A/N: Well, we now have more review! *Does happy dance* Thank you very
much for the 4 reviews, they are much appreciated. Tell your friends to
read this story, they're really missing out.but that's our opinion, and we
are a LITTLE biased when it comes to that. Oh and by the way, thank you
one-winged for putting us on your favorite author's list and we plan on
still updating and all.even if we are highly under-appreciated *insert
Rhiannon openly weeping* but we'll be fine. Rhiannon meant to update last
night but she had to stay at school late with a French Club meeting and
then had SGSTA.anywho, long story short, she got busy and forgot to update
it. And as to Emma- If we had any lower self-esteem the scrawny cow comment
would likely drive Alycia and Rhiannon into living in caves for the rest of
their lives and possibly WeasleyGirl, too..but she's in Australia and we
can't really say, haven't talked to her since Halloween..moving on, thanks
for the 2 reviews hope this chapter doesn't make you want to kill us.
Disclaimer: We own nothing but Katie, Kate and some other odd characters, some of whom will be introduced in this chapter.
Chapter 5: Near Misses
"Don't!" Jack called, but it was too late. Kate had already fallen in. He ran to the prow and removed anything too heavy before diving in. The water was freezing and dark, nearly too dark to see a foot down. He grasped rapidly around for anything nearby that might be Kate and found nothing. He kicked out his feet and felt them collide with something. He dived down and pulled the something up. To his great relief, it was Kate. At that moment, Katie and Will threw down a rope. He grabbed on, but his and Kate's weight combined was too much. He quickly tied the rope around her and called for Katie and Will to pull her up. Once she was over the edge, the rope reappeared and Jack climbed up. When he got over the top, he rolled off and slumped for seconds before asking, "Well?"
"I can't see her breathing!" Katie cried, "She can't be dead, she was only in for a few minutes."
"Shut up!" Jack said hoarsely. He knelt down beside Kate and listened for breathing, none. He felt for a pulse. Faint thumps met his fingers. Quickly, he opened her mouth while tilting her head sideways and pressed down on her chest. Kate let out a spew of water but didn't cough. He pressed again and again and again until finally he achieved what he wanted: a weak cough followed by a groan. Kate's eyelids fluttered open and weakly she moved her head. She coughed up more water still but managed to sit up.
"What (cough) happened," Kate asked feebly.
"You nearly drowned. Jack saved you," Will told her.
"Why?" Kate asked.
"Because you jumped off the boat."
"No. Why (cough) save me?"
"Because I have enough on my conscience without a death there too," Jack said gruffly.
"Thank (cough, cough) saving me,"
"You're welcome. Don't do that again. It was sheer luck that I got you."
"Okay. . ."
"Well, I'm off," Will said while turning to go.
"Yeah, me too," Jack said. But as he turned to leave, Kate grabbed his pant leg.
"Thank you," She said, looking up at him through shining eyes.
"Kate," Katie began, "Can you walk with me or do you need help?"
"I can walk," Kate replied resolutely. And with that, she got up and followed Katie to their cabin. This time, however, upon lying down, she fell straight asleep. She didn't even bother covering up.
Katie sat and watched Kate sleep. The kid had a knack for trouble. Katie, however, didn't mind the added excitement. To the contrary, before Kate came, nothing ever seemed to happen. And now. . . Katie started when there was a knock at the door. She opened it to find Jack standing there.
"Hi. What's---?" she began.
"How is she?" Jack interrupted.
"Fine. Fell right asleep. Usually, she gets as close to that wall as possible but didn't bother tonight. Didn't even cover up."
Jack knelt by the sleeping Kate and pulled the blankets out from under her. Quickly, he covered her up and tucked the blankets in around her. When Kate moved quickly in her sleep kicking out and fling out an arm, Jack started. Katie laughed quietly and said, "Don't worry. She's not awake at all. She does that all the time. Every night, 'sept when she was unconscious.
"Oh," he said, "You can go to bed if you like, Katie. I want to keep an eye on her for a while, but don't tell her I was here."
"Are you sure---?" Katie began, "Never mind. You really like her don't you. Good night."
Jack nodded and pulled a stool over to where Kate lay. He sat and watched her for more than half the night. At last when he was sure that she was okay, he kissed her lightly on the forehead and left. In spite of his exhaustion, he had enjoyed watching her. Had his eyelids not been drooping, he would have stayed longer. He was shocked at how peaceful she seemed when only hours before, she had had a shouting rant.
~*~
Katie left Kate to sleep the next morning and decided to go find Will. She wanted to ask him about their plan for that night. Maybe they could convince Jack that it would be profitable to put Will and Katie in one room and Jack and Kate in the other.
When she had made her way down to Will's cabin, she pounded on the door for quite a while before it opened.
"What?" he asked, only half awake.
"Good morning to you too, sunshine," She said and then kissed him lightly on the lips.
"Good morning."
"Hey, I was thinking."
"Did it hurt?"
"No....I was thinking that maybe we could persuade Jack to let you and me be in a room together while we're in Tortuga."
"And why would you want that?"
"No reason. Just that I thought that we could enjoy each other's company. Talk or whatever else you want."
"Good idea. But how are we gonna make Jack see our side of this?"
"You mean, how are we going to convince him to be in a room alone with the source of his bruises?"
"Exactly."
"We could tell him that it would be safer for him to be in a room with Kate because he's a better shot then me or something."
"That could work," Will said smiling, "You're mighty clever." He said as he reached down to kiss her.
"Yeah, I guess I am," Katie said, dreamily, "Let's go talk to Jack." She said as she pulled Will out of the room to find Jack.
As usual, he was steering the ship.
"Hey, Jack. Can we talk to you?" Will asked, "Its about tonight."
"Sure. What?"
"Well, Will and I were talking and we don't think that I should be in a room with Kate while we're in Tortuga.
"Why?" Jack asked, catching on.
"Well, I'm not nearly as good of a shot as you are so if someone tried to come into the room, I couldn't protect us both. So maybe, if you were in a room with her, it would be wiser."
"Good cover. But sure, I guess," Jack said grinning, "I mean, I already have tons of bruises, a few more couldn't hurt," he said laughing.
~*~
Kate woke up very late in the day and to no surprise, found Katie had already gone. She walked out onto the deck and found Will, Katie, and Jack talking together. Despite how normal it was for them to be talking together, the way that they looked at her when she walked up was a little strange.
"Morning!" Kate said cheerfully.
"Morning," Will, Katie and Jack all said.
"Jack," Kate began, "Thank you again for saving me. I probably didn't deserve it but thanks. I'm sorry for what I said to. I didn't mean all of it and I'm sorry," she rushed.
"S'okay," Jack said.
"So, what are we coming up on?"
"Tortuga."
"And we will be doing what exactly?"
"Getting supplies and finding a crew."
"But we have a crew."
"Not after today, they're free to go after today.
"Oh. How long are we going to be there?"
"A few days. We'll stay in an inn that I know. Get two rooms for the four of us. And before you ask, you're in a room with me and Katie and Will are in the other room."
"Why?"
"Because there are too many drunks and even though Katie can shoot a gun, she couldn't keep you and her safe. So that's how it's going to be, love and I don't care what you say about it."
A look of comprehension came onto Kate's face as she said, "If you think that I would . . . will . . . with . . . you . . . you're wrong. I'll sleep on the floor. "
"Fine," Jack said calmly, "And what I was thinking was that I could get you a pair of shoes and a dress seeing as you've been going around everywhere barefooted."
Kate laughed and said, "Thanks, but you know what I meant."
"Yeah, I guess I did."
Half and hour later, they were docked in Tortuga. Kate, Will, Katie and Jack were walking down the main street which was littered with broken glass. Such a town, Kate had never seen. The air was full of the smell of beer and bodies and the ground was covered in glass, garbage and drunks. Drunken men grabbed at her as she followed Jack and the others. Hands clenched around Kate's waist and picked her up off the ground. Startled, she screamed which caused Jack, Will and Katie to whirl around.
"Put her down," Jack hissed menacingly.
When the pirate hung on, the three took a step closer. The pirate said, "What's gonna make me? You'd have to shoot the girl to shoot me. What's stopping me from taking her? I dare say you'd care. You never knew how to make use of hostages. Unless," he grinned evilly, "Unless you learned and already have made use of her. I dare say me and my crew could if you haven't."
"Put her down."
Kate began kicking until at last she found her mark. One hard kick in the privates was all it took for the pirate to drop her. Once on the ground, she whirled around, punched him hard in the nose and marched over to the others. "Let's go," she said forcibly.
"Let's get something to eat, shall we, Jack?" Katie suggested pointing to a pub.
They walked in and sat down and ordered. The day's events had prevented them from getting all the supplies that they needed so it would have to be done tomorrow. During the meal, several women marched up and slapped Jack, the last particularly hard. Kate found this very amusing and said lightly, "I seem to have found some people who share my opinion!" After dinner, they made their way back to the in and split up between rooms. Kate hesitantly followed Jack into their room, which was small, had one large bed and a tub in the corner behind a divider.
"Jack?" Kate asked quietly, "May I?" she said pointing to the tub.
"Go right ahead. Make sure that you bolt the door," Jack said before flopping down on the bed to nap.
Before she bathed, however, she pumped water into a small basin and sat down in front of it. Her feet had pained her terribly that day and upon looking at them, she knew why. Shards of glass and rocks had cut their way into her feet. And for the first time since her capture, she cried openly.
Jack, who wasn't paying attention, sat up to see what was wrong. When he saw her feet, he swore and went over to help. On his way, he grabbed some cloth, a rough brush from a counter and a shot of whiskey. He came over and helped Kate pick out the glass from her feet and then said, "Drink this."
"I don't drink."
"Just drink it.
She drank it quickly, catching onto his plan, picked up the cloth and bit into it. Jack wet the brush and began scrubbing out the debris from Kate's feet. Tears streamed down her face but she hardly made a sound except for muffled whimpering. When Jack finished, she wiped her face and smiled up at him and said, "Thanks," before crawling to the tub to take a bath.
A little while later, Kate asked, "Do you have anymore of that cloth? I want to mind my feet to stop the bleeding."
"Sure," Jack said as he walked over to the bed and ripped one of the blankets. "Here."
She smiled, tore it in two and tied up her feet. She pulled a comb out from the pocket in her dress, combed and braided her hair and fell asleep at the far end of the bed. Jack, seeing this as a potential disaster, tried to distance himself as far away as possible before falling asleep himself. When Jack awoke next, it wasn't morning, as he would have expected but rather late at night. For a while he wondered what had woke him up before rolling over to see Kate right against him. She was kicking and punching out while muttering in her sleep, "Let me go . . . Go . . . leave me alone . . . Mum . . . Dad . . . where are you?" Fighting the urge to wake Kate, Jack let her sleep, flopped back down on the bed and fell asleep until morning. When he did wake, he decided that waking Katie and Will would be a safer move than Kate. So he left the room and walked over to Katie and Will's and pounded on the door.
~*~
"Why did he have to wake us up?" Kate grumbled, "Such great bedside manner."
"Tell me about it. I would rather hear gunshots in my ears then the sound of pounding on the door. I thought it was gonna fall in!" said the tousle- haired Will.
"Yeah! I mean, come on!" Katie said, "You know what I think? I think he didn't want to wake Kate up so he decided to torture us to spare his own misery."
A few minutes later, it was Katie and Will's turn to pound on a door. Jack let them in and they stood around waiting before noticing what Kate was doing. She was rebinding her feet but there were bloodstains on the bandages from where her feet had bled during the night.
"What . . . what happened to your feet?" Katie asked in horror.
Kate smiled grimly and said, "One of the downfalls to walking places barefoot."
"No wonder you were walking slow yesterday!" Will exclaimed.
"Yeah, they were a mess last night. I had to pick out shards of glass and then Jack had to scrub out everything else."
Katie rounded on Jack saying, "You are definitely going to get her some shoes!"
"Hey! I intend to. Don't glare at me!" Jack said sheepishly.
"Good or else you can give her yours and walk barefoot tomorrow!" Katie said threateningly.
"Let's go then, shall we?" Will interrupted, evidently trying to stop a fight.
"Fine," Katie replied and added, "You gonna be okay today, kid?" she said while glaring at Jack.
"Yeah, I'll be fine," Kate replied.
The entire day was spent on getting supplies. Jack also got some personal items for the crew. Kate and Katie got some dresses, seeing as Kate didn't have any and Katie's all had holes in them, Will got a new sword and Jack bought another gun. Aside from personal needs, they got food for the boat, kegs of fresh water and other necessities. The last thing that they bought was shoes for Kate. Kate didn't imagine that Jack wanted to buy them but Katie kept threatening him until he did. They got food that night in a different pub, which was much more chaotic and Will, Jack and Katie got drinks. Kate, not fond of alcohol was the only one fully aware of what she was saying.
"I don't think---" Jack began but was interrupted by the arrival of a stranger, "What do you want?"
"Nuffin," The stranger said, "Just wanted to ask ya somethin business like?"
"And that would be?"
"How much for the lass?" The stranger asked, his huge hand on Kate's shoulder.
Kate's eyes grew big and she tried to get free but the stranger merely held on tighter and said, "Be still!" before shaking her.
"She's not for sale," Will hissed quietly.
"Who asked you, boy?" The stranger asked menacingly.
"The girl's not for sale," Will said again.
"How sweet," the stranger said sarcastically, "I daresay that you only are sticking up for her because of your encounters?"
"I haven't lain a hand on her!" Will shouted.
"Whoa, now lad. No need to get riled Maybe it's the good captain making use of her company, then?"
"Shut up!" Jack said. "You see, Albert, there's the difference between us. You and I are both pirates, true . But I don't do that, unlike you and I unlike you am not going to get beaten into a bloody pulp if you don't take your hands off her."
"Now, now, we are testy. Tell me girl, what are you doing then to make him so upset?"
Kate merely sat there, eyes wide. The stranger grabbed a lock of her hair and started to stroke it. "Now, she is a pretty little thing, but what good is she if you don't use it?" the stranger asked Jack.
Jack launched himself up from his chair and stood, fists at the ready before the stranger. "Let her go and I'll let you walk out of this room with your pride still intact," he hissed.
Kate gasped as the pirate's hand moved down. This shock brought her to her senses and she began to struggle feverishly. "Be still!" the pirate roared. When she didn't, he backhanded her across the mouth, hard. However, rather than stilling her, as he intended , it merely drove her harder. "I said, be still!" and he picked her up and threw her from the table where she hit the wall.
Katie and Will joined Jack and shouted insults as Jack attacked the stranger.
"Why you so angry?" the stranger hissed at Jack, "Or could it be that you are falling for a mere strip of a girl?"
Jack hit the stranger hard in the nose and said, "Stuff it!" before hitting him again.
"Touchy, touchy! Now, come on." The stranger said. "Jack. I'll give you a good price. What difference does one girl make?"
"She grows on you," Jack said before knocking the pirate to the floor. "Now get out. No sale. No bargain. Just go."
"Fine. Do it the hard way." The stranger said before turning to leave. But before he walked out, he went over to Kate, grabbed her braid and pulled her up to face him by it. He said to her in a low voice, "I dare say that I'll see you again, love. Just wait," he said menacingly before kissing her on the mouth.
Kate pulled back and spat in his face. "Go to hell!" she yelled.
"I dare say that I will. But the next time I see you, I'm going to teach you a thing or to about manners."
Kate spat in his face again and struggled to hit him. Before she could, he dropped her and strode out of the room.
"Coward!" she screamed after him.
Jack walked over to Kate and asked, "You okay?" as he helped her up.
"Other than completely ticked, yeah, I guess. I'd fancy a shot at him when he wasn't cheating like that. You think what I've done to you has been bad, he'd get about 10 times worse if I had my chance . . ." Kate ranted.
"Let's go," Katie said. "This place is bloody chaotic."
"Yeah," Will said. "I hear that bed calling my name."
~*~
When they got back to the inn, Katie and Will said good night to the still fuming Kate and Jack and went to their room.
"He's going to have fun tonight," Will said while taking off his shirt. "She's in a right temper."
"I'm sure he will. I'd bet that he sleeps on the floor or not at all," Katie remarked while climbing into bed.
"No, it'd be my bet that before half the night is over, he comes in here begging for you to talk to her or just to sleep on the floor in here," he said laughing as he climbed into bed.
"We shall see. But, I'm not going to wait up. I am bloody tired," Katie said. "Good night," she added, kissing Will lightly before lying down.
"Yeah, good night," Will replied. "But do you think . . ."
"Do I think what?"
"Do you think that she'll ever like Jack?"
"That's a tough one. She didn't like him at first and doesn't have any love lost for him now."
"Yeah, but she let him help her up, did you see that?"
"I saw. But . . . I dunno. No sense worrying about it. Good night," Katie added while rolling over.
"Night."
Disclaimer: We own nothing but Katie, Kate and some other odd characters, some of whom will be introduced in this chapter.
Chapter 5: Near Misses
"Don't!" Jack called, but it was too late. Kate had already fallen in. He ran to the prow and removed anything too heavy before diving in. The water was freezing and dark, nearly too dark to see a foot down. He grasped rapidly around for anything nearby that might be Kate and found nothing. He kicked out his feet and felt them collide with something. He dived down and pulled the something up. To his great relief, it was Kate. At that moment, Katie and Will threw down a rope. He grabbed on, but his and Kate's weight combined was too much. He quickly tied the rope around her and called for Katie and Will to pull her up. Once she was over the edge, the rope reappeared and Jack climbed up. When he got over the top, he rolled off and slumped for seconds before asking, "Well?"
"I can't see her breathing!" Katie cried, "She can't be dead, she was only in for a few minutes."
"Shut up!" Jack said hoarsely. He knelt down beside Kate and listened for breathing, none. He felt for a pulse. Faint thumps met his fingers. Quickly, he opened her mouth while tilting her head sideways and pressed down on her chest. Kate let out a spew of water but didn't cough. He pressed again and again and again until finally he achieved what he wanted: a weak cough followed by a groan. Kate's eyelids fluttered open and weakly she moved her head. She coughed up more water still but managed to sit up.
"What (cough) happened," Kate asked feebly.
"You nearly drowned. Jack saved you," Will told her.
"Why?" Kate asked.
"Because you jumped off the boat."
"No. Why (cough) save me?"
"Because I have enough on my conscience without a death there too," Jack said gruffly.
"Thank (cough, cough) saving me,"
"You're welcome. Don't do that again. It was sheer luck that I got you."
"Okay. . ."
"Well, I'm off," Will said while turning to go.
"Yeah, me too," Jack said. But as he turned to leave, Kate grabbed his pant leg.
"Thank you," She said, looking up at him through shining eyes.
"Kate," Katie began, "Can you walk with me or do you need help?"
"I can walk," Kate replied resolutely. And with that, she got up and followed Katie to their cabin. This time, however, upon lying down, she fell straight asleep. She didn't even bother covering up.
Katie sat and watched Kate sleep. The kid had a knack for trouble. Katie, however, didn't mind the added excitement. To the contrary, before Kate came, nothing ever seemed to happen. And now. . . Katie started when there was a knock at the door. She opened it to find Jack standing there.
"Hi. What's---?" she began.
"How is she?" Jack interrupted.
"Fine. Fell right asleep. Usually, she gets as close to that wall as possible but didn't bother tonight. Didn't even cover up."
Jack knelt by the sleeping Kate and pulled the blankets out from under her. Quickly, he covered her up and tucked the blankets in around her. When Kate moved quickly in her sleep kicking out and fling out an arm, Jack started. Katie laughed quietly and said, "Don't worry. She's not awake at all. She does that all the time. Every night, 'sept when she was unconscious.
"Oh," he said, "You can go to bed if you like, Katie. I want to keep an eye on her for a while, but don't tell her I was here."
"Are you sure---?" Katie began, "Never mind. You really like her don't you. Good night."
Jack nodded and pulled a stool over to where Kate lay. He sat and watched her for more than half the night. At last when he was sure that she was okay, he kissed her lightly on the forehead and left. In spite of his exhaustion, he had enjoyed watching her. Had his eyelids not been drooping, he would have stayed longer. He was shocked at how peaceful she seemed when only hours before, she had had a shouting rant.
~*~
Katie left Kate to sleep the next morning and decided to go find Will. She wanted to ask him about their plan for that night. Maybe they could convince Jack that it would be profitable to put Will and Katie in one room and Jack and Kate in the other.
When she had made her way down to Will's cabin, she pounded on the door for quite a while before it opened.
"What?" he asked, only half awake.
"Good morning to you too, sunshine," She said and then kissed him lightly on the lips.
"Good morning."
"Hey, I was thinking."
"Did it hurt?"
"No....I was thinking that maybe we could persuade Jack to let you and me be in a room together while we're in Tortuga."
"And why would you want that?"
"No reason. Just that I thought that we could enjoy each other's company. Talk or whatever else you want."
"Good idea. But how are we gonna make Jack see our side of this?"
"You mean, how are we going to convince him to be in a room alone with the source of his bruises?"
"Exactly."
"We could tell him that it would be safer for him to be in a room with Kate because he's a better shot then me or something."
"That could work," Will said smiling, "You're mighty clever." He said as he reached down to kiss her.
"Yeah, I guess I am," Katie said, dreamily, "Let's go talk to Jack." She said as she pulled Will out of the room to find Jack.
As usual, he was steering the ship.
"Hey, Jack. Can we talk to you?" Will asked, "Its about tonight."
"Sure. What?"
"Well, Will and I were talking and we don't think that I should be in a room with Kate while we're in Tortuga.
"Why?" Jack asked, catching on.
"Well, I'm not nearly as good of a shot as you are so if someone tried to come into the room, I couldn't protect us both. So maybe, if you were in a room with her, it would be wiser."
"Good cover. But sure, I guess," Jack said grinning, "I mean, I already have tons of bruises, a few more couldn't hurt," he said laughing.
~*~
Kate woke up very late in the day and to no surprise, found Katie had already gone. She walked out onto the deck and found Will, Katie, and Jack talking together. Despite how normal it was for them to be talking together, the way that they looked at her when she walked up was a little strange.
"Morning!" Kate said cheerfully.
"Morning," Will, Katie and Jack all said.
"Jack," Kate began, "Thank you again for saving me. I probably didn't deserve it but thanks. I'm sorry for what I said to. I didn't mean all of it and I'm sorry," she rushed.
"S'okay," Jack said.
"So, what are we coming up on?"
"Tortuga."
"And we will be doing what exactly?"
"Getting supplies and finding a crew."
"But we have a crew."
"Not after today, they're free to go after today.
"Oh. How long are we going to be there?"
"A few days. We'll stay in an inn that I know. Get two rooms for the four of us. And before you ask, you're in a room with me and Katie and Will are in the other room."
"Why?"
"Because there are too many drunks and even though Katie can shoot a gun, she couldn't keep you and her safe. So that's how it's going to be, love and I don't care what you say about it."
A look of comprehension came onto Kate's face as she said, "If you think that I would . . . will . . . with . . . you . . . you're wrong. I'll sleep on the floor. "
"Fine," Jack said calmly, "And what I was thinking was that I could get you a pair of shoes and a dress seeing as you've been going around everywhere barefooted."
Kate laughed and said, "Thanks, but you know what I meant."
"Yeah, I guess I did."
Half and hour later, they were docked in Tortuga. Kate, Will, Katie and Jack were walking down the main street which was littered with broken glass. Such a town, Kate had never seen. The air was full of the smell of beer and bodies and the ground was covered in glass, garbage and drunks. Drunken men grabbed at her as she followed Jack and the others. Hands clenched around Kate's waist and picked her up off the ground. Startled, she screamed which caused Jack, Will and Katie to whirl around.
"Put her down," Jack hissed menacingly.
When the pirate hung on, the three took a step closer. The pirate said, "What's gonna make me? You'd have to shoot the girl to shoot me. What's stopping me from taking her? I dare say you'd care. You never knew how to make use of hostages. Unless," he grinned evilly, "Unless you learned and already have made use of her. I dare say me and my crew could if you haven't."
"Put her down."
Kate began kicking until at last she found her mark. One hard kick in the privates was all it took for the pirate to drop her. Once on the ground, she whirled around, punched him hard in the nose and marched over to the others. "Let's go," she said forcibly.
"Let's get something to eat, shall we, Jack?" Katie suggested pointing to a pub.
They walked in and sat down and ordered. The day's events had prevented them from getting all the supplies that they needed so it would have to be done tomorrow. During the meal, several women marched up and slapped Jack, the last particularly hard. Kate found this very amusing and said lightly, "I seem to have found some people who share my opinion!" After dinner, they made their way back to the in and split up between rooms. Kate hesitantly followed Jack into their room, which was small, had one large bed and a tub in the corner behind a divider.
"Jack?" Kate asked quietly, "May I?" she said pointing to the tub.
"Go right ahead. Make sure that you bolt the door," Jack said before flopping down on the bed to nap.
Before she bathed, however, she pumped water into a small basin and sat down in front of it. Her feet had pained her terribly that day and upon looking at them, she knew why. Shards of glass and rocks had cut their way into her feet. And for the first time since her capture, she cried openly.
Jack, who wasn't paying attention, sat up to see what was wrong. When he saw her feet, he swore and went over to help. On his way, he grabbed some cloth, a rough brush from a counter and a shot of whiskey. He came over and helped Kate pick out the glass from her feet and then said, "Drink this."
"I don't drink."
"Just drink it.
She drank it quickly, catching onto his plan, picked up the cloth and bit into it. Jack wet the brush and began scrubbing out the debris from Kate's feet. Tears streamed down her face but she hardly made a sound except for muffled whimpering. When Jack finished, she wiped her face and smiled up at him and said, "Thanks," before crawling to the tub to take a bath.
A little while later, Kate asked, "Do you have anymore of that cloth? I want to mind my feet to stop the bleeding."
"Sure," Jack said as he walked over to the bed and ripped one of the blankets. "Here."
She smiled, tore it in two and tied up her feet. She pulled a comb out from the pocket in her dress, combed and braided her hair and fell asleep at the far end of the bed. Jack, seeing this as a potential disaster, tried to distance himself as far away as possible before falling asleep himself. When Jack awoke next, it wasn't morning, as he would have expected but rather late at night. For a while he wondered what had woke him up before rolling over to see Kate right against him. She was kicking and punching out while muttering in her sleep, "Let me go . . . Go . . . leave me alone . . . Mum . . . Dad . . . where are you?" Fighting the urge to wake Kate, Jack let her sleep, flopped back down on the bed and fell asleep until morning. When he did wake, he decided that waking Katie and Will would be a safer move than Kate. So he left the room and walked over to Katie and Will's and pounded on the door.
~*~
"Why did he have to wake us up?" Kate grumbled, "Such great bedside manner."
"Tell me about it. I would rather hear gunshots in my ears then the sound of pounding on the door. I thought it was gonna fall in!" said the tousle- haired Will.
"Yeah! I mean, come on!" Katie said, "You know what I think? I think he didn't want to wake Kate up so he decided to torture us to spare his own misery."
A few minutes later, it was Katie and Will's turn to pound on a door. Jack let them in and they stood around waiting before noticing what Kate was doing. She was rebinding her feet but there were bloodstains on the bandages from where her feet had bled during the night.
"What . . . what happened to your feet?" Katie asked in horror.
Kate smiled grimly and said, "One of the downfalls to walking places barefoot."
"No wonder you were walking slow yesterday!" Will exclaimed.
"Yeah, they were a mess last night. I had to pick out shards of glass and then Jack had to scrub out everything else."
Katie rounded on Jack saying, "You are definitely going to get her some shoes!"
"Hey! I intend to. Don't glare at me!" Jack said sheepishly.
"Good or else you can give her yours and walk barefoot tomorrow!" Katie said threateningly.
"Let's go then, shall we?" Will interrupted, evidently trying to stop a fight.
"Fine," Katie replied and added, "You gonna be okay today, kid?" she said while glaring at Jack.
"Yeah, I'll be fine," Kate replied.
The entire day was spent on getting supplies. Jack also got some personal items for the crew. Kate and Katie got some dresses, seeing as Kate didn't have any and Katie's all had holes in them, Will got a new sword and Jack bought another gun. Aside from personal needs, they got food for the boat, kegs of fresh water and other necessities. The last thing that they bought was shoes for Kate. Kate didn't imagine that Jack wanted to buy them but Katie kept threatening him until he did. They got food that night in a different pub, which was much more chaotic and Will, Jack and Katie got drinks. Kate, not fond of alcohol was the only one fully aware of what she was saying.
"I don't think---" Jack began but was interrupted by the arrival of a stranger, "What do you want?"
"Nuffin," The stranger said, "Just wanted to ask ya somethin business like?"
"And that would be?"
"How much for the lass?" The stranger asked, his huge hand on Kate's shoulder.
Kate's eyes grew big and she tried to get free but the stranger merely held on tighter and said, "Be still!" before shaking her.
"She's not for sale," Will hissed quietly.
"Who asked you, boy?" The stranger asked menacingly.
"The girl's not for sale," Will said again.
"How sweet," the stranger said sarcastically, "I daresay that you only are sticking up for her because of your encounters?"
"I haven't lain a hand on her!" Will shouted.
"Whoa, now lad. No need to get riled Maybe it's the good captain making use of her company, then?"
"Shut up!" Jack said. "You see, Albert, there's the difference between us. You and I are both pirates, true . But I don't do that, unlike you and I unlike you am not going to get beaten into a bloody pulp if you don't take your hands off her."
"Now, now, we are testy. Tell me girl, what are you doing then to make him so upset?"
Kate merely sat there, eyes wide. The stranger grabbed a lock of her hair and started to stroke it. "Now, she is a pretty little thing, but what good is she if you don't use it?" the stranger asked Jack.
Jack launched himself up from his chair and stood, fists at the ready before the stranger. "Let her go and I'll let you walk out of this room with your pride still intact," he hissed.
Kate gasped as the pirate's hand moved down. This shock brought her to her senses and she began to struggle feverishly. "Be still!" the pirate roared. When she didn't, he backhanded her across the mouth, hard. However, rather than stilling her, as he intended , it merely drove her harder. "I said, be still!" and he picked her up and threw her from the table where she hit the wall.
Katie and Will joined Jack and shouted insults as Jack attacked the stranger.
"Why you so angry?" the stranger hissed at Jack, "Or could it be that you are falling for a mere strip of a girl?"
Jack hit the stranger hard in the nose and said, "Stuff it!" before hitting him again.
"Touchy, touchy! Now, come on." The stranger said. "Jack. I'll give you a good price. What difference does one girl make?"
"She grows on you," Jack said before knocking the pirate to the floor. "Now get out. No sale. No bargain. Just go."
"Fine. Do it the hard way." The stranger said before turning to leave. But before he walked out, he went over to Kate, grabbed her braid and pulled her up to face him by it. He said to her in a low voice, "I dare say that I'll see you again, love. Just wait," he said menacingly before kissing her on the mouth.
Kate pulled back and spat in his face. "Go to hell!" she yelled.
"I dare say that I will. But the next time I see you, I'm going to teach you a thing or to about manners."
Kate spat in his face again and struggled to hit him. Before she could, he dropped her and strode out of the room.
"Coward!" she screamed after him.
Jack walked over to Kate and asked, "You okay?" as he helped her up.
"Other than completely ticked, yeah, I guess. I'd fancy a shot at him when he wasn't cheating like that. You think what I've done to you has been bad, he'd get about 10 times worse if I had my chance . . ." Kate ranted.
"Let's go," Katie said. "This place is bloody chaotic."
"Yeah," Will said. "I hear that bed calling my name."
~*~
When they got back to the inn, Katie and Will said good night to the still fuming Kate and Jack and went to their room.
"He's going to have fun tonight," Will said while taking off his shirt. "She's in a right temper."
"I'm sure he will. I'd bet that he sleeps on the floor or not at all," Katie remarked while climbing into bed.
"No, it'd be my bet that before half the night is over, he comes in here begging for you to talk to her or just to sleep on the floor in here," he said laughing as he climbed into bed.
"We shall see. But, I'm not going to wait up. I am bloody tired," Katie said. "Good night," she added, kissing Will lightly before lying down.
"Yeah, good night," Will replied. "But do you think . . ."
"Do I think what?"
"Do you think that she'll ever like Jack?"
"That's a tough one. She didn't like him at first and doesn't have any love lost for him now."
"Yeah, but she let him help her up, did you see that?"
"I saw. But . . . I dunno. No sense worrying about it. Good night," Katie added while rolling over.
"Night."