Scarlett's in a difficult position and neither Jim nor Silver is helping, who will she choose and for what reasons? And will they be the right ones?

Chapter 9

Land! Carlotta thought as she stood at the side with the crew – she could see it! It looked green and exotic and exciting, she gripped Tom's arm and he smiled down at her,

"Reckon we'll be there tomorrow in the early hours!" He grinned and she gave a little hop.

"I don't think the sea's for me, Tom, it can't be if the sight of land is this welcome." She said, laughing and he laughed with her.

"You've done well considering it's your first voyage at sea." He told her and she dropped a quick, joking curtsy.

"Why thank you kind sir. No doubt I'll be a pirate within the hour." She said and then stopped when he ducked his head. Long John had got to him then.

Exasperated Lottie turned to see where Jim was and saw him talking to Silver. As she watched he shook his head in answer to a question Silver had asked and then left soon after, almost running down the stairs into the galley. Silver just watched him and the look in his eyes made Carlotta afraid for Jim, obviously the boy had found them out and Silver wouldn't be best pleased with that, she knew.

Carlotta felt her cheeks warm as the memory of their kiss jumped into her mind – she didn't know what had come over her...a sudden mist had descended and she'd been left with no choice but to kiss him...it was the only thing she could think of doing.

She had to warn him, she decided, and set off with a hasty goodbye to Tom.

Jim sat at the table, he couldn't take everything in. Scarlett...Silver...who would betray him next? He'd thought of Silver as his father and Scarlett...there'd been a second when he'd thought...but it didn't matter now. She was a traitor, had only been using him all along.

Then, as if called by his very thoughts, he heard light footsteps on the stairs.

"Jim?" He heard her call tentatively. He closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose to try and keep calm and prevent his temper from rising.

"Are you there?" She called a little louder. Jim took a deep breath.

The footsteps resumed much slower now and after a second she poked her head round the door.

"Um...hello." She said with a little smile, "So we should probably talk." She finished quickly and Jim let out a short laugh.

"About what exactly?" He asked sarcastically, her brow furrowed slightly.

"Well...you know..." She tried again but Jim was having none of it, he would hear it from her own lips, confirmation that she was a traitor.

"Please tell." He goaded and smirked as a flash of annoyance crossed her eyes.

"About -" She took a deep breath, "Well, we kissed didn't we?" She said, ducking her head as a blush tinted her cheeks.

Jim looked at her in disbelief – she was a spy and a traitor and a mutineer yet she blushed at the mention of a kiss?

Bang

He brought his fist down on the table and she jumped.

"Admit it." He said, anger bubbling at the surface, her eyes widened.

"What are you talking about?" She asked, coming towards him, "Admit what?" She put a hand on his arm and he jerked it away and stood up.

"Admit that you're a spy and a traitor perhaps? That you've been working with Silver to get the map off of me? That you're about to commit mutiny with the rest of them? That the girl I've known is a lie?" He fumed and all color dropped from her face.

"Jim..." She whispered, moisture appearing in her eyes. Jim made a noise of disgust and turned away.

Scarlett tried not to cry and to still the trembling of her lip,

"Jim it wasn't like that." She said, putting a hand on the chair to steady herself. His laugh was harsh and frightening.

"So you're actually going to deny it?" He asked incredulously.

"Yes. I've not spied on you." Lottie said, willing him to see the truth of it.

"You think that's the only bit that matters?" He yelled making her flinch.

"You don't know what you're talking about!" She shouted back, goaded beyond her fathoms of calm.

"I know quite enough. Do you deny that Silver is planning mutiny and that you are involved and have lied, if not directly then by omission, to me and the captain?" He asked coldly. Lottie clenched her fists.

"I -"

"Do you or don't you?"

"It's – it's not a simple, black and white situation!" Carlotta held back a sob, she couldn't tell him the truth – Silver would kill them both for sure, but the hate in his eyes...

"Truth and loyalty are the simplest things in the world." He said and pushed past her angrily, leaving the room.

Left alone Carlotta let out a shriek and hurled a plate across the room. It seemed, as it hit a wall and smashed, her heart broke with it. A lifetime of wrongs dealt unjustly to her traipsed across her mind and this the crowning glory of her troubled life.

She longed to tell him that she had no choice, that Silver would have killed first her then Jim himself. She longed to tell him that of the two of them she cared about his fate more than her own, that things had been different since she'd met him, how she had stayed with Silver because she as forced, how she had never had anywhere else to go...how, when he came into her life, she considered running for the first time in years, how she would have risked the consequences to be with him, how he made her feel safe, how the kiss had felt right.

But she could say nothing. His life and hers depended on her silence.

Long John had seen Jim storm from the galley, he had seen Carlotta go into the galley, he had heard something break, he sensed trouble brewing.

Without drawing attention to himself he moved to the stairs and climbed down them slowly. Carlotta was kneeling on the floor with her heaving back to him, a plate lay in shards around her and her arms were wrapped around her torso like they were the only thing holding her together. He brought his crutch down and she jumped up, glaring at him despite the tear tracks on her pale face.

Scarlett's blood was boiling – how could he stand there and be so callous? Calm? It took her a while to realize that the furious screams were coming from her own lips as she ran at him,

"I'm out!" She shrieked, hitting him as hard as she could to every part of his body she could see, "I want OUT!" How dare he? "I don't want any part of this -" He seized her arms and forced her against the wall, pinning her with one arm and clasping a hand over her mouth.

"Shut it." He hissed, "If you know what's good for you."

Scarlett's chest heaved as she fought against him but she was no match and eventually she stopped trying and slumped forwards. Cruelly he let her fall and she buried her head in her hands in preparation for the attack she anticipated.

Silver stood there and stared at the girl at his feet then drew back his foot and kicked her onto her side, ignoring her shout of pain. She tried to scramble away but he grabbed her chin and forced her to look at him,

"Do not defy me. What's so important that it's worth the pain and trouble?" He asked sarcastically, her eyes flitted away from his and he lowered his brow.

"Well? What's changed?" He brought her face closer and searched her eyes with his, noting the renewed trembling of her lips – a sure sign that she was deathly afraid. But not for herself, that much was sure...no, she'd had worse.

Suddenly he understood.

"It's the boy isn't it?" He said slowly and she flinched. Silver couldn't help but laugh – leverage if ever there was such a thing! They'd played right into his hands.

"Well, well, well." He whispered, a grin spreading across his face.

"You're wrong. I've had a change of heart, that's all." She said quickly and Silver laughed. "I'm going to go ahead and assume that's you throwing me off the scent. Now, all you need to know is if you jeopardize this mutiny not only will I kill you, I'll kill the boy slowly first and make you watch." He gave her a shove and left the room satisfied that she would not breathe a word.