Author's Note: Hello all! Sorry this took so long – I had unforeseen computer troubles. (I'm sure you all know how that goes – blah! So frustrating!) This chapter is mostly just setting up the next one, so I'll get to that one as soon as I can. And this time I promise it won't take as long – I've just saved everything to a backup disc, so I have more padding for error now. Read on, tell me what you think!

Chapter 10: Preparation and Anticipation

            There was a lot to think about all the sudden. First was the fact that Covington was probably still chasing me. I hadn't the slightest idea what I'd do if I had to face him again, because I hadn't planned on meeting him again ever. Second, Jack had deduced my feelings for him. I had denied them of course, but I knew he wasn't fooled. I still didn't quite trust him, and I didn't like his knowing my little secret; it gave him an advantage over me. Also there was something Jack had hinted at that hadn't been spoken aloud, but I knew it all the same: he could never have beaten Covington on that ship. His crew may have overtaken Covington's in a battle, but as Jack had pointed out, Covington was becoming less than rational. He could have struck out unexpectedly, and if that had happened it would have been Jack who took the brunt of the blow; I had guessed at Covington's jealous streak myself, but not the extent to which it could aid him. I had a feeling Jack could guess that the rat would want to kill him as well, even though I had said nothing of the exchange between Covington and my dear old uncle. Oh, this was such a mess. . .

            I told Elizabeth some of my fears; she seemed the most trustworthy of the lot, apart from Anamaria of course. I asked her if Jack truly could be trusted and she assured me that he could.

            "I could never tell you what's in his head," she told me, "But he's a good man. He's hard to figure though. . . The first time I ever met him he rescued me from drowning, and immediately afterwards held a gun to my head."

            "What?" I laughed.

            "Yes, it's true! Needless to say, I found it hard to trust him myself for a long while after that. I never knew whose side he was on, but he came through in the end. I think he's just very selfish."

            "Even for a pirate you mean?"

            "Well, he looks after himself above anyone else. He's on his own side; no one else's. But if he can help his fellow man without any great injury to himself, he'll do it."

            "How long have you known him?"

            "Just a few years now, since just before he got back the Black Pearl."

            "Oh yes, Mr. Gibbs told me the story. How did it go, really? I mean, apart from the cursed gold and all that rubbish?"

            Elizabeth laughed darkly.

            "It's not rubbish, I'm afraid," she said, "I didn't believe it either at first, but I saw the proof of it with my own eyes: I spent two weeks aboard that ship with a crew of cadaverous pirates as my only company. You don't forget an episode like that easily."

            I was still skeptical, but I felt inclined to believe her. Whatever had happened, it had certainly been horrible, and Elizabeth had been caught alone in the midst of it. The one story I did believe wholeheartedly was that of her convincing Captain Barbosa to leave Port Royal. That seemed like a reasonably achievable feat, even if it did take a substantial amount of courage and determination. It had happened so close-by – I had even seen old signs of cannon fire when the Jubilee had come into port. And I had seen the size of the guns on the Black Pearl; they would have been difficult to overcome, if not impossible. The fact that Port Royal remained standing was proof enough for me that that particular incident had indeed taken place.

            In the meantime there was Covington to worry about. Jack told me that it was I would have to face him eventually, and I believed him. I had tried to convince myself otherwise for a while, but I knew that there was only one person that Covington would ever be satisfied in confronting: me. I was the one who had turned him down the first time he'd proposed, I was the one who had run away from him and others like him on a pirate ship, I was the one who had insulted him in front of his own crew the day he found me, and I was the one who had shamed him into letting me go again. I had disrespected him more than any other person he had ever known, and therefore he would either marry me or kill me when he finally found me again. I certainly had no intention of allowing the former, and so I had to learn how to defend myself in battle. Will, I discovered, had worked as a sword smith for many years before turning pirate himself, so he offered to make me a sword and train me in combat. I was extraordinarily grateful for his generosity, but unfortunately by the time my training began I had very little money left. I gave him the rest of my gold, promising him more once I found steady work. (I had taken up in a small cottage in a town that bordered Tortuga. What with all the comings and goings on the island, I was confident that a permanent baker or seamstress would be much appreciated.) But Will refused; he said he had worked for much lower pay, and for "lesser causes" as he put it.

            Anamaria left some weeks after that, and I went to the docks at dawn to see her off. She had gathered more hands for her crew, including Mr. Cotton, and intended to sail north and explore the Americas.

            "Come with me," she said, "Ye can be my first mate. An' ye can even seek yer fortune, just like you told me the day we met."

            I laughed.

            "I forgot about that," I said, "I can't come though. I have a score to settle; you know that."

            "Aye, I know. I'd almost like to stay, to see how it ends."

            "If it ends well, you'll be the first to know."

            "Good luck, Abby."

            "And the same to you. Take what you can."

            "An' give nothing back!"

            With that, she boarded her ship and made way for the elusive North. I was sad to see her go, but I knew how restless she was. She was a pirate after all, and a pirate's first love is of the open ocean. I couldn't deny her that. Besides, I had more pressing matters to attend to.

            My skill with the sword improved steadily, but as the months grew warmer and Covington still didn't appear, I began feeling anxious. There was much to do to keep me occupied: Elizabeth told me about the day she had first met Will, and the day he had finally confessed his love for her, as well as filling in some of the gaps in the story of the Black Pearl. There was an intriguing anecdote about her and Jack being marooned on a desert island by Captain Barbosa. I had heard the tale before, but when Mr. Gibbs had told it, it had included a farcical ending about Jack strapping a pair of sea turtles together to make a raft. Elizabeth's version painted her as the hero, but it was also far more plausible: she had tricked Jack into drinking himself to sleep with old rum that had been left on the island by rum runners, and then burned the rest of it herself to make a smoke signal and draw the attention of the Royal Navy. That was when I learned that she had been the governor's daughter on Port Royal, and suddenly her inscrutable grace and poise made sense. Will took me aboard his new ship and showed me around on deck. It was a beautiful ship, named the Dauntless, and had once belonged to the Royal Navy. But still I was forced to wait. Time stretched on and the days grew warmer still; I took to wrapping my long hair in blue scarf and tying it up to keep it off my neck, because it was just too hot otherwise.

            One day Elizabeth tried to help me untangle it, but our efforts were in vain. We had gone out on the porch of my little cottage to enjoy the fresh air; I sat in a wooden chair, attempting to get a comb through one particularly stubborn knot, and Elizabeth stood behind me, struggling with a different section.

            "It's right far gone," she said, yanking at my hair with the comb, "You shouldn't have let it go this long. I suppose you could always cut it –"

            "No!" I said, "No, I like it long. It's more trouble than it's worth, but it's still mine."

            "Have it your way, then. Any word from 'the rat' as you call him?"

            "Not yet. I'm getting tired of waiting – I'm beginning to think he's not coming after me at all."

            "Sure he is. He's just biding his time, probably."

            "Doing what? And in any case, I'd like to at least know where he is. I've half a mind to start looking for him myself."

            "No, you don't want to do that."

            "Why not?"

            "Because it might be just what he wants! I'll bet you anything he's convinced himself you're crazy about him – men have a way of completely ignoring the obvious when it comes to these sorts of things."

            "What do you mean?"

            "Well, he asked you to marry him, didn't he? And he came after you even after you told him 'no.' You said yourself he seemed to think he was doing you a favor by taking you back to England – why shouldn't he think the same thing now?"

            "Because I told him so. I told him to his face I never wanted to marry him."

            "Yes, but it has been a long time. He's had plenty of time to make up all sorts of mad reasons why you really ran away, and your not wanting to marry him will have nothing to do with any of them. In any case, don't go looking for him – that'll erase his doubts for sure."

            "Ouch!"

            "Oh, sorry!"

            I sighed.

            "It's all right," I said, dropping my comb in defeat, "I give up – it's as bad as Jack's."

            Elizabeth laughed then pulled up another chair to sit beside me.

            "It's not that bad," she assured me, "But it'll get there if you leave it long enough."

            I twisted my hair into a bun and tied the blue scarf around it again.

            "Speaking of Jack," said Elizabeth, "Have you noticed how . . . odd he's been acting lately?"

            "More than usual, you mean?"

            "Honestly, I think he's plotting something. You must have noticed the way he looks at you whenever Covington's name comes up?"

            "Covington? I haven't noticed anything – why? What is it you're getting at?"

            "Well. . . All right, but you didn't hear it from me."

            "Very well, go on."

            "I think he fancies you."

            "What?"

            I couldn't help blushing; I had been very careful not to let anyone else know about my feelings for Jack, but the thought of them being returned was absolutely ridiculous.

            "You really think so?" I asked, trying not to sound hopeful.

            "I can't be sure," said Elizabeth, "But whenever you bring up Covington. . . It's as if he thinks the rat might win you back."

            "That's completely absurd!"

            "Yes, I know you'd never want to go back to him, but Jack seems to think he could take you back by force or something. Listen, Mr. Gibbs told me what happened after you left the Black Pearl last year. He said Jack watched the other ship until long after it had gone past the horizon. I've seen him do that before, but only once."

            "When was that?"

            "It was when he and I were stranded on that island, and Barbosa and his crew sailed away in the Black Pearl. He said to me, 'That's the second time I've had to watch that man sail away with my ship,' and he didn't take his eyes off it until it was gone from the horizon. I know it seems silly for me to compare you to a ship – I'm sure it means nothing to you – but the man is a pirate, and a pirate's first love is –"

            "The open ocean; I know."

            I sighed heavily.

            "What's wrong, Abby?"

            "Nothing," I muttered.

            I slept very little that night. I was restless, just like I'd been the night Jack had kissed me. It wasn't just Elizabeth's insinuation; I didn't quite believe it, but it did make me a little uneasy. It was that in addition to Covington's continued absence, and more of the crew left the island every day. Sometime during the second week of my training with the sword, Mr. Gibbs took half a dozen of the Black Pearl's crew on a small boat to investigate an island some leagues away; there was a rumour drifting through the taverns lately about a strange – and very rich – man who had lost a ship, and was willing to pay handsomely for its return. Jack wasn't interested, but he was on the brink of hiring a new crew anyway so he let them go on without him. One thing that puzzled me was why Jack was waiting with me. I supposed he wanted to see how my situation with Covington played out, but something didn't seem right with him somehow. I began to notice the odd behavior Elizabeth had mentioned earlier; when Covington's name came up in conversation, his eyes lit up momentarily. It was subtle; he tensed just for an instant, and a quick look of nervous anticipation flickered across his features. It was almost nothing, but it was still there, and every so often I couldn't keep from wondering what it meant.