Chapter Four

Tortuga was the same as always...wild, rowdy, and dirty. But then again, no one who lived there complained, and no one else mattered.

Jack gave strict orders to the crew to be back from leave on time and headed for the tavern with Gibbs. They were used to the routine, and no one paid them mind as they walked in. The crowd inside was accustomed to seeing wanted men appear on this island. Unfortunately, the times when the British ventured to actually come here, it was dangerous.

But none of that bothered Jack. He and Gibbs were fine...the British usually considered it more trouble that it was worth to head for Tortuga. Besides, only a few of them knew it existed...which may have been a good thing.

Overturned tables, women being paid by the hour, and very drunk men were the sights that greeted them...as usual. Jack found a small table near the back and he and his first mate sat back to relax for the first time in a long time.

The cabin Corinne had on the huge British ship was larger than her previous one, but she was obliged to share it with another young woman. She didn't care, however, only being glad to be away from those pirates. And the other lady was not going to be on the ship much longer; her stop was a couple of days away and then she would be gone.

The wind was in their favor, and they reached their final destination sooner than even the captain had predicted. The weather was fair, and Corinne was glad of that. She did not feel well after her ordeal and wished to recover.

The town was quiet, and the ship let her and the other passengers off. She wished to go directly to Port Royale, but the captain told her that she could recover a while here off the coast of this small island, and they would take her with them when they returned.

So Corinne whiled away three weeks, reading some books that her roommate had kindly offered to let her have – perhaps out of pity – and trying to forget being captured by pirates.

But every so often, she would wake, as if from a dream, and find herself on deck, staring at the sea. Like...like the sea called to her. She didn't know why this was so...even though her seasickness was gone, almost miraculously, but she could not help wishing she were sailing, the wind blowing her red hair in every direction.

Three and a half weeks after she had been freed, she was sitting on the main deck of the ship, reading, when someone touched her shoulder. It was the first mate.

"Miss Young...we're going to set sail for Port Royale this afternoon, so if there's anything you need to do to be ready, the captain suggests you do so now."

Corinne thanked him and watched as he walked away, his gait militarily stiff. She looked at him and wondered if he fancied her. She wasn't so sure if she fancied him, however. He was too upright...like a rod. And his hair was pulled back sharply, severely. He did not wear a powdered wig, but the pompous air he carried with him made up for that. He was nice enough...but only because, she suspected, he was trying to woo her.

She frowned; she must not be entirely recovered from her ordeal yet. She would never have thought like that about an officer in the King's navy. After all, they were good men. They served the crown.

They were boring.

Jack Sparrow leaned his chair back. He'd had a good rest...three weeks was enough to refresh him. And his ship was stocked enough to bear the crew for a fortnight and a half. His mug of ale was not entirely finished; but he remedied that, and tossed it onto the table. He stood and walked out of the tavern, breathing in the...well, the not exactly sweet air. It smelled of gunpowder, from the various guns that were fired at any hour of the night. And of course the stench of the animals that roamed about freely was not to be missed.

Yes, it was time to be back out to the sea. Rest was good, especially on Tortuga, but one could only take the kind of respite it offered for a short while, and then he must be off again.

As soon as he stepped onto the Pearl's gangplank, the fresh salty sea air assaulted his nostrils, and he breathed it in like the breath of heaven. He was a born pirate.

The crew was all accounted for, and the beauty of a ship sat heavy in the water, her hold full and her sails begging to be let down. Jack smiled. He would oblige her, soon enough.