Disclaimer:see chapter 1
Author's note:many thanks to the Black_Pearl_Sails gang, and particularly Teresa, who helped me with the beginning of this chapter. Ta, mates!
"Another card."
"None for me."
"Eight," said Jack, laying down the four of hearts and the four of spades.
"Dammit, Jack!" Gibbs turned over a three and a two; the third man at the table a king, a two and a five.
Jack grinned and pulled the pile of coins on the table towards him. "'Nother round?" he suggested.
Grizzled old Captain André spread his hands. "I have nothing left to bet with, Captain Sparrow - I swear, you have taken all my money!"
Fingers flying, Jack dealt each of them two cards anyway. "You've still got something I'd like, cap'n."
André shook his head. "Non."
"Think I'll win again?" Jack asked, grinning at the other man. He and the former Navy man Gibbs had bumped into Captain André two nights earlier - the French pirate had docked his neat little two-master in Tortuga harbour and was ashore for some rest. The three men had discovered a shared love of cards. Tonight, they were playing baccarat, and Jack was winning decisively.
"You said you wanted a rest," Jack pursued. "I'd take good care of her - if I win."
André leant across the table. "Have you seen your Pearllately, Sparrow?"
Jack fluttered fingers. "No."
"Her sails are tattered," said André, his voice low. "Her decks black with filth. She gives no quarter, does not obey the Code. She is not this beauty you describe her as, Sparrow. She's a disgrace."
He could have said nothing that would hurt Jack more, and Jack knew that the Frenchman knew it. But he looked André in the eye, and grinned a glittering grin. "All the more reason for me to get her back and restore her to her former glory, ain't it?" He lowered his voice, injecting it with all the charm he could. "You've one thing left to bet with, captain. Bet your ship. If I win, I'll take her, and your crew. You'll get thirty per cent of me plunder. If you win, you get all the cash I've taken so far. And some rum. And I'll join your crew and work for free."
"For free," Gibbs put in.
André looked sideways at Jack. "Fifty per cent."
"Forty," Jack said. "Can't say fairer'n that."
"What if he wins?" André jabbed a thumb at Gibbs.
Gibbs pushed his chair back. "I won't play."
Jack fixed the Frenchman with dark eyes. "Allez, capitaine."
"Did not know you spoke French," André said.
"There's a deal you don't know," Jack returned. "C'mon. It's a fair bet. Can't say I've cheated you. Forty per cent. You can sit here drinkin' rum while I earn you lots of swag. I'll get you more than you ever managed before. I'm Captain Jack Sparrow, savvy; I'm a good pirate."
Slowly, André reached out a hand. "D'accord." They shook. "I bet my ship, against all your winnings and your service aboard the Nictaux, should you lose."
"Agreed!" said Jack, joyfully. He gathered up the cards, as Gibbs was not playing in this round.
"And I shall deal," said the Frenchman. Jack nodded, and handed him the pack.
André shuffled the cards, and, keeping his gaze fixed on Jack, dealt. Jack glanced at his cards, and his mouth twitched in a smile.
"Card," he said. The French captain gave him one, and then dealt himself another.
"I rest," André said.
"Me too," Jack said. "Show?"
"Show."
The two pirate captains turned over their cards as one. Jack grinned.
"Merde," said André. On the table before him were three cards: an ace, a five, and a two. Eight. But on Jack's side of the table were a king, a nine, and a jack. A natural nine.
"Round of drinks for everyone!" said Jack, collecting the cards together and waving his arms around in joy. "Rum on me!" He turned to André. "I will take good care of your vessel," he said, serious all of a sudden. "I swear to you, no 'arm will come to her. I'll call in with the plunder when we're passing by."
Captain André let his head fall heavily on to the table. Jack got up, leaving the cards behind, and beckoned to Gibbs; together they left the tavern.
Walking to the harbour, Gibbs turned to Jack. "You cheated," he said. "I saw the cards slip out o' your sleeves."
"Wonderful things, sleeves," said Jack, lightly.
"But you cheated," Gibbs repeated.
"Pirate?" Jack shrugged. "Besides, I'll get him more plunder than he's been doin' - I wasn't lying about that. You wait, Mr Gibbs. You're about to learn what being a pirate really is."
Five days later, Jack stood on the quarterdeck of Captain Andr's two-master, the Nictaux. "Right, gentlemen," he said. "You, I'm told, are the pick of what's to be found in Tortuga these days."
The crew - twenty men, recruited from the taverns and waterside of Tortuga - shifted their feet and looked back at their strange new captain. To celebrate the occasion, Jack had added a heavy silver ornament to his hair as well as applying a thick layer of kohl around his eyes. He had polished his belt buckle and brushed down his coat, and there was a spring in his step born from being aboard a ship once more.
"We'll be setting a course for the mainland," said Jack, one hand resting on the hilt of his sword and the other gesturing towards open sea. "Then we'll beat southwards 'long the coast, t'wards New Granada and Curaçao, before coming back up the Antilles. With lots of plunder. Our hold's empty save for supplies, so we'll have plenty of room for the loot." He turned on his heel, and began pacing the quarterdeck. "Now, gents, aboard my ship there'll be no killin' in cold blood. Should someone draw on you, feel free to shoot 'em or stab 'em back - but only if they draw on you. If you want a lass, ask her first. Anythin' else goes."
The men exchanged glances and nodded. Jack gave them a shining grin.
"Now. Mr Deschamps over there will be me first mate, and Mr Gibbs," he gestured at Gibbs, "second mate. Rest of ye know your tasks. Look lively; let's get those sails unfurled and this lady moving."
Jack turned to the helm and, after a pause, the crew did look lively. Soon the Nictauxwas gliding smoothly out of Tortuga harbour, the wind tugging at her sails. Jack called for the mainsail to be trimmed and caressed the wood of the helm, full of joy to be out again on the open ocean where he belonged.
They beat down the Windward Passage, Cuba on the Nictaux's starboard bow and Hispaniola on her port, before turning westwards and leaving Jamaica to port. The Nictauxwas lively in the water, and Jack thought she seemed to be enjoying the voyage. Her crew settled down, too, as they got used to their eccentric captain, and fell into the usual rhythm of life aboard ship - repairs, cleaning, sunbathing and card playing.
Two days after they had passed the western tip of Jamaica the lookout sighted a ship on the horizon, and Jack whipped out his telescope to have a look.
"Aha!" he said, gleeful, passing the telescope to Gibbs. "Dutch merchant. Ripe for the picking."
Gibbs returned the telescope. "Aye, cap'n," he said, doubtful.
"Your first act o' piracy," Jack said, clapping the old sailor on the shoulder. "Don't worry, mate, it'll be fine. You're in good hands."
He glanced up at the set of the sails, ordered the adjustments he wanted, and swung the helm so that the Nictauxwas heading straight for the merchant vessel.
"Prepare the guns!" he ordered, once the water was creaming under the ship's bow. "Arm yourselves, and get back on deck."
The pirates hurried to obey, and were ready long before they were within range of the Dutch ship. Jack had another look at her through the telescope.
"Three-masted bark," he said, with a touch of envy. "Ten guns. Could carry more canvas than she is. Riding low in the water - heavily laden. Wonderful."
Turning back to his crew, he began to give orders.
Gibbs was fiddling with the hilt of his cutlass. "Cap'n, mebbe I should stay with the ship?"
"Getting cold feet?" Jack tightened the knot of his headscarf and resettled his hat on his head. "Deschamps'll stay with the ship, Mr Gibbs, you're comin' with us."
Gibbs nodded. "If you say so, sir."
"It's natural to feel a bit nervous, the first time," Jack said. "Lord knows I was."
The other man managed a tight grin.
They ran up the Nictaux's colours - a be-hatted skull with a single cutlass below - as they approached the Dutch vessel, and frantic activity could be seen on her deck. Jack watched carefully, his eyes noting the way the wind was filling the sails, and at the right moment he called, "Heave to! Fire!" Even as the ship swung around to lie abreast of the Dutch merchant, her port cannon fired. A shot landed a few yards ahead of the merchant's bow.
Jack drew his sword. "Grapples!" he ordered. "Throw 'em and board, gentlemen!"
The next few minutes were filled with the rush of the fight, as the Nictaux's crew launched themselves on board the Dutch ship and engaged her sailors. Jack targeted the captain, who proved to be a very poor swordsman. After a short, disappointing fight, the captain had surrendered both his sword, the valuables he had on his person, and the key to the ship's hold. Throwing the latter to one of the pirates, Jack made sure that the merchant's cargo was brought up on deck and moved across to his ship.
The rest of the Dutch sailors were held easily at bay with pistols to their heads and the pirates giving them cheerfully evil leers, whilst boxes and crates and barrels were lifted to the Nictaux. When all was done, Jack bowed elaborately to the merchant captain and swung back to his own vessel, and the pirates sailed off leaving the Dutch tied up on deck.
On board the Nictauxa celebration was in full swing as the swag was counted and catalogued. They had been extremely lucky; the cargo turned out to be mostly costly Dutch silverware, worth a tidy sum. The crew toasted Jack with an extra ration or three of rum as they stowed the silver away below decks, and Jack sat on a barrel and watched, back in his element.
Gibbs came up to him, fingering the pocketful of cash he had taken from some of the Dutch sailors. "You were right," he said.
"I'm always right," Jack returned. "I'm Captain Jack Sparrow, savvy?" He paused. "About what?"
"About me takin' part in that raid," Gibbs elaborated. "Would've been daft to 'ave held back. I reckon I made the right decision. Piracy - it's a good life."
"It's the best life," said Jack, lifting his cup of rum. "The best."
Gibbs touched his cup to his captain's, and the two of them drank in companionable, satisfied silence. It had been a good day's work.
Author's note:many thanks to the Black_Pearl_Sails gang, and particularly Teresa, who helped me with the beginning of this chapter. Ta, mates!
"Another card."
"None for me."
"Eight," said Jack, laying down the four of hearts and the four of spades.
"Dammit, Jack!" Gibbs turned over a three and a two; the third man at the table a king, a two and a five.
Jack grinned and pulled the pile of coins on the table towards him. "'Nother round?" he suggested.
Grizzled old Captain André spread his hands. "I have nothing left to bet with, Captain Sparrow - I swear, you have taken all my money!"
Fingers flying, Jack dealt each of them two cards anyway. "You've still got something I'd like, cap'n."
André shook his head. "Non."
"Think I'll win again?" Jack asked, grinning at the other man. He and the former Navy man Gibbs had bumped into Captain André two nights earlier - the French pirate had docked his neat little two-master in Tortuga harbour and was ashore for some rest. The three men had discovered a shared love of cards. Tonight, they were playing baccarat, and Jack was winning decisively.
"You said you wanted a rest," Jack pursued. "I'd take good care of her - if I win."
André leant across the table. "Have you seen your Pearllately, Sparrow?"
Jack fluttered fingers. "No."
"Her sails are tattered," said André, his voice low. "Her decks black with filth. She gives no quarter, does not obey the Code. She is not this beauty you describe her as, Sparrow. She's a disgrace."
He could have said nothing that would hurt Jack more, and Jack knew that the Frenchman knew it. But he looked André in the eye, and grinned a glittering grin. "All the more reason for me to get her back and restore her to her former glory, ain't it?" He lowered his voice, injecting it with all the charm he could. "You've one thing left to bet with, captain. Bet your ship. If I win, I'll take her, and your crew. You'll get thirty per cent of me plunder. If you win, you get all the cash I've taken so far. And some rum. And I'll join your crew and work for free."
"For free," Gibbs put in.
André looked sideways at Jack. "Fifty per cent."
"Forty," Jack said. "Can't say fairer'n that."
"What if he wins?" André jabbed a thumb at Gibbs.
Gibbs pushed his chair back. "I won't play."
Jack fixed the Frenchman with dark eyes. "Allez, capitaine."
"Did not know you spoke French," André said.
"There's a deal you don't know," Jack returned. "C'mon. It's a fair bet. Can't say I've cheated you. Forty per cent. You can sit here drinkin' rum while I earn you lots of swag. I'll get you more than you ever managed before. I'm Captain Jack Sparrow, savvy; I'm a good pirate."
Slowly, André reached out a hand. "D'accord." They shook. "I bet my ship, against all your winnings and your service aboard the Nictaux, should you lose."
"Agreed!" said Jack, joyfully. He gathered up the cards, as Gibbs was not playing in this round.
"And I shall deal," said the Frenchman. Jack nodded, and handed him the pack.
André shuffled the cards, and, keeping his gaze fixed on Jack, dealt. Jack glanced at his cards, and his mouth twitched in a smile.
"Card," he said. The French captain gave him one, and then dealt himself another.
"I rest," André said.
"Me too," Jack said. "Show?"
"Show."
The two pirate captains turned over their cards as one. Jack grinned.
"Merde," said André. On the table before him were three cards: an ace, a five, and a two. Eight. But on Jack's side of the table were a king, a nine, and a jack. A natural nine.
"Round of drinks for everyone!" said Jack, collecting the cards together and waving his arms around in joy. "Rum on me!" He turned to André. "I will take good care of your vessel," he said, serious all of a sudden. "I swear to you, no 'arm will come to her. I'll call in with the plunder when we're passing by."
Captain André let his head fall heavily on to the table. Jack got up, leaving the cards behind, and beckoned to Gibbs; together they left the tavern.
Walking to the harbour, Gibbs turned to Jack. "You cheated," he said. "I saw the cards slip out o' your sleeves."
"Wonderful things, sleeves," said Jack, lightly.
"But you cheated," Gibbs repeated.
"Pirate?" Jack shrugged. "Besides, I'll get him more plunder than he's been doin' - I wasn't lying about that. You wait, Mr Gibbs. You're about to learn what being a pirate really is."
Five days later, Jack stood on the quarterdeck of Captain Andr's two-master, the Nictaux. "Right, gentlemen," he said. "You, I'm told, are the pick of what's to be found in Tortuga these days."
The crew - twenty men, recruited from the taverns and waterside of Tortuga - shifted their feet and looked back at their strange new captain. To celebrate the occasion, Jack had added a heavy silver ornament to his hair as well as applying a thick layer of kohl around his eyes. He had polished his belt buckle and brushed down his coat, and there was a spring in his step born from being aboard a ship once more.
"We'll be setting a course for the mainland," said Jack, one hand resting on the hilt of his sword and the other gesturing towards open sea. "Then we'll beat southwards 'long the coast, t'wards New Granada and Curaçao, before coming back up the Antilles. With lots of plunder. Our hold's empty save for supplies, so we'll have plenty of room for the loot." He turned on his heel, and began pacing the quarterdeck. "Now, gents, aboard my ship there'll be no killin' in cold blood. Should someone draw on you, feel free to shoot 'em or stab 'em back - but only if they draw on you. If you want a lass, ask her first. Anythin' else goes."
The men exchanged glances and nodded. Jack gave them a shining grin.
"Now. Mr Deschamps over there will be me first mate, and Mr Gibbs," he gestured at Gibbs, "second mate. Rest of ye know your tasks. Look lively; let's get those sails unfurled and this lady moving."
Jack turned to the helm and, after a pause, the crew did look lively. Soon the Nictauxwas gliding smoothly out of Tortuga harbour, the wind tugging at her sails. Jack called for the mainsail to be trimmed and caressed the wood of the helm, full of joy to be out again on the open ocean where he belonged.
They beat down the Windward Passage, Cuba on the Nictaux's starboard bow and Hispaniola on her port, before turning westwards and leaving Jamaica to port. The Nictauxwas lively in the water, and Jack thought she seemed to be enjoying the voyage. Her crew settled down, too, as they got used to their eccentric captain, and fell into the usual rhythm of life aboard ship - repairs, cleaning, sunbathing and card playing.
Two days after they had passed the western tip of Jamaica the lookout sighted a ship on the horizon, and Jack whipped out his telescope to have a look.
"Aha!" he said, gleeful, passing the telescope to Gibbs. "Dutch merchant. Ripe for the picking."
Gibbs returned the telescope. "Aye, cap'n," he said, doubtful.
"Your first act o' piracy," Jack said, clapping the old sailor on the shoulder. "Don't worry, mate, it'll be fine. You're in good hands."
He glanced up at the set of the sails, ordered the adjustments he wanted, and swung the helm so that the Nictauxwas heading straight for the merchant vessel.
"Prepare the guns!" he ordered, once the water was creaming under the ship's bow. "Arm yourselves, and get back on deck."
The pirates hurried to obey, and were ready long before they were within range of the Dutch ship. Jack had another look at her through the telescope.
"Three-masted bark," he said, with a touch of envy. "Ten guns. Could carry more canvas than she is. Riding low in the water - heavily laden. Wonderful."
Turning back to his crew, he began to give orders.
Gibbs was fiddling with the hilt of his cutlass. "Cap'n, mebbe I should stay with the ship?"
"Getting cold feet?" Jack tightened the knot of his headscarf and resettled his hat on his head. "Deschamps'll stay with the ship, Mr Gibbs, you're comin' with us."
Gibbs nodded. "If you say so, sir."
"It's natural to feel a bit nervous, the first time," Jack said. "Lord knows I was."
The other man managed a tight grin.
They ran up the Nictaux's colours - a be-hatted skull with a single cutlass below - as they approached the Dutch vessel, and frantic activity could be seen on her deck. Jack watched carefully, his eyes noting the way the wind was filling the sails, and at the right moment he called, "Heave to! Fire!" Even as the ship swung around to lie abreast of the Dutch merchant, her port cannon fired. A shot landed a few yards ahead of the merchant's bow.
Jack drew his sword. "Grapples!" he ordered. "Throw 'em and board, gentlemen!"
The next few minutes were filled with the rush of the fight, as the Nictaux's crew launched themselves on board the Dutch ship and engaged her sailors. Jack targeted the captain, who proved to be a very poor swordsman. After a short, disappointing fight, the captain had surrendered both his sword, the valuables he had on his person, and the key to the ship's hold. Throwing the latter to one of the pirates, Jack made sure that the merchant's cargo was brought up on deck and moved across to his ship.
The rest of the Dutch sailors were held easily at bay with pistols to their heads and the pirates giving them cheerfully evil leers, whilst boxes and crates and barrels were lifted to the Nictaux. When all was done, Jack bowed elaborately to the merchant captain and swung back to his own vessel, and the pirates sailed off leaving the Dutch tied up on deck.
On board the Nictauxa celebration was in full swing as the swag was counted and catalogued. They had been extremely lucky; the cargo turned out to be mostly costly Dutch silverware, worth a tidy sum. The crew toasted Jack with an extra ration or three of rum as they stowed the silver away below decks, and Jack sat on a barrel and watched, back in his element.
Gibbs came up to him, fingering the pocketful of cash he had taken from some of the Dutch sailors. "You were right," he said.
"I'm always right," Jack returned. "I'm Captain Jack Sparrow, savvy?" He paused. "About what?"
"About me takin' part in that raid," Gibbs elaborated. "Would've been daft to 'ave held back. I reckon I made the right decision. Piracy - it's a good life."
"It's the best life," said Jack, lifting his cup of rum. "The best."
Gibbs touched his cup to his captain's, and the two of them drank in companionable, satisfied silence. It had been a good day's work.