Usual disclaimers and I still hate the oscar academy!
I apologise if I miss thanking anybody who has reviewed, but with the site playing up just lately, all the reviews and alerts have gone haywire :rolleyes:
Sakhara, thank you for the apology, I know it's a bit of cliffie, but I love 'em!
Hils, Moo!
Lady Skywalker, I know how you feel, but as to killing Jack off....., you'll just have to keep reading
Linnie, Who knows what would have happened indeed. Thanks for your help and support
Chapter 34
The harbour was a hive of activity, as the crew of Will's ships made ready to sail. Esme Davies watched on with a heavy heart. She had been shocked to the core when told of what had happened to Kelly and Jack disappearing, but Will had promised her he would let her know what had happened as soon as he knew himself. 'Well, what did you expect, you silly old fool. Jack Sparrow is a pirate after all.' She chided herself, sighing in frustration when it didn't dispel the feeling of sadness she had.
'Captain Turner, I've just heard some news that you might be interested in.' David Masterton ran up the gangplank to his captain. 'I heard the harbourmaster was attacked last night also, but by a woman.' Will's eyes shot wide open as he digested this information. 'That's not all sir, apparently there was an injured man being carried by a group of others.'
'Jack?' Will had no way of knowing for certain, but something told him that was the reason for The Pearl's disappearance. 'How much longer before we can set sail?'
'Around another hour I reckon Cap'n, mebbe less.' Masterton turned and barked orders to his men to move quicker. Then he went across to The Rose to tell Brown the news too.
'I dunno that I like being mixed up with pirates, David. How long before we're all looting other ships?' Matthew looked at his old friend worriedly.
'I don't reckon the lad is like that, he seems respectable enough, which is more than ya can say for Sparrow. Give him a chance Matt, don't judge a book by its cover or a man by the company he keeps.' David left Matthew to ponder these words as he made his way back to The Thistle, urging his men to get a move on.
The two ships set sail less than an hour later, The Thistle leaving the port first, it's Captain anxious to get to Freetown to his family, and, he hoped, his friends.
**********
'Land ho!' Maddy looked up at the call, squinting since her eyes were bleary from exhaustion, and relieved they were nearly in Freetown once more. There was a healer there, which everyone in the town seemed to go to. To Maddy, he looked terrifying, with his long, matted dreadlocks that went past his knees and his face daubed with paint of all colours and he had bones through his ear lobes. Maddy grew desperate, Jack's breathing seemed to have got shallower and his face was grey and bathed in sweat. Maddy looked around as Mr. Cotton entered without knocking, which he would do so as not to disturb Maddy from her sleep.
'Hello Mr. Cotton, we're nearly there thank goodness.' She smiled up at the older man, and suddenly felt guilty for being ungrateful for all he had done for Jack. Cotton checked on the wound, moving over so Maddy could see. Jack's body was badly bruised and the centre of the hole was black, but the tissue surrounding it, looked clean and reasonably healthy. Cotton prepared a clean pad and lifted Jack slightly, so Maddy could strap it onto Jack to stop it moving about. 'Not that it will matter much,' Maddy thought. 'Jack hasn't moved an inch since we lay him down.' She looked around at Eb, who'd entered the cabin.
'We'll be in Freetown by mid-afternoon Maddy. Will ya be taking Jack ashore?'
'No Eb, it's best not to move him.' Maddy looked at Mr. Cotton pensively. 'Would you mind terribly if I got the local healer to come and have a look at Jack, Mr. Cotton? I'm not saying that you can't look after him, but I've heard this man virtually works miracles.' To Maddy's relief, the older man smiled and nodded, squeezing her shoulder gently. He left the cabin with Eb, leaving Maddy alone with Jack once more.
**********
'With this following wind, we should make Freetown in good time.' Will looked up at the billowing sails, smiling to himself. It felt so good being in charge of his own ships, his own destiny. 'I just wish I knew what had happened with Jack and Maddy.' The smile on his face faltered slightly, something that David Masterton noticed.
'Something wrong sir?' Despite Matt Brown's reservations about their new captain, David liked him, and more importantly, he trusted him.
'Yes, everything's fine, thank you David,' the smile on Will's lips not reaching his eyes. He glanced at David, seeing his quartermaster wasn't convinced, and smiled ruefully. 'No, it isn't, I'm worried about my friends. Jack wouldn't have left without getting word to me, and after what I heard earlier, I'm really worried.'
'Y'think they've made for Freetown then? Surely they would have gone as far away as possible, after killing Kelly?'
'I don't think they did kill Kelly, Jack's not the type to kill someone, let alone have someone killed, in cold blood. What do you know about George Kelly?' Will regarded Masterton, wondering why he hadn't thought to ask before.
'Not a lot, he tended to keep to himself a lot. I know he owed a lot of money to a few rather nasty people. He was going to try and get a crew together for Nate Keating, so they could go after whatever Keating thought he'd got on that map o'his. Stupid, the pair of them, I'm surprised they hadn't been killed before. Who did kill Keating sir, if you don't mind my asking?'
Will hesitated, wondering whether to tell David the truth, finally deciding he had to trust his acting quartermaster sometime. 'Maddy Sparrow. Keating had stolen on board The Black Pearl and attacked her, but she managed to break free and stabbed him.'
'Ah,' David Masterton raised his eyebrows, 'So she's more than capable of taking out the harbourmaster then?'
'Yes, more than capable.' Will smiled, thinking of the two strong women in his life, who he loved more than anything. 'If we sail through the night, and this wind holds, we should reach Freetown by morning.' Masterton nodded his agreement, then took his leave, recognising the dismissal.
**********
'Drop the anchor!' Eb's voice boomed across the ship and the harbour of Freetown. The crew scurried around, making ready to dock. Maddy looked out of the window, spotting Elizabeth at the quayside, then she looked down at Jack, and gulped back the tears.
'Oh Jack, please pull through,' she pleaded for the umpteenth time while gently stroking his forehead. Maddy got onto the bunk besides Jack and lay there, listening to the sounds of the crew above, then hearing the boat being lowered, bumping as it went down the side of the ship. Eb knocked and entered the cabin, crossing it in two strides of his long legs.
'I'll got an' fetch the healer now Maddy, is there anything else you want, anything you need?'
'No Eb, just for Jack to be well again. Thank you.' Maddy smiled weakly at him, holding back the tears until Eb had left the cabin, then wiped her face, wondering how there could possibly any more tears left to fall. Maddy fetched a mug of water and gently trickled some into Jack's mouth, taking care not to pour too much in. Then she poured some of the water onto a rag and dabbed at Jack's face with it, in a desperate attempt to cool his now raging fever, before climbing back into the bunk with him. She had foregone the cot the previous day, she just didn't feel close enough to Jack in it and she wanted him to know she was there, even though he was still unconscious. Maddy fought against her heavy eyelids, but was too weary and soon drifted off to sleep.
**********
'Maddy, wake up! He's here.' Maddy rubbed the sleep from her eyes and looked at Eb questioningly. Her searching gaze soon settled on the figure beyond him, and saw the healer standing there carrying a bag crammed full of things that Maddy could only guess about.
'Oh, I'm sorry.' She shot off the bunk and straightened her shirt out, before extending her hand to the healer. 'Thank you for coming.' Maddy moved away so the healer could look at her husband. He bent over Jack, his long dreadlocks covering his back and trailing on the floor behind him. He delved deeply into his bag, before producing a magnifying glass, which he used to peer more closely at the wound.
'There's somethin' in there.' His accent was thick West Indian, and Maddy had to strain to understand him.
'What? Mr. Cotton got the shot when we found him and hasn't seen anything else when he's cleaned it.' Maddy moved forward to look through the glass, and gasped when she saw a dark sliver of something buried very deep inside Jack's body. 'What can it be?' She looked at the healer, fear in her eyes.
'Dunno M'am, could be that t'shot splintered when it was tak'n out, or when it entered him in t'first place, or it could be dirt. Whatever it is, it ain't doin' 'im any good.'
'Can you remove it?' Maddy and Eb exchanged anxious glances.
'I can't dig it out, it's far too deep, but I'll make a poultice an' try an' draw it out that way.' The healer turned and carried his bag to the table, pulling out various jars and things wrapped in rags that smelled vile. He asked Eb to fetch some hot water, then went about mixing the contents of some of the jars in a mortise. Setting aside the mortise, he picked up a rag and opened it, revealing a root of a plant. He cut a piece of the root off and ground it to a power in another mortise, before adding it to the other mixture. He looked up and smiled a toothless smile at Eb, who'd returned with the water, then added a few drops to the mortise, mixing the potion furiously all the time. Maddy was a little disturbed to see a vapour rising from the potion and look in alarm at the healer, who merely smiled at her. He proceeded to pour the mixture onto a clean rag and applied it to Jack's wound. Eb held Maddy back as she sprang forward at the sight of Jack's body jerking when the poultice was applied.
'He's knows what he's doin' Maddy, trust him,' Eb said trying to console Maddy, but he couldn't help but feel a little disturbed himself.
'I'll make up some more for you, an' you change it four times a day. Don't worry if the dressing is dirty when you take it off, in fact t'dirtier t'better, shows t'poison is being drawn out. But you must check t'dressin' carefully every time it's changed, to see if t'splinter's come out.' He turned his back on his patient and busied himself mixing some more of the potion. 'Oh, an' one more thing, he's goin' ta get a lot hotter. You must let him sweat, but don't let 'im get overheated.'
Maddy nodded mutely at the instructions, then went to the big chest on the far side of the cabin and pulled out a pouch of coins from a secret drawer, making sure neither man saw what she did. 'Here,' she held out the pouch. 'Thank you for what you've done.'
The healer smiled wisely at her and shook his head. 'He can pay me when he's healed,' he nodded down at Jack. Maddy smiled, then embraced the man, smiling her thanks at him. She turned at a knock on the door.
"Who is it?' Maddy crossed the cabin to let the healer and Eb out, and see who was outside. 'Oh, Elizabeth, come in.' Maddy stood aside to allow the younger woman access to the cabin.
'How is he? Tom told me what happened.' Elizabeth looked at Jack's stricken body, feeling tears spring to her eyes.
'He's not good. There's a splinter buried deep inside him, poisoning him, and the healer has made a poultice to try and draw it out.' Maddy sighed, although she appreciated the woman's concern, the last thing she wanted right now was a visitor.
'Is there anything I can do?' Elizabeth bit her lip, knowing there was nothing that could be done. 'I can't believe it. He always seemed so... immortal. Even though he showed me those scars on his chest, I've never quite believed that Jack could be hurt.'
'I know,' Maddy replied. Her voice was heavy with fear and more unshed tears. Elizabeth looked at Maddy, seeing the pain in her eyes. Elizabeth wrapped her arms around Maddy, smoothing her hair and soothing her as she sobbed in her arms.
I apologise if I miss thanking anybody who has reviewed, but with the site playing up just lately, all the reviews and alerts have gone haywire :rolleyes:
Sakhara, thank you for the apology, I know it's a bit of cliffie, but I love 'em!
Hils, Moo!
Lady Skywalker, I know how you feel, but as to killing Jack off....., you'll just have to keep reading
Linnie, Who knows what would have happened indeed. Thanks for your help and support
Chapter 34
The harbour was a hive of activity, as the crew of Will's ships made ready to sail. Esme Davies watched on with a heavy heart. She had been shocked to the core when told of what had happened to Kelly and Jack disappearing, but Will had promised her he would let her know what had happened as soon as he knew himself. 'Well, what did you expect, you silly old fool. Jack Sparrow is a pirate after all.' She chided herself, sighing in frustration when it didn't dispel the feeling of sadness she had.
'Captain Turner, I've just heard some news that you might be interested in.' David Masterton ran up the gangplank to his captain. 'I heard the harbourmaster was attacked last night also, but by a woman.' Will's eyes shot wide open as he digested this information. 'That's not all sir, apparently there was an injured man being carried by a group of others.'
'Jack?' Will had no way of knowing for certain, but something told him that was the reason for The Pearl's disappearance. 'How much longer before we can set sail?'
'Around another hour I reckon Cap'n, mebbe less.' Masterton turned and barked orders to his men to move quicker. Then he went across to The Rose to tell Brown the news too.
'I dunno that I like being mixed up with pirates, David. How long before we're all looting other ships?' Matthew looked at his old friend worriedly.
'I don't reckon the lad is like that, he seems respectable enough, which is more than ya can say for Sparrow. Give him a chance Matt, don't judge a book by its cover or a man by the company he keeps.' David left Matthew to ponder these words as he made his way back to The Thistle, urging his men to get a move on.
The two ships set sail less than an hour later, The Thistle leaving the port first, it's Captain anxious to get to Freetown to his family, and, he hoped, his friends.
**********
'Land ho!' Maddy looked up at the call, squinting since her eyes were bleary from exhaustion, and relieved they were nearly in Freetown once more. There was a healer there, which everyone in the town seemed to go to. To Maddy, he looked terrifying, with his long, matted dreadlocks that went past his knees and his face daubed with paint of all colours and he had bones through his ear lobes. Maddy grew desperate, Jack's breathing seemed to have got shallower and his face was grey and bathed in sweat. Maddy looked around as Mr. Cotton entered without knocking, which he would do so as not to disturb Maddy from her sleep.
'Hello Mr. Cotton, we're nearly there thank goodness.' She smiled up at the older man, and suddenly felt guilty for being ungrateful for all he had done for Jack. Cotton checked on the wound, moving over so Maddy could see. Jack's body was badly bruised and the centre of the hole was black, but the tissue surrounding it, looked clean and reasonably healthy. Cotton prepared a clean pad and lifted Jack slightly, so Maddy could strap it onto Jack to stop it moving about. 'Not that it will matter much,' Maddy thought. 'Jack hasn't moved an inch since we lay him down.' She looked around at Eb, who'd entered the cabin.
'We'll be in Freetown by mid-afternoon Maddy. Will ya be taking Jack ashore?'
'No Eb, it's best not to move him.' Maddy looked at Mr. Cotton pensively. 'Would you mind terribly if I got the local healer to come and have a look at Jack, Mr. Cotton? I'm not saying that you can't look after him, but I've heard this man virtually works miracles.' To Maddy's relief, the older man smiled and nodded, squeezing her shoulder gently. He left the cabin with Eb, leaving Maddy alone with Jack once more.
**********
'With this following wind, we should make Freetown in good time.' Will looked up at the billowing sails, smiling to himself. It felt so good being in charge of his own ships, his own destiny. 'I just wish I knew what had happened with Jack and Maddy.' The smile on his face faltered slightly, something that David Masterton noticed.
'Something wrong sir?' Despite Matt Brown's reservations about their new captain, David liked him, and more importantly, he trusted him.
'Yes, everything's fine, thank you David,' the smile on Will's lips not reaching his eyes. He glanced at David, seeing his quartermaster wasn't convinced, and smiled ruefully. 'No, it isn't, I'm worried about my friends. Jack wouldn't have left without getting word to me, and after what I heard earlier, I'm really worried.'
'Y'think they've made for Freetown then? Surely they would have gone as far away as possible, after killing Kelly?'
'I don't think they did kill Kelly, Jack's not the type to kill someone, let alone have someone killed, in cold blood. What do you know about George Kelly?' Will regarded Masterton, wondering why he hadn't thought to ask before.
'Not a lot, he tended to keep to himself a lot. I know he owed a lot of money to a few rather nasty people. He was going to try and get a crew together for Nate Keating, so they could go after whatever Keating thought he'd got on that map o'his. Stupid, the pair of them, I'm surprised they hadn't been killed before. Who did kill Keating sir, if you don't mind my asking?'
Will hesitated, wondering whether to tell David the truth, finally deciding he had to trust his acting quartermaster sometime. 'Maddy Sparrow. Keating had stolen on board The Black Pearl and attacked her, but she managed to break free and stabbed him.'
'Ah,' David Masterton raised his eyebrows, 'So she's more than capable of taking out the harbourmaster then?'
'Yes, more than capable.' Will smiled, thinking of the two strong women in his life, who he loved more than anything. 'If we sail through the night, and this wind holds, we should reach Freetown by morning.' Masterton nodded his agreement, then took his leave, recognising the dismissal.
**********
'Drop the anchor!' Eb's voice boomed across the ship and the harbour of Freetown. The crew scurried around, making ready to dock. Maddy looked out of the window, spotting Elizabeth at the quayside, then she looked down at Jack, and gulped back the tears.
'Oh Jack, please pull through,' she pleaded for the umpteenth time while gently stroking his forehead. Maddy got onto the bunk besides Jack and lay there, listening to the sounds of the crew above, then hearing the boat being lowered, bumping as it went down the side of the ship. Eb knocked and entered the cabin, crossing it in two strides of his long legs.
'I'll got an' fetch the healer now Maddy, is there anything else you want, anything you need?'
'No Eb, just for Jack to be well again. Thank you.' Maddy smiled weakly at him, holding back the tears until Eb had left the cabin, then wiped her face, wondering how there could possibly any more tears left to fall. Maddy fetched a mug of water and gently trickled some into Jack's mouth, taking care not to pour too much in. Then she poured some of the water onto a rag and dabbed at Jack's face with it, in a desperate attempt to cool his now raging fever, before climbing back into the bunk with him. She had foregone the cot the previous day, she just didn't feel close enough to Jack in it and she wanted him to know she was there, even though he was still unconscious. Maddy fought against her heavy eyelids, but was too weary and soon drifted off to sleep.
**********
'Maddy, wake up! He's here.' Maddy rubbed the sleep from her eyes and looked at Eb questioningly. Her searching gaze soon settled on the figure beyond him, and saw the healer standing there carrying a bag crammed full of things that Maddy could only guess about.
'Oh, I'm sorry.' She shot off the bunk and straightened her shirt out, before extending her hand to the healer. 'Thank you for coming.' Maddy moved away so the healer could look at her husband. He bent over Jack, his long dreadlocks covering his back and trailing on the floor behind him. He delved deeply into his bag, before producing a magnifying glass, which he used to peer more closely at the wound.
'There's somethin' in there.' His accent was thick West Indian, and Maddy had to strain to understand him.
'What? Mr. Cotton got the shot when we found him and hasn't seen anything else when he's cleaned it.' Maddy moved forward to look through the glass, and gasped when she saw a dark sliver of something buried very deep inside Jack's body. 'What can it be?' She looked at the healer, fear in her eyes.
'Dunno M'am, could be that t'shot splintered when it was tak'n out, or when it entered him in t'first place, or it could be dirt. Whatever it is, it ain't doin' 'im any good.'
'Can you remove it?' Maddy and Eb exchanged anxious glances.
'I can't dig it out, it's far too deep, but I'll make a poultice an' try an' draw it out that way.' The healer turned and carried his bag to the table, pulling out various jars and things wrapped in rags that smelled vile. He asked Eb to fetch some hot water, then went about mixing the contents of some of the jars in a mortise. Setting aside the mortise, he picked up a rag and opened it, revealing a root of a plant. He cut a piece of the root off and ground it to a power in another mortise, before adding it to the other mixture. He looked up and smiled a toothless smile at Eb, who'd returned with the water, then added a few drops to the mortise, mixing the potion furiously all the time. Maddy was a little disturbed to see a vapour rising from the potion and look in alarm at the healer, who merely smiled at her. He proceeded to pour the mixture onto a clean rag and applied it to Jack's wound. Eb held Maddy back as she sprang forward at the sight of Jack's body jerking when the poultice was applied.
'He's knows what he's doin' Maddy, trust him,' Eb said trying to console Maddy, but he couldn't help but feel a little disturbed himself.
'I'll make up some more for you, an' you change it four times a day. Don't worry if the dressing is dirty when you take it off, in fact t'dirtier t'better, shows t'poison is being drawn out. But you must check t'dressin' carefully every time it's changed, to see if t'splinter's come out.' He turned his back on his patient and busied himself mixing some more of the potion. 'Oh, an' one more thing, he's goin' ta get a lot hotter. You must let him sweat, but don't let 'im get overheated.'
Maddy nodded mutely at the instructions, then went to the big chest on the far side of the cabin and pulled out a pouch of coins from a secret drawer, making sure neither man saw what she did. 'Here,' she held out the pouch. 'Thank you for what you've done.'
The healer smiled wisely at her and shook his head. 'He can pay me when he's healed,' he nodded down at Jack. Maddy smiled, then embraced the man, smiling her thanks at him. She turned at a knock on the door.
"Who is it?' Maddy crossed the cabin to let the healer and Eb out, and see who was outside. 'Oh, Elizabeth, come in.' Maddy stood aside to allow the younger woman access to the cabin.
'How is he? Tom told me what happened.' Elizabeth looked at Jack's stricken body, feeling tears spring to her eyes.
'He's not good. There's a splinter buried deep inside him, poisoning him, and the healer has made a poultice to try and draw it out.' Maddy sighed, although she appreciated the woman's concern, the last thing she wanted right now was a visitor.
'Is there anything I can do?' Elizabeth bit her lip, knowing there was nothing that could be done. 'I can't believe it. He always seemed so... immortal. Even though he showed me those scars on his chest, I've never quite believed that Jack could be hurt.'
'I know,' Maddy replied. Her voice was heavy with fear and more unshed tears. Elizabeth looked at Maddy, seeing the pain in her eyes. Elizabeth wrapped her arms around Maddy, smoothing her hair and soothing her as she sobbed in her arms.