A/N: ***dodges objects
thrown at head*** I know, I know! This story hasn't been updated in FOREVER,
right? Well, sorry. Really, I am. But you see school's a hassle and I'm writing
two more fics on top of this one as well… so I kinda guess this took the
backseat. Hehe, sorry. Anyway, I've actually had this chapter done for a long
time (I have the story about 95% written) but it was the process of Betaing and
then changing it over to the correct format that took a lot of time I didn't
want to spend. But I did get it up. I'll try to get the chapters out faster but
I can't make any promises. So please review (for those of you stuck around and
put up with my tardiness)!
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Chapter
Eight- John Silver
Jim scowled as he
entered the Cutthroat's Curve. The bar
was now filled with cutthroats, thieves and the lesser pirates. It was
disgusting, it was pathetic, it was illegal…it was absolutely perfect.
McGee was tending the bar
again. Jim wondered if McGee even
bothered to hire help. Probably not, Jim thought, he's cheap.
McGee raised his head and
noticed Jim. For a moment he looked like
he was going to say something to Jim before he decided against it. Jim understood why. In these dives the bartender did not make
friends with anyone, and because Jim was dressed in casual attire and not a
Spacer uniform, it was obvious he didn't want any attention drawn to himself. Not yet anyway.
Jim walked to the side of the
bar and sat in one of the stools. He
glanced down at himself and smirked. His
outfit wasn't something the Spacer James Hawkins would've worn, but
troublemaker Jim Hawkins would. The
pants were a dark green with pockets galore. The bottom of the pants were
tucked into big, black, muddy boots that looked as though they had seen better
days. He wore a black shirt tucked into
his pants, and over it he wore a brown leather jacket that had one pocket on
each side as well as miniature belt buckles working as buttons. He didn't look
anything like a Spacer or ship captain.
He looked like…
Like a troublemaker, Jim
thought. Like what he had been all those
years ago. Before his adventure on the R.L.S. Legacy, before he had met John
Silver.
Jim's thoughts were cut off abruptly as a scruffy-looking man swaggered into
the chair beside him. Jim's eyes drifted
to the silver lightning symbol that had been sewn into the pocket of the man's
jacket. Jim almost grinned with triumph,
but he managed to conceal it.
The man pounded a fist on the
table, caught McGee's attention, and demanded, "Gimme a scotch, McGee, and
a Gin and Tonic. The boss is working my ass like nothing before. I need a damn
drink or I'll go insane."
"Right away." McGee
said, and poured the man his drink.
"So I'm not the only one
with a hard-ass boss." Jim drawled, making sure his refined voice was
covered by a sarcastic edge that would have amused Alyson.
Don't think about her, Jim
commanded himself.
The man eyed Jim suspiciously.
"Yeah, but the pay is good. I be willin' to do the work, but sometimes a
man need a break, ya know?"
Jim nodded and watched with
delight as the man guzzled down the scotch and then the G and T. This is going
to be easier then I thought, Jim thought.
All I have to do is play my part and this man will intoxicate himself.
"Well, at least you get
paid good. I get shit and I work my ass off." As he said this, Jim
signaled to McGee to have the man's glass refilled.
"I think all bosses have
something shoved up their ass." The man said, guzzling down the rest of
the scotch. Jim watched as his eyes got glassy and dazed. Jim motioned for
another drink.
So Jim humored the man until
he was drunk. He agreed with whatever the man said and ordered for more drinks. The man guzzled them all
down without so much as blinking. Soon, his voice was slurred and his head
drooped.
As the man passed out on the
bar table, no one else but Jim took notice.
Jim was pleased that no one in the pub seemed to care about anyone else.
It would make it easier to question the man.
Jim stood from his stool,
grabbed the drunken man by the shoulders, and heaved him backwards. The man
fell hard against Jim, but he managed to keep them both upright. As he moved
towards the back door of the bar, McGee shot Jim a glare.
"Who be payin' for
this!?" He demanded hotly, motioning to the dozens of glasses that
littered the bar where Jim and the man had sat.
"Put it on my tab."
Jim rasped, struggling to get himself and the unconscious man to the door. Any minute now he was going
to collapse.
"Ye don't have any
tab!" McGee shouted in anger, but Jim ignored him and kicked the door
open. Then he pushed himself and the man out.
The drunken man fell face
first onto the cold, hard ground of the dark alley of the bar. Jim made no move
to protect the man from the ground; instead he fingered his gun that was tucked
in his belt, hidden by his jacket.
The man groaned and moved his
head around. "Whatzzz goingsss on?" He slurred. "Whezzza'
I?"
Before the man could move
again, Jim hauled him against the wall of the bar and put the gun to his chin.
The man's buzzed eyes widened and he understood he was in big trouble.
"Where's your boss John
Silver?" Jim demanded harshly, allowing his drawl to disappear. "Tell
me or your dead."
"How you know he be my
boss?" The man demanded, jerking his head upward as Jim pressed the gun harder into his
chin.
"You wear a silver
lightning badge on your shoulder." Jim answered. "That's Silver's
calling card. Now take me to him or I'll blow your brains out."
"Bite me. I ain't tellin' you nothin'," The man
growled, the alcohol in his blood making him braver then he normally would have
been. Jim pressed the gun tighter to his chin and undid the safety. The man's
eyes widened even more when he heard it, and he was sober enough to figure out
that Jim meant business.
"All right then. I guess
I'll just do the galaxy a favor and rid it of you." With a gleam in his
eyes, Jim squeezed the trigger…
"No! No!" The man
shouted and Jim released the pressure, but didn't remove the gun from the man's
chin. "I'll take ya to Silver. Just let me go and I'll show. I don't want
to die! Please."
Because the man looked ready
to pee his pants, Jim did. The drunken lackey of Silver fell to his knees and
gripped his neck in horror. Jim motioned to him with the gun to get up and
start walking.
The man did so, but he turned
to Jim and narrowed his eyes. "Why you want to see Silver so bad? You
ain't look like a Spacer, and Silver don't fight with other pirates, so who you
be?"
"I'm Captain James
Pleiades Hawkins. And if Silver isn't where you say he is, your life is going
to be a living hell. I promise you." Jim said, his voice harsh and
vicious.
The man's eyes widened even
more, if that was possible, and he groaned, "Captain Hawkins!? Oh, I'm a dead
man. That boss is gonna have me
head! Damnit! Why the hell did I go to the pub!?"
Jim smirked, enjoying this and
said, "Get moving. I can assure
you, you'd rather have Silver kill you than me.
I'm not in a good mood and I'm looking to take it out on something. So get moving or I'll have a new punching
bag."
The man continued to mutter to
himself as he led Jim down the winding streets of Zione. Jim started to wonder
if the man had any idea where he was going when a poorly put-together wooden
shack came into his view. Jim growled and clutched his gun tighter. He hadn't
seen Silver into over ten years, and he didn't know how far Silver would be
willing to go to keep himself safe.
"He's up there," The
man said unhappily, "We have business with some customers here so Silver
is hidden' up there. Can I go?"
"Beat it," Jim
growled and the man scurried away. Jim gave the retreating form a look of
disgust before he turned to march up the stairs to the shack.
As Jim ascended, he found
himself thinking of what Silver had been doing over the years. He wasn't a big
the-galaxies-most-wanted pirate, but he was said to have started a chain of
smuggling companies. He wondered if
Silver had changed much, hardened like he had. He also wondered if Silver knew
about Alyson.
Time to find out, Jim thought
grimly, and pushed open the door to the shack.
He stepped in and looked for Silver.
The shack was a one-room house with only a table for furniture, so it
was easy to spot the old pirate.
Silver's back was turned to
him and an old lamp lit the table where he sat.
Papers were scattered across the ugly brown table and he seemed to be
reading them. He raised his head
slightly when he heard Jim enter.
"That you, Tommy? Where in the hell did you go?" At that
Silver stood and turned, the gears in his robotic leg clicking. When he saw Jim standing there aiming a gun
at him, his eyes widened, and then humor slid into them and he looked
amused. "Finally
come to do it, eh Jim-bow?"
"Do
what?" Jim demanded, though he knew perfectly well what Silver was talking
about. He decided to let Silver believe what he wanted to believe before he
demanded the favor.
Silver looked the same as he
had before. He still wore the baggy stripped pants and white shirt. His robotic
leg was barely hidden by his pants and his robotic arm was in hand-form. His
gold cyber eye scanned Jim and his head was covered by a bandana.
"Arrest me. I've been readin' all about yer captures of
pirates. Gotta tell ya I never expected
yeh to be so good. So over the years I
been wonderin' when you'd come around and arrest me," Silver explained
casually.
Jim gave him a twisted smirk.
"Don't flatter yourself, Silver. You may be a criminal, but you're not
what the Academy worries about. No, I'm here to finally ask for the debt you
owe me."
"Debt?" Silver said
with amusement in his voice. "I am in yer debt James Hawkins?"
"Yes, you are. If I
hadn't let you go that day on the R.L.S. Legacy, you'd still be in jail looking
at another fifty years there. So you've always been in my debt. It's time to
repay it." Jim said, trying to keep his voice calm and cool.
"And what if I tell ye I
don't feel like I owe yeh anything? What if I say I'm not held to any
debt?" Silver asked.
"Then I'll arrest you and
have you spending the rest of your life rotting in a jail cell." Jim said.
Silver looked disappointed for
a moment, and then he slumped back into his chair. "You've changed a lot
haven't ye, Jim-bow? I remember yeh as a
good-natured kid who didn't use people."
Jim refused to allow those
words to sting. "I haven't changed
as much as you think, but yeah, I'm not a kid anymore. I won't be fooled and I
get what I want. And what I want is your debt to be repaid."
Silver shrugged. "All right then. Anythin's better then jail. What do ye want me to do for ya? And keep in
mind; I'm not a really bad pirate. I don't go around killin' people, not even
for you, Jim-bow."
"Don't be stupid, Silver,
if I wanted someone dead I'd kill them myself. I usually handle things on my
own. What I want you to do is help me track down Randolph Nathaniel. I'm aware
you two are friends." Jim said, placing the gun back into his pants.
Silver eyed Jim wearily. "The boy was like a son to me. Taught him everythin' he knows, but why do ye
want him so bad. Ye've been fuedin' for years. Never tracked me down before to
find him. Why now?"
"It's personal this
time." Jim growled, not able to keep the rage and hatred from his voice.
"That bastard killed my wife." Even saying made him want to kill
something and to weep with despair, but he kept both urges locked down.
Silver's eyes filled with
shock. "Not that professor?"
"Read about her have
you?" Jim said viciously. "Should've been reading the papers lately,
Silver, it's all over the news. She's been killed by Nathaniel for something
that wasn't her fault. So I'm going to kill him."
"That's horrible."
Silver said, sounding angry. "We
pirates may be criminals, but we have rules.
The most is important is that women and children are not hurt. They're innocents. I can't believe Nathaniel would go above
those laws."
It made Jim feel a little
better to know that if Alyson had been here with him, she would've said
something about how sexist that was. But
it only helped him a little bit, and he had yet to get Silver to agree.
"I'm goin' to help yeh,
Jim-bow. But not because I owe yeh, but
because Nathaniel hasn't upheld the pirate laws. I take those laws very seriously, yeh see,
and I taught Nathaniel to do the same. The fact that Nathaniel hasn't done so
means that I haven't taught him proper," Silver explained.
Jim growled in frustration.
"I don't give a damn. Just help me track down Nathaniel and I'll never
bother you again."
Silver shook his head,
"Never one for patience, were ye? Well, ye've gotta wait a few hours
before we can get tracking. See, I may know Nathaniel better than most pirates,
but I have no idea where he's going. We'll have to check the grapevine and find
out what's going on with him."
"You pirates have a
gossip group?" Jim said sarcastically.
Silver shrugged, "We're
humans aren't we? All humans have to gossip. It is in our nature to do so. Now,
lemme make a few calls and find out who has the information on Nathaniel. Then
we start tracking him."
Within two hours,
Silver had tracked down a crew member of Nathaniel's ship who was currently off
duty. Silver's sources told him that this crew member was likely to know of
Nathaniel's movements.
Jim was surprised at how fast
Silver worked. He was also surprised at how many people Silver knew. How many
sources he had. Since Silver wasn't really a big, bad pirate he had figured
that Silver had had little or no connections to the pirate world. But Silver
had once again proved Jim wrong.
Now Jim and Silver stood in
the darkened alleyway where Nathaniel's crew member had agreed to meet them…for
a fee or course. Silver, to Jim's surprise, had agreed to front the bill the
crew member demanded.
He must actually hold these
pirate laws seriously, Jim thought with a twisted smirk. It was funny that pirates, who worked outside
the law, had a set of laws that they didn't dare to break. He wondered why.
"Two minutes."
Silver mumbled beside him. "He'll
be here in two minutes."
Jim glanced at his watch around his wrist and answered, "Why two more
minutes? It's the exact time he said he'd meet us."
Silver laughed lightly.
"Ye've been a Spacer to long, Jim-bow. Ya always come to a meeting like
this late. Shows who's in power. If yeh come late, they leave and if ye come
early or on time ye'll have to wait for 'em."
Jim shook his head.
"Thank God I went to the Academy and learned the proper etiquette for
meetings." Jim crossed his arms and
scowled.
"Now," Silver said.
"Don't look like that. When yeh
want information from pirates, ya have to act like them. If he knew ya were with me, would he come to
me with information on Nathaniel?"
"Then what did you tell
him?" Jim asked.
"That Nathaniel hired me
to smuggle him some weapons and he cheated me out of my money. That's the usual
line I use when I want to get the information no one is willing to give
out." Silver smirked. "It works."
Jim glanced at his watch
impatiently. "He'd better be here.
I want to get Nathaniel now." He bared his teeth in a snarl, not
able to control that burst of anger that surged through him at the very thought
Nathaniel.
Silver nodded, choosing to
ignore Jim's snarl, and answered, "He will be. Proper, ah…pirate
etiquette...only allows a pirate to be two minutes late. After that, the price
for the information goes down."
As if on cue, a man appeared
at the entrance of the alley. He wore a thick leather coat that fell to his
ankles. The collar of the coat was high and covered his ears. Heavy boots
thudded against the ground as the man moved towards Silver and Jim. In the dim
light of the lamps, Jim made out a white shirt and brown breeches. The man, as
he neared, stuffed his hands into his pockets, his face grim.
"You Silver?" He
asked in a rough voice. When Silver nodded in answer, the man said, "Do ye
have all the money we agreed upon?"
Silver reached down and picked up the suitcase that leaned against his
leg. He threw it to man, who caught it.
The man opened the suitcase, looked at the money inside, and then shut it.
"What do you want to
know?" The man asked in monotone.
Silver put his hand on Jim's
shoulder as the Spacer opened his mouth to demand Nathaniel's whereabouts. Then
Silver said in equal monotone, "Nathaniel. 'E did some dirty business with
me and I want revenge. Can't find 'im, but the grapevine says yeh might know
where he is."
"Yeah, I know where 'e is.
That's the reason I'm not goin'. The last thing I want is James Hawkins ridin'
my ass for revenge." The man said, allowing a little annoyance to seep
into his voice.
"Oh?" Was all Silver
said.
"Didn't ya hear, Silver?
Nathaniel's gone and killed Hawkins's wife, that professor. So far Hawkins
hasn't done a thing about it, but no doubt he will. Every one of Nathaniel's
crewmembers is as good as dead. Glad I'm not one of them." The man said
allowing a smirk to cross his lips.
"Is-is the
professor…dead?" Jim asked, ignoring Silver's warning glance. For a moment
hope sputtered into Jim's heart. Maybe Alyson was alive. After all, Nathaniel hadn't said he'd killed
her, maybe this pirate had only been listening to the gossip. He'd just said
she'd had a grim fate. Maybe there was a chance he hadn't killed her. Maybe…
"Why do ye want to know?" The man asked, and when Jim just stared, he
answered. "If Nathaniel went through with what he planned, and he always
does, then yeah, she's dead. He planned to kill her as soon as she got on the
ship from what I remember."
If only the man knew how much that news saddened Jim. He could almost feel his
heart and hope shatter into a million pieces. Up until now some part of his
mind had hoped and prayed Alyson was somehow alive. But now…now how could he
deny the truth? All the evidence pointed
to Alyson's death. He couldn't hope anymore. Jim lowered his head and fought
back the tears that clogged his throat. Alyson, he thought sadly. I'm so very
sorry, Alyson. I wish I could've saved
you.
I'll make Nathaniel pay, Jim
swore to himself and to Alyson. I'll make him pay for what he did to you.
Silver ignored Jim's sudden
silence and said to the man. "Do you know where Nathaniel is going? I want
to get my business with him settled as quickly as I can."
The man nodded, forgetting
Jim. "He's goin' to his hideout. Laying low because that Spacer will be on
his tail real soon. I wouldn't want to be easy to find with Hawkins on my
ass."
"So he's goin' to his
invisible planet?" Silver said. "That's pretty hard to find. Doesn't
it move every week or so?"
"Sure does." The man
agreed with a grin. "But I promised
you all the information you needed, so I've got the coordinates right
here." From within his trench coat, the man removed a map and threw it to
Silver. "That's all you need to know."
"Thanks." Silver
said. "I'll remember you next time you need some smuggling done. I'll give
you a discount. Until then…"
"Until then, Silver.
Don't let the Spacers get ya." The man turned, his coat flapping. His
boots clicked against the floor as he left the alley.
Silver grinned and read over
the map. Once he was done he turned to Jim and said. "We've got him,
Jim-bow. Told you I could get the information." He blinked when he saw
Jim's lowered head. "What wrong, Jim?"
"She's really dead."
Jim whispered helplessly. "Up until
now I've always hoped…hoped that somehow she was alive, even though I knew she
had to be dead. I just…I just hate the thought of her dying alone." Jim
gave a choked sob and fought to keep back his tears.
Silver watched as Jim fought
his emotions and his heart went out to the man. A long time ago, Silver
would've tried to soothe Jim, offer words to ease his heart. But he could no
longer do that. The person he would've tried to soothe was Jim the Boy; he did
not know how to soothe Jim the Man.
All he could do was watch. Jim had changed too much. He had hardened, had become a different
person from that young boy who had been suspicious of everyone. He was the man
who had grown into his frame and build, and who was suffering greatly. What
could he could he say to the boy who had become a man?
But Silver felt compelled to
say something, to let Jim know he knew he was suffering, so in a soft voice he
said, "I'm really sorry, Jim."
Jim raised his head then. His
eyes were harsh and bleak. In a rough voice he said, "I'll make Nathaniel
pay. I'll make him bleed. He'll wish that he had never met me, and had never
heard Alyson's name. I swear it."
Silver was surprised to find
himself intimated by the man standing before him. This wasn't Jim Hawkins, the
orphan, the troublemaker; this was James Hawkins, the Spacer, the husband. This
was the man every pirate feared, and Silver finally understood why. He had
always thought of Jim as that young boy on the Legacy, but now he was seeing
who Jim was today. A very powerful, very angry man.
Good choice, Alyson
Christopher, Silver thought before placing a hand on Jim's shoulder. He gave
Jim a few minutes to conquer his emotions. In those few minutes he turned his
thoughts to Alyson Christopher-Hawkins, the woman that had been Jim's wife. He
wondered what she had had to endure because of Nathaniel's almost insane anger
when he was angered.
He had taught Nathaniel the
pirate ways when his father had been hauled off to jail. It angered him to know
that Nathaniel had disregarded the pirate laws and harmed a woman. He had
always held the laws of pirates in high-esteem, and he had thought Nathaniel
had too. It was time for Nathaniel to
learn a lesson.
"You ready, Jim?"
Silver finally asked, hoping that the young Spacer had managed to get a firm
hold on his raging emotions.
Jim raised his head once more. His eyes were clear, and very angry.
"Yeah," He answered. "I'm very ready. Let's go get
Nathaniel."
Silver and Jim turned to
leave. As they left, Silver found himself glancing at Jim once more. He'd make
one hell of a pirate, Silver thought, but he makes a better Spacer. It made him
smile to think that maybe he'd had a hand in turning Jim into the man he was
today. It was a fine thought to think that he, John Silver the not-so great
pirate, had had a hand in making James Hawkins the formidable Spacer.
"Ye're going to get
him." Silver said with a smirk coming across his lips.
Jim nodded. "You bet I am." He moved quickly ahead of Silver,
thinking only of his mission and his hatred for the pirate who had murdered his
wife.
Watch out Nathaniel, Silver
thought as he watched Jim walk away.
He's going to get you.
Alyson collapsed
to the floor, sobbing with helplessness.
Her hands were bleeding from where she had pounded them against the
door. She weakly raised her head and stared at the door where her blood-streaks
marked her activity.
Her eyes were then brought
down to her hand, where her engagement ring and wedding band rested. She
pressed them to her lips, thinking of Jim, wishing he was here, wishing she
could escape.
She had given up hope on being
rescued by Jim days ago. She was a professor and had a logical mind. She
realized the improbability of Jim finding out about her kidnapping before it
was too late. And even if he did find about her capture before she was killed,
he wouldn't be able to reach her in time.
"I'll have to save
myself." She told herself. She
already had a plan forming in her head. She'd have to wait until they had
arrived at Nathaniel's hideout. Then she'd somehow free herself and then run
and find somewhere to hide. Then she would find someway to get back onto the
Destroyer and send a SOS.
It was a work in progress.
First I'll need a weapon,
Alyson thought, and limped over to the empty wardrobe. She threw open the doors, and looked inside
for anything she could use as a weapon.
Nothing. With a groan of
annoyance, Alyson slumped against the inside of the dresser.
"Now what?" she wondered and then her eyes flew to the doors. "Wait a minute." She pushed herself off the wardrobe and
grabbed the door. With a cry, she ripped
the door off its hinges.
Praying no one had heard her,
she threw the door to the ground. The
door shattered into a million pieces. Her hope lifting, Alyson bent down and
began to search through the scraps of wood.
Her hands fell upon a sharp
stake that had formed in the crash. With triumph burning in her veins, she
grabbed the stake and stuffed it into the shorts under her robes. The pirates
were too careless, too cocky to check her for weapons…or so she hoped. When she
had made sure the stake was securely tucked into her shorts, she hid the broken
wood pieces under the wardrobe.
"I'll get out of
this." Alyson promised herself, sitting down on the bed. "I'm going
to see Jim again. I won't let Nathaniel
and his stupid revenge stop me from being happy. I'll make him sorry he ever heard my
name."
Alyson's finger reached over
to touch her wedding band. It gave her strength, it reassured her. She forced
herself to think of Jim and how much she wanted to see him again, not of how
hopeless her situation is.
She lay down on her bed and
closed her eyes. They should be arriving at Nathaniel's hideout soon enough,
and she would need her strength to escape. She had to be rested and well.
As she drifted off to sleep,
she dreamed of Jim. He gathered her in his arms and planted hot kisses on her
face. Alyson sighed contently in both dream and reality. In the darkness of
sleep she was content.
Because she was with Jim.
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Yes, we're done. Nice chapter, ain't it? I was very please how this came out. We're getting done with Part Two! Yay! Anywho, please please please REVIEW! I would like to know what you think (even if it is to flame me for my late updates) and a special thanks to ElvenRanger, you are a god, man, god! ***bows*** I am not worthy!
"God, grant me patience and I want it NOW!"
-Lizzy Rebel
