Disclaimer: Twilight belongs to Stephanie. All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.
Chapter 10 - Conspiracy
I was on my way to see Edward. I opened the door slowly and peeked out. No one was about, so I slipped out and carefully walked through the dim passageway. I was wearing my disguise, with a pair of my satin slippers, so I moved soundlessly. Someone suddenly came out of a door, and we almost collided. I ducked my head and mumbled a quick apology. The man grunted. Brushing pass me, he continued on his way.
Where was he going in such a hurry at this hour? My curiosity was peaked, so I turned around and decided to follow him. I watched as he bypassed the stairway to the main deck and the passenger deck below. When he reached the end of the passageway, he entered the stairwell. I hurried after him.
From my midnight excursions with Mary, I knew the stairwell at the back of the ship went from the poop deck to the hold at the very bottom. Along the way, there were doors leading to the other passenger floors and to the galley. It was mostly used by the crew and personal servants, so they could access the decks to perform their duties without bumping into any of the passengers on the main staircases, while they carried food, hot water or any of the things necessary to perform their duties. Maybe he was going to the galley, but why hadn't he sent his cabin boy?
I opened the door, being careful to close it quietly behind me before heading down the stairs. He didn't stop at any of the decks. Before I knew it, I had walked down four flights of stairs. I could smell and hear the animals in the hold. After Mary had told me about the animals, I had gone down there several times to pet them. She had explained that the horses and some of the animals belonged to the people who were moving to America, while some of the cows, sheep and chickens provided milk, eggs and fresh meat for our voyage. I had never thought about where the foods we had been eating came from, but it made sense. Without live animals we would not have anything fresh to eat after the first couple of weeks at sea.
I was almost to the last landing when I heard voices. I stopped, pressed myself against the wall and listened closely.
"It's about time you showed up." Said an angry sounding man.
"I couldn't get away until now. Why did you demand this meeting? I told you before that I didn't want anything else to do with you."
"You have not lived up to your side of our deal. Don't think for one minute that I'll let you get out of this."
"My job was to allow your men to take control of the Destiny. Is it my fault that they were attacked instead and that your ship was destroyed along with your crew?"
"My plan was perfect. A fake pirate attack, then I would have taken control of the ship. Everything was going as planned until Masen showed up. It doesn't feel like a coincidence that he happened to be in this area at the time of the attack. If my men had spotted him earlier and had thought he had posed a threat, then they would have engaged him in battle before executing our plan. I hope you didn't tell anyone about our arrangement."
"I swear. I had nothing to do with that. How do you know it wasn't one of your men who tipped him off?"
"My men are trustworthy. Don't think you could dare cross me Newton, or I'll expose you for the fraud you are."
"I'd allowed you use me for your nefarious purpose, but this is over. I will not let you keep holding my father's deeds over my head any longer."
"How many people, do you think, will offer you commissions to captain their boats, after they find out your father had been convicted and hung for acts of piracy? Do you really want everyone to know your father was none other than, Captain Kidd—The Great Wizard of the Seas? Not only that, you had sailed with him, for years, while he plundered and pillaged. Everyone would think you are a pirate like your father."
An involuntary gasp of shock escaped before I could stifle it.
"What was that?" The other man asked.
I held my breath, for fear of being discovered. Everything I had read about Captain Kidd raced through my mind. In 1701, his trial and execution had been sensational. I had been about eight years old at the time, but I had read about the trial when Jasper and I had been in the schoolroom. It had not been considered appropriate reading material for a girl, so I had snuck the pamphlets into my bedchamber and had read them voraciously at night. Captain Kidd had insisted that he had not been a pirate, but had been given a commission to capture pirates and bring them to justice. He claimed he had the backing of some other men of high ranking, but no one had come forward to support his claims of innocence, and he had not revealed any of his contacts. Instead members of his own crew had testified against him. Someone had even written a song about his life, claiming that Captain Kidd had confessed to his crimes before he had been hung. None of the stories I had read then, or later when I was older, had mentioned a son.
After what felt like an eternity, Captain Newton said, "It's probably one of the animals."
"I hope you're not planning anything foolish. Your father had turned on his partners when he had burned their ship, choosing the life of an unlawful pirate, instead of doing what he claimed he had been sent to do. That got him hanged. If you try to double cross me, you will meet the same fate."
"Changing ships was his way of making the pirates believe he was one of them." The captain stated, defending his father.
"He killed one of his crew. The navy gives Captain free reign to punish their crew anyhow they want, but they draw the line at murdering your own men. Do you have an excuse for that too?"
"Gunner Moore was threatening my father with mutiny. My father was angry and in the heat of the moment he struck Moore with a bucket; he didn't mean to kill him."
"Spare me your posturing and lecturing. The fact remains that you are the bastard son of Captain Kidd, a convicted pirate and murderer. You wouldn't have agreed to carry out my plan, if you were innocent. Now, you will do as I say, or you'll live to regret it."
"My work for you is done. Your men failed to capture the ship. I don't see how you plan to get Masen to turn it over to you."
"You're wrong. Your work has only begun. Why do you think I have been here, instead of sailing with my men? I didn't trust you not to do something stupid, so I had to come up with a backup plan. That's where you come in. You will find a way to get the ship on course to New England, or this will be your last trip."
"Are you threatening me?"
"Only stating a fact. We could do this the easy way or the hard way."
"What do you mean by that?"
"The easy way would be you getting control of this ship from Masen and doing what I tell you to. The hard way would involve me and my men taking the passengers hostage, killing them one at a time until Masen turns the ship over to us. I would blame everything on you. Accuse you of being the mastermind behind the operation. Once word gets out about your parentage no one would believe you were innocent. Maybe I'll throw in Masen for good measures. I could say the two of you were working together. By the time I'm done, both of you would be swinging from a rope on Execution Dock just like your father did."
I felt cold drops of sweat forming on my back, as I listened in horror to this vile man as he plotted to take over the ship, not caring who he hurt in the process. My heart was beating so fast, it felt as if it would explode, but I forced myself to remain where I was. I didn't know if it were morbid curiosity or fear that had me immobile. If I'd had any doubt that Edward had told me the truth, it was completely erased by what I had overheard, and I had enough information for Edward to question Newton. Still, I remained eavesdropping.
"I don't see how I could convince Masen to do anything against his will and I will not agree to violence against the passengers." Captain Newman yelled.
"You left me few options after you introduced Masen to everyone. Now he has a legitimate cover, and freedom to walk around, while I have to meet you in this dark corners. Why hadn't I thought of that? I would have been in place to kill Masen when he boarded the ship. There's still time. I just have to think of something."
"You're mad. I'm leaving. Maybe I should go to Masen and tell him what you plan; you're both criminals, but he isn't threatening to destroy me."
I heard footsteps. I was about to retrace my steps, when I heard scuffling. The animals were getting restless. Horses neighed. Chickens were clucking and flying around. Then I heard a groan followed by a loud thump. I wish I could see what was happening or catch a glimpse of the other man. Was the thud the sound of someone falling to the floor? Who was hurt? Against my better judgment, I decided to investigate the sound. I stopped with my foot in midair when the talking resumed.
"Now I'll do this my way. Masen thinks he had captured this ship, well he's in for a surprise."
"You…you can't…hurt…innocent people." Newton said, but his voice sounded weak, as if he was out of breath.
The other man laughed. An evil laugh that made my skin crawl. "I had not planned to kill you yet, but you had to become self-righteous, I'm better off without you."
My blood ran cold. My heart was thudding so wildly, I thought I was going to have a heart attack. What had he done to the captain? I couldn't decide if to go forward or backward. At that moment of indecision, I heard footsteps coming in my direction. Fighting the urge to panic, I clutched the rail and tried to back up as quiet as a mouse.
BANG!
I jumped. I wanted to turn and run, but I was shaking so hard, I couldn't move for fear of rolling down the rest of the stairs. I hung onto the rail tightly. Not only was I scared, but the animals were too. They were getting more restless than before the shot.
"Dammit!" The mystery man exclaimed. Then there was more shuffling. "You fool." Followed by another shot.
I screamed.
"Who's there?"
The captain was right. His blackmailer was crazy. I was petrified—I was afraid for my life. I knew I had to get out of here, but my body was shaking uncontrollably. I was having a panic attack. My heart was beat rapidly and my breathing had become faster, more ragged. Who was that man? Had he shot Captain Newton? Had Captain Newton shot him? I felt a wave of nausea. My stomach did an involuntary flip and saliva flooded my mouth. I clenched my jaw, willing myself not be sick or to faint from the debilitating fear. The saying, curiosity killed the cat, came to mind. I had to get out of here—whoever the shooter was, he wouldn't want any witnesses. I couldn't let him catch me, but in order to escape, I had to keep my fear at bay. Dying here in the bowels of the ship was not an option. I had to think of my family, Edward and the hundreds of innocent passengers. I tried to control my breathing. In. Out. One. In. Out. Two. Three.
I heard the sounds footsteps. Strange and uneven steps. Were there actually real pirates with peg legs? Or did he hurt his leg during his tussle with Captain Newman. That sound seemed unnatural and creepy. Finally, self-preservation won out. I turned and ran up the stairs. In my haste, I tripped.
"Who's there?" the man demanded again.
The uneven footsteps were closer together as if he was walking faster. Somehow I made it to the landing without falling again. I looked around wildly. I had two options. Take my chances outside or run through one of the passengers' deck. Even in my state of agitation, I knew I would be an easy target if I ran down any of the passageways. And if I managed to get someone to open their door, the killer would stop at nothing, to silence me and anyone who tried to help me.
Somewhere in the distance, a door banged open. Footsteps were thundering overhead. Someone must have heard the commotion down here. I couldn't take the chance that it was one of the stranger's accomplices. While I decided which door to escape through, these uneven footsteps continued up the stairs.
I felt I had no choice but to keep going up. I stumbled a few times, but I managed to make it to the top. My hands were shaking, and my palms were wet from sweating, so it slipped off the doorknob. I wiped it on my trousers and tried again. It turned. I breathe a sigh of relief. The door was heavy, so I had to use all my strength to push it open. I slipped out. The door banged shut behind me. Now the killer knew where I was, but I couldn't go back inside. If I could cross the deck, there were stairs that would lead down to the main deck, where members of the crew would be on night watch.
I headed across the deck. Halfway there, there was a loud bang behind me. I almost jumped out of my skin. I'm sure I screamed again. I looked back to see the killer's silhouette in the door frame. I turned and ran. I stumbled and went crashing to the deck.
No…no…no. This couldn't be happening. I had to get off this deck. I crawled to the stairs on my hands and knees to keep out of sight. It was no use. He knew I was there and was coming for me. Soon the killer would be towering over me. I would be killed. My body would be dumped overboard, and I'll never see Edward again. The thought of never seeing Edward's smiling face galvanized me into action. I couldn't die without telling him I loved him. I had to stay alive for Edward. For us.
Calm down Bella. Don't let some unknown evil pirate rob you of the chance to know Edward better. You're stronger than the sniveling girl laying on this deck. Didn't you want adventure? Didn't you go looking for pirates night after night? So you found pirates. One good and one very bad pirate. Be strong, if not for yourself, then do it for Edward.
All I had to do was get to the other side of the deck or make enough noise while I was running to attract the attention of the night watch. I go up, running as fast as I could.
"Help! Help!" I yelled as I ran across the deck.
"Who goes there? Identify yourself." Was that one of the men on watch?
BANG! I was almost at the stairs. I flung myself forward. I'd rather break bones than be captured by that vile pirate. I curled into a ball and rolled down, down, down, landing in a heap on the main deck. My head banged on the floor. I saw stars.
BANG! BANG!
A bell rang or was the sound in my head. CLANG. CLANG. CLANG. It was not in my head, someone was sounding the alarm.
Footsteps came running across the deck. A voice shouted orders.
"Check the outer steps. Fan out. Be careful."
Pain. So much pain. Am I dying? Had I been shot? There were more men running around, more orders being shouted, but I was lost in my own world. Everything sounded so far away. I had made it so far, but not far enough. Edward, where are you? All the silly insecure thoughts that had plagued my mind after dinner, seemed inconsequential now. Our times together flashed through my mind. The way his touch made me shiver and burn at the same time. The way each touch made my need for him grew. How his kisses set my heart racing, often leaving me breathless. The electricity I felt when he touched me. The invisible connection which feels as if something deep inside me was calling out to him.
For so long, I had felt as if I was a bystander, watching life pass me by while everyone fulfilled their destinies. I had often wondered if I would ever find my place in the world, or that special someone. Now that I've found that sense of belonging, I may be dead in the next few minutes. I think I love him. That's the only way I could rationalize what I had been feeling. I love Edward. Why hadn't I realized this sooner? Tears rolled down my cheeks.
Someone touched me. It jolted me out of my introspection. I opened my eyes. The sailor reached out his hand. I put my hand in his and tried to get up. Pain sliced through me. I crumbled back onto the deck. Whimpering.
"Someone get the doctor," he ordered. He sounded kind, but most importantly, he was not the killer.
He knelt down next to me.
I wanted to give Edward a clue. "Captain Newton and bad pirate. Hold. Tell Edward." I knew I was babbling, but I continued, "Newton is Captain Kidd's son. Ship. Capture."
My vision became blurry. I tried to hold on. Clues. Edward would need more clues. "Hold." Then my world went black.
(http:)(/en.)(wikipedia.)(org/wiki/Captain_Kidd)
There's no record of Captain Kidd having a son. I made that up to give the blackmailer something to force Captain Newton to help him capture the ship.