Disclaimer: Still not mine, but maybe if I put them on my Christmas list . . .
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Story Goings-on:
"Can we sit down? My feet are starting to hurt."
Jack eyed the bench set into the wall doubtfully. It didn't look the least bit comfortable. "Sure, lass."
Winn pulled loose of Jack, then moved over to bed. She sat down on it, feet curled under her, back to the wall that connected their two cabins. She cocked an eyebrow at Jack, a silent enquiry into whether he was going to join her or not.
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While Jack may have developed a serious case of scruples (for a pirate) when it came to Winn, he was by no means respectable, a gentlemen, or any combination of the two – not that being a combination of the two really would have mattered. What was the woman thinking to invite him to join her in bed . . . in her bed? Even if it was only to have a seat? This, above anything else she had done or said, proved to Jack that Winn had no experience with men whatsoever. It's time she was taught a thing or two . . . .
Sauntering over to her bedside, Jack stared down at the woman who was continuing to watch him with expectation on her face. "I find it odd that such an intelligent woman would be so naïve as to invite a man into her bed, especially a man who has made it clear that he wouldn't at all mind ensuring she didn't leave said piece of furniture until dawn was nothing more than memory." Leaning down, Jack placed a hand on the wall to either side of Winn's head, restricting her freedom of movement. She swallowed and looked up at him with large but unreadable eyes.
Bringing his head closer to hers, he said, "I may not have ravished you the day we met, the week you were on my ship, when we were alone in the brig where no one would have heard us, or when you were ever so conveniently undressing in front of me, but you are tempting me, luv," Jack said matter-of-factly. "There is only so much a man can take, and less that a pirate can. You keep offering yourself, no matter how innocently, and you will find yourself on your back." And with that, Jack darted forward to capture her mouth with his.
This kiss was different than the others they had shared. The others had been brief, spur of the moment, full of impulse and a hint of passion; this one was full of warning.
And long. Winn had to admit to some fear. She wasn't used to normal men admitting or even acting as if they found her attractive, not to mention someone as charismatic as Jack. Before he had even started to kiss her, she had felt the force of his personality crowding her. It warned her of her inexperience when it came to men. But this kiss . . . she wasn't sure whether she wanted it to stop, or if she wanted it to never end. Deciding that was a dangerous position to find herself in, Winn started to squirm, trying halfheartedly to break the kiss, but Jack wasn't having it.
He removed one of his hands from the wall and buried it in her newly shorn tresses to hold her still. Briefly pulling back to allow them both to catch a breath of air, Jack examined Winn. Her face was flushed, her eyes wide in her thin face, her lips starting to swell from his attentions. Deciding he had nothing left to lose, Jack returned to the kiss.
When she made a sound of protest, Jack ended the kiss. "Savvy?"
"Savvy," came the whispered reply. If she had been a ship he was attacking, he would have decided that she was ready to be boarded and taken. Unfortunately, this was one surrender that he could not yet afford to accept.
Winn noticed just how dark Jack's eyes were. Well, they're normally dark anyway, but now they're near black. She shuddered when she wondered just how much darker they might get.
It was that shudder that spurred Jack into action. Releasing her, he said, "I think we've answered enough questions tonight." Without another word he went to the door, and after collecting his hat, he left before he lost what control was left to him.
Winn sat motionless on her bunk, uncertain whether it was good or bad that he was gone. But while the man might have been gone, his presence was still vivid in Winn's mind, his scent still in her nose, and his warning most definitely taken to heart.
Winn didn't emerge from her cabin until noon the next day. As usual, Jack had given her much food for thought after their last encounter. And as usual, she didn't know what to think about hew own responses, much less his. At some point during the night she had decided to stop trying to deal with things, and start . . . to start being in them.
The storm of the day before had moved on, the sun shining brightly on the deck and crew of the Kingfisher. Stepping out her cabin, Winn shook her head, still unused to the lightness of the feeling. Looking around she spied Grace and Cat climbing up the stairs from the galley, Grace's daughters nowhere to be seen.
She had started to approach her sister-in-laws to find out where the children were, when Ry called out to her from the stern, "Winn, just the woman I was hoping to see! Would you come here for a moment?" Waving to Grace and Cat, Winn went to her brother.
"I'm so glad you've emerged for the day, Freddy," Ry said as Winn came up to him. She nervously took note that Jack was standing with her brother. It was obvious that the two men had been talking for some time by their relaxed stances.
Focusing resolutely on Ryan, Winn listened as he explained, "Crewe, my new first mate, has just reminded me of some business that needs to be completed before we arrive at Grandfather's tomorrow, and . . . ." Winn nodded her understanding, not exactly liking the way her brother was examining her. What is he trying to find evidence of? she wondered before focusing back in on what her brother was saying. ". . . my time, but Captain Sparrow here has some questions that really should be answered before we arrive."
"And you would like me to answer them." Winn stated the favor before Ry could talk around it any longer.
"Yes, if you wouldn't mind spending some time in the Captain's company, I would be grateful if you would do that."
"No, it's perfectly fine. Until the children reappear, I have nothing but free time on my hands."
"Then that's settled. Captain Sparrow, if I may borrow my sister before I turn her over to you?"
"Take your time, mate. I'm in no particular rush."
Ry drew Winn a little off to the side. "Winn, when was the last time you ate a full three meals in one day?"
Winn looked at him. Of all the things she could have imagined Ry asking (especially after time spent talking with Jack), this was last thing she had expected him to ask. "I'm not sure. Why do you ask?"
"Because you have me worried. I don't think that I've seen you in the galley even once on this trip. You're already a tiny little thing, Freddy. Eating might help you from disappearing altogether."
Winn just looked at her brother as if he were insane. "You know that I've never eaten a lot, Ry, and you're right – I'm not a big person. I don't eat a lot, but that's not the reason you've missed me. The reason you haven't seen me in the galley is that mealtimes are the only times I have alone while on ship. I need time alone, Ry. You know that." Ry just looked at her, unconvinced. "Look, I stop by the galley at odd hours to beg food from Edward. Just ask him yourself. It's not as if I'm starving myself. Stop worrying."
Ry sighed. "I'm not. Or rather, if I were I'd be worrying about something else entirely, and don't ask what because it will just make you mad." Winn closed her mouth, a wry smile on her lips. Ry kissed her forehead in preparation of taking his leave. "By the way, Grace asked me to inform you that the children will be fully occupied today without your assistance, so rest up while you can. Tomorrow you'll have fourteen rugrats begging for your attention."
"Yeah, yeah, yeah. I know. Now, go get to work." She left her brother to rejoin Jack, who was studying the second mate with a critical eye as he steered the ship. She stood at his side silently, unsure of what to say, until he looked down at her – she was still barefoot.
"Still speaking to me?"
"Umm . . . not sure. It all depends on what you want answered." Winn looked up at the man beside her and wondered why she wasn't furious with him. Just a month ago she would have had the spleen of any man who tried to teach her a lesson the way he had last night. But it was more a warning than a lesson. Did that matter? I still hate being pushed around by people – especially if they think it's for my own good. So why am I not upset? The obvious answer was too much for her to think about when standing. Shaking her head, she realized that Jack had been talking to her.
"I'm sorry. My mind wandered there for a moment. Can you repeat what you just said?"
Jack looked at her as if she had grown a second head. "You? Let your mind wander? Did it go anywhere interesting?"
Winn flushed. There was no way that she was going to explain where her thoughts had been running. "Not particularly. Did you actually want some information, or did you want to stand here and waste time all day?"
Jack raised his eyebrows. It sounded as if someone were a little peeved. "I was wondering just what to expect when we land tomorrow. I dislike being at a disadvantage, and only a fool would fail to discover what he can about an unknown situation. I may be called many things, fool bein' among them, but I rarely fail to disprove those who label me that."
Winn sighed. This was going to be a long and difficult explanation. "We might as well go down to the galley and get something to drink if that's really what you're interested in knowing about."
Winn led the way to a corner table, a steaming cup of tea in her hand. Ordinarily she wasn't too fond of tea, but the cook had added copious amounts of cream and sugar to it, so it was at least palatable. Motioning for Jack to sit down across from her, Winn started organizing her thoughts.
Jack took a sip of his coffee and gazed at her. He thought that she might have lost a bit of weight since they had crossed paths, but it could have only been the new haircut and the way that it framed her face, made her eyes more prominent. There were faint smudges underneath her eyes, indicating that she hadn't been sleeping well lately. Instead of her normal garb, she was wearing a simple burgundy dress, made of summer-weight wool.
Winn looked up from her own thoughts to find Jack's eyes on her. Glancing down briefly she said, "I suppose the best place to start is where we're going, and how it was founded.
"We're heading for a small island community named Osprey Point, which is on an equally small island to the north and west of Great Inagua. It was founded by Grandfather as a type of . . . retirement community for pirates, their families, and those who love the sea. It's a working community where you'll find fishermen, craftsmen, smugglers, pirates looking for work, merchants, and even renegade redcoats. The people live off what they make, and catch, and grow as well as what their seafaring relations send home."
Jack was fascinated. He had never heard of such a place. It sounded like a cleaner, more peaceful version of Tortuga. "How did this settlement come into being?"
"When Grandfather came out here, he was getting on in age. By the time he was fifty, he was looking for a place to settle should he live long enough to consider retirement. He had a wife and children to consider as well. Eventually, he found a place that was remote and yet hospitable for the planting of a town. Word was spread by his crew that this was a safe place for pirates who had families to base themselves.
"Over the years enough people moved there that entire crews could be raised from Osprey Point. When Grandfather saw this, he decided that is was time for him to settle down, retire from pirating as it were. Instead he started financing ships for promising young pirates and smugglers. That's how he lives now, off the income from those investments. If it weren't for that he'd have gone broke decades ago." Winn smiled, remembering how her grandmother used to make her help with the ledgers for the estate where she and her husband lived. Winn had hated those lessons; math was a particularly worrisome skill for her. The only thing that had made that time worthwhile was the stories that Grandmamma had told.
Lost in memory, she was surprised when she felt a calloused hand close over the hand she had wrapped around her mug of tea.
"Where'd ye go, lassie?" Jack thickened his accent, trying to make the wistful smile on Winn's face disappear. It worked. She smiled and studied the contents of her cup.
"I'm sorry. My mind is wandering horribly today. I must have not have slept as well as I thought I had." I wonder if one can really tell the future by tea leaves. I have a feeling that a little forewarning of this next week would not come amiss.
"As long as the journey is a pleasant one, I don't see why you should be sorry."
Winn shrugged. "I'm just not used to forgetting my surroundings."
"It happens to the best of us."
"If you know about such things, then it must happen to the worst of us too." There was no sting behind the comment, but instead a teasing warmth that surprised Jack. Was Winnie flirting?
"So this grandfather of yours just lives on this island doing nothing but counting his money and arguing with his wife, if she's anything like you that is. That sounds like a rather good reason for pirates to grow old."
"It does. But Grandfather doesn't argue with his wife – or at least not that I know of. You see, Grandmamma died five years ago. It surprised us all, really. Not that it was a sudden death, we all had time to come to terms with it, but she was about fifteen years younger than Grandfather. I think we all expected her to outlive him. But now that I think about it, Grandfather's so stubborn that he'll probably outlive all of us just so he can prove people wrong about how long a pirate can live."
"He sounds like an interestin' person."
"Interesting is a good word to use. He loves birds, is completely obsessed with them."
"I think I've noticed. The Kestrel, the Kingfisher, Osprey Point."
"That's nothing. He named his estate 'Swallows Rest.' Grandmamma joked that it was because he would devour rest in much the same way he had devoured other things in life. In reality, swallows have just always been his favorite bird. But he loves all birds. He built an aviary last year, an enormous thing of glass and silk netting. He must have nearly a hundred different species of bird living there now. The most peculiar one being a flamingo named 'Marty.'"
"Why is that so peculiar?"
"You know how I have a dog?" Jack nodded. "Yes, well, while we're visiting, just consider Marty a dog. It lives inside the house and follows Grandfather around. It drives the maids mad because they're forever cleaning up after it. Especially during molting season." Winn looked at Jack with a secretive smile on her face. "We'll just pray that Marty likes you, otherwise we may have some difficulty."
Jack wasn't sure he liked the sound of that. "What kind of difficulty?"
Winn laughed, a free sound that made Jack want to kiss her. (A lot about Winn made Jack want to kiss her.) "You'll find out soon enough, should the unthinkable happen and Marty find your company undesirable."
"How about you tell me now, or I'll torture you until I get the information?" Jack leaned over the table, Winn leaning forward herself to meet him halfway across. Before anything but their breath could meet however, Winn felt a tugging on her sleeve. Looking down she saw her nieces there, all with very serious looks on their faces. She tried to suppress a grin at their grave earnestness and at the soft curse that escaped Jack's lips. Kicking him gently under the table, punishment for cursing around the children, Winn asked her nieces, "To what do I owe the pleasure ladies?"
"Auntie Winn? Are you married?" Elsa's question left both Winn and Jack speechless.
"Umm . . . no sweetie. Why do you ask?"
"You're spending a lot of time with him. Mommy only spends a lot of time with Daddy." Elsa eyed Jack with disfavor. None of the girls wanted their aunt to lose time for them. Even if it did mean another uncle to tell them stories and to give them rides.
Winn chuckled. "Well, I don't think you have anything to worry about, sweets. Uncle Ryan just asked me to answer some of Captain Sparrow's questions."
"Then why did it look like you were about to kiss 'em?" Meggie entered the fray, her mother's curiosity shining through.
"Umm . . . ." Winn looked at Jack and found that he was trying not to laugh himself. Quickly looking away lest he set her off, Winn replied, "Captain Sparrow was having a hard time hearing me over the fuss you were making in the kitchen, so I was trying to make it easier for him to hear me." Before either one could voice another question, Winn went on the offensive.
"Now, what are you three doing out here? I thought you were helping Edward make lunch."
"So that be where those urchins escaped to." Edward, the cook, emerged from the kitchen. He was a tall, barrel-chested black man who looked as if he should be working in a smithy somewhere, instead of in the galley of a ship. However, he was a wonderful cook. "I was thinkin' I had an awful large amount of room to set my feet, then I noticed that I had no one underfoot. I thought you girls were goin' to help me pull the taffy for after diner."
The two older girls went screaming into the kitchen, arguing about who was going to get to help first. Zoë, however, decided that her aunt's arms were looking awfully empty.
"Up." Winn smiled and picked her up. Looking back at her companion, somewhat relieved that the girls had interrupted the earlier scene, Winn asked, "Where were we?"
Jack eyed little Zoë with a certain measure of resentment. "I believe you had just warned me about your grandfather's foul tempered fowl." Deciding that the previous mood had been totally and irrevocably broken, Jack asked his next question.
"So Winnie, what do you think your dear grandfather has summoned me for? And don't tell me it's for a raid on one of ships. I can't believe that none of them have been raided before."
Winn sighed, allowing Zoë to play with her hands. "Honestly? I'm not sure. He's never done something like this that I know of or can remember. It may very well be that he simply wants to meet the man who sailed off with his sails and with his granddaughter. It could be that he wants to meet the infamous pirate who happens to share a last name with a variety of bird. But it could also be for numerous other reasons that I can't even begin to fathom."
Jack studied her silently, as if trying to tell if she told the truth or if she was retaining knowledge from him. It seemed unlikely. While Winn did keep her secrets, she was usually trustworthy when it came to answering direct questions. Sighing, Jack commented more to himself than to Winn, "I guess we'll both find out tomorrow."
Sunday:
The morning of their arrival at Osprey Point dawned as beautifully as anyone could wish. Ry kept his crew busy for several hours, scrubbing the decks, replacing worn ropes with new, exchanging the patched and repaired sails with new. If there was one thing that simply wasn't done, it was going to visit Grandfather with a ship that was anything less than ship shape. Everywhere you looked there were people utilizing holy stones, mops, rags, and the other varied equipment required for housekeeping at sea.
By ten in the morning the Kingfisher was as tidy as she was going to get. Tar stains no longer marred the wooden decks, the rails gleamed with a fresh oiling, and the sails shone blindingly in the bright Caribbean sun. Now it was time for her passengers and crew to tidy themselves. While the Morgans would not wear their best clothing until dinner that night, it was a tradition within the family to appear for "inspection" in their second best. It was also a good idea to appear freshly bathed as well, but some people had a harder time believing that than others.
"Listen, I know you're not really sold on the idea, but you're going to have to believe that I know what I'm talking about. I hardly think that total submersion in warm, soapy water is going to kill you when cold salt water doesn't." Winn was trying to ignore the big puppy-dog eyes that her audience of one was giving her. Underscoring her words with a slashing hand gesture she said, "Don't look at me like that. Just wipe that look of your face right now. I don't know what your gripe against bathing is, and I don't particularly care at the moment either. Either we can do this the easy way or the hard way, but you will be getting into that tub – even if I have to climb into it with you."
"Is that a promise? Because I'll gladly climb in if you'll be keepin' me company."
Winn looked over her shoulder from the dog that was huddled underneath her bunk to the man standing in her doorway. "I don't believe I was talking to you, Captain Sparrow. Besides, you'd best watch yourself; you're next on my list."
"Nonetheless, I would be more than happy to accompany you into yonder tub. Think of it as a favor." Jack flashed a particularly devilish grin – one that had no real effect on an irritated Winn.
Under her breath she grumbled, "I'd rather you manage to get Pige into 'yonder tub,' so that I can give her bath. That would be a favor worth receiving." Winn was kneeling down on the floor by her bunk, trying to coax her pet out from the refuge it had chosen. From her position on the ground, Jack looked incredibly tall. Sighing, reining her mind in before it could go any further down that path, she bowed down again, trying once more to reason with the recalcitrant mutt.
No good, no good, no good. Jack had to almost forcibly remove his gaze from Winn's hindquarters. A bath might be a good idea at the moment . . . a cold one. Moving into the room, Jack knelt down across from Winn. "Here doggy. . . ." Sticking his head and upper body under the bunk, he pulled Pigeon out by the scruff of her neck. Without delay, he handed the dog over to her mistress.
"Thank you." Winn stood, noticing that Jack was staring at her again. Does the man know how to do anything else? Before she could stop herself, the question popped out of her mouth. "Why do you keep watching me?"
"Maybe it's because I like what I see." Seeing Winn blush, he continued, "Then again, it might just be that I like to see trouble before it reaches me. You're free to take your pick."
"You callin' me trouble?"
"No, but I did just imply it."
Winn took a look at Jack, finally realizing that he wasn't supposed to be in her cabin. "What are you doing here? Cat was supposed to handle getting you into a tub. No one disobeys her when she's in full 'captain's wife' mode. I thought we talked about this yesterday, the whole looking nice/smelling nice thing that's done to greet Grandfather." She dumped Pige into the smallish tub of water, quickly kneeling again when the pup tried to escape.
Jack rolled his eyes. "He's not my grandfather, now is he? As for what I'm doing in here, I'm avoiding your delightfully forceful sister-in-law."
"Ohh. I see." Winn got up from the tub she was kneeling by. Pige had become resigned to her fate, no longer trying to escape, so it was safe to leave her unattended for a moment. Crossing to the door of her cabin, Winn opened it. Sure enough, Cat was in sight, plainly searching for her escaped quarry.
"What are you doin', luv?" Jack realized what she was planning a split second too late. "No!"
"Cat! Are you looking for Captain Sparrow?"
Cat grinned, and it was a sight to inspire terror in unwashed pirates everywhere. "I might be. Do you know where he is?"
"As a matter of fact . . . ." Winn stepped forward, just as Jack reached her, trying to close the door. The force of his momentum caused the opposite to happen – woman and pirate tumbled to the deck at Cat's feet.
As they fell, Jack wrapped an arm around Winn's waist, trying to absorb some of the impact. It didn't work too well. He managed to trap one of her arms at her side, and his own hand was clenched in a fist at her stomach. As a result, Winn got the wind knocked right out of her when they landed.
"Oh dear." Sighing, Cat pulled Jack up first, and then she tried to assist Winn to her feet.
Shaking her head, Winn lay on the deck trying to get her breath back, but her diaphragm had taken a severe hit – it was totally and unequivocally refusing to work. As happens so often when someone finds they can't breathe, Winn started to panic. Grasping at her middle, a near hysterical refrain of Can't breathe, can't breathe, can'tbreathe,can'tbreathecan'tbreathe . . . started to run through her mind.
"What's wrong?" Cat didn't like how Winn was laying there gasping like a fish out of water. "Did you get the wind knocked out of you?"
Winn nodded, still trying to breathe, tears leaking from her closed eyes when she couldn't. Jack knelt down beside her. "Calm down. Panickin' won't help, Winnie." He placed a large hand over her own, gently massaging the offended area. He kept talking in a soothing voice, trying to get her to relax to the point where it would be easier to breathe. Winn clutched his hand tightly, still trying to gasp, to fill her lungs. She managed to get one lungful down before her diaphragm seized again.
Slowly her diaphragm started functioning properly. When she was no longer gasping for breath, Winn accused in a breathy voice, "You did that . . . just to get out of . . . a wash. Admit it." While the entire episode had taken less than twenty seconds from start to finish, her body was still flooded with adrenaline from when it had been convinced of the proximity of certain death without air. She opened her eyes to smile weakly. "Don't look at me like that. I'm on to you. Just wipe that look of your face right now. I don't know what your gripe against bathing is, and I don't particularly care at the moment either."
Jack smiled and helped her up. Winn's breathing had almost returned to normal. "Was that an offer to ease my ordeal?"
Cat watched the two interact. She wondered if Winn knew just how much she was giving away by her reaction. Under normal circumstances she would have blasted the clod that had injured her – with Sparrow she was cautiously responding to his flirting. There was definitely more going on than what met the eye when it came to Winn and her relationship with the pirate captain.
"No. It was an offer to hand you over to Cat's tender mercies. Like it or not, Captain Sparrow, you'll be bathin' today before we dock." Pulling her hand free of his, she shot a look at her sister-in-law. Opening her mouth to continue the banter, she paused when she saw the look in Cat's eyes. It was an evaluating, calculating look. Winn didn't like it one bit.
Backing towards her cabin, Winn told her sister, "Well, I guess he's all yours now."
"I wouldn't bet on it." Winn didn't hear the muttered comment, but Jack did. To Winn she said, "I think I have things handled from here on out. You missy, need to bathe that dog, get yourself bathed, and then need to get dressed properly. You cannot meet Grandfather in that. Go, get busy." Winn did as she was told, and disappeared inside her cabin.
Not good. Has anything been good this morning? Careful to keep his face blank of anything but an innocent look that usually got women to do what he wanted, Jack said, "I can't believe that a lovely, not to mention capable lady such as yourself doesn't have anything better to do than ensure that I bathe. Why don't you just–"
"Save it Captain Sparrow." Cat gave him a hard look, appearing every inch the mother and wife of a sea captain. "I have four sons who have that same exact look to get them out of whatever it is that they don't want to do. Yours is not going to work with me. If you procrastinate any longer you'll have a cold bath, which while I don't doubt that it would do you good, it won't be very enjoyable. So if you will follow me?" And that settled the matter of a bath.
The Kingfisher sailed into a smallish natural cove several hours after midday. Winn dressed in a chocolate-ty brown velvet dress that was trimmed in ivory lace and ribbon, stood at the rail, listening to her nieces with half an ear. The rest of her attention was focused on decoding the look she had seen on Cat's face earlier in the day. If she didn't know better, Winn would have said that Cat suspected something, but she was unable to say what. Actually I just don't want to think about what she might be suspecting. It's going to be hard enough getting though this week with Jack around without . . . .
"Auntie Winn! Are you listening?"
"Yes sweet." This bodice is too low. Winn tugged at her bodice and sighed, trying to pay closer attention to her niece. Any attempt she was making was destroyed when she heard Ry come out of his cabin, talking with his guest. She tried to refrain from turning around, to keep herself from looking at a man who drew her attention as if it were a moth and he were the flame. She knew that anything between them (should there be anything, which there wasn't) would be just as incendiary and futile as that doomed moth, so she did her best to ignore it. It didn't work. She turned and Jack caught her attention as surely as he had her fascination.
He was dressed in clothes. Not that he usually wasn't, but these were clean clothes. And they looked good on him. Oh, do they look good on him. He wasn't dressed in anything fancy – simple homespun breeches and vest, a linen shirt, bandana around his head, hat on his head. His beads and other effects were still twined in his hair, and he was wearing his own boots and weaponry belts, but somehow he looked different.
It maddened Winn that the difference escaped her. She ran her eyes over the length of him several times, trying to figure out what she was missing. Eyes still lined in kohl, beads in place, pistol and cutlass where they ought to be . . . what is different?
Ry noticed the fact that Winn was noticing a rather lot when it came to the Captain. He was watching for it, warned by his wife that his little sister seemed perilously close to falling in either love or lust with their pirate guest. He had doubted Cat at first; he knew his own sister and her determination to end up a lonely spinster aunt. But here's the proof before my eyes.
Winn noticed that Jack was not happy. He looked as if someone had threatened to cut off his arm and then carried the threat out. I've already established that he has all of his appendages. And all his beads. And all his hair . . . . Winn covered her mouth is a kind of astonished horror. Jack Sparrow was most definitely missing some of his hair.
As he came over to stand beside Winn, a glower fixed firmly into place to forestall any questions from the children gathered around him, Winn took her hand from her mouth. I'm not imaging things. How did Cat . . . why did Cat . . . oh my goodness.
"Let me guess – she insisted." Winn didn't even mention what had been insisted upon, afraid that saying the words would just set him off.
"Bloody woman. I can see how people came to believe that women are back luck aboard ship. Couldn't keep her blasted scissors to herself. 'But you look thoroughly disreputable.' Never mind the fact that I'm a bloody pirate and therefore am disreputable. Never mind the fact that I happened to have liked it the way it was, that I was attached to it. No . . . ." Jack started mumbling things that made Winn widen her eyes. She kicked him the ankle, no gentle kick, but not overly violent either.
"I think I must protest your using such language around the children." When Jack glared at her, she raised her eyebrows, pretending to be unimpressed. "Besides, you can't be telling me that the famous Jack Sparrow, the man upon who finding himself a skeleton merely said, 'that's interesting' is bellyaching over a . . . over a little trim."
"A little trim!" Jack yelled, losing composure. "The bloody woman cut off my beard!"
"Just the braids." This comment from Meggie did nothing to assuage Jack's ire.
In the face of his outrage, Winn did the only thing she could. She started giggling uncontrollably. She couldn't remember the last time she had honestly giggled, but the sight of Jack standing in front of her with all the overset dignity of a bearded lion swept away any control she had over the fact.
At first Jack, the crew, and Winn's family merely looked at her as if she were daft. But after a few moments Jack himself began to grin, albeit a wry grin at the situation and not necessarily at Winn's response to his complaint. "Okay, luv, you've made your point."
Standing up straight, a hand rubbing her side, Winn managed to contain her mirth. Her eyes twinkled with it, and she had to bite her bottom lip to keep from laughing again, but she did manage to eventually calm down. Looking out at the approaching settlement of Osprey Point, she continued tucking her amusement away until she could look at Jack with a straight face.
"So. She insisted."
"Aye. She insisted. And I hope I never have to see her 'insist' upon anything else in my life."
The crew rowed the Morgan family and their guest to a secluded beach south of the settlement. From the beach you could see a path winding up a gentle hill to a moderately sized house that was surrounded by many outbuildings.
The little group gathered together, talking quietly. The silence of the beach was broken by the shrieks and calls of a large group of children. "Mamma! Papa! Auntie Winn! Auntie Grace! Uncle Ryan! Auntie Cathy!" The adults turned to see a rowdy flock of children running pell-mell across the sand. The children belonged to Ry and to Richard, Winn's oldest brothers. Behind the children came a group of adults following at a more sedate pace.
Winn studied the group. She found her grandfather, walking stick in hand. With him were Richard and his wife, Sarah. To her consternation she also saw Marcus, who had supposedly left several days after them, and two other figures that she took a moment identifying.
She recognized the two people at the same time Jack did. "Why didn't you tell me that Will and Elizabeth were going to be here?" he asked her.
"Because I didn't know they were going to be. Trust me; I'd have let you know if you were going to have a few more allies here."
Ry, overhearing their conversation, said, "Grandfather wanted it to be a surprise. You know he's always wanted to meet them. So, he finally did something about it. Now, you'd better look alive, because here comes the horde."
The group of children reached them. For several long minutes all the adults but Jack were busy hugging, tossing, and greeting children. Not that Jack escaped the melee entirely – he got his share of confused hugs from some of the younger children. One tot in particular seemed unusually devoted to trying to separate his arm from his shoulder.
Winn saw this, and picked the child up, making him squeal with glee. Looking at Jack, she mouthed, "Sorry." Jack merely nodded, unsure she'd be able to hear anything over the seething mass of children.
"Enough." The single word was spoken with the tone of a man accustomed to making himself heard over the elements. Miraculously, ever single child, from the oldest, right down to little Zoë, heard and obeyed the command. Jack looked up from the scene before him, right into the hard blues eyes of an old man.
"You must be this Captain Sparrow I've heard so much about. I make you welcome to my home."