Upon Jack´s request, Gibbs stayed with Annamaria and the rest of the crew, ruefully. Missing a night of Elizabeth AND RUM?! Seemed like a nightmare. But Gibbs followed Jack´s orders: "Stay with Annamaria all night- don´ want a first mate doin´ something. . . stupid."
"So," Jack said, once he sat down with his pint of rum. "Annamaria´s mother, the famed Captain Marcella-"
Elizabeth had a glass of muddy-looking water. She gasped and yelped, "Marcella Castilla? Queen of Cuba? Sort of?"
"Head of piracy in Cuba," said Jack, swigging his rum. "Bloody gorgeous too. Turns out Pintel and Ragetti- yer captors, Elizabeth- took´er in the night. Bound, gagged, everything. Took ´er ta Hispaniola, if I´m not mistaken. Funny thing is, if she´s so wily and everythin´, how come she didn´ manage ta get away?"
"Those two are quite convincing. But they wouldn´t hurt her- surely she called parley?" Elizabeth exclaimed, her eyes round as dinner plates. She hesitantly took a sip of her revolting water and promptly dropped the contents of the glass on the floor.
My kinda woman, Jack thought. He rearranged his mustache and drank some more rum. "Um, my sources were a bit- how d´you say?- hazy on the details. . . so yes, we´re goin´ to save Captain Marcella Castilla an´ murder Pintel and Ragetti, savvy?"
Will had been quietly nursing his gin, and looked up when Jack said this. "Murder?! No one said anything about murder."
"Piracy is all about avenging, mate," Jack informed him. "Those slimy knaves eluded us once and only once." More rum was poured down his throat.
He´s so sexy when he´s being the hero, Elizabeth thought. She touched Will´s hand. "Will stop being such a wet blanket. Jack knows what he´s doing."
Damn straight. "Elizabeth, will you kindly assist me in getting more rum?" Jack asked. "Will can think this over while we´re gone."
"All right," Elizabeth said. She left her glass and followed Jack. But instead of meeting up with Smithy, the barkeep, Jack led Elizabeth to another table. Gently, Jack placed his hands in Elizabeth´s. "What are you doing?" she asked, her heart starting to race.
"Elizabeth darling, yer simply too refined for piracy. Ya need ta lighten up an´ rely not so much on possessions an´. . . feelings. I have an idea for ye." He was close to her now. His nose was an inch from hers. She smelled rum on his breath but he wasnÕt drunk, yet anyway.
"What´s that, Captain?" Elizabeth asked, her eyes full of desire. She really wanted him to kiss her.
"I´ll tell you while we´re in Tortuga," he teased.
Elizabeth pouted. "But Captain. . . can we both wait that long?" She raised her eyebrows and decided to play the vamp. She´d had no chance before now.
"I´ll make it my business to." Jack leaned down till his lips were almost brushing hers. She felt his mustache. "Now, Elizabeth, we can´ go off gallivanting like we´re new at this pirate game. That would arouse some suspicion, now wouldn´t it?"
Elizabeth wanted to just smash her face against his. She wouldn´t look desperate, she WOULDN´T! But it was very hard. "It would, Captain."
"Then we have an accord." Jack backed away from her. But he took her hand, making her smile. They got their drinks (rum for Jack, more water for Elizabeth; Smithy made sure there were no visible particles floating in the water) and toasted each other.
"To Hispaniola," Elizabeth said.
"To freedom," Jack cried.
"To the Black Pearl," Will added, and they all drank.
Governor Weatherby Swann was worried. His dear Elizabeth had mysteriously disappeared, but leaving all her fancy dress behind. However, his best jacket and breeches were gone. A hastily scrawled note was on her pillow:
Father,
Don´t worry about me. I´m meeting my destiny in Cuba. I´ll be back sooner than a year. Will and Captain Jack Sparrow will take care of me. Please do not send out the British Royal Navy this time. I want to be on the sea.
Love, your daughter Elizabeth Swann
CAPTAIN JACK SPARROW?! The governor´s blood was near boil. That scoundrel would be the death of him. If only that crazed woman hadn´t shot Norrington. She was promptly hanged, but even so.
Governor Swann fanned himself. Fine. Elizabeth never liked to follow his rules. He would let her have her little adventure, and then when she came home, bar her from that ridiculous pirate business and especially that Will Turner.
The governor found Elizabeth´s maid, Lily, lurking in the dining room, pretending to be dusting the coat of arms above the fireplace. She was the replacement for Estrella, the last maid, who escaped the pirates who were looking to catch Elizabeth. No one had ever heard from her again. Lily was a stupid girl, always finding ways to get out of tending to Elizabeth, leaving the work for someone else.
"Lily?" Governor Swann asked her, making her jump and hurriedly start swiping the feather duster around. "Yes, Guv´ner?" she shrieked, her shrill Cockney accent making him wince.
"Lily, did Elizabeth mention leaving suddenly? Did she talk to you last night or any night, for that matter?" "Yes she did, Guv´ner. . . in fact she mentioned quite a lot." Lily was trembling, her face bright red. "She said that she was finally going to get away from Jamaica and have a real adventure without the Royal Navy searching for her. Then she accused me of eavesdropping and shooed me out, Guv´ner. That´s it, I swear!" She turned her back to him and started flicking the duster over the mantle.
"Thank you, Lily." Governor Swann went out and stepped outside. He looked at the sparkling blue sea and thought, Elizabeth, what have you gotten yourself into?