A/N Chapter Two already! Yes, my chapters are short. I must work on that, no? Leave reviews!!!

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Three Years Earlier

Marie and her family stood at the end of the dock, waving her father out of the harbor. "Good-bye, Father," she called, waving an embroidered handkerchief. A tear ran down her cheek. Her father had set off to England to take care of important business. After all, he ran an important chain of trade in the Caribbean and had to make negotiations every now and then. She hadn't wanted him to go, though she smiled and wished him the best of luck.

As the ship left her sight, Marie wandered back onto the mainland. How long would it be until she next saw her father? She sniffed and sat under a tree. Crying wouldn't bring him back any sooner, and it wasn't like he was never coming back. But Marie was worried. The other day, she had overheard a group of soldiers discussing the looting of a nearby island by a notorious group of pirates.

"Killed 'alf the population off the island, they did. Cursed pirates," a soldier murmured.

"We didn't make it in time," another said, shaking his head. "It was awful. They set the whole town on fire, and stole two loaded merchant vessels. "'Twas a sad day..."

Suddenly, Marie was watching a battle between two ships at sea. She watched, wide eyed, as the ships' sides slowly turned to face each other and the men scrabbled around the decks, carrying out their captain's orders. Marie noted that one ship had a flag that boasted a skull, though she couldn't believe it. It was a real pirate ship! She watched, fascinated, as the pirates swung onto the other ship, a merchant vessel.

Things quickly turned nasty. Men screamed as they lost their lives, and the two ships began shooting their cannons. The pirates laughed as they swung their cutlasses. They had won the battle. Only one was left alive. "'Old the cannons, we've got ourselves a new ship, mateys!" The pirates lifted their weapons and roared into a song as they secured their new ship and led the prisoner below decks.

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Marie awoke with a gasp, "Father!" She looked around, and realized that she was in her bed, still fully dressed. Nighttime had come. She got up and walked to her window. A tray with juice and biscuits lay on her vanity. Deciding that the night air would do her some good, she snuck out of the house and walked down to the beach. The full moon made it easy for her to gaze out over the sparkling ocean, always hoping that someday her father would return and she would spot the familiar ship.

The cool air helped to clear her head. Feeling much better, she turned to walk home before her mother or a servant could discover that she had slipped out. A scrabbling noise in the rocks made her turn quickly. Marie thought she heard hushed voices, and curiously crept over to the cluster. Suddenly, a rough hand covered her mouth as an arm grabbed her around the middle. Marie tried to scream and kicked wildly. The figure gripped her mercilessly and dragged her down the beach, keeping to the shadows.