Will,
The trip made him sick. I walked hours to get to Port Royale to see their physician. He says he cannot help. I just make sure he's fed and keep him comfortable now. When he's hot I take him outside and we lay in the grass. When he's cold he sleeps beside me in the bed, bundled in an extra blanket. If it comes to it … if I know he's going to disappear … I promise I will take him out on the boat so that you can ferry him to the other side. You deserve to see him. Even if he's dead. If he dies I don't know if I could ever forgive myself.
Elizabeth
Will,
As you might have noticed from his lack of presence in your waters, he's survived it. Although it did get so bad that I took him out on the boat, preparing for the worst. It was the middle of the night, when the moon was high and the seas were calm. I was certain he didn't have long. So I held him in my arms and we laid in the boat with the anchor down. He didn't cry. He just asked to hear our story. The whole thing. I believe his exact words were "the whole story mummy, not the baby version. I'm not a baby anymore."
So I did. I gave him the full story of how you and I met, fell in love, and eventually married. I told him how you had resisted becoming a pirate. I told him that his grandfather was a pirate. I told Henry about our interrupted wedding day. I told him the bitter truth of our actual marriage, and how you had nearly died just moments after we were married. I told him how Bootstrap saved your life by making you captain of the Dutchman. I cried a lot. He didn't say anything.
But when I finished telling the story, he pulled himself out of my arms and leaned over the boat to put his hands in the water. I could hear him whispering, "Thank you for loving mummy. Thank you for loving me. Please keep us safe, daddy. And ocean, please keep daddy safe so that I can meet him someday." Since then, he's been fine. I don't know if it was magic or what. But nothing is impossible. We would know.
Love,
Elizabeth
Dear Will,
After years of horrible luck, it would seem God's graced us with a blessing. And it's about time. Henry and I have been living in an abandoned shack near where I last saw you. I tried to make it habitable, and I did to an extent. Anyway, we have been living here for only a year (side note, Henry's 6th birthday is coming up in a month or so - July 28th) but somehow people in Port Royale knew we were here. Word must have spread when I had rushed into town to see the terrible surgeon they had there. Either way, a member of the governor's guard appeared a week ago and told me I was formally invited to a meeting with the governor himself. Keep in mind, I have no idea who the Governor is, I had never met him. I didn't even know his name.
But I agreed to see him. I didn't know what to expect, but I knew better than to refuse the company of a governor. I took Henry with me, since there was nobody who could have watched him for me. When we arrived, the governor himself greeted us in the foyer and sat us in his office. He was very polite and kind to us, which baffled me. This is essentially the conversation we had:
"I had heard word that there was a woman with a child living on the edge of the island, far out of the city limits."
"Yes, that would be us. Have we done something wrong by living out of the city?"
"No, no. Nothing wrong. I had simply heard of you, and I inquired. I asked around for information. Just to figure out whether or not you posed a threat to me or my people. The only person who could tell me anything was my surgeon. He told me your name was Elizabeth and your son's name was Henry. He couldn't recall a surname. But I didn't need one. A woman, approximately in her twenties, named Elizabeth, living just outside of Port Royale. I quickly figured it out. Elizabeth Swann," He said it with such conviction. He was so self satisfied at having deduced my maiden name, "I have been looking for you for some time now."
"And why might that be?"
"Well, when you were moved out of this estate and I took over there was little we needed to say to one another. However, it was shortly after you left that we discovered Former Governor Weatherby Swann had left a will in a safe that had been well hidden. Obviously, as his only child, you were the main benefactor to his possessions and finances. I have a deep respect for Weatherby and the memory of him, so I tried to find you to be sure that you received what was rightly yours. But no matter how hard I tried I could not find Elizabeth Swann. I had the possessions piled into a room, along with the gold from his account that he left you and I waited. I was starting to suspect you were dead. My advisors routinely told me to just take the money and stop hunting for you. They assured me there was no way you would ever come back. Nobody had heard or seen you in years. But I could not bring myself to keep the wealth. I kept fighting to find you. And lo' I have, and with a child no less. Where might the child's father be?"
"At sea,"
"Ah. I see. Well, if he is at sea then technically the law requires me to wait for his return before bequeathing the money to him, as your husband."
I hate that I had to say next. I covered up Henry's ears, my fingers tight on the sides of his small head. I whispered, "My husband has died at sea, Governor. I received word from his crew. He has been killed. You do not have to worry about him or his pardon anymore."
The governor gave me a sympathetic look and I let my hands fall back to my sides. Henry looked at me with a curious expression. "In that case, there is no problem. The wealth is waiting for you in a room downstairs. Would you like it delivered to your place of residence?"
I did not know for certain how much money father had, but I knew it had to be substantial. After all, he got a cut of taxes. So I hatched an idea. "No, that's not going to be necessary. For now, I'll take a small sum of it and come back for the rest shortly."
The governor made an odd expression, and I was fairly certain he was frustrated that I was not relieving him of his dilemma. It was clearly hard for him to resist such wealth at his disposal. But he must have felt an obligation to father, otherwise I'm sure he wouldn't be offering all of it to me. But he agreed to my request, and escorted Henry and I to the room. We gathered up a healthy amount of coin and left, with the promise of returning. The governor warned that if we were not back in three days he was taking the wealth for himself. But he had no need to worry.
We left the mansion (my old home) and I put Henry up on my shoulders. He held the bag of money in his hands, assuring me he wasn't going to let anyone grab it from him. We went through town, asking around, and eventually we found it. Our home. Our new, very real, home. It's just on the perimeter of the town, far away from the hustle and bustle of Port Royale but every close to the shore. We bought it on the spot, full price, from the seller. We returned the next day with an entire horse and buggy (borrowed for a good sum) to cart our newly acquired riches back to our home.
Money does not solve all problems. But it does make problems easier to burden. I've gone back to having a small garden to keep us fed, but I buy food products from sellers in town. More important than the monetary comfort, I have my things back. My old dresses, even my old bed, are all returned to me. I've sold a great portion of it. I'll have little use for most of it. Although, I will admit, I have kept some of my favorite ruby pieces. Maybe one day I'll have an excuse to wear them again.
Henry has gone back to school again, now that I can afford to have him see a real scholar in town. Things seem to be far more peaceful. I just wish that you were here to share in this peace, and calm.
Love,
Elizabeth
