extended right from the water.  It was large enough so that the whole ship could slip into it.

Rodriguez turned to Captain Stone.  Should we?

A smile came to Captain Stone's face.  How can we resist?  We're adventurers, aren't we?  We need a place to rest.  Why not choose a place that might be warmer than the outside air?

I don't know, said Rodriguez.  I have a bad feeling about this.

Ignoring Rodriguez, Captain Stone gave the order for the navigator to steer the ship into the cave.  The navigator, not about to question an order, moved the rudder and the ship began to sail slowly into the darkness of the cave.

For a long time, no one said a word.  Then the voice of the forward lookout spoke out.  Captain!  Another ship!

Captain Stone stared at the lookout for a long time, searching the waters for another ship that was closing in on them.  Where?

There! screamed the forward lookout.  In the cave!

Both Captain Stone and Rodriguez stared forward into the cave.  As the Eustace moved closer, they stared with horror in their eyes.  Never before had they seen a ship like this one.

Do you see it? said Rodriguez to Stone.

Stone nodded his head yes.

What does it mean?

It means we've found what we've been looking for.

Rodriguez just continued staring at Stone.  Until this moment, he never even realized they were looking for something.

However, according to Stone, they just found it. And what a find it was.

CHAPTER I: The Caribbean

Lieutenant Junior Grade Jack Kardon stared out at the calm waters for a long time before he turned to Derek Domovich, the boatswain's mate.  Rotate the watch.

Aye, said the young man as he left the officer's side to relay the orders.  As the boatswain's mate on the 82-foot cutter Melbourne, much of his duties stretched into what should have been taken care of by others, but there were no others to take care of those duties.  Therefore, they were left up to the boatswain's mate.  Such was the life of a young man in the present-day Coast Guard.

Another man walked across the deck to LJG Kardon.  Well, Jack, what do we have?

Jack pointed out at the object he had been watching for the last couple of minutes, an object that had been pointed out by one of his crewmembers.  It looks like a small yacht.  What do you think, Lieutenant?

Lieutenant Stephen Thompson shaded his eyes with his hand to keep out the sun.  I don't know, he said.  It could be a yacht.  Why don't we go check it out?

Henry's already turning the boat, he said.  Henry Heuer was the navigator/handyman on the Melbourne.  With such a small crew, everyone had to take several duties that would normally be maintained by others on a much larger ship.

Thompson shielded his eyes again and looked.  From what he could see, there was a small object out on the water.  It didn't appear to be under its own power, and it wasn't moving.  What do you think? he said.

We've had cases where smugglers have taken over luxury yachts, said Jack.  We shouldn't chance anything.

Thompson nodded his head.  Go to general quarters.

Aye, said Jack as he turned to Boatswain's Mate Derek Domavich who had just returned from rotating the crew.  We're going to general quarters.

Derek's eyes opened wide for a second.  Every time he heard that order, he knew something was going to happen.  However, he took little time to reveal that the order concerned him.  Before the order could be repeated, he turned to sound the alarm.

As the ten-man crew began congregating on the deck, each man taking his individual position, Thompson went below to where Charles Fu was monitoring the two-way radio.  Anything?

Nothing, sir, said Charles.

Thompson stared at the young man.  Charles Fu was in his early twenties, and he was already setting a reputation for himself in the Coast Guard.  When he reported to his first ship, his skipper had no way of knowing he was getting an electronics wizard, but during a drug smuggling raid that went sour, the radio had been shot out and the Coast Guard 44-foot ship was outnumbered and outgunned by the smugglers.  Charles, a recruit seaman at this time, ignored textbook orders and ripped apart the radio, repairing it well enough that he was able to put out a distress call before the circuits fried and exploded.  The boat commander had screamed at the young seaman, but before the ship could be

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