A/N: I'm very sorry that it took me so long to update... I had problems with computer
Thanks: To Rita, who's my dearest translator.
Hot winds of the Caribbean 7
I stared around me in the big house. It was really beautiful and full of antique furniture. True, they weren't antique in this time of course, though they seemed like it in my eyes. I took a deep breathe. The house was dazzling and it was hard to believe it was real.
The house was just as real as I was in the 17th century. Also the unknown man next to me was real, unfortunately.
"Where are we?" I asked the man.
"Home, darling", the man answered and smiled at me.
"I'm not your 'darling' and this is not my home", I said. "My home is... on a one ship."
"No, no, no... This is your home, Annabelle. Don't you remember?" the man kept going obstinately his assertion.
I shook my head irritably, when an ample woman stepped in the room. Onto the woman's face came an astonished but a happy look, when she saw me. She rushed to hug me squeezing my bones almost together.
"Dear Annabelle! Where have you been? We all thought you died in a pirate attack", the women sighed crying. I lightly pushed her further.
"I'm deeply sorry about you loss, but I'm not Annabelle", I said feeling sorry for these people.
"What are you poor girl talking about? Of course you are Annabelle Smith", the woman snorted and wiped tears from her eyes.
"Mrs. Roach, I think you must fetch the family doctor here", said the man, who I assumed was Mr. Smith.
The chubby woman nodded at Mr. Smith and rushed out the room. It didn't take very long, when she came back with a skinny, wise looking man. The man looked at me for a moment and then turned to speak with Mr. Smith. He and Mrs. Roach left the room.
The family doctor sat on the couch and asked me to sit next to him. I felt uncomfortable, but I obeyed him anyway.
"Well, tell me your name", the man said and smiled.
"Ann Smith", I answered.
"Is Ann short for Annabelle?" he asked suddenly.
"Well... It is not! My name is Ann", I answered hot-tempered. I surely wasn't going to contradict myself.
"Well, Ann, where have you been these last three weeks?" the doctor kept asking.
"On a one ship", I answered, although I hadn't been on the Pearl that long.
"And how did you end up there?"
"The crew found me drifting from the sea", I answered and at the same I realized I had maybe told too much.
"And do you remember anything before that?" the man kept going. I thought carefully what I would tell him, but nothing reasonable crossed my mind.
"No", I said finally.
The doctor asked me few more strange question and then went the door of the room. I heard him speaking with Mr. Smith, but I couldn't make out the words. In a minute Mrs. Roach came in.
"Oh, how terrible, darling", she said to me.
"What is terrible?" I wondered.
"That amnesia, darling. The doctor said it could take weeks before you get your memory back", the woman explained and grabbed my arm. "Come with me now. I'm going to take you to your room that you can change those horrible clothes you're wearing!"
I followed the woman in an amazement. What if all these people were telling the truth? Maybe I was Annabelle Smith after all and whole future had just been some kind of a crazy dream. Thought seemed inconceivable, but much more reasonable than travelling in time. Yet there seemed to be something completely wrong at the same time.
Mrs. Roach took me into a beautiful bedroom and sat me on the bed. She opened a large wardrobe and started to rummage it through. Then she aligned on the bed next to me an underskirt , a corset and the most beautiful dress I had ever seen. I had to admit I felt great desire to put it on me. Like in a trance I obeyed Mrs. Roach, when she asked me to take my clothes off. I folded them into a neat pile on the bed and aligned boots next to the bed. I felt myself amazed being only on my underwear in front of a strange woman, but she didn't seem awkward at all. She only wondered my brassiere and asked me to take them off as well.
A bit embarrassed I took the bras off and pulled the underskirt on to cover my body. Mrs. Roach took the corset from the bed and wrapped it around me. Then she started to tighten the ribbons. It felt awful, like someone had tried to choke me.
"Must... I... wear... this..." I panted when my diaphragm went in a heap.
"Of course, darling. You are a fine lady and fine ladies wear a corset", the woman answered shaking her head.
I thought tightening of the corset would never end, but in few minutes Mrs. Roach had had it tight enough. Then she put a dress on me and tied it behind as well. Still suffering light breathing troubles I walked in front of the mirror and I looked at myself.
The dress fit me perfectly, like it had made just for me. This matter was very worring, because the dress wasn't mine but Annabelle Smith's. However, I couldn't help adoring it. White, wide neckline barely covered my shoulders. It was edged by lace and right after it began light green top of the dress. The sleeves reached only my elbows and they were partly only a lace. Lower hem was white silk, upper was light green. Both settled down waving beautifully.
Mrs. Roach helped me to slip black, dainty shoes on (they also fit me worriedly well) and then combed my hair into a big bun. She left couple of hair curls hanging freely. Looking at the mirror once again I had to admit I looked like I had really belonged in this time.
At the same I heard a knock from the door. Young maid stepped in and looked at me shyly.
"Mr. Spear is waiting for you in the living room, Ms. Smith", the girl said.
"Tell him Annabelle is coming quite soon", Mrs. Roach answered on my behalf and the girl left closing the door behind.
"Who is this Mr. Spear?" I asked the woman.
"For goodness sake... He is your fiancé", the woman cried and already was pushing me out the room.
"What? Am I going to get married? I don't even know him!" I cried out, but in vain. Mrs. Roach only shook her head and practically dragged me into the living room.
In the middle of the living room stood quite handsome young man, who smiled at me friendly. Although he was good-looking, he was not the kind of a man I could ever imagine to be interested in.
"So it is true!" the man cried and came to me. "You are alive! I have missed you so much!"
"I'm sorry, but I don't know you Mr. Spear", I said feeling sorry again towards these strange people.
"Phillip, call me Phillip", he straightened me. So now I knew his name.
"Your father told me about your amnesia and that you might not remember me."
"Oh", I said and then fell silent. I didn't know how to continue.
Phillip took me to sit on the couch and grabbed my hands. He looked straight into my eyes. His eyes were green, but in a some way they reminded me of Jack. Suddenly I felt huge desire to rush back in the smithy and to say to the pirate I was sorry for my childish behaviour. I didn't want to be with this Phillip, I wanted to go to Jack, but I wasn't able to go anywhere.
"I'm going to tell everything about myself and us... Perhaps you will remember then", Phillip said.
I listened eternity Phillip's talk about how he had come to work for my father and had a crush on me, I mean on Annabelle, immediately. He talked about dinners and walks, which we had together after it. Then he told me how we were suppouse to get married. Annabelle, in other words me, had disappeared only a month before the planned wedding. Mr. Smith, who had believed they would find his daughter some day, had persistently kept planning the wedding.
At this moment I swallowed loudly. If Annabelle had disappeared only a month before the wedding, and her missing had past three weeks now, it meant the wedding was in a week. I had to get out from here in somehow, and fast.
I rose from the couch and pulled my hands away on Phillip's grib. The young man looked at me frightened.
"I'm sorry, but I have to go... hmm... to the smithy", I said to him hoping I was able to go.
"But Ann, you cannot go there! It is almost dinner time. Mr. Turner is not there and besides..." Phillip tried to stop me.
"I must go! I can't explain any specify, but I just have to!" I cried.
However, I couldn't escape anywhere, because Mrs. Roach came to inform that dinner was served. Phillip took my arm and led me to the dinner room ignoring my light resistance.
Mr. Smith already sat at the table waiting for us. Phillip pulled a chair for me and I sat on it, because I didn't know what else could I do.
Mrs. Roach and a young maid served the dinner. I tried to eat in a refined way as possible, although I had used to completely different behaviour on the past few days. No question the food was excellent and wine tasted tolerable.
During the dinner the men talked passionately about their merchandise trips which they had shared. I got an impression from their conversation that Annabelle had always been with his father on the trips, because the poor girl's mother had died when she was only three years old.
After a while I felt myself full. And the corset was still squeezing me in a repulsive way, so I couldn't imagine to eat lots of food at all. I let my eyes wander around the room, when the men were still talking. It was lighten by candles and corners were covered by shadows. However, my eyes stopped on a painting which hung on the wall. The person on the painting made me to take a deep breathe, luckily I didn't scream.
"Who is that?" I asked Mr. Smith pointing at the painting.
"Darling, she is your mother", he answered looking at me worriedly.
And really, it was my mother on the painting. My own mother from future. She had only a baroque dress and her hair was on a bun, but she clearly was my mother. My heart was bounding almost painly against my chest. I rose from the table and I felt fainting.
After a while I woke up in my room. Phillip sat on the edge of the bed and was stroking my cheek.
"I guess you remembered something," he almost whispered.
"I... would like to be alone for a moment", I said to him. The young man's face turned disappointed, but he nodded at me anyway.
"Inform me if you need something", he said and then left the room.
I rose to sit on the bed and I thought. How my mother could be on the painting? Was Annabelle Smith some kind of distant relative to me? It could be the only possible explanation. Or not the only one, it also could be possible that I was really Annabelle Smith and I had lost my memory.
I rose to stand and shook my head. Nothing was sertain anymore. I rushed to the door of the room and I locked it. The only thing I knew was that I didn't want to be any other second in this house with these people. I absolutely wanted to go to Jack. However, I knew Mr. Smith wouldn't let me go out at this time of the night.
I walked circle in the room and kept thinking. Window! Perhaps I could escape through it. I ran to the window and pushed it open. A cold breeze of air waived curtains. I looked down and I saw it was not a short drop. I would need a rope.
I turned back towards the room and explored it with my eyes. There was no rope. I opened the wardrope, but it was full of dresses. I noticed Mrs. Roach had stuffed my pirate clothes there as well. I took them out deciding to put them on. It was far more easier to escape if they were on. For my horror I noticed I couldn't get the dress off by myself. I cursed silently stupid women's clothes and decided to let it be.
I kept looking for the rope, but in vain. Finally I stopped depressed. I couldn't get down without a rope. Then my eyes stopped at the bed. Why wouldn't I use the ancient old sheet trick? I pulled the sheets off the bed and I ripped them half. Then I tied them to tight rope. I bound the other end of the rope to firm table leg and the other end I threw down out the window. I prayed every God that no one would notice it. Next I threw down my boots and pirate clothes. They caused a light bump when they hit the ground.
Now was my turn to climb down. I tried the endurance of the rope by pulling it and then I climbed down from the window. I was moving quite slowly, but finally I got down. At the same I heard pounding above me. Obviously someone was trying to pull the door open in the room. I didn't stayed to wonder the events but I grabbed my clothes and ran into the night.
It was dead silent on the streets and I could see no one anywhere. Fear creeped up on me. I probably was lost. I had no idea where was the smithy or how I could find my way back to the Pearl. I wandered through the streets hoping I would see someone from who I could ask the way.
After a long wander I noticed a familiar sign for my relief. The smithy. I pulled the door open and stepped into a dark smithy. At the same I felt someone putting a hand over my mouth and a knife over my throat.
I'm not sure if there were family doctors in the 17th century, but I guess there were some kind of doctors anyway. Well, I guess I should have been in the history lessons after all...