Rio was glad she was still in Portugal. Though it may be one of the most dangerous places, as long as she was careful, she wouldn't get caught. As she played dead in that dusty coffin, she observed Francis. It was so ironic. Francis kidnapped Rio, spiked her drink with a deadly poison and then gave her a proper burial? Rio smelled a rat. Someone must have instigated him to do so, considering the recent death of Antonio. It would not be surprising if Francis wanted to avenge his own friend, but looking at Francis's personality, he wasn't the type to go all out for revenge. Even if he did, why go through the trouble of bringing Rio back home? He said it himself, he was too lazy to drag his butt to Lisbon. As for the poison, luckily Rio recognized its smell. It was indeed deadly, but the victim needed to consume a certain amount to die. For the past few days, Rio had experienced the side effects of the poison. It definitely made it harder for her to move around, but she was getting better.

Rio roamed around the marketplaces in Lisbon. The marketplace used to be an ordinary street but now it was packed with shops, roadside food stands and restaurants. It brought back memories. Rio didn't know if they were pleasant or not. It was the first street she visited when she came to Portugal, hand in hand with Antonio as he dragged her along it. Now she couldn't even picture the street being so clear. Her eyes stopped when she saw a familiar figure. It couldn't be. Was she even in Lisbon? Rio almost screamed when the figure turned around. Messy red hair, pierced ears, green eyes and thick eyebrows – Niall Kirkland. What on earth was he doing in Lisbon? Was he still bent on getting rid of Rio? Rio's blood would boil every time she was reminded of this. Wasn't it over when Niall stole Arthur's ship and threw the both of them off? Why did he want her dead so much? Out of the blue, a man with shoulder-length blonde hair appeared next to him. Niall seemed to be all cheerful and talkative while Francis was just keeping quiet, which was a bit unlike him.

"So you two are in cahoots!" Rio blurted out. She covered her mouth and bit her finger as a punishment. She noticed her disguise was off. Shit, she thought. Before Niall could say anything to her, she turned around and fled. She ran as fast as her thin legs could manage. She was sure that Niall was running after her now, but nobody was on her tail. Even with her disguise off, nobody was looking at her with a suspicious face or anything. It was odd, but she was relieved. Rio ran until she reached the end of the street where she hid in a carriage of hay.

"Bitch!" Rio heard. She popped her head out of the hay and saw Niall quickly hurrying behind her. She panicked a little but composed herself quickly. She climbed to the front of the carriage and pushed the rider out of his seat.

"Oy!"

"Desculpe!" Rio yelled out to the rider.

"Senhorita Carriedo?" The man mumbled.

She looked behind, noticing that Niall was not there. By the time she turned her head to look in front, Niall's carriage was right beside hers. He pulled out his pistol, causing Rio to yelp. He aimed it at the horses of the hay carriage and shot. The horses stopped abruptly and collapsed, causing Rio to fly out of her seat and land on the road. Thankfully, the road was clear of any other carriages at the moment and Rio quickly got up. Before she could flee, Niall grabbed her arm and pulled her onto his carriage. He threw her into the carriage with a tied up Francis and left for his ship.

"Francis!" Rio removed the cloth covering Francis's mouth.

"Finally." Francis said with pants in between his words. "Rio, I-" Francis was interrupted when Rio slapped him across the face twice, leaving two red marks on both of his cheeks.

"What the fuck, Francis! Are you against me or not?"

"Shhh, not so loud. He can hear us."

"Well?"

"I'm not against you, mon ami. Niall Kirkland had Victoria and-"

"Victoria! Where is she?"

"…On Niall's ship."

"Are you fucking crazy? You left her on Niall's ship?"

"I know. I shouldn't have been so careless."

"So if you're not against me, why did you…?"

"He blackmailed me by threatening to hurt Victoria. I'm sorry, Rio but it's just that I really love Victoria…You would do the same if you were me, no?"

"Of course, but not for Antonio."

"Rio, untie me and I will get you out of here."

"How can I trust you?"

Before Francis could respond, the carriage already stopped. Rio felt a sense of guilt when she heard Francis curse under his breath. The carriage was opened and the two were dragged out and brought onto Tinkerbell, Arthur's beloved vessel. It brought back memories from where she first made love with Arthur and so on. But there were also things linked to it that she did not want to recall. Her feet felt the familiar deck once again. The ship hasn't changed at all.

"Recallin' ye happy moments?" Niall said.

"You were the one who wanted me dead?"

"I be sure there's no need to ask 'bout that, since Francis be spillin' the beans to ya."

"But…but…why?"

"Let's put it this way, shall we? Ye see, the way ye be makin' me brother into a softie is not pleasin' to me eye."

"To me, that isn't a very good reason."

"Please, I'm a pirate. I must be unreasonable. As for Arthur…"

"Well if you want me dead so much, you could have just pulled out your pistol and blow my brains out."

"I don't think I will be doing that." Niall made a few hand gestures and the pirates grabbed Rio and follow Niall into Arthur's old study. They sat her down on a chair in front of Niall and tied her up. Niall put the scroll in front of Rio, dipped a feather end into ink and handed it to Rio. There were the words Marriage Registration at the top of the scroll, written in a large font. "Well?"

"You're after my inheritance!"

"We can do this together, Rio," Niall said, caressing the brunette's cheek. "Ye are very pretty after all."

"I will never agree to it!"

"Bring her in!" Suddenly, the doors opened and Victoria was brought in. She was tied up just like Francis and was murmuring words Rio couldn't comprehend. "Then maybe ye could suggest a slow and painful way to take care of ye friend, Rio? How about several nails in her head? Or maybe mermaid bait would be good?"

"No, Rio!" Victoria cried as soon as she managed to remove the cloth off her mouth. "Don't sign it!"

Rio gulped, her fingers clutching the feather in her hand. Slowly, she put the tip of the feather on the scroll and signed her name while biting her lip, trying not to cry. She could imagine the depressed look on Arthur's face when he finds out that she never kept her promise to wait. Her tears wet the scroll as she quickly rolled it up and handed it to Niall. There was an irksome smirk on the redhead's face that made Rio furious. How was she going to spend the rest of her life on this ship? The feeling of being on her most beloved's vessel and yet with another man was bitter. It also made Rio feel like a slut.

"Now that I've married ye and I have the map, the treasure be mine!"

"You don't have the map."

Niall chuckled. "Oh please, do ye think Arthur could have held onto the map this 'ere whole time?"

"He keeps it in his clothes, doesn't he?"

"Bloody hell!" Niall cursed. "Men! We be settin' sail to London!"

X

"So, this is the map?" Lars asked as a rhetorical question as he continued to study the scroll. He was riding in a carriage with Arthur back to Her Majesty's residence in London. Lars needed to reunite with his sister and Arthur needed to find Rio, regardless of what his queen says. He showed the map to Lars. He had Francis to thank for the map, though he did not want to say that to Lars. Niall was probably still thinking the map was in the study of Tinkerbell. "You're a pirate, you have this map, why didn't you just go for it?"

"I told you, I love Rio. Even after I marry her, the inheritance still rightfully belongs to her."

"But I still don't understand why a scum like Antonio would leave a deed like that for Rio and yet not even for himself."

"That makes me doubt the deed is real."

"Real or dud, everyone is after this deed and they're even wooing Rio just to get it."

"I know. She's out there alone, which is why I'm so worried about her."

The carriage stopped outside the palace. Arthur was feeling a little nervous and guilty, remembering how he retaliated when his queen refused to let him go to Lisbon. He didn't say anything rude to her, but it was the first time he disobeyed his queen openly. Especially in front of that Spanish informant which could would have humiliated the queen. As for Lars, he was excited to be able to see his sister again. Lars was amazed at how Arthur was greeted all the time by maids, servants or guards who walked past him despite him being a pirate. Arthur mentioned the queen had already knighted him, but he saw no difference. They were all equally ruthless and the government of that country took the blame.

"Welcome back, sir." A maid greeted. She turned out to be the queen's personal maid.

"Alice, do you have any idea where her majesty is?"

"In her bedroom. She's terribly sick."

"Is she sick enough to not be able to see anyone?"

"I'm not sure. I'll inform her that you've returned?"

"No. I don't wish to agitate her. Just tell her that I've sent a letter home saying that I'm alright."

"Yes, sir."

"Well," Lars said. "That was cruel."

"I still need to find Rio. If I tell her majesty that I'm back, she'll never let me step out of this country again."

"You should just leave Rio to me, after all-"

"Brother!" A familiar squeal echoed in the hallways of the palace. Daphne, whom still looked like her late sister, made her way in front of the two men and embraced Lars. "I'm so glad to see you!"

"Daphne, I'm glad to see you too! Why are you dressed like Bel?" Lars could feel tears flowing out of his eyes when he was reminded of his other sister whom he sang to sleep.

"It's a long story but I don't want to talk about it." She said, wiping the tears off her brother's face. "It's a miracle! I thought I would never see you again."

"Well, here I am!"

While Lars and Daphne were talking to each other about what happened to them, Arthur was informing a few soldiers to prepare a larger crew and more ships. "I'm glad you're enjoying your reunion with your sister, Lars. Enjoy your stay in my home, I'll be gone now."

"H-hey, wait!" Lars yelled. Arthur turned around. "You forgot something." Lars took out the map from his pocket and handed it to Arthur.

"Thanks, but I won't be needing this now."

"Yes you will."

Without hesitation, Arthur grabbed the map and kept it in his jacket. He proceeded to the carriage earlier and went to board his ship. The queen looked out her window to see her own husband bringing a ton of soldiers at sea and risking his own life for another woman. She understood how much this woman meant to him, but all those years of her support, he would at least have a sense of gratitude towards her. She coughed again, noticing that it was getting worse. She knew well that these symptoms weren't just signs of the common flu, but something much more deadly. She hoped that she'll still be alive by the time Arthur returned, but feared she would only see pity in his eyes but not love.

X

Rio already predicted what her fate was when she signed that scroll. Her marriage with Niall was only a day old and she was already picturing her fate. She was supposed to spend the night next to her husband, Niall but remembering what he did to her the first time he came onto the Tinkerbell, she was far too afraid go any near him. She kept awake the whole night, scared that he would rape her if she fell asleep. He wouldn't kill her, not yet, until he got what he wanted. There were bags under her eyes and she was feeling very cranky and exhausted. Being a bit of a neat freak, she would take her bath no matter what and make sure to lock the bathroom door and block it with heavy things. She knew Niall had such a mindset that since he was her husband, he was free to walk in on her anytime he liked and it wouldn't be considered ungentlemanly or perverted. Was it going to be this way for the rest of her life? She couldn't imagine bearing the child of such a ruthless scumbag.

The next morning before Niall went out to see to his crew, he locked Rio in the room so she wouldn't be able to escape. "I did think of tying ye up, but I won't be so cruel since ye be me wife." Rio almost flew into a rage when she heard 'my wife' come out of Niall's mouth. Those words belonged to Arthur, not him. What Rio worried about was the lack of air in the room. The door had no gaps and the windows were removed from the walls. Was Niall that stupid or was he really trying to kill Rio? It might last Rio a few hours but soon she'd be panting for air.

"So, ye lackin' air yet?" Rio heard Niall call from the outside of the cabin.

"No!"

"Ye be tough now, but soon ye be on ye knees for air."

Was Niall doing this just to get Rio to promise him something?

"Bastard!"

There was no answer.

"Fine, I don't care! I'll never promise you anything!"

At this time, Rio would have expected Niall to give her a cocky answer, but he didn't say anything to her. He seemed to giving his crew battle commands. Rio wanted to look out for hope, but she could only hear and not see. If there was really a fight going on outside, Rio had a meek chance of escaping, if she was careful enough not to get spotted by any of the enemy pirates. She tried breaking the door open with her shoulder, but it only injured her. She heard the shooting of cannons, bullets and men taking out their swords.

"Niall! Niall! Let me out! I can fight!" She yelled. She could fight, with a bow and arrows which could obviously not be found on a pirate ship. "Niall!"

Rio never guessed that the enemies were Arthur and his crew. Neither did Arthur expect Rio to be on that ship but it was pretty predictable anyway. Upon seeing Arthur and other Brits, Niall ordered his crew to shoot cannons at them. Arthur was provoked of course and he decided to attack since he could find Rio on that ship. His men were beat though, after attacking several ships without Rio. Arthur noticed some of them jumping off for their lives.

"What ye be doing out at sea, Arthur? Shouldn't ye be home with ye queen?"

"Is Rio on board or not?"

By the time Rio heard Arthur's voice, she was already panting for air. She had used too much of it calling for Niall to no avail. Would Arthur hear her if shouted louder? "Arthur…"

"Why ye be carin' so much 'bout that wretch anyway?"

"I'm not here to take back my vessel. I'm here to rescue the woman I love, to make it more clear to you, my wife."

"Arthur…" Rio panted.

"She ain't ye wife, Arthur, no matter how much ye love her. She be legally married to me."

"As if I would believe that she would ever agree to marry you-" Arthur paused when he saw Rio's signature in permanent ink on the marriage registration form. "That…that…"

"Arthur!" Rio screamed.

"Rio!" Arthur headed to the captain's cabin but was obstructed by other pirates and Niall himself.

"Ye be taking too much from me, Arthur! Ye won't be taking this booty from me!"

"I'm not after that booty! It belongs to Rio, not you!"

Niall pulled out his sword and pointed it at Arthur's neck. At the same time, Arthur's pistol was pointing at Niall's chest. They were in this paused position, while each of their crews were being killed or thrown off the ship. "Put ye gun away and I'll spare ye, then take ye and ye crew and go home!"

"I don't want to kill you, Niall! Release Rio and this vessel is yours!"

"Ye can take the vessel! I want the wench and the map!"

"I don't have the map!"

"Aye! Don't make me stab ye just to get it!"

"Bullets can travel faster than blades!"

"We'll see 'bout that!"

The brothers attacked at the same, with Niall stabbing Arthur and Arthur shooting a bullet at Niall's forehead. Niall's blade went right through Arthur's abdomen but he was untouched. I missed. How could I miss? Arthur thought. He had shot many in his pirate life using that same pistol, how could he have missed?

"Ye missed, Arthur! Now ye lose ye life, ye wench, ye vessel and ye crew!"

"N-Not exact…exactly…"

"What?" A bullet penetrated the redhead's chest, causing him to collapse. He touched his wound and stared at his fresh blood being shed for the first time. He has never shed blood for a long time, neither has he lost a battle before in his life. Behind him, Rio was wide-eyed, her fingers curved around the handle of a pistol. The door to the captain's cabin had a hole in its lock, which was caused by Arthur's missed bullet. Once Rio composed herself after realizing she killed a man, she rushed over to Arthur's side. The wound was very deep and Rio hoped the blade did not touch any of the vital organs.

"Sir!" A soldier cried, rushing to the Arthur's struggling body.

"Take him back to the ship and treat his wound immediately!" Rio told the soldier. While Arthur was taken back to the privateer ship, Rio went downstairs to the prisoner cells to look for Francis and Victoria. Arthur, you can't die. You just can't. Most of the cells were empty with nothing but skeletons and spider webs in them until she came to one. Victoria was poking and pushing her brother's motionless body.

"Victoria?"

"Brother…Brother…" Victoria sobbed as she tried to save Francis with mouth-to-mouth resuscitation. Rio, who took the keys from Niall, opened the cell gate.

"Victoria, get out of there, now!"

"But…Big Brother Francis." Victoria continued to weep. "The gate's not big enough!"

Rio groaned a little and gingerly made her way into the cell. "Come on!" She put one of Francis's arm around her neck and the other around Victoria's. They carefully dragged him out of the cell. "He's too…heavy…"

"Somebody, help!" Victoria cried. Fortunately, a soldier rushed down the stairs and saw Rio and Victoria struggling to support Francis.

"This man…he's wanted in London for having relations with the pirate Antonio Fer-"

"Just get him on the privateer ship!" Rio snapped. The soldier nodded and piggybacked Francis. Rio could tell that at this rate, the Tinkerbell could sink. She was saddened by the fact that Arthur's beloved vessel was sinking and it also carried many good memories. There was chaos on the upper deck. Pirates and soldiers were killing each other by not just stabbing but also slicing each other's heads. Rio boarded the privateer ship, followed by Victoria but the soldier carrying Francis had a hard time jumping onto the ship.

"Come on!" Rio yelled.

"Brother!"

"I'm trying to but he's too heavy!" The Tinkerbell kept bumping on and off the privateer ship. To prevent the privateer ship from sinking as well, some of the soldiers were maneuvering it away. "Some help, please?"

"Jump! Now!" Rio demanded. The soldier jumped, but his legs missed the privateer ship. Instinctively, his hands let go of Francis to hold onto the ship. Francis's body, still motionless, fell into a sea of corpses, becoming one of them.

"Brother!" Victoria screamed her voice hoarse. She wanted to jump in to save her brother, but Rio pulled her back.

"Victoria!" She embraced Victoria as she wet Rio's top with her tears. "Victoria, I'm sorry." Victoria mumbled many things to Rio about Francis, but Rio could not understand them with loud sobs and cries in between her words. She imagined herself being in Victoria's state if Arthur's fate was similar to Francis'. She was anxious to go check on how Arthur was doing, but she was Victoria's only kin now.

"I-I'm sure you h-have other things to see to…" Victoria pulled away from Rio, breaking their embrace and followed one of the soldiers to an empty cabin. She would probably cry for the next few hours and mourn for the next few months. Once Rio knew Victoria was safe in her own cabin, she was led to Arthur's cabin where a professional doctor was treating his wounds.

"How is he?" Rio asked out of nowhere, not even introducing herself and stating her relationship with Arthur. "I-I'm Rio C-Carla…a friend of Arthur Kirkland."

"Your accent…are you Portuguese?" asked the doctor.

"Yes."

"Do you know how to make that popular ointment used there?"

"Yes, but it will take a while to make it. I'm not sure if Arthur can stand the wait, or even find the right ingredients to make the right ointment."

"I have a few herbs here. I've disinfected his wound with normal medicines, but it's not enough."

"Are you sure he can stand it for such a long time?"

"He will be able to stand it, however there can be sudden side effects and…"

"If it'll save his life, I'll do it."