Haha, keeping all of you guys in suspense is so thrilling to me… getting your responses to it is even better. I congratulate those of you who figured out the secret before hand (though I quite agree that it was rather obvious, but that's okay). My family thinks I'm absolutely insane because I start grinning like an idiot when I get a review. But hey! I love getting reviews and seeing what you guys think, even if some of them are threats and comments such as 'you're evil', but you know, I think those comments are compliments. I know I'm weird. Guess I should stop writing this author's note and get on with the chapter. Oh well… I've kept you in suspense long enough…
Secrets of the CaribbeanWritten By: Riley Barton
[Chapter Seventeen]
Scarlett's heart stopped mid-beat as she stared across the sunny courtyard to the three people standing by the back of the house. She didn't dare breath, holding onto the hope that she was standing in the midst of a nightmare –a terrible nightmare.
"Mama, who're they?"
The young boy's curious voice brought her back to the present, and she knew it wasn't a nightmare. This was really happening. Why had they followed her? How had they known where to find her, for that matter?
"Oh my."
Scarlett wrenched her eyes away from the stunned face of Jack Sparrow to the white-haired woman on the recliner. Aubrianna Anderton's face had grown pale as she stared at her only son's face in shock.
"Mum, Grandma, is he a real pirate?"
Scarlett could see the look of awe on her son's face as he stared at Jack. His eyes were shining like jewels, much like the look Jack's eyes held whenever he landed upon a boatload of gold. She gulped noticeably, the rapid beating of her heart pounding in her ears. "Carver, come here," Scarlett said, and she cursed the nervousness in her voice.
The boy looked at his mother over his shoulder and looked at her with a pouting face. "But Mum, I want to see the pirate!" he complained, looking back to Jack.
"Carver, do as your mother says," his grandmother said, slowly rising to her feet.
Carver looked between his mother and his grandmother, thoughts and ideas running through his small mind. He chewed his lower lip and looked back to the pirate. He had heard many tales of pirates and he had thought the life they led was one of fun and adventure. He had often told his mother and grandmother that he wanted to grow up to be one. That response had been met with determined frowns and defiant 'no's.
"Carver." His mother sounded angry now.
With a determined frown and look in his dark brown eyes, he looked at his mother and said, "I'm just going to say hi and then I'll come right back."
"Carver-!"
But the boy had taken off running across the yard. Scarlett sprinted after him, her longer legs catching up to him in moments. They were only three feet away from Jack, Elizabeth, and Will when she caught up to her son and grabbed him around the waist. She yanked him back and held him tightly against her as she knelt on the ground. Carver let out a frustrated grunt, fighting to get away from his mother's vice-like grip. After all, he reasoned, he was old enough to take care of himself.
"Scarlett," Elizabeth spoke up just above a whisper, "I think this deserves an explanation."
Scarlett looked up at the younger woman and gritted her teeth. "You weren't s'pose to follow," she growled, standing to her feet but keeping a tight grip on her son's hand. "Why did you?"
She felt a warm hand being placed on her shoulder and looked back to find that Aubrianna had come up behind them. She looked at Scarlett with a reassuring smile, and then looked to the three newcomers with a welcoming look in her warm brown eyes. "Why don't we all go inside for a nice cup of tea?" she suggested. "I think something warm will do us all some good."
Scarlett let her eyes travel away from Aubrianna to Jack. His face was stony, his eyes unblinking, but there was an angry, hurt look in his eyes that she couldn't ignore, and he was looking right at her. "I think that is a good idea, Aubri," Scarlett said.
"Good. I will show them the way." Aubri paused a moment and took Carver's hand from his mother's. She looked at Scarlett and said pointedly, "I will leave you and my son to talk," she said, looking to Jack. She led Carver into the house, motioning for Will and Elizabeth to follow her inside.
Scarlett sent a murderous glare after the older woman, angry that Aubri would just leave her like this. "How about you bring the tea out here?" she suggested through gritted teeth.
"I think we need to talk, lass."
Scarlett sent Jack an exasperated look. "What is there to talk about? Everything you needed to know just walked through that door!" She jumped as the back door closed with a resounding click. It was just she and Jack now. "Damn," she grumbled.
"Scarlett-"
"I don't want to talk about it, Jack. You were never supposed to follow me!" She spun on her heel and stalked away, but quickly paused and turned back around to voice one more question. "Why did you follow me? And don't tell me it was because Will and Elizabeth have magnificent persuading skills because I know that to be a bunch of codswallop."
Jack walked down the five steps toward her, and she quickly mimicked his actions by taking the same amount of steps back. Jack stopped. "I just want to know why you didn't tell me."
Scarlett burst out laughing. "Oh, please, Jack! What would you have wanted me to say? Oh yeah, hi Jack it's great to see you again, how have you been? Oh, and before I forget to say anything, you have an eleven-year-old son that is just dying to find out who his real father is." She halted, shaking her head. "Cummon. It isn't exactly dinner conversation here."
"I still deserved to know," Jack replied, growing angrier by the second. "He is my son, isn't he?"
"To my utter shame, yes! He is the son of a lazy, drunken pirate captain that spends half of every year sitting in a prison cell. And what makes it even worse is that he wants to be just like you. He wants to become a pirate! A pirate, Jack! He's so much like you it's bizarre. The only thing he got from me is a quick temper!"
"Who wouldn't want to live the life of a pirate? It's more fun that sitting in a conference room listening to some boring governor drone on about politics! Pirates are free spirits, love! You once embraced that life."
"And now I scorn it," she replied. "You may have tossed everything away, Jack, but that was your choice. Carver will not be following in your footsteps. I will die before I see my son become a pirate just like his-good-for-nothing father!"
Carver stared out the parlour window, watching as his mother and the pirate shouted at one another. Though their voices were muffled and indiscernible, the volume in which they were yelling was more than evident. He couldn't understand why his mother would hate this pirate so much.
"Carver, dear, come sit by me," his grandmother said, patting the seat beside her on the sofa.
Carver sighed and reluctantly slid to his feet and sat down by his grandmother. "Grandma, why does Mum hate that pirate so much?" he asked in confusion.
Aubrianna smoothed his hair lovingly. "Don't you worry your little head about it, Carver. Everything will be all right in due time."
Will looked at Elizabeth sitting beside him. She was staring into her teacup with a vacant look in her eyes.
"Would you like another cup of tea, William?" Aubri offered.
Will looked up and gently shook his head. "No, thank you." He eyes went to the young boy, admiring how much he looked like Jack. The resemblance was uncanny; there was no mistaking it. Carver looked up, as if sensing his stare, and smiled. Even that one action reminded Will of Jack. It was the same charming, kind of cocky, crooked smile.
"Are you a friend of the pirate?" Carver asked.
Will nodded. "He is a good friend of mine, yes. Do you like pirates?" He just barely caught the unsettled expression that crossed Aubrianna's face.
Carver grinned and nodded enthusiastically, jumping to his feet as he did so. "Oh, yes! Being a pirate looks like alotta fun! Are you a pirate?"
The corners of Elizabeth's lips tilted up into a smile as she looked to Will and waited for him to answer.
"My father was," Will replied easily. "I'm only a half-blooded pirate."
A sad look came over the boy's face. "I wish I was. Mama hates pirates, though she's never told me why. She said she used to be friends with a pirate, but that all of them are good for nothing bastards."
"Carver!" Aubrianna exclaimed, her eyes widening in shock. "I never want to hear you speak that word again! Where did you hear that from?"
Carver looked at her with a blank look, as if he didn't know why he had been scolded. "Mama said it. She was in her room punching a pillow talkin' bout how pirates were… well, you know," he finished lamely. His eyes abruptly brightened. "Is that why she and the pirate outside are shouting? Because they hate each other?"
Aubrianna glanced at Will and Elizabeth, an uncertain screen seeming to veil her sweet, slightly wrinkled face. "They don't hate each other, Carver, they've just had past… disagreements, is all." The hesitation was not lost on Will and Elizabeth.
Just then the door leading to the back courtyard slammed open and Scarlett stormed in, quickly followed by Jack Sparrow. Scarlett swept into the parlour and heavily dropped onto the vacant chaise lounge. She glared at Jack as he stood in the doorway.
"Will, Elizabeth, we're leaving," he said.
Elizabeth frowned, glancing toward Scarlett. "We've only just arrived, couldn't we stay just a little longer?"
"No," he replied defiantly. "We are leaving the moment the Black Pearl is able." While he let this sink in, his eyes went to Carver, the boy that looked so much like him, standing in the middle of the room. He slightly jumped, as if only now did he realize how much the boy looked like him, and a faint urgency to run formed in his mind, but his legs wouldn't work.
A funny look came over Carver's face and he took a dangerous step closer to Jack standing in the doorframe. "Mama," he said, although he didn't look at her, "he looks like me!"
A stifled silence fell over the room as Jack and Scarlett stared at each other, daring the other to reply. Anger, mistrust, and hurt were in both their eyes, anger being the fiercest reigning emotion.
"Carver, dear," Aubrianna spoke up, her eyes flickering in Scarlett's direction, "I think you should sit down by me."
Carver acted as if he had not heard his grandmother. In fact, Will doubted the boy was even aware of anyone else in the room; he only had eyes for the scruffy pirate before him. He took two steps forward and halted. "Are you a real pirate?"
Jack looked down at the boy, not certain of what to do. "Aye," he said, momentarily hesitating. "Got a problem with that?"
Carver shook his head vehemently. "No! I think it's great! I want to be a pirate, just like you!"
A sudden, sly looked came into Jack's eyes, and he briefly looked to Scarlett. A sense of dread overcame her. What was he going to do?
Author's Note: GIVE ME THAT EMMY!!! Lunges at PineAppleLint and steals the Emmy award from her MINE! Whee-hee, I got an Emmy! coughs into her fist and smiles charmingly I would like to thank my many reviewers and fans for boosting me to such a high level of esteem.
Hehe, anyway! Thank you so much for all the reviews!! I adore them, and I only wish every time I posted I got so many. As for this chapter, I hope you aren't too disappointed with it. I tried to put Jack's character into play so much while, at the same time, trying to fit it in with the flow of my plot. It isn't easy, trust me! This plot my mind has somehow created is all twisted…
And yet, I have decided to leave another cliffhanger, though I don't believe it's much of one, but no matter. Review, guys, I love em more than anything! (Well, except maybe my many Emmy awards grin)