Author's Note: Hello again everyone! Once again, sorry for the delay – it's all Isabel's fault. (The Hurricane, for those of you not on the East Coast like me.) I was computerless for a week – oh, it was horrible! But I'm back now, and there are a couple things I want to say before launching into the next chapter: First of all, I want to say a very, very sincere thank you to "Florida" – I've honestly never been so touched by a review, and you sound like you really know what you're talking about. It made me feel all warm and fuzzy and stuff! Also, a HUGE thanks to all my regular readers, both old and new, for sticking with me through all my sporadic writing periods; I'm so glad you're still enjoying this story!
Okay, now this chapter is the beginning of a huge turning point in Jack and Abby's "relationship." It might be a little confusing at first, but just hang on – the second half of the "turning point" will come in later. As always, please let me know what you think, and don't forget that constructive criticism is more than welcome!
Chapter 12: The Chase Begins
Slowly, I began to trust Jack again. His sword lesson taught me more than just how to fight blindfolded: it taught me that, however strange and selfish his methods seemed, his motives were good. He was selfish, that much was certain, but I'd believed him when he told me he'd never hurt me. Elizabeth was right: he was a good man. I turned the matter over in my head a great deal over the next few days, and although I still felt that some pieces of the puzzle were missing, I was for the most part satisfied. And so it came as an even greater shock to me when Jack took it upon himself to "commandeer" Will's ship.
It happened just a few short days after my blind sword lesson. It was very early, and I had gone out on the docks to watch the sunrise. I was feeling particularly anxious; rumour had it that a ship that matched Covington's in description had recently come into port somewhere in the Virgin Islands. Will was readying the Dauntless when I got there; he had said the night before that he needed to go off-shore for supplies, so it was no surprise really so see him there. More surprising was when Jack appeared at my side shortly after that.
"Any news since last night?" I asked him.
"Aye," he said darkly, "The rat has washed up on the isle of Saint Thomas."
"How far?"
"A week at most, probably less. If the weather holds we can reach it in four days."
He was staring fixedly at Will as the younger man moved clutter and tangled ropes on deck.
"Where is Elizabeth, I wonder?" he asked.
"I'm not sure," I replied, slightly apprehensive, "Still asleep, I suppose."
"Indeed. . ."
A strange smile flickered across his face.
"You're not thinking of going out there, are you?" I asked, "Because, you know, he'd kill you if he ever saw you. You know that, don't you?"
"Then I'll just have to take care he doesn't see me, won't I?"
"But we can't go after him! I wanted to, but Elizabeth said I shouldn't. She said we'd just be doing exactly what he expects."
"Did she now?"
That decided him. Jack strode boldly up the gangway and onto the deck of the Dauntless. Unsure of what else to do, I ran after him. Will stood up to face Jack when he appeared on deck.
"I don't think I need any help, Jack," he said, "I'll be leaving in just a few minutes."
"Ah, wonderful!" said Jack satisfactorily.
Then he went straight to the helm and took the wheel, examining the strange compass he always kept with him. Will glanced back at me questioningly. I could only shrug.
"I dunno," I said, "I think he wants to go after Covington."
Will ran to the bow to stop him, but Jack was ready for him. He pulled his sword out and turned to face Will. I felt my mouth drop open in shock; I had never dreamed Jack would stoop so low.
"We will require a change of course, Mr. Turner," he said matter-of-factly, "We are making for Saint Thomas."
But Will was undaunted. He drew his own sword and faced Jack boldly.
"I will not take orders aboard my own ship," he said evenly, "Especially not from you. Now remove yourself from the helm."
Jack only smiled.
"You forget," he said, "You could only beat me in a fair fight, and I have no intention of fighting fair."
The first clash of the swords caught me off-guard; I hadn't really believed they would fight each other, or at least hadn't wanted to believe it. I watched horrorstruck for several seconds, then threw myself at Jack to pull him away.
"Jack, don't!" I cried, "You can't do this!"
The fight ceased immediately when I came into the middle of it; neither of them wanted to hurt me. But Jack threw me off roughly, clearly unhappy with the notion of being questioned, and even more so by being forced to put up his sword.
"This is not your call, Abby," he said.
"Well, it's certainly not yours," I returned hotly, "The decision to go and challenge my own fiancé should be mine and no one else's."
"Calm down, Abby," said Will, but I paid no attention.
"The problem of Covington," said Jack, "Is just as much mine as it is yours, darling. As you pointed out yourself, he may very well want to see me hanged if he ever finds me again, and because I don't believe you can get rid of him entirely on your own, I have a responsibility to myself to make sure he's got rid of so he won't be a bother for me anymore either."
"That can't be all there is to it!" I argued passionately, "I know you're not just looking after your own interests, Jack. You love me, I know it!"
There it was. Out in the open, finally. I was met with cold silence, save for the trembling beat of my own heart, restless against my ribcage. I had no choice but to wait for a response, and suddenly I was more afraid than I had ever been in my short life. Jack stared at me coolly; I couldn't tell whether he was upset with me for revealing his feelings for me, or just annoyed at my outburst. The silence weighed heavily on us all, and I began to panic: Had I gotten it wrong? Was he truly just looking after his own interests, as always? Finally Jack let out an exasperated breath and slid his sword back into the sheath at his side.
"Abigail," he said quietly, "Regardless of what you've chosen to believe, the fact remains that Master Covington needs to be taken care of. I cannot take the Black Pearl because he would recognize it, and we'll want to catch him unawares. However, this ship," he gestured vaguely at the deck we were standing on, "Is not mine to command, and therefore I saw the need to take it by force. My apologies Will, but I had my doubts that you'd simply let me borrow it for any length of time."
"They were not ungrounded," said Will unnecessarily.
I lowered my heard and bit my lower lip hard to stop my tears; I'd never felt so humiliated, or so vulnerable. I'd done it again: I'd tipped my hand too early, and now I was entirely at Jack's mercy.
"Abby?" Will called softly.
I turned, shamefaced, and saw Will looking at me earnestly.
"Do you need this ship?" he asked simply.
I stared at him uncertainly for a moment, then found myself answering "yes." He nodded, sheathing his own sword as he did so.
"Very well," he said, "Go and fetch Elizabeth – tell her what's happened, and tell her we're making for the isle of Saint Thomas. We'll need provisions for a week's voyage. In the meantime, I'd like a word with Jack alone."
I nodded and left the ship, trying to ignore the inexplicable weakness in my legs.
"The man is insufferable!" exclaimed Elizabeth, stuffing another dress into her bag, "Honestly, if he thinks he can just – parade onto our ship and take over –"
She ended with an exasperated groan and stormed to the dresser to take down her comb and knife. I had just told her the whole story, and she wasn't pleased. Just before setting the comb and knife in her bag, she turned back to me.
"Mark my words," she said fiercely, "I'll have that Jack Sparrow off the Dauntless by nightfall. I'll fight him myself if I have to!"
I laughed; it was more a release of nervous tension than an expression of amusement.
"I will!" she insisted, misinterpreting the sound, "You hold me to it – don't let me change my mind."
"No," I said, "It's not that. It's just that . . ."
I threw up my hands in a gesture of uncertainty. I felt a lump in my throat again as I realized what a perfect disaster this whole situation was. I put my hand to my forehead as the tears finally came up.
"Oh, Abby," said Elizabeth sympathetically when she saw what was happening.
She put an arm around my shoulders and sat me down on the edge of the bed.
"Don't worry," she said, "We'll get this all sorted out. It's just a matter of time, that's all."
"I shouldn't have said anything," I sobbed, "I should've just left them alone – I had no business getting into the middle of the fight like that."
"Oh, don't be silly," said Elizabeth, "You were right to break it up. You haven't done anything wrong. And personally, I don't think they would've stopped if you hadn't said what you did."
"But now everything's so. . ."
I couldn't find words to express my despair, so I just covered my face with my hands and cried some more.
"It's not so bad," Elizabeth assured me, "You'll be facing your betrothed in a week, and with everything you've been through since I've known you, I'm sure you'll be ready to face him by that time. Now come on," she lifted her knapsack and shepherded me to the door, "Don't lose your head; you're not entirely on your own, you know."
She gave me an understanding smile and we left for the docks. Now, I had always known that Elizabeth was headstrong and fierce, but I at this point I had yet to see those particular traits set in motion. And as I watched her marching resolutely down the dock to the Dauntless, her jaw set and her eyes blazing, it dawned on me that I had just never seen her properly enraged before. She flung her knapsack aside when we reached the deck and strode right up to Jack, who was now leaning against the starboard gunwale, his legs stretched lazily out in front of him.
"I hope you're pleased with yourself, Jack Sparrow!" she spat, setting her hands on her hips.
"Eh?" muttered Jack, tipping up the edge of his hat as if only just seeing her.
"Don't play innocent with me, you ungrateful prat! You'd probably still be stuck on that island if it weren't for me; Will saved you from the gallows twice, with great risk to his own life, and this is how you repay us?"
Jack settled back against the ship, apparently convinced that the conversation wasn't worth the effort, and mumbled something I didn't hear.
"That's beside the point!" fumed Elizabeth, "You tried to steal it, and that's enough to count as a betrayal as far as I'm concerned."
"Elizabeth, darling, don't overexert yourself," Jack replied lazily, "We've a week's sailing ahead of us."
"How dare you! You've no right to talk to me like that – Why, if it weren't for Abby, I'd –"
"Um, Elizabeth?" I pleaded, "Please don't bring me into this."
Then I saw Will come down from the helm.
"Calm down, love," he said, "I've spoken with him already – it's been taken care of. Abby needs the ship."
"Must he stay aboard?" asked Elizabeth, gesturing at Jack, "If we're doing this for Abby, then –"
"I want him to stay," I said, "I'd like a word with him myself before this trip is over."
"Very well," said Elizabeth, "Whatever you want, but I'd prefer it if he stayed locked up below. I don't want him tampering with this ship."
"He won't cause any trouble," Will assured her, "I told you, I've already spoken to him."
Our debate carried on in this manner for quite some time, until Jack tipped his hat up once more and raised his voice above ours'.
"Would one of you be so kind as to wake me when you've decided what to do with me?" he asked dryly.
As it happened, Jack was neither locked below deck nor sent away from the ship. But he did take care to keep out of Elizabeth's way during the first day of our voyage. He kept his word to Will and did not make another attempt to take over the vessel, but I suspected that was only because he knew that he would need our cooperation to sail anywhere, and none of us would have been willing to give it if he'd tried to take over again. He never mentioned my outburst, and this troubled me. I spent as much time as I could mulling the situation over in solitude, and took to the crow's nest often to ensure my privacy. I knew there was still something missing, but I couldn't decide what.