There was a large-scale fiasco and all-out emergency in the jail that night, but Ana Maria and Elizabeth both missed it all.
They were locked in a room together in the governor's house, with a midwife of dubious credentials, guarded by armed soldiers standing just outside the door. The men were forbidden to enter in and watch "indecent" female procedures, but couldn't help overhearing the heated arguments that carried easily through the walls…
******
The midwife had been silenced almost immediately and sat cowering in a corner, but Elizabeth and Ana Maria were still at it. "How far along are you?"
"What?"
Elizabeth sighed and tried again. "How many months have you been carrying the child?"
"How should I know?" Ana Maria's suspicious, snappy attitude made Elizabeth lose patience and throw delicacy out the window.
"Well, when did it happen? Think back to the last time you got drunk and let Jack into your cabin at night!"
"The last time? Saturday." She paused. "But I expect he cursed me with this about five months ago. Maybe more."
"So you've about four more months to go. I've got three. Lately I've found that if I'm out of sorts, it always helps to drink some of this." She held out a glass filled with some lumpy, foul-looking concoction and tried to entice the pirate to drink it.
"What the devil is that supposed to be?"
"Medicine."
"I know poisons that look more appetizing."
Elizabeth heaved a sigh and tried to think of further argument, but her patient forestalled it by shattering the glass against the wall. "I still can't believe I'm here. I can't believe you've done this to me, missie," Ana Maria growled. "After all the trouble Jack went to on your behalf…"
Elizabeth's eyes narrowed. "Trouble? Trouble he went to? Trouble he caused me, more like." She tossed her hair proudly. "Anyway, done what to you exactly? You're carrying a child, Captain, and if you try and deliver it at sea it'll almost certainly end in tragedy. You must stay here until the baby is born, and then-"
"Stay here? On land? For a whole season? Leave the Pearl?" The pirate struggled to her feet. "Are you mad?"
"Sit down!" Elizabeth stepped forward and slapped her hard across the face. "You disobedient little thing, if you keep running about and throwing tantrums you'll risk harm to Jack's child, and I will not allow that. If you're going to act like an infant, you're going to be treated like one. Sit down, before…before I spank you."
Ana Maria was shocked into obeying, but after a moment she got her wits about her again and reached uselessly into her bodice. "Spank me? Damn you! If I still had my dagger you'd be sorry you-"
"Well, you don't." Elizabeth deliberately turned her back and made her way to the medicine box. "I've dealt with pirates much more fearsome than yourself and I'm not afraid of you. One more word and I shall have you gagged. Now, I am making another batch of medicine and you will drink it." She looked over her shoulder and met Ana Maria's furious gaze. "Honestly, it will settle your indigestion. Trust me?" Her voice was gentle now, and her hand dropped unthinkingly to cradle her belly. "Come on, really – I'm on your side, you know, and if you won't cooperate with me they'll get someone else big and scary to watch over you instead. And you don't want that, do you?"
Ana Maria was silent and sullen, but didn't appear ready to fight any more, so Elizabeth gave her the medicine.
And then retreated several feet to make sure that she was out of reach, just in case.
********************
TBC. You know the drill, review for me.
Forgive any typos in this bit, I know I've been taking long recently so I'm trying to step up the pace. I feel kind of weird not having chewed this chapter over as many billions of times as I usually do…