Elizabeth stood at the dockside, leaning over the railing, her hand extended as if she was trying to catch something. The gangplank was inches from her hand. "Come on, Jack," she said with a laugh. Jack was holding the gangplank just out of her reach. Will came to the side of the ship. "Stop playing, you two. Jack, let her aboard. We need to get out of here." His stern look and ice-cold voice told both of them not to argue. Jack extended the plank for Elizabeth, and she climbed it to the top. "Sorry, love," Jack murmured to Elizabeth and drew the plank in behind her as she set her last two bags aboard the ship. Both turned to Will and asked, in unison, "What's wrong?" "Members of the Navy. They found the house like that and are coming this way." He held up his telescope. "They must know it's us, because they stopped at the inn. Jack, can you get us out of here quickly?" "On it," he said, heading for the stern. He barked, "Weigh anchors! Cast the lines off! I want us out of here in one minute, savvy?" His men jumped into action. "May I see that?" Elizabeth asked, extending her hand for the telescope. Will handed it to her and she opened it, gazing through the instrument. Her mouth fell open. "Those aren't English naval officers! It's the French." "No, the uniforms are English." "I don't care about the uniforms. Look at the shoes," she said, offering him the looking glass. He peered through it. "Look. The shoe buckles are different. Royal Navy uses silver buckles. The French use gold." "Their muskets are all the same," Will said, scowling. Why were the French after them? He didn't want to stick around and find out. "Elizabeth, get down below, in case they fire." He pointed to a musket leaning on the railing. "Take it and hide by one of the port-holes." Elizabeth took the gun and went down the stairs, slipping into a room on the port side of the ship as the ship began to pull away from the dock. The men began to run down the pier towards the ship. She heard one of the men yell, "Open fire!" She aimed the gun through the porthole and squeezed the trigger. One of the French fell dead as bullets thudded into the ship or whizzed overhead. Both sides reloaded, and then fired again. Elizabeth hoped Will was doing all right.

Jack slammed the steering wheel all the way to port as the sails slammed down, fully open. The wind caught them and they began to sail full speed away from the French bullets. One whipped into his hat and sent it flying to land atop the railing in front of him. "Hey!" After setting his hat back on his head, he yelled down to his crew, "Ready the cannons! No one shoots my hat and lives to tell the tale!" The men scurried and drug the cannons into place at the two small holes at the back of the ship, at Captain Sparrow's bedroom. They heard two stomps of Jack's feet above them and fired both cannons. One cannon ball destroyed a cart on the cobble-stone walk near the pier. The other ripped through the support beams on the right side of the pier, causing it to collapse. The men fell into the water, cursing.

Will sighed with relief as the pier sank into the water, the French no longer a threat. He called down the hall to Elizabeth that the coast was clear, then helped her up the stairs. "Are you all right?" she asked as he held her close to his chest. "Fine. Just fine," he said. They heard approaching footsteps and turned to see Jack coming up the stairs. "Good show, Captain Sparrow." "My pleasure. I'll be here all week. Try the veal." He bowed theatrically, waving his hat. "Now, tell me, Will. Why would the English Navy want to stop us from leaving?" "It wasn't the English," said Elizabeth hastily. "It was the French." Jack looked absolutely dumbfounded. "I don't care who they were, love. Why were they trying to stop us?" "I'm not sure," Will confessed. "You don't have anything illegal on board, do you?" "No, not that I know of." He stroked his chin, deep in thought. "No, nothing illegal." "Good," said Elizabeth. "We have nothing to worry about, then." She scanned the receding harbor, then observed, "They don't appear to be giving chase." "Let's not stick around and find out. I've set a course for us, we should be there in a couple of weeks." He grinned, bowing graciously. "Allow me to show you to your quarters."