You Don't Care a Bit
Chapter 4
I don't own Pirates…wish I did, though.
"See something you like?" Beckett said loudly, making himself known to her.
Elizabeth immediately tensed up, nervousness filling every crevice of her body. "I'm sorry I..."
"Have a seat Elizabeth."
Elizabeth stole one more glance at the portrait before taking her seat. "You have quite an array of artifacts," She said trying to create some small talk.
"Yes, I have been a great many places. Did you find anything in particular that piqued your interest?" he put a strange emphasis on his last question.
"No. Well, yes. All of it, really. Anthropology is fascinating."
"You're a woman of unconventional interests, but you are correct."
"I like to keep society guessing."
"Ah" Beckett paused for a moment. "You did well at dinner this evening. I had expected a few outburst from that opinionated mouth of yours, but to my surprise, you either kept quiet or agreed."
"I understand the way good business works. I can fake an opinion if necessary. Besides, it wouldn't be very wise of me to disagree with your business partners."
"Unless, I instructed you to."
"What?"
"I'm in need of your assistance."
"In need of my assistance, you?"
"Yes, I'd like you to propose an idea to my associates that I don't believe they would agree with if it came from me."
"And what makes you think they'll listen to me?"
"Given your charm and power of persuasion, you may be a useful tool."
A look of horror covered Elizabeth's face
"I don't mean that kind of persuasion. As I've said before, you are confident and well educated, not to mention a sight to behold. If you suggested the idea, they may listen to you."
"You don't."
"That's because I know you for what you really are."
Elizabeth ignored his last statement and continued with the proposition at hand. "I suppose I have no choice in the matter, so what will I be proposing?"
"I want to create a special fleet devoted entirely to the search and capture of Jack Sparrow…using the Black Pearl."
"That's an awfully risky business venture. I mean, the Pearl is your fastest ship."
"It's the best way to lure him out of hiding."
"That's true, but…"
"I also want twice the arms and man power."
"That's suicide. There won't be enough room or food; you'll be twice as vulnerable should anyone attack."
"Let me ask you, Elizabeth, are there likely to be any?"
"No, but…"
"Exactly. Sparrow will try to take back the Pearl on his own, and he will be defenseless against our numbers. And as added security, Turner will be captaining. He's the only other man I know with a hatred for that man as strong as mine."
Elizabeth thought for a few minutes, head down, trying to think how Jack could get out of such a predicament…nothing came to mind in the moment. "It shouldn't be difficult to convince them." She said solemnly.
"Good. Off you go then. Oh, and Elizabeth?" He said catching her in the doorway "If I ever find snooping around in here again, there will be dire consequences."
Elizabeth left the study calmly, but once out of sight, she sprinted up to her bedroom. She doused the lamps and waited patiently by her window for Beckett to turn in. Somewhere near one in the morning, Elizabeth got into her sailor clothes and headed toward the tavern, her tavern, the one tavern that other EITC sailors wouldn't dare tread: The Salty Wench. She grabbed her dagger, one that Jack had given her when she joined his crew, and climbed out the window.
It had been 5 days since Jack tethered his boat to the Pearl. Still he had no water and no food, but the Pearl provided shade and, of course, the promise of making things right with Elizabeth. On the fifth day however, Jack began to get a bit delirious. He had to eat something or he would soon mistake his arm for a leg of lamb. He waited for the third shift watchman to take his position; they were always the dimmest. Jack climbed through a porthole into the armory and stealthily made his way into the galley. He rifled around for a few minutes in sear of food and more importantly, rum. He grabbed a few potato sacks and filled it with enough food and rum to last him another week. He grabbed a few strips of bandaging as well, for his dressings were is desperate need of changing. He climbed back into the longboat with relative ease and drifted off to sleep with the occasional dream haunting his slumber.
It was decidedly boring being towed behind the Pearl. First, because he wasn't the one captaining the ship, second because the things he over heard being discussed by Will and his whelpish crew were nothing more than trifles and silly boyish fantasies. Jack kept himself entertained thinking of the many ways he could bed Elizabeth, and the many ways she would try to kill him.
Elizabeth stayed in the pub longer than she intended. The last time, the bar was mostly empty, so it was easier for her to keep to herself, but this time was different. There were quite a few gentlemen scattered about various tables throughout the tavern. While sitting at the bar, a stout man, balding slightly, approached her.
"Hey lad, come join our card game. We're short one."
In her deepest fake man voice, she responded, "I'm fine where I am, thank you."
"Come on, I'll buy you a bottle of rum if you play."
Elizabeth thought it over for a brief moment. "Alright, what are you playing?"
"Just a bit of poker."
Elizabeth joined them. They had no idea she was a female, and too drunk to notice anyway. The man gave her a bottle of rum like he promised and looked around the table at the riffraff in front of her.
"What's your name kid?" The stout man asked.
"Eli…Elijah." She muttered nearly blowing her cover.
"Elijah. I'm James, that's Nubs; he's only got one leg, and that's Smith." James said, introducing everyone at the table.
"A pleasure, I'm sure."
They played for about an hour joking about and trading stories. Elizabeth kept quiet and maintained a look of bitterness.
"You're a bit young to be a jaded sailor," James pointed out.
"Unfortunately, my life has seen nothing but devastation."
"You must be under the employ of the EITC." Nubs said sarcastically.
"What ship did you sail with before the EITC recruited you as a privateer?" asked James
"Are you so certain, I haven't always been working for Lord Beckett?" Elizabeth retorted.
"Unlikely. You have acquired a taste and a tolerance for rum, you're here at the Salty Wench as opposed to the other tavern where the Loyal EITC soldiers drink their brandy and smoke their cigars, not to mention, there's a certain roughness about you." James declared triumphantly as if he guessed all her secrets.
"And who are you supposed to be" she asked accusingly
"The three of us are all pirates turned privateers. Happened when Beckett came to Port Royal."
"Well if you must know, I sailed on the Black Pearl under Captain Jack Sparrow.
"Sparrow!" Smith spat. "Good for nothing scoundrel!" he said rising up toward Elizabeth.
"Easy Smith, it isn't the boy's fault." James intervened.
"What isn't my fault? What did Sparrow do?"
"Well, you know the man better than us, but he sank old Smithy's ship, stole his crew and left him to die on a spit of land not too far from Nassau." Explained James
"That doesn't sound like Jack."
"You defending him?" Smith snarled.
"No, I just know Jack isn't the marooning type."
"Maybe not as a pirate, but when he captained the Wicked Wench, he wasn't the same Captain and had seemingly less scruples."
"What's the Wicked Wench?"
"What the Black Pearl was called when it sailed under Beckett and the EITC." Nubs said from his silent end of the table.
"That's a lie. Jack Sparrow would never work for the likes of Beckett. He's a good man and a good pirate."
"A good man? Are you in love with him, boy?" provoked Smith. "I think we may have a dandy on our hands, boys"
The three men rose and moved toward Elizabeth with mischievous grins. She quickly stood and started backing away.
"Listen, I am no dandy, but I do have respect for my former captain."
"Oh? And where is he now I wonder. I heard he deserted you all, leaving the lot to deal with Beckett to save his own skin. Yes, a decent man, indeed." Argued James,
"I think we ought to teach the dandy a lesson." Smith gurgled.
Elizabeth knew they were right, but she still defended the man she loved. "Gentlemen, I'm warning you now to back away. You don't know him and you certainly don't know me"
"Warning us, eh? For a moment there, lad, it sounded like you were threatening us?"
"I was." Elizabeth kicked Nubs, knocking him to the ground. She quickly grabbed his sword and faced the other two who had their swords unsheathed.
"You've been warned." She repeated.
Elizabeth's attacks were quick and fierce. The other men were sloppy, but they managed to block her strikes. She knocked James out with relative ease. Killing them would draw too much attention. Elizabeth was now one on one with Smith.
"You handle a sword pretty well for a dandy."
"Are you coming on to me, now?"
Smith backed Elizabeth into the bar, cornering her.
"You'd like that, now, wouldn't you?" he said with his sword pressed to her throat.
Elizabeth grabbed a bottle from the bar and smashed it over his head. Smith's large sweaty body fell forward pinning Elizabeth to the bar. She rolled him off and his face smacked against the bar…his nose would be broken in the morning for sure. She threw a shilling to the cowering bartended huddled behind the bar and walked out of the bar. Not long after, Nubs crawled out from behind a barrel in the alley way and sliced her thigh with his knife. Elizabeth reacted quickly and irrationally. She grabbed him by the shirt, pulled out Jack's dagger and slit his throat. She panicked and threw the dagger down next to him, too frightened to realize what she had done. Luckily, there was no one in the alley to see what happened, but she ran anyway. She ran as fast as she could, pain or no pain.
It wasn't until after she finished cleaning up her would and hiding the clothes that she realized the magnitude of what happened. The dagger that Jack had given her had a sparrow carved on the handle. She stared out of the window in utter confusion of her actions. "They'll think it was Jack. How could I have let this happen?" She thought to herself.
As she replayed the evening's events over and over in her head, a realization donned on her…the portrait, the familiar man…Jack!