Alone now with only her thoughts, Cathy sat and ate the now-cold food that her brother had brought. Her appetite surprised her and she ate hungrily, leaving no morsel for the mice. Even the small ale—which she hated—tasted good and when she finished the glass wondered if she could have more.

The sunlight streamed in the pane-less windows and reflected golden on the straw mats. This was a warm, friendly room, but she couldn't wait to leave it. Cathy was a child of the city, and though she found the surrounding jungle had its own strange beauty, it was not for her. She could not wait to leave, but until she could she would make the best of it.

Someone came in, soft-footed. She turned around and saw a tall lovely African girl standing in front of her. This then must be Silver's new love.

The girl wasted no time, "What is John Silver to you?" she said with the forthright directness of the young.

Cathy suppressed a smile. "No one, not even a lover, he was just a way to pass the time. You must be Madi."

The girl looked confused. Madi was young and had lived a sheltered life. She had yet to know of the complications that would occur in the relations between men and women. Life and love were still black and white. She loved John Silver, was devoted to him even. She had yet to learn that casual friends could be casual lovers.

Still, she was determined not to let her ignorance show. "John said that he'd like me to take you to the place where we girls bathe. We take along guards, but they are not allowed to watch us. I can take you now if you like."

"Please," answered Cathy, and took up a small hemp bad with her soap and coconut oil. She followed Madi out of the room, and two girls followed them, with the men trailing behind. If she had hoped for privacy she was to be disappointed.

The small pool that the girls called their bathing spot was surrounded by trees. It reminded her a little of the pool by her waterfall, but the water was warmer and less clear. Still, it was a place to bathe, and it felt good to take a bath and wash her hair. Next time, she promised herself, I'll come here alone.

The days passed slowly and she was becoming anxious. Flint seemed preoccupied and that was not a good sign. Maybe he was trying to figure out a way to take back his gold, which seemed more and more like a good idea to her. Rackham had shed no blood to claim it, he had merely appropriated it. Unless it was gotten away, and soon, the gold would find itself in the possession of the Crown.

She needed a way to get off this island. She had learned that the packets had been sailing between the island and Nassau. This island was not wholly independent, then. Supplies and news had to come from somewhere, and the packets were willing to serve anyone who paid, even pirates.

One night Flint woke her up from a sound sleep. Placing his hand over her mouth, he whispered, "Not a sound, Cathy, we're leaving. You must be careful, there are snares and traps for the unwary, but we've sprung most of them. We've taken your chest and your strongbox to the ship. Stay close to me, and say nothing."

She picked up her portmanteau and taking his hand allowed him to lead her through the trees, following a path he must have chosen in preparation of this day. His henchmen followed without making a sound surprising her, but pirates were masters of stealth.

Silver and Billy Bones were waiting at the longboats. Flint lifted Cathy as easily as if she were a child and placed in the lead boat. Silver and Billy pushed the boat into the water, then jumped in. Flint followed, along with some men she recognized as belonging to the queen.

"Aye," said Flint, "I needed to fill out the crew. Not all of the queen's subjects were happy to remain in her service and needed little persuading to join us. They'd served in the fields long enough, they're eager for some booty."

She watched from the prow as the boat cut through the water. The night was dark, and the water so black that the division between sky and water could barely be seen. Even the stars that filled the sky provided little night to see by. Oh, for a moon, even a small one, she thought.

At last a shape loomed up in the night, and the familiar hulk of the Spaniard lay before them. The men rowed the boats close to the hull of the ship and began hauling themselves up the ropes hanging down the sides.

Billy took her bag and tossed it to one of the men now waiting on the ship. He took hold of a rope and handed it to her. "Can you still climb like a monkey?" he asked.

Perhaps she was not so limber as she'd been when very young, but she could still climb a rope with ease. Billy lifted her when she neared the top and set her on deck. "I'm to take you to Flint's cabin," he said and put his arm tightly around her waist to steady her.

The cabin was a refuge, even before they'd lit the oil lamps. He hung a hammock for her, then kissed her. "I've got to go, there's a current here that will take us out to sea. Be a good girl and try to get some rest, we've got a long voyage ahead of us."

He wouldn't say more but left the cabin. Something's going on, Cathy thought, something big. Silver's had to leave his girl behind, and I'll wager a crown that she was not happy about that. What are you up to, Flint? I wish you'd remember that you can always trust me, but you love your secretive ways, don't you?

She settled herself into Flint's bed, putting out all the lamps but one. Lulled by the sound of the waves, and the men's shouting she fell asleep, dreaming of an island that no one had heard of.

A great deal of noise on deck woke her, and throwing a shawl around her shoulders, she ran up on deck. The ships lamps had been lit, and in their faint light, she saw an outline of another ship looming before them.

She ran up on the bridge where her brother was giving orders to drop anchor. "What are you doing, Flint?" she asked, and he answered with a devilish smile.

"Don't you recognize the ship, Cathy? No? Well, look harder, it's the Walrus. I had some men retrieve her for me. They've been working on making her seaworthy for me. The masts had to be rebuilt, but the hull appears to be sound. She needs to be careened, but that will have to wait."

"Wait a minute," she felt confused, wondering what was going on, "The last time I saw the Walrus she looked like she would sink any minute, and she's still sitting low in the water. How has this come about?"

"Cathy, Cathy, Cathy, to think that you of all people would doubt me. Now, when you went on her it was only briefly. The Walrus is well built, a good strong ship. She wouldn't have made it back to Nassau if she weren't seaworthy, now would she? I'm taking the bulk of the crew and we're doing to take a little trip north. After we're done, I'm taking you to Savannah so you can sail to England or France or wherever you like. After that, I might go to Africa, to the Seychelles, or maybe I'll just ply my trade on the Atlantic. Lots of booty to be had, my girl, and I'm going to have my fair share of it."

The genius of what he had done dawned on her. Flint had had no intention of leaving his treasure to Jack Rackham, leaving it in Nassau had been merely a diversion. And she knew the soundness of the Walrus. Had any serious damage been done in the storm, Rackham would have repaired it before the gold was loaded into the holds. If the Walrus wasn't seaworthy, Flint would not be loading men and supplies onto her. But she wondered what her brother intended to do now.

Billy Bones joined the new crew. Most of his old men followed Flint, but Silver and a few of the Africans from Shipwreck Island stayed with the man-o-war. Silver would probably go back to Madi, he was clearly in love with the girl. Good luck to both of you, she thought, you may need it.

Flint gave the command to hoist the sails, and they filled quickly with the blowing night wind. Flint would sail by feel through the night, and set a course the following morning when there was light to use the sextant. Until then they would rely on the compass and steer by the stars if need be.

"Come on Cathy," Flint said, "Let's get into the cabin and get some rum. I have something I want to show you."

Brother and sister lit the lamps, then sat with a bottle of rum between them. He fetched a piece of paper out of the false bottom of a desk drawer.

"I was afraid that someone would find this, they must have left the cabins alone since the hold was all they needed." He spread it out and pushed it across the table. "Tell me what you think of this. I stole this from Teach before I left him."

The paper was old, but the marking on the page was drawn in a heavy black ink. She turned it around so north faced up and saw that she was looking at a diagram of two small islands. She turned the page over and saw headings had been written on the back in her brother's handwriting.

She turned the paper over. There were two islands, the smaller almost tucked into a corner of the larger. There were names written: Foremost Hill, Mizzenmast Hill, Spyglass Hill. The smaller island had been labeled "Skeleton Island", but the larger island had no name. She saw a blockhouse on the main island, along with the various names of inlets, a cape named aptly "Cape of the Woods". Features of the surrounding waters had been labeled.

This looked like her brother's work. "Have you been here before?" she asked.

"Once, with Teach. We built the blockhouse for shelter because we had to stay for a while. It's away from the shipping lanes and not easy to find unless you know where to look for it. I've written the bearing on the back, in case you forget. Cathy, I want you to make a copy of this map, you have a good fist for drawing."

"What are you going to do?" She asked the question, though she could guess at the answer.

"I'm going to distribute a little to the men, but the bulk of the treasure will be buried. If something happens to me, you'll have a copy of the map with all the bearings. You can come back and claim it, and no one will deny you. You're not a buccaneer, but you know the value of keeping knowledge close to you. This treasure has become an albatross around our necks, the sooner it is hidden, the better. I don't aim to return to Nassau, and if you're smart, neither will you. Let Woods Rogers fret over it, I don't care now if the Spanish invade Nassau or not-we'll be untouchable."

Cathy let out a long soft whistle. She never ceased to be surprised over her brother's genius. He had probably been planning this since he learned that Rackham had his treasure, maybe even before he seized it. Rogers would have no way to find it. She would be safe in France and protected from any agents of the Crown. Rogers would have his hands full with unrest brewing on the island.

She tipped more rum into her glass. "I don't know how you manage this, big brother, but you never cease to surprise me. This is…," she paused and took a deep drink of her rum, "this is perfect. Teach always hated you for your ambition, but he was never one to doubt your intelligence. Rackham, Rogers, Hornigold, they're probably all furious. You've outsmarted them all, again. Sometimes I doubt your schemes, but this one is going to work."

"We've had to be clever, you and I. I always wondered why you wasted yourself on Charles Vane, you were far above him. When I heard that you robbed the governor of Cuba, I had no fears for your safety. I knew that you would think things through, plan carefully each step of the way." He set his glass down rather clumsily, almost splashing rum on his map. "I am giving you a portion of the gold, in coins and gems so you don't have to worry about the stamps on the bars. My advice to you is to go to France and find your privateer and marry him. Get fat and raise babies. Be happy."

She clinked her glass against his. "I intend to find him and do just that. To our farewell to Nassau, may she fall into the ocean."

Flint lifted his glass and winked.