CHAPTER X
"Bugger…", was all that Jack could say as he rubbed his forehead as if he was deep in thoughts. Eve stared from Elle to Jack. What on earth were they talking about??
"What treasure??", Eve asked and looked around confused… Elle merely smiled and Jack seemed like he hadn't even heard her question. Elle's hand was hovering just above Will's injured leg and she looked up at Jack:
"Well…?", she asked and Jack seemed to snap back to reality with a small, irritated groan.
"Remember… you said whatever I want", Elle quirked and moved her fingers above the wound for emphasis. Jack let out a loud sigh:
"But I don't even know where it is…", he started, but the old grey-haired woman interrupted him:
"Your compass does", she said and sent Jack a skew smile. Eve had been listening to and watching the conversation like a ping pong game:
"WHAT DAMN TREASURE???!! AND FIX WILL NOW!!", she hissed and punched Jack's shoulder.
"Auww…", Jack complained, but Elle shushed him:
"It is actually known under another name, Eve Dreyans…", she started, but Pintel butted into the conversation as he was jumping up and down in childish excitement:
"Is it shiny???", he almost whined, which was followed by a sigh both from Elle and Jack. Elle sent him a piercing stare with her grey eyes:
"No. It's not shiny. But it's worth more than any gold or fine stones", Elle said, and immediately Pintel stopped jumping and just looked like one big question mark. A moan escaped the unconscious Will's lips.
"You better hurry, captain Sparrow – yes or no?", Elle asked and everyone looked at Jack. Jack turned his head upwards, seemingly studying the dead animal collection… finally he let out a loud moan:
"Alright, alright, I'll do it! Just fix him!", Jack sighed and suddenly an orange light spread from Elle's hand which was hovering above Will's wound. The sparkling light lit up everything… and everyone except Jack were staring flabbergasted at Elle… the feeling of utter awe spread in their chests and without even noticing, they all took a step backwards. Slowly the light dimmed and was retracted into Elle's palm, and she used her bird skull cane to get up on her feet. She smiled a mysterious smile and looked at Jack:
"Now get me the treasure of Dreyans", she said and once more the flame in the oil lamp flickered, threatening to be extinguished. Jack merely looked down at Will and nodded… Eve was completely confused, but right now all that mattered was Will and she knelt next to the stretcher. The drops of sweat on his forehead had disappeared and he wasn't burning up anymore. Carefully Eve touched the bandages… wait… the blood stains were gone! Curiously and with a racing heart Eve removed the bandages and looked at Will's shin… which had absolutely no signs of any kind of injury. Eve stared at Elle:
"How did you do that?", she asked and watched as Elle's dry lips sent her a smile:
"Time is what we make it", was the cryptic answer and then Elle waved at them to leave:
"He will wake up soon. And Eve – the words will come", she said and Eve frowned – what words?? She didn't even bother to ask.
"I don't know what you're talking about…. But thank you", Eve said.
"Thank me with the treasure", Elle merely said as the four of them picked up the stretcher and headed back out on the street. Just before she closed the door after them, Elle tapped Jack on the shoulder:
"Mors Validus – that be YOUR words, Jack Sparrow", she whispered in his ear and Jack nodded as she closed the door. Eve stared at Jack as she was carrying the stretcher along with him, Pintel and Ragetti. Thomas was running next to them. She noticed how the inhabitants were no longer staring, but rather backing away from them as if they were lepers.
"Jack – what is going on? And who was that woman?", she asked and watched as Jack bowed his head a little, staring at the ground with a sigh. He seemed kind of depressed… or maybe troubled in some way. But the legendary captain Jack Sparrow was more than used to go after treasures – so what was different about this one?
"Age", Jack merely said under his breath and Eve frowned…
"What do you mean?", she asked and finally she actually gained eye contact with the captain.
"What I said", was Jack's only answer, which left Eve even more puzzled. Why did everything have to be so damn mysterious – it felt like she had tumbled into a child's fairytale book. Eve looked down at Will's face – his eyes were starting to open!
"Will!", Eve burst out and he turned his head towards her as they carried him back aboard the Pearl. Will rubbed his eyes and stared at Eve:
"What happened", he asked and his hazel eyes grew wide as he noticed that there was absolutely no pain in his leg… and the bandages were gone. Eve shook her head – she honestly didn't know what had just happened in Elle's house… except that she had to possess some kind of extreme healing skills.
"Don't worry about it, Turner. Now jump off this damn stretcher – I'm tired of carrying ye", Jack said and smiled at Will, who looked utterly confused:
"But my leg…", Will started, but Jack interrupted:
"Do it!", he almost yelled and Will rolled off the stretcher and landed on the deck elegantly on his feet. The surprise was almost painted on his face as he paled in disbelief…
"What…?!", he started, but again Jack butted in:
"Just enjoy it… and no need to thank me, oh no… I'm just sticking me neck out for ye, whelp", Jack said as he grabbed the steering wheel next to Mr Gibbs who also looked kind of pale…
"Sorcery…", the old man whispered under his breath, but kept quiet as Jack stuck an index finger in front of his grey bearded face. Jack then pulled out his compass and studied the spinning arrow closely.
"Be gone… have to focus here", Jack mumbled and waved at Eve, Will and Thomas. Eve bent down and stroked Thomas' curly hair:
"See? Daddy is fine… now go play, but don't disturb the captain", she said in an almost maternal tone of voice. Thomas smiled and then ran off. Will and Eve walked to the stern where they rested their elbows on the railing, taking in the beautiful view of the crystal blue Caribbean sea. Will looked at Eve:
"I don't understand what happened…", he said as Eve grabbed his right hand and squeezed it gently:
"I don't either… but you are okay now… that's all that matters…", she said and looked him deep in the eyes. For a moment they just looked at each other, their hair waving gently in the sea breeze. Slowly they inched closer to each other… and their lips met in a passionate kiss. As their lips parted Will looked at her… Eve smiled, even though she felt a bit uneasy. She was still thinking about what she had said earlier in the cabin and she wished that…
"Eve..?", Will suddenly said and broke her chain of thoughts. She looked up at him… a few seconds passed… And Will's full lips slowly formed a smile:
"I love you, Eve", he said and squeezed her hand tight. Eve's heart felt like it skipped a couple of beats… he said it! He had said the words! Wait… the WORDS! That was what Elle had been talking about! Suddenly she noticed how Will was looking at her and she smiled happily:
"I lo…", she started, but Jack's voice suddenly boomed across the deck:
"WE HAVE A HEADING! SET SAILS FOR PORT ROYAL!"