Author's Notes: This chapter is written as a *Flashback*
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#4 – Safe Harbour
A silence fell between them as Jack looked down at the injured woman. Her deathly pallor would disappear in time, to be replaced by a more healthy colouring, but there was still an air of fragility about her that worried him. He wasn't certain whether she would have any lasting adverse effects from the fever, but he figured she was strong enough to deal with whatever life threw at her.
"I ain't civilised at all miss," he laughed, casting a leering look at her.
"No, it appears that you are not," she murmured, noticing for the first time that she wore only her thin under dress. "Tell me, Mr Sparrow, where are my clothes?"
"Yer dress was torn pretty bad when we rescued ye, but I be sure we can find ye somethin t' wear," Jack replied, his face serious.
"Please do," she requested. She remained silent as Jack got to his feet and headed for the door. As soon as the door closed behind him, Ashanae sighed and placed her hands on the bed beneath her. Gritting her teeth against the spasms of pain that shot through her, she slowly pushed herself upright. As soon as she did, a wave of nausea hit her and she swallowed hard against to bile which rose in her throat. Putting one hand against the hull to steady herself, she waited until the waves of nausea and dizziness ebbed away, then slowly began examining her injuries.
********
Leaving the room, Jack headed up the steep stairs to the main deck and back towards the Captains cabin. Entering, he found Wolf seated at the table opposite Annar. He appeared to be trying to teach the girl how to play cards, but the look of amusement on his face told Jack that the girl wasn't a particularly adept pupil.
"Ah, Jack! Come and have a game of cards mate!" Wolf joked, winking in a conspiratorial fashion at Annar, who giggled in response.
"Perhaps later Cap'n," Jack grinned back. "Thought ye'd like t' know our other guest is awake, an demandin clothes."
"Is she indeed? Well, I must say I underestimated her will. Do we have anythin for her Jack?"
"No Sir. Her dress wuz ripped to badly t' repair, so we flung it. An we don't have no woman's clothes on board."
"Well, for now at least, she'll have to borrow something for one of the men. Ye be the thinnest of us Jack, somethin of yours may fit her," Wolf told him. The tone of his voice suggested that clothing was not the only thing of Jack's that Ashanae might be interested in. Hiding a smile, Jack nodded his understanding to his Captain and left the room, leaving Wolf to continue the card lessons.
********
"Well, there goes his plans," Ashanae laughed to the empty room, her voice filled with a strange joy. Standing in front of the small mirror hung in Jack's cabin, she studied the angry red scar running along her jaw line. "Guess you're not going to be able to pawn me off onto that damned sailor now, are you Uncle?" she muttered to herself. She was so engrossed in examining her scars and bruises, she didn't hear the door open or Jack enter the room.
"Talkin t' yerself be the first sign o' madness miss," Jack advised her, suppressing a laugh.
"You should know," she snapped back, irritated by the interruption.
"Aye, miss, I should. An ye should be careful an all."
"Why? Your madness is not contagious Mr Sparrow, unlike the numerous diseases I'm sure you carry," she retorted disdainfully.
"An you'd know all bout diseases, wouldn't ye princess?" he bit back, his tone laden with sarcasm.
"You would be surprised what I know, Mr Sparrow," she replied, her voice thoughtful. "Now, are you going to give me some clothes? Or should I parade around in this?" she asked, pointing to the filthy garment she was wearing.
"Yer dress wuz too tattered to be repaired, so the Cap'n said I'm t' give ye some o' me clothes til ye get back home." Walking over to the bed, Jack knelt down and pulled a large chest from beneath it. Swinging the lid open, he withdrew a shirt, a faded jacket and a pair of trousers. "Here, these should do ye for now. Me boots won't fit ye, so it'll be bare feet for ye til we get t' Port William," he told her, shoving the clothes into her hands. Closing the chest, he shoved it back under the bed, then settled himself on the comfortable mattress.
The silence in
the room stretched out as the pair regarded each other. Finally, with an exasperated
sigh, Ashanae walked to the other side of the room and turned her back to the
young pirate. On the small table in front of her stood a bowl of cold water
and a clean piece of cloth. Stripping off the soiled dress, she quickly washed
her upper body, ignoring the muffled gasp from the man behind her. Turning slightly
to her left to pick up the clothes she'd been given, she caught a glimpse
of Jack watching her intently and rolled her eyes in disgust.
"Looks like this is going to be a bloody fun trip!" she thought, as she donned her temporary attire. Tucking the shirt into her trousers, she was somewhat gratified to observe they were at least clean and didn't smell.
"Well, don't ye look grand," Jack said suddenly, breaking the oppressive silence which filled the room. "Ye might be needin this tho," he added, as she spun round to face him in surprise. Getting up, he crossed to stand in front of her and held out a long, dark red sash.
"What for?" she wanted to know. Taking the strip of material, she looked down at it with a puzzled expression on her face.
"Here, let me." Taking the sash, Jack expertly wrapped it around her slender waist and tied it with a simple knot. Turning it round slightly, he positioned the knot against the front of her left hip and took a step back. "That'll do," he decided, nodding his head in satisfaction.
"So, how do I look, Mr Sparrow?" she asked, her voice quiet and oddly timid. Her posture and expression carried none of the arrogance or distain that had previously been evident; instead she appeared almost shy.
"Ye look grand lass. Ye could almost pass for one of us," he replied, the gentle smile on his face telling her he meant no offence in the comparison.
"Really? That's good," she murmured softly. There was a tone in her voice Jack didn't recognise, but he was sure she would elaborate later, if she wanted to. "Now, I think it is time I saw my cousin, and your captain."
Once the two women had made sure the other was in good health, and being taken care of, it was time for the evening meal. Young Annar was still having trouble adjusting to the movement of the ship, made more pronounced by the storm raging outside; yet her older cousin seemed unaffected by the constant, and sometimes violent, swaying.
"Almost as if she were made to be aboard a ship," Jack thought as they ate, watching her circumspectly. Her colour was already improving and she ate heartily, replenishing energy reserves depleted by her sickness. Once the meal was finished, the four began playing cards and Ash proved a quick study; she learned more in two hours than her cousin had in a full seven-day.
"Captain Wolf, may I make a small suggestion?" she asked, as she dealt another hand to each of the players.
"Certainly Miss Reibia," James replied, smiling at her.
"You mentioned earlier that your ship has sustained minor damage from the storm?"
"Yes?"
"Well, I believe it might be prudent to remain anchored here for another few days. You can make any repairs which are needed... and it will allow my condition to improve."
"Your condition Miss?" Wolf asked, casting a sideways glance at Jack, who shrugged noncommittally.
"The bruises, Captain. I think it would be unwise for me to arrive in Port William, looking like I had been involved in a bar brawl. My Uncle may see them as mistreatment while in your care, which may affect the amount of your reward..." she told him, careful not to look at her cousin.
"She has a point, Captain. My father is not a seafaring man, he would not understand that her injures all stemmed from the attack on our ship," Annar interjected suddenly.
"Very well. I estimate it's a two day journey to yer home, so we'll stay until yer injuries are less evident," he agreed. He suspected there was more to the request than the reason she had given, but did not press the matter while her cousin was present. "Now, where were we?" he asked, turning back to their game.
The four played well into the night, stopping only when Annar fell asleep at the table. Jack carried her back to his cabin, making sure to lock the door behind him, to prevent any unwanted attention for the girl while he was absent. As soon as he returned, the three adults continued their game, with the addition of some rum to help keep the chill of night at bay.
"So, do ye feel like tellin us the real reason ye be in no hurry to return to Port William, Miss Reibia?" Wolf asked, taking a swig from the large bottle of rum on the table.
"Firstly, Captain, my name is Ashanae. Miss Reibia is far too formal under these circumstances. It suffices when my cousin is present, but when she is not, please call me by my given name," she requested, smiling slightly.
"Very well, Ashanae. Why are ye wantin to delay yer return to yer family?"
"My reasons would seem silly, Captain," she replied honestly. She was still not sure she even understood them fully herself.
"Try us," Jack put in gently.
"Well..." she began, pausing as she tried to organise her scattered thoughts. "Several months ago, I received word from my Uncle that his daughter was joining him in Port William. He requested that I accompany her, to keep her safe on such a long journey, or so he claimed. It was only once we were several weeks out of England that I learned the real reason he wanted me to come. Annar had taken a liking to one of the sailors on the Audacious, and one night I found her on deck being sick. Apparently she had had a little too much to drink." The vaguely disgusted look on her face told the men she had little tolerance for her cousin's improprieties.
"Not exactly proper behaviour for a young lady of her position," Wolf commented, clearly amused.
"No, it wasn't," she agreed. "After I dragged her back to our cabin, she blurted out the truth of the whole affair, including the fact that I was not there to protect her. She informed me that her father had made an advantageous match for me. My parents both died when I was thirteen and my mother's brother, Governor Halcon, was appointed as my legal guardian. We have never seen eye to eye on anything, so finding out he had arranged for me to marry someone I had never met made me a little angry."
"I'm not surprised!" Jack blurted out. He looked apologetically at Ash and motioned for her to continue.
"While she was sleeping off the drink the next day, I had a little word with the Captain. He had been unaware of what was going on, and confined my cousin to our quarters for the remainder of the journey. It was for her own safety, of course."
"Yes, of course," Wolf agreed, not bothering to hide the malicious smile which spread across his face.
"It was spiteful of me, I know, but I was so angry I didn't care. So, when we were attacked, I made sure Annar got out but I was rather hoping I would die that day. Better a watery grave than a life of servitude to a stranger," she concluded. Both men looked surprised, and more than a little horrified, at her words. "Like I said, my reasons are silly."
"Not at all lass. But surely ye be old enough now to make yer own decisions?"
"My Uncle is my guardian until I reach Twenty-one, which I will in three months time. Why do you think he chose now to marry me off?"
"Marry you to someone of his choosing before ye could legally chose for yerself eh?" Wolf guessed, shaking his head in disgust.
"Yes," she confirmed simply. "Now, if you will excuse me gentlemen, I think I could do with some air."
Stepping out onto the heaving deck, the cool rain and strong winds of the storm were like a slap in the face, instantly sobering the headstrong young woman. She closed her eyes and breathed deeply, inhaling the scent of the ocean as if it were a finely fragranced flower. The rain quickly soaked her to the skin, but she remained where she was; leaning on the railing at the side of the ship, she felt a strange sense of freedom. Since the day she discovered her Uncle's plans for her, she had felt like a caged animal; filled with fury, yet utterly helpless. Footsteps behind her derailed her train of thought and she turned to see Jack standing inches away from her.
"There wuz somethin more ye were goin t' say," he stated matter-of-factly, his tone daring her to contradict him.
"Yes, there was but it is no longer of any importance. All that matters is that things may turn out for the best after all," she replied cryptically.
"Ash, tell me."
"It really doesn't matter Mr Sparrow."
"If ye insist we calls ye Ashanae, then ye call me Jack. Fair's fair, ain't it?"
"I suppose it is," she laughed.
"So tell me what else ye be thinkin?"
"All I was going to say, was that I doubt my fiancé will want me now," she shrugged.
"Why?"
"What man would want a woman with ugly scars like this?" she asked, raising her chin so the long scar on her jaw was clearly visible.
"I would," Jack thought, slowly reaching out his hand. As his fingers brushed the scar, they both felt a sudden pressure around them. In a split second, the air around them became overwhelmingly metallic tasting, and they looked up just in time to see a bolt of lightening streak across the sky and hit the main mast...
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Oooo! Cliff-hanger! Sorry about the length of this chapter, but there wasn't
really a good place to stop until now. Next chapter will follow shortly (I'm
on a bit of a roll tonight) but please review in the meantime, it helps me write
faster. Also, I apologise for the lack of "action" so far... that
will change in the very near future, I promise :-)