"HEY!" Henry shouted at the officers, racing at full speed towards our boat. "That's ours! Unhand it at once!"
The two officers aboard just shared a glance and laughed. I was right on Henry's heels, my face flushed in fury. "We paid for this vessel ourselves and as its owner, we demand to know why you are stealing it!"
The taller of the two narrowed his eyes, challenging us. "Have you been paying to have your 'vessel' tied up here?" he asked condescendingly.
Henry and I looked at each other, furious at ourselves for not knowing this to be a regulation at these docks.
"Exactly," the other officer replied. "So, who really has been doing the stealing, eh?"
I marched to the edge of the dock, shouting, "We're just innocent fishermen! Can't you let us be? We can pay off our debt!" All of this was a lie, but it was worth a shot.
"Nay, lass," said the first. "Worry not, your boat'll be put to good use. It's needed up North. Talks of an uprising in the American colonies."
"And what on Earth will a fishing boat do to settle an uprising?" Henry spat.
The men looked at each other once more, having clearly not thought this excuse out. Finally, the second answered, "Blokes gotta eat, don't they?" They then both let out a hearty guffaw of riotous laughter.
I was seething. So furious, frustrated and desperate was I that without thinking, I procured my pistol from the pocket lining under my dress and had it aimed right at our boat, with the intention to shoot a hole in it to sink it. If we couldn't have it, I reasoned, no one could!
"Anna, stop!" Henry shouted, hitting my arm downwards before I could shoot. But it was too late—the men had already seen my rash action.
"HEY!" they shouted, leaping off of the Dauntless and back onto the docks, their bayonets pointed right into our chests. "PUT THE GUN DOWN! THAT'S AN ORDER!"
I grudgingly obeyed, being without a choice. I then stood back up, my hands raised in surrender.
"Well done," Henry spat at me, sending me fuming.
"How very bold of you 'innocent fishermen' to threaten officers of the Crown. What are your names?" the taller officer questioned.
"Henry Turner," Henry replied through gritted teeth.
I hesitated. "Turner" was a general enough name for Henry to use without raising suspicion. Not many people knew the lore of the shipwrecked blacksmith orphan of Port Royal who grew up to become one of the most powerful immortal pirates in the entire ocean. The name "Swann" was another matter entirely. But my name, "Norrington," would instantly trigger chaos, as my father was a renowned Navy traitor. Undoubtedly, these men would know that name and have questions about me sharing it. "Anna…James," I finally told them.
I saw Henry flash me a bewildered look out of the corner of my eyes, but I paid him no mind.
"Hmm," the officer replied snootily. "Alright, Turner, Miss James. You are lucky that I am going to let you go instead of turning you to the cells at once. Having lost your ship should teach you a lesson or two."
They lowered their bayonets, then turned to hop back aboard the Dauntless, now fully ready to be led away from us. I reached down to grab my pistol, but the shorter officer made me freeze in the middle of doing so. "Ah ah ah," he scolded, scooping it out of my grasp. "A gun like this doesn't belong in the hands of a little lady. I'll be keeping it as well." My heart twisted in my chest. The gun, the beautiful gun I had been given from my mother, the gun that Elizabeth had taught me how to use, the gun that had convinced me that I was powerful…was gone forever. I wanted to scream, rush the man and snatch it back, but Henry's grip on my forearm reminded me that this was not possible. We waited until the Dauntless and my gun had disappeared from our line of vision before speaking.
Henry began with, "Anna James? Really?"
"Well let's consider my options," I hissed. "If I said 'Norrington,' I would have been arrested, if I said 'Hexfury,' I would have been laughed at, and if I said 'Teague,' I would have been killed. James will do!"
"You could have said, 'Turner!'"
I rolled my eyes. "Oh yes, like we'd pass for brother and sister. And I refuse to go through the husband-wife bit again."
"Why did you have pull that stunt with your gun?" Henry asked. "Now they have our names, well, my name, your gun, and our boat!"
"The boat was not my fault!" I protested.
"No, but now we are without transport! We can't leave this godforsaken island!"
I took a shallow breath, tears coming to my eyes. "Henry, what are we going to do? I can't defend myself, we can't go anywhere, we can't even feed ourselves!" I procured our newly empty coin purse, throwing it on the ground in defeat. I looked up at him, my eyes searching his for answers. Finally, I asked, "Was…was this all a mistake? Should I just touch the water? What do we do?"
"No," he replied instantly. "We've come this far, we aren't giving up now." He looked at me, his gaze unwavering as he said, "We're going to find a way out of this."
"This is the stupidest idea you've had yet," I spat as he laid a tin can down at my feet.
"Would you like to starve?" he retorted.
I glared at him, taking my mother's locket off my neck and shoving it into his chest. "You like the idea so much, you sing for money!"
He handed the locket back to me, saying, "It won't work if I do it. If you beg, you'll be arrested. But show off a talent? Then what you make, you're earning. You're a girl, hungry and alone, singing for her wages and stationed outside a tavern with drunken patrons with heaps of extra money coming and going regularly. It's foolproof!"
I sneered, "Clearly it's not foolproof, for here you stand." I looked up to take pleasure in his annoyed reaction, but my eyes followed a uniformed Naval officer standing a few paces away in a doorway. "Henry," I said, my voice low. "The officer, standing beneath the crooked awning over your right shoulder."
He quickly looked over, took notice of him, then looked back. Quietly, he said, "What about him?"
"He's been following us all afternoon." My eyes searched his as I asked, "You don't think that they're from the docks, do you?" I looked up again, but found the officer to be completely gone. "He left!" I exclaimed. "I bet he saw us take notice of him. What if he's after us?"
"Oh I don't doubt he is after your little demonstration today," Henry said with pursed lips. "I'll keep an eye out. I'm not afraid to dispatch him if necessary. But for now," he said, lightly nudging the can closer to me with the toe of his boot, "You owe me one. So sing."
I rolled my eyes, finally giving in. "Fine, I'll be your performing monkey. But never again, mark my words!"
Henry smiled. "There we go! Now, as long as you're settled…" he then turned to leave, walking towards the center of the street.
"Hold on a moment," I protested. "Where do you think you're going?"
"I need to secure a place for us to sleep tonight, don't I?" he replied.
"So you're just going to leave me here without a weapon at nighttime with a Naval officer stalking us! What is the matter with you?"
"Anna," Henry argued. "This is a busy part of town. I won't go far. If you run into danger, anyone within the tavern will be sure to help you, and I'll come running, I promise."
I fumed at the thought of being at someone else's mercy. But I had to remind myself that the reason I was at someone else's mercy was because I had been the one to lose my temper and then my only weapon. So, I finally agreed, though Henry could still sense that I was uncomfortable.
"Listen," he said, "If we ever get separated for a time, let's always agree to meet back in this part of town, by the docks, alright? I promise I shall wait for you, but if it's me who has been taken, wait for as long as your able, but don't be afraid to touch the water and have Rose take you home, alright? I can finish the job on my own."
I snorted. "Absolutely not. If you're staying, I'm staying."
"Alright, so be it," he conceded. "Stay here, I'll be back in a bit." And with that, he disappeared into the night.
Tentatively, I unlatched the locket as its tune began to cut through the silence of the night. I took a deep breath, sighing at how ridiculous my situation had become as I began to quietly sing along with the lyrics I had known since I was young.
Cruel and cold like winds on the sea,
Till the day he returns to me,
Ten long years we'll wait to go by,
Our love will never die.
I sang the song three times in a row before a drunken patron leaving the noisy tavern dropped a shilling in my can. Impressed, I rewound the locket and kept singing. After awhile, some of the drunks had moved their conversations outside to listen to my performance, pay me, and carry on in their festivities while I sang. Eventually, I grew tired of the same four lines and began to come up with new ones.
Over waves and deep in the blue,
I will give up my heart for you,
Ten long years we'll wait to go by,
Our love will never die.
Play the song you sang long ago,
And wherever the storm may blow,
You will find the key to my heart,
We'll never be apart.
In an hour, I had made about two pounds, which wasn't much but at least was more than nothing. Singing and rewinding the locket eventually became habit, and I stopped thinking about what I was doing and just kept going while my mind was elsewhere. So preoccupied was I, however, that it took me awhile to notice the gruff looking man sipping at a flask standing in the doorway of the tavern, eyeing me. How long had he been standing there? Was he too a Naval officer out to get us? I sang a few more rounds, but suddenly grew very unnerved at the man's unwavering stare. I picked up the can, emptying its contents into my empty gun holster within my dress, then rounded the corner behind the tavern to wait until Henry returned.
My heart began to pound, however, when I heard footsteps behind me. I altogether panicked when I glanced over my shoulder and saw that same gruff man pursuing me.
I spun around, my hands in the air in surrender. "I don't know what you want, but leave me be! All I have to do is scream and any number of people will come to my aid!"
"No need for that, missy," he replied, continuing to come forward towards me. "All I wish to know is where you got that locket, lass."
I gulped. No, not this too, I thought. I've already lost one token from my mother today, I will not lose the other. "I…I stole it," I lied.
But this was the wrong answer, for the man then procured his pistol and aimed it right at me. "Then I'm afraid I'm going to have to steal it from you, then."
My heart fell into my stomach. I clutched the locket and my father's ring tighter. "No! It's mine!"
"You just said you stole it! It's worth more to me than it is to you, lass, I assure you that."
"I will not let this go!" I insisted. "If it's my money that you want, take it! But the locket stays here with me!"
The man, to his credit, was understanding. "If it's money or food you're worried about, I can supply you that. Just relinquish the locket, eh? Before someone gets hurt."
Noticing his capability for compassion, I opted to try to appeal to what small amount of kindness he could show me by telling him the truth. "…I didn't steal it, alright? It's…my mother's."
"Ah, and she stole it, did she?" he asked.
"No! It was given to her!"
But he looked utterly unconvinced. "By who?"
The sea goddess, Calypso, was the answer, but I dared not say that lest this man toss me into a cell for deranged lunacy at once. "…I cannot tell you," I said.
He snorted. "Precisely. There's but one person with a locket like that on this Earth, and she is the rightful owner, not you. The woman who owns that locket would never freely give it away to anyone." He clicked the barrel of his gun, sending shivers down my spine. "Hand it over, final warning."
But I was alarmed by his words. "You…you know her? Who are you?"
"Nay, lass. The question is who are you?"
I was conflicted. If this man knew of my father's previous treachery, I could be damning myself. But then again, how else would it be revealed if he knew my family? How else could I keep the locket? "…Anna…Norrington," I said.
The man's eyes grew as wide as saucers. Clearly, he knew of whom I spoke. "Norrington? The English Norringtons? Are you related to Lawrence Norrington?"
I cringed as I hesitantly replied, "He's my grandfather, yes."
"And who be your father? Thomas?"
"James."
"James?"
I threw my hands up higher in defense. "But I don't know him! I never have! His sins are his and his alone! Leave me be!"
"But then…who be your mother?"
I sighed, finally letting it slip out. "Rose Hexfury."
"WHAT?" he roared. "…h…how? She's dead…he's dead…and they…had a child? Together?"
"It would take too long to explain," I said. "They are married. Or…they were. I'm not certain anymore…" I shook myself from the thought and continued, "I was the product. But my mother is the rightful owner of this locket. I cannot give it up!"
"To her was precisely where I was to take it," he replied, lowering his gun finally. "First hand it over to Jack, then find her."
My mouth fell agape. "Jack? Jack Sparrow? You know him?"
He scoffed, "Sadly, yes. The name's Joshamee Gibbs."
"Gibbs!" I gasped. "My god, I've heard so much about you!"
He smiled with a knowing nod. "Sailed beneath your grandfather, your father, and currently with your Uncle, so yes, I suppose ya would." He then took a moment, sighing, "Mother's mercy, I feel bloody old."
I grinned. "You sail with Jack? Where is he now? I have to see him at once!"
Gibbs hesitated, as though to counter my request, but wasn't able to complete his thought, as just then, as though materializing out of the sky, Henry leapt off the roof of the tavern and directly in front of me, his sword pointed square Gibbs, who raised his gun once more at the sudden maneuver. They now were facing off, sword against gun, but Henry seemed undeterred.
"Back away!" he ordered. "Leave her alone and be on your way! I'll run you through, I swear it!"
"Um, Henry?" I said, tapping him on the shoulder. "Meet Master Gibbs, the one your mother speaks so often about."
He furrowed his brow, looking closer at Gibbs, and then to me for corroboration. "Yes," I said. "Thanks for rescuing me in such a timely manner, by the way. So helpful."
Henry sheathed his sword and walked forward to shake Gibbs's hand. "Sir," he said, "Henry Turner. I thank you for your service to my family."
Gibbs looked utterly bewildered. "Turner? You're not Elizabeth Swann's boy?"
"He is!" I exclaimed. "We're third generation Turners and Norringtons, and we need Jack's help!"
"He still sails with Jack?" Henry asked me. He then turned to him. "Sir, where is he now?"
"Your guess is as good as mine," Gibbs replied. "He and the crew set off to sack a vessel to claim as their own."
Crestfallen, I said, "Jack still hasn't freed the Black Pearl, then."
Gibbs shook his head. "Nay. And our last vessel was commandeered by the bloody Navy, the perfidious rotters." He then grimaced and looked at me apologetically. "…no offense, Miss Norrington."
"None taken," I replied with a shrug.
"Ours was taken as well," Henry responded. "Do you know when Jack will be back?"
"And wait," I added, "Why aren't you with them?"
"I elected to sit this one out, as I was nearly killed on the last one of these missions," Gibbs explained, the slightest bit of resentment lining his tone. "They're coming back for me…oh, Lord knows when."
"We need to speak with him at once!" Henry insisted. "Our families are in danger."
"I pity ya, lad, I really do," Gibbs replied sympathetically, "But until Jack returns, I'm no help to you whatsoever. And to be quite frank," he added, "I'm not certain that even Jack will be a help to you whatsoever."
"Perhaps not in this way," I said, "But what about something else entirely? We seek the Map No Man Can Read. Have you heard of it?"
Gibbs narrowed his eyes, but ultimately shook his head. "Doesn't ring a bell."
"Captain Barbossa gave it to someone we believe is on this island. It will help get us what we need."
Gibbs narrowed his eyes. "And so you've already asked Barbossa, I presume?"
Henry and I looked at each other in alarm. "You mean, he's here? On St. Martin?" he asked.
"Since takin' the Queen Anne's Revenge, he's frequented these parts. I heard lore he's back to restock several from his fleet at the Northern docks."
"Fleet?" I asked. "Barbossa has a fleet of ships now?"
"Oh aye," Gibbs sighed. "The peg-legged knave practically has the entire ocean under his grimy thumb."
I grabbed Henry by the shoulders in excitement, crying, "Oh but this is perfect! To be so close!"
Henry looked skeptical, however, which confused me, but Gibbs interjected. "Well if you haven't already seen 'im, I wouldn't recommend it."
"Why not?" I asked.
"You lot are Teagues and Turners. If I were to go aboard begging to join his crew, he'd string me up with that magic sword of his just for shakin' the hand of Jack Sparrow, let alone being his first mate for two decades!"
Henry narrowed his eyes. "But I thought he officiated my parents' marriage…"
Gibbs cocked his head to the side, "Aye, but if you think pirates are a sentimental lot, lad, then you don't know 'em at all."
Henry still looked uncertain, and then said, "Master Gibbs, would you mind if I speak to Anna alone? We have to discuss our next course before we implore your help any longer."
"Of course, son."
"Where can we find you if we should need you again?" he asked.
Gibbs sighed, "Oh, the tavern. Seems like I'm always there."
We agreed to come back to him with a plan shortly, and as he wandered back into the tavern I heard him mutter under his breath, "'Third generation…' Pssh! Slap me thrice and drown me in a bucket…"
We waited until he was gone until we spoke, and I was the first to express my excitement. "I cannot believe we ran into Master Gibbs!"
Henry looked awestruck. "Most assuredly. This helps our situation immensely!"
"I know! Our next course of action is so apparent now!"
Then, we both at the same time spoke what we each thought the next course of action was, but were alarmed to find that we were not in agreement.
"Sail with Jack!" Henry exclaimed.
"See Barbossa!" I cried.
"…what?" we both said to each other in unison.
"Did you not just hear Gibbs? Barbossa will retaliate if we show ourselves!"
"Are you completely moronic?!" I retorted. "Barbossa is the one who knows where the diary is!"
Henry shook his head. "Barbossa only knows as much as where he gave that diary. From there, he knows nothing!"
"Won't that narrow down our search even slightly? There's no trident without the map!"
"And there's no rescuing our fathers without us!" Henry chirped briskly. "Why wouldn't you want to see Jack immediately? He's your uncle!"
"Of course I want to see him immediately! I want to meet my uncle, let alone see him! But how will Jack possibly help us find the diary?"
"He'll help us at all, Anna! You're his niece! Gibbs is right: Barbossa holds no sympathy or personal favors for either of us." He threw his hands up in the air and stormed away, seeing how stubbornly I was attached to my plan. "Fine!" he shouted. "Do as you please, but don't blame me when you're suddenly his captive just as my mother once was! I'm going to tell Gibbs that I'm with him. Wherever Jack sails, I sail!"
"Henry," I said, trying to reason with him as he marched away from me.
But it was too late. Not only had Henry made up his mind, but he would never get back to the tavern to tell Gibbs of his plan, for just then, the Naval officer that had been following us lie in waiting around the corner and hit Henry over the head with a club as he passed, knocking him unconscious immediately. Three other men grabbed his arms and legs, and began to carry him down the street.
"HENRY!" I screamed, racing after them. I threw myself at full force at the man holding his right arm, though my punches did little to nothing. "Let him go!" I cried. "He did nothing wrong! It's me! I'm the one you want!"
The men stopped, looked at one another and started laughing. "Oh I highly doubt that," the one who I had hit chuckled. "Press gang, lass. Your friend here's joining the Navy!"
I blinked. So, these men weren't sent by the men I had threatened that afternoon…that could only mean… Scarfield! He had wanted Henry for the Navy since he first laid eyes on him. Had he ordered us to be followed this entire time?
The men began walking away, Henry's head bobbing with every step taken.
"But…you can't do that!" I called after them.
"Can't we?" the stalking officer spat.
I raced to attack once again, but the stalker used his free hand to produce his pistol, forcing me to stay frozen as they eventually disappeared out of sight. I then raced through the alleyways to the docks, trying to find a way aboard, but it was too late. By the time I got to the docks, the gang plank had already been pulled and the ship was setting sail. In the darkness, I could only barely make out the name of the ship. The Monarch.
There was nothing to be done. Without my gun, I couldn't stop the men from taking Henry away. Without the Dauntless, I couldn't pursue them. I was alone on a foreign island. I watched as my friend sailed further and further from me. How would he react when he awoke and found himself in an entirely knew place? Would he try to get back to me, or would he trust in my abilities and continue his search for the trident by other means? I wished I could have predicted his next move.
I walked back to the tavern, disheartened. Such a long amount of time had passed that Gibbs had left the tavern, and I had no idea where he went. Defeatedly, I sat with my back pressed up against the wall of the tavern and hugged my knees into my chest. Sleep didn't come easily to me, sitting outside in the cold of the night. But when the morning sun did come and the locals began to stir, I found myself faced with a choice. It was the same choice Henry had presented to me:
Touch the water, summon Rose and go home, or stay.
…not only would I stay, but I was going to take part in my original plan.
"Take that, Henry," I whispered with a smile. "I'm going to see Barbossa whether you like it or not."
