Part 1: Chs. 1-9 Summary

Chapter 1

Boston. December 1, 1805. Jacky Farber pulls her boat, the Morning Star, into Boston Harbor. She relates that she has come all the way from Cape Trafalgar, Spain, and is certain the Americans don't know about the battle yet, because she sees British ships in the harbor. She has a bounty on her head and hopes no one sees her as more than just a simple fisherman's daughter. Jim Tanner, a wharf rat, meets her and asks if he can take care of her boat in exchange for money. Jacky hires him to move her boat, changes into women's clothing and sets off into Boston. She tells Jim her name is Nancy Alsop.

Chapter 2

Jacky remembers her escape from the Battle of Trafalgar and leaving her beloved, Jaimy, Lieutenant James Emerson Fletcher. She intimates that she had been wearing a...