Oh, whatever! Couldn't resist - here's the second chapter, mates! (Wind in the sails)

Elizabeth woke suddenly, her eyes popping wide-open, and nearly blinded by the soft light of the candle next to her bed. She blinked frantically, trying to see anything at all. At first she couldn't think clearly, still in a sleeping mode, but after a couple of minutes she started to wake up properly.

She slowly sat up in the big bed, felt the sheets daub around her legs and her nightgown fall heavily against her chest. Her hair was all in a mess, falling in stripes all about her face. Even if she was now awake, she was in a cold sweat and her entire body was shaking. She frowned, wondering why she had waked up. And why was she in such a mess? Except for those times she had been sick, she had always slept peacefully and still. She could fall asleep and wake up in exactly the same position the very next day.

So what was this all about? She tried to remember anything at all from a possible nightmare, but nothing came to mind. The room was all quiet and dark, except for the glowing candle beside her. No voices or movements from the servants in the house could be heard.

It was night in the Governors residence, and Elizabeth should be asleep.

So why wasn't she?

She started to freeze, and instinctively she put the blankets away when she saw that the place next to her was empty. Her husband's half long, curly brown hair didn't cover the pillow and his left leg didn't rest on the blanket.

To her own surprise she didn't get scared, not even before she remembered that he had told her the day before that he would probably be late. He was still at the forge, working with that sword that never wanted to be done. She sighed, tried to relax but started to shiver even more.

With a deep breath she got out of the bed, put her arms around herself and looked at the curtains that covered the big window.

Something told her to go over there; something wanted her to draw back the curtains. A small, quiet voice inside her head whispered to her. A voice we never can explain, but still it's there.

So she followed the voice, and meanwhile she stepped over to the window she shivered even more.

William, why are you not here now? she thought, suddenly scared for the voice and the fact that she was alone in the room. Sometimes she could wake up after terrible nightmares, crying or screaming or just terrified. Will had held her through it all, dried her tears and whispered calmly to her. They seldom spoke those nights, and Elizabeth appreciated that he never asked her anything. She knew that he didn't have to, he did already know. Ever since that horrible day, when Elizabeth left the Black Pearl with William and the crew, she could just drift away where William could never follow. She could just stare straight out into the air in front of her.

She had killed a man. A pirate, that's true, but even so a man. A good man.

When she came to think about it, she and Will seldom spoke at all. They told each other good morning, good night and asked how they were. Sometimes they said 'I love you', but nothing more. The dinners were always occupied by her father and all the friends that he invited. The newly married pair just understood each other in a way where they didn't need the words. But she missed the tender looks, the smiles and the free conversations. It was like Will stepped aside, not to be in her way and make her sad. He told her that he was going to work late and begged her not to wait for him. And Elizabeth didn't say anything, just tried not to think about anything at all.

Elizabeth stopped just a meter from the window, shivering like never before. Her breathing was heavy and she almost found it hard to get any air. She didn't know if it was because of her thoughts or the voice inside her head, but the pain grew inside of her. She swallowed and tried not to cry. She didn't want to cry.

William, why are you not here now?

She took a deep breath, lifted her arms and separated the long and heavy curtains. Through the thick glass she could see the harbour completely covered by a mist, and when she moved closer to the pane she could feel a terrible cold hit her face. She stared at the city down below, but she could barely see a thing.

Elizabeth lifted her hand to the handle, and she watched it like it was someone else that controlled her body. She held her breath as she opened the window, and the terribly icy midnight air made its way into the room. She panted, let go of the handle and took two steps backwards. The mist followed the air, through the window and down the floor. Elizabeth shuddered as she felt it stroke her feet.

Slowly it found its way up her legs, underneath her night-gown. She froze into the floor, with her arms around herself. She closed her eyes, taking deep breaths and trying to calm down.

Suddenly she felt a slight touch against her cheek. It didn't feel like the wind, or the shivers.

It was like someone was touching her, caressing her with light fingertips. It was so familiar, so much like…

She opened her eyes and almost lost her breath. "Jack!"

She reached for her dressing gown, hastened to get it on her and rushed over to the door. She gripped the door handle and pressed it down with such a power that she almost flew out of her room out in the hallway. She panted, scared and zealous at the same time. She started to run through the long corridors, searched with her eyes after the stairs. It was like she didn't recognize her own home anymore, and the way to the staircase seemed to never end.

She ran past the Governors bedroom, his office and all the guestrooms. The flames of the still burning candles swung back and forth when she passed them. When she almost reached the end of the corridor one of the servants, Mary, looked out from one of the guestrooms and shouted after her matron, "Mrs. Turner!"

But Elizabeth didn't notice. She just ran and ran, and she thought that she would never stop. All she could think about was the small hope that Jack was still alive, and she knew that if he were he would be here this night.

She closed her eyes for just a second and pictured her face so close to the pirate captain aboard the Pearl. The deck was empty; all the men in the crew had left the condemned ship. The heart pounded so hard inside her chest, it almost left its place. She didn't want to do this. She could feel how the words tasted so badly in her mouth, how the lies ate her up from inside.

He was a good man. She was thankful for his return. But she didn't want to leave him like this, and she was sorry. Sorrier than he could ever imagined.

Elizabeth looked at the floor in front of her, ran as fast as she could. She tried not to slow down, even if she still wasn't truly awake.

She remembered the time that she had spent on the Pearl, so free she had been. All the manners and the etiquette were totally blown away. She could just walk around in a pair of breeches and a shirt, not feeling awkward or embarrassed at all. The men didn't expect her to be anything special and there were no women to look down on her.

And Jack, the captain and the most respected man on the ship, had shown her the same respect just as if they were a real gentleman meeting a lady.

She finally reached the stairs, took a deep breath and was just about to take the first step when she stopped.

But he lied. Jack told me that William had been taken into Davy Jones's crew, and he didn't have anything to do with it.

Yes, but he returned to Black Pearl when we were attacked by the Kraken.

He left us.

But he came back!

She shook her head and started to run down the stairs, but the thoughts caught her up even when she moved. And now it was her reason; who was she about to meet in the middle of the night, exactly? Was it her husband? No. Was it a girl friend in need? No.

She was out to meet Captain Jack Sparrow, the man who had been dead for several months and she hadn't even been married to him. He was just another man in her life, a man who became a good and loyal friend to both her and her husband. She had never felt anything for him, nothing else than some kind of symmetrical friendship.

She slowed down, taking short steps as she tried to focus on her mind. What was she doing? Why did she run through the hallway in the middle of the night, scared and hopeful that the pirate would be standing right at her doorstep? She was completely insane if she thought that…

But the feeling, and the voice. Something was about to happen this cold and misty night, and the feeling we all know but can't explain told her that Jack was on his way. Right now, in the dark at the streets of Port Royal. Her hometown since she was twelve, and this feeling – whatever it was – told her that Jack was looking for her.

She got to the bottom of the stairs, bit her lip and hasted her steps to the door in front of her. She put her hand on the handle and was just about to open, when she heard steps behind her.

"Madame, is something wrong?" Elizabeth stopped in one move and looked back over her shoulder. Mary stood on the last step of the stairs, with her hands tied above her apron and her eyes looking worried at her housemother. Elizabeth didn't speak, not knowing what to say. She was so mixed up by the memories, emotions and thoughts that the question seemed too hard to answer.

Mary saw how Elizabeth trembled with her hand at the handle, and she hurried towards the young woman to see if she was all right. It was unique that Mrs. Turner didn't sleep at night.

"Are you not feeling well, Madame?" she asked, and put a light hand on Elizabeth's arm.

Elizabeth shook her head, and suddenly she was close to tears. She blinked and looked back at the handle, let go of it. "No, I'm fine, she whispered in one breath. I just… I thought someone was at the door."

"Well, if there was anybody outside I would have looked after them, I can assure you Madame," Mary said with a calming voice. "You should go to bed now, before the Governor or Master William sees you like this. And you need some sleep, you look terribly tired, Madame!"

Elizabeth didn't answer this time either; she just looked at the handle and thought about what she would do next. So easy it was just to open the door, rush out in the fog and down the streets to see if he was there. Maybe she could…

What? What could she do? She was a married woman, running around in her nightdress and searching for a man she killed four months ago? What was she thinking? Jack meant nothing to her, and even if he did he was dead. She was just tired, that's all. She needed to sleep; thoughts of Captain Jack Sparrow just made her confused and sick.

Sleep and wait for Will. That was her life.

"Madame?" Mary softly shook Elizabeth's arm, and Elizabeth looked at her servant. She took a deep breath and nodded slowly.

"Yes, I guess I need some sleep," she said in a low voice. "I don't know what's gotten into me."

She let herself be led upstairs by the maid, and Mary whispered quiet words to calm the still shivering Elizabeth. But Elizabeth didn't hear her; the only thing that she heard was her own thoughts and the conflict she felt inside.