Chapter One: Homeward bound

Teague pressed a spyglass tightly to his eye and focussed it on the choppy waves surrounding the cove. He blinked as an eyelash became caught in the rim and cursed the devise while he readjusted it to focus on the waves.

His eyes scanned the ocean's waters; searching for a ship which one of his guards had identified as a possible threat:

"It ain't got no men sir! That's gotta count for somethin'! What if its 'iding an attack or somethin'! I know them rogues 're still goin', well! I mean we 'avent caught any 'ave we! What if they're just watin' to come back fer us? Ye can never be too careful sir."

Even though five years had passed since the escapade from the dungeons orchestrated by Jackie and his wilful boyish ignorance, the guards still stood on high alert, it was probably a good thing. Immediately after the rogues 'incident', as it was now quaintly referred to by other pirates and pirate lords, Teague had entered a dark period. He questioned his own ability as Keeper due to his ignorance of his son's plan. How could he protect an entire island when he could barely look after one head-strung newly post teen who had huge ideas about what he wanted to do and what he thought was right but no common sense to stop himself from making terrible decisions, and due to Teague's new found philosophical train of thought he wasn't completely focused on what was happening currently, thus, the guards had taken over for a few weeks until Shipwreck cove had doubled its security and become the safe haven people once regarded it as. When Teague came back into power, there was no doubt in the public that his own interests where drawn out by the code and aligned with their own.

But there was still some small part of Teague that simply wanted to ask Jack why he'd done it? Had it been some misunderstanding? Or was there actually a darker interest buried within Jack, some rebellion that had been waiting to happen and that he'd failed to spot. Was Jack just an unnoticed rogue pirate which his alliance with Christophe had brought out in him?

Another part of Teague wondered why his own influence on Jack hadn't shown him to trust the people in charge and know that sometimes, no matter how hard to believe, there can be an element of truth to it.

As the weeks dolled past Teague half expected Jack to roll up to the docks in a dingy feeling fully sobered by his experience with the rogues and fully prepared to apologise. However, weeks had turned into months and months to years and still there hadn't even been a note. Everyone Teague met denied having seen Jack. In fact, the last words he'd had were from Esmerelda, some weeks after the event, saying that she'd seen Jack in a free port several weeks earlier and told Teague that Jack had no idea about Christophe or Borya and she rallied on the basis that he was innocent. However, Teague's own alignment with the law made Jack's ignorance impossible to believe, the other thing that made Teague question Jack's innocence was his absence and as the months rolled by Teague began to disregard Esmerelda's story as a lover's plea.

The years had brought out the bitterness in Teague as he began to turn all the anger and questioning of himself round to Jack. Now, in Teague's eyes, the boy was uncontrollable, he was rebellious and every thing that had happened in the summer of 1720 had been to spite him.

Jack's teenage-rebellion had come in two waves, the first when he was sixteen and had run away from home to go 'travelling', as he'd explained, this rebellion, although scary on the morning when he found Jack's bed unslept in, the window in the study broken and half of Jack's things gone, Teague had come to terms with and, after finding Jack, he'd realised that the boy had grown, not just physically, but mentally too. And when he'd come home after his adventurous year away from home, Teague had noticed a positive change in Jack; he had become more social, more independent and much more focused and dedicated on goals he set himself.

As the years wore on however, Jack's mind began to wander again and thus came rebellion two at age twenty, and now, Teague saw this one as much more dangerous. Jack's first rebellion had given him new skills and new ways of thinking and Teague saw him as beginning to use these, firstly positive skills, for the ultimately negative. The boy who had become independent and dedicated had grown to a man who was vindictive and anarchistic. And so, Teague's opinion of Jack changed until he saw Jack as a completely different person to the one he knew, he found himself analysing situations and conversations they'd had in order to determine where this rebellion had come from and in the end he saw it as unstoppable.

But one thing Teague was sure of was that Jack was a criminal. He had hurt everyone who had trusted him inside Shipwreck cove, whether that be family, friends or lovers. He had betrayed his heritage and he hadn't come home which labelled him as guilty. The price on Jack's head had risen dramatically through the years starting with Teague begging his officers to just find Jack and bring him back, there Teague himself could knock some sense into him but also keep him safe from his own mistakes. This has escalated into a quietly proclaimed death sentence.

As the years had passed Teague had stopped thinking about Jack as his son too, the association dropped and although every now and again it rose with a horrible sinking feeling that one day Jack, his son, would be condemned to death by his own hand, another colder feeling took over which said that Jack wasn't anything more than a criminal who needed to be stopped.

Due to Jack's actions, Teague had placed Shipwreck Cove on a red alert for the past five years and had decided to do so until the Rogue's were caught and killed. Any suspicious behaviour and Teague would be notified straight away. This was what led him to be standing on the cliff fortress of the cove looking across the waters at a ship bobbing along the horizon.

The ship was painted a striking black colour leaving it looking like a shadow on the waves and, at night, probably invisible. The sails slacked and pulled on their ropes filling and emptying like a pair of lungs and making the ship appear alive and also, very, very fast.

The most noticeable thing about the ship however was its distinct lack of crewmen, a ship like that would only need a very small crew to run semi-efficiently but this ship appeared to have none and it was running expertly.

Teague's comprehended why the young guard had assumed that it was a ghost ship but his own theory appeared much more coherent: The Rogue's were sending in a ship manned by a skeleton crew which would be searched upon arrival into port and while that ship was being searched another would come through and destroy the cove. The ship was black so that it could sneak by unseen during nightfall and there was no doubt in Teague's mind that the ship would contain spies who sent notes to their colleagues about the security in the cove and how best to go past it.

Teague handed the spyglass to his head of the guard who stood behind him, an exemplary, up and coming guard named Harper. James Harper had risen to his rank during the struggle with the Rogue pirates five years ago, he had taken a leading role in assuming protocol on the night of the 'incident' and then establishing new laws and security constraints to prohibit it from happening again. At just thirty-five the man was impressive and it hadn't taken him long to gain Teague's respect.

"What d'ya think sir?" Harper asked, extending the spyglass and taking a look at the ship, "She sits on the horizon beautifully."

"Aye that she does…" Teague sighed, "Identify her, Harper?"

"Well sir, I do believe that she's a Galleon, can't make out the name though."

"Any distinguishing features?"

"Well…she's somewhat…. black, sir…" Harper said obviously,

"I was veering more towards her speed, lad. That Galleon's unusual somehow."

"Unusual, sir?"

"Yes...like they've done something to it."

Harper ignored this comment as he glanced back at the ship.

"Your theory please, Harper?"

"I see it as some kind of ploy ship. Possibly painted black to disguise herself against the night sky, either manned by a skeleton crew and designed to glide into port without the slightest bit of notice, she could be hiding people in her bowls…either that or she's a distraction from a much bigger ship which will come while we're examining her and it'll blow us out of the water."

"Who, do we feel is responsible, lad?"

"Sir, I don't want to point at one group of individuals before we have examined the matter further, she could easily be a Navy tactic!"

"The Navy ain't that clever." Teague said, never taking his eyes off the ship, "They like the show and presentation of battle, we'd know if they were behind it…it's gotta be the rogues."

"But there hasn't been a rogue attack or sighting in years! Why now?"

But Teague was silent as if contemplating his next move, something he'd learnt was reasoning didn't appear to matter in some cases, but the way people acted in them did.

"Keep a third of our men focused on the black Galleon, pass it through protocol but I want any, and all crew members taken to the cells and tried and charged as rogues. The rest of the men keep an eye on the ocean for the rest of the rogues. From now on I want every ship entering our harbour searched."

"and if the people on that boat are not rogue's sir?"

"Well, then we buy them a drink, Harper."

Esmeralda gripped the note with trembling fingers. The note had arrived by a mysterious bird a few days previously. Suspicion had arisen as to the author at that moment because the bird must have been bringing some sort of news of high importance or urgency to them or the author would have left it at a drop zone in a free port ready to be picked up with the next re-stock. When the mysterious note had arrived Esmeralda was even more surprised to see it was for her.

She had immediately retired herself to her cabin when she had received the note and left her first mate in charge with the orders to cut a steady course but be ready for change.

Upon opening the small letter she could tell it had been written in a hurry with handwriting which scrawled and scratched at the page, but, behind the terrible scrawl she could make out the essence of Jack's own handwriting.

Esmeralda,

Am back on the account, heading to shipwreck cove. Expect to be tried and (maybe) convicted of Rogue Piracy. Need you at the hearing to vouch for me.

Will explain everything later.

Jack x

Esmeralda's heart leapt at the news. Jack was coming home. Although she'd never have told him but since he'd joined the east India trading company she'd worried that they would discover his background and he'd be hung. Although, from what she'd seen, Jack had made a good adjustment into the company by adjusting the way he spoke, the way he looked and the way he acted, she had always thought that what Jack had been doing was a self-destructive manoeuvre. The EITC had spies spanning the globe and if they had even got the hint of piracy from Jack he'd have been gone. And of course, due to their limited meetings that his current career path gave them, she'd never find out. She'd worried that even the few meetings she had with him would cost him his life if his director ever found out about them but he'd assured her that the lads he sailed with were trustworthy and wouldn't breathe a word.

Of course, going back to piracy wasn't the safest route for him either due to his help with the Rogue escape, and if it was anyone else she was sure that Teague would make them pay with their life. But this was Jack, Teague's son, of course, Esmeralda admitted that she didn't know the full story of Jack and Teague's relationship but she was sure no father could condemn his own son to death.

"Captain," Esmerelda's first mate called into her cabin, breaking her ravine. "If you want to change course now is the time to do so, we're in deeper waters."

"Si, make fast for Shipwreck cove."