He clattered down the ladder, acknowledged the sentry's salute, and as he opened the door the dim lantern showed the hostage sitting at his desk. A woman - oh blast, she was going to complain that a seaman used bad language or pinched her bottom. She looked up, and oh God, how she looked like Sarah.

"Hello, darling," she said, and the cabin spun, and he just had time to grab the door jamb as he shut his eyes. Then he seemed to be climbing out of a deep black pit while vines or tendrils or something seemed to be touching his face, but after blinking a couple of times he found himself holding Sarah, and as she saw him recovering she said: "If you nearly faint away again at the sight of me, I shall think I'm not welcome!"

"It's the first time a wife of mine has come back from the dead," Ramage said weakly. "But kiss me, and I'm not moving until my lips are so bruised that you have a rest and tell me how you got here."

Some quarter of an hour later, when they were both sitting on the settee, Sarah told her story.

"Well, two days after the Murex left the fleet, taking me to Plymouth, she was captured by a French privateer from Toulon. They were terrible men - reminding me of those pirates at Isla Trinidada. I had time to throw away any papers that might identify me - I thought they might try to get a ransom.

"In a way we were lucky because as they sailed the Murexback to Toulon, and we were somewhere off Cartagena, a French frigate arrived and took us off and put a prize crew on board the Murex.

"I guessed it was not a good idea to say I was your wife, so I called myself Miss Mary Smith. Anyway, I was taken to Toulon where there were many women détenues, as the French call civilians who were caught in France and regarded as prisoners.

"Unfortunately, one of these détenues recognized me, and told the French who I was. Who I was before I was married, I mean.

"Anyway, two weeks later the French told me that I was in a special category, an 'otage', and at the Emperor's order I was to be taken to join others in this category. So I was taken along the coast to Italy... what a journey! But I continued calling myself 'Mary Smith', so none of the other women hostages at the new prison knew who I was. That was why, incidentally, Sir Henry had no idea that his wife was sharing a room with Captain Ramage's wife."

"But you've told them now?"

"No. Aitken recognized me but, bless him, he saw me shake my head, and said nothing. He made sure I was on board first, and your Mr Kenton caught on very quickly and got me down here before any of the other women came on board. Sir Henry and the other hostages were so anxious to see if their wives had been saved that - well, they did not notice me."

She turned and, holding Ramage's face in her hands, gave him another kiss. "That's for saving me from those wretched pirates at Isla Trinidada." She kissed him again. "That's for marrying me." She kissed him a third time. "And that's for rescuing me this time. Can we go home to England now - in the Calypso?I remember your cot is just big enough to be uno letto matrimoniale. You see, I've learned some Italian!"

"Yes," he said, "I'll teach you some more."