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Such fear as she had never known…caught on the edge of a smoldering night. A night that had no end. One minute felt like two hours. The candle had hardly burned down. In this dark corner she hid, behind a door without dignity. That material object that opens for all men, unnoticed. How she wanted that door. How tight her hand was around her dagger. If it hadn’t been for the object’s purpose, she would have forgotten about it. His knuckles were white and his whole body was shaking. She hoped they couldn’t smell her fear, because she was drenched in him.

He heard her footsteps along the wooden hallway. All her ears found above the sound of the rain was utter and utter silence. There was no sound before her hand closed around her mouth and the smell of oil and blood and canvas insulted her own senses. She didn’t have time to think as her hands were clamped behind her back and she was pushed into the hallway. “I have her captain. Hiding behind the door was her. Thinking that would help her.” Her breathing was dangerously close to hers and she turned her head until the Captain came over in a quick movement laughing so hard he might burst, but unfortunately he didn’t. “You are too bold, lass. He grabs the daggers and runs away.

Why we’ve been nothing but good to you since we took you away from that piece of salvage you call home. We will be nothing more than treating you as a girl should be treated. That’s not being nice to the men who take care of you. I killed you for nothing daddy when we took care of you.” Caressing her face in such a way that she knew what it meant to “take care” of you and she couldn’t think of that or her father’s sweet face or she would surely go crazy. A man to whom she didn’t necessarily know her well, but she always had enough mint chocolate kisses to give her, hugs if she needed them, and lots of good stories.A mystery man who meant more than anything to her.Because he was a fond memory.

All the pirates chuckled and wiped their mouths with low stars and she knew what that meant. She knew what it meant for three weeks. She saw above it all. She believed that she would run away. She wasn’t meant to die with a band of dirty pirates. She was born to noble royalty. She was meant to die comfortably, with no memories of fear or sadness. That perfect image that her father had waited for her before he was murdered disappeared. Slow tears rolled down her cheeks, but the makeup of her face was still intact. “Crying? Well, I’ve never seen that in you before, but it makes you feel good. Once we get you to the ship, then we’ll be talking more nicely. After all, I’m your captain, aren’t I?” Me, little lass?” As she walked away a shot rang out. She felt the life of her slip away and she was surprised at the relief.

Opening her eyes from the clamor, she realized that she was not the one who had been shot. More shots rang out as she fell to the ground and she felt the world slip away from her. Waking her up, she felt herself rise like an angel above a strong hand. When she looked up, she swore that she saw the face of God. Instead, she saw a soldier. “You are safe, fear not Lady Anne, everything will be fine. Float on a billion clouds and may God grant you a safe sleep.” She slipped away she did and into a land of dreams that, while not the purest of dreams, stood far above all else in the arms of comfort.

“Lady Anne’s Mint Chocolate Kisses”*

Ingredients: ½ cup all-purpose flour, ½ cup whole wheat flour, ½ cup soft margarine, 1/3 cup margarine, 2 tablespoons cocoa powder, 5 oz coarsely chopped dark chocolate, 1/8 teaspoon salt, 2 teaspoons peppermint extract, 1/8 cup sugar, 1/8 cup Splenda, 7 oz coarsely chopped white chocolate, 1 egg, and ½ cup heavy cream.

1) Mix the flours, cocoa and salt. Beat softened margarine and sugar in a large bowl on medium speed until creamy. Add 1 teaspoon of peppermint extract and the egg; beating just until combined. Mix the dry ingredients. Press the dough into a disk, wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2) Butter two cookie sheets. Roll out the dough on a floured surface until it is 1/8-inch thick. Use a 2-inch cookie cutter to cut out the cookies. Gather the dough scraps, reroll and continue cutting cookies until all the dough is used. Transfer cookies to cookie sheets, placing them 1-inch apart. Bake for about 6 minutes or until firm. Transfer to racks and let cool completely.

3) Bring the cream to a boil over low heat. Remove from heat and stir in white chocolate until melted. Add the rest of the mint extract and transfer to a medium bowl. Cool for about 30 minutes. Glue the cookies in pairs with filling.

4) Melt the chocolate and margarine in a bain-marie over barely boiling water. Spread over cookies and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

5) Enjoy the soft surprise of these peppermint cookies.

*Cookies recipe base and then molded from there.

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