…They figured out a plan, and it didn't take them long to decide…that Earl had to die. –Dixie Chicks
I could've gotten here faster if I ran. Commodore James Norrington thought to himself as he stepped down from the carriage. Gracefully, he walked up to the new Turner house and knocked twice. Promptly someone came to the door and opened it.
"James! Come in, please!" came the welcoming voice of the new Elizabeth Turner. Will Turner and Elizabeth Swann had tied the knot after six months of being engaged and had started their new life together with hope. James had attended the wedding and had blessed the couple, which he knew meant a lot to the bride. But with the wedding over and done with, the Turners and James had become good friends. Especially since the Jack Sparrow incident had happened less than a year ago.
"Thank you." he said, stepping into the smallish house. Will had taken over the smithy and now had a thriving business. And certainly enough money to build a house where his wife and he would be comfortable in.
"Something the matter, James?" Elizabeth asked, taking off his coat and putting it on a coat rack.
He cleared his throat, "Yes, something is wrong…Is Will home?"
Elizabeth paused, wondering what the problem could possibly be. "He is in fact. Friday's are his day off…um, make yourself at home…I'll go get him." She left quickly, walking to the other side of the house to get Will who was no doubt in their room.
Norrington sighed and sat down on the nearest couch. He shook his head, trying to think of how to tell Will and Elizabeth this news. You should've gone to the Governor. He told himself. Yet, here he was.
Soon the couple surfaced and James stood. "Something wrong, James?" Will asked. He and James had come to level ground as it were, once Will and Elizabeth were wed. James now thought of him as a man, not just some scrawny get they picked up off the reef.
He half nodded, "Getting right to the point…there's rumors of…" he paused, looking at Elizabeth, "Your father's life may be in danger."
Elizabeth frowned, "How?...Why?"
"Lieutenant Gillette told me this morning that there were rumors circulating around the town of an assassin hired to murder your father. Why, I haven't gathered yet."
"Do you have any suspects?" Will asked.
James sighed, "Your father could have a number of enemies, just from him being in a place of power. He not only governs over Port Royal, but other ports and towns under the crown."
Elizabeth took in a deep breath, "Does father know?"
James shook his head.
She and Will exchanged a glance and she asked, "What do you want us to do?"
"I would like for you to be with me when I tell him…and also…as a precaution for you to stay with him until this blows over. You two are more than able to protect yourselves, as shown by last years fiasco…but your father is alone…"
"I trust if we do stay with him, you'll have guards?" Will asked.
James nodded, "Maybe not posted on the doorstep, but close enough."
Will nodded, "Whatever you need James…"
He smiled, "Thank you…I appreciate it greatly."
. . . .
What happened to being incognito?
It was working until the person who ran into me, ran me into a redcoat.
"What are you mumbling about, miscreant?"
He looked up, but didn't say anything. The person in front of him looked somewhat familiar, but right now he wasn't sure of much.
"Hit him again." The man commanded.
He could feel the blood coming from his mouth. That man was going to regret this.
Big words from a man who's in irons.
The guards dropped him and quickly exited the cell, locking it behind them. The man stood outside the cell, "This time we'll make sure there's no escapes."
From then on, all he could remember was black.
. . . .
"What are you saying, Commodore?"
James sighed, not wanting to explain the whole thing again. "I'm saying that you need to be careful…limit your time outside…limit the enemies you make."
"I did not know I had enemies, Commodore!" The Governor said, getting up from his chair in his home office. James looked at Elizabeth, hoping for some support.
"Father, what the Commodore means is that…when you first came to Port Royal as Governor, you made enemies."
"Is that my fault?"
"Of course not," James said, stepping in, "But we want to keep you safe, you understand."
The Governor paused, turned and looked out his window, people were passing by, looking innocent enough. "Any idea who it is?"
"The assassin or the person who hired him, sir?"
He turned, "Either one, James."
James cleared his throat, "Not yet, sir. Though my men are keeping a fixed eye and ear on the town."
"And what of you?"
"Sir?" James wasn't quite sure what he was asking.
"What are you willing to do? Will and my daughter are willing to come into my house, to stay with me, putting themselves in danger…you're posting men around my house…but what are you going to do?"
He frowned, he hadn't really thought about that. The idea of disguising himself was an idea that came to his head, but to do that in Port Royal would be futile. Everyone would recognize him. He needed to gain information on who the assassin was hired by to know where to go.
"I'm still waiting for more information before I take a plan of action, sir."
He shook his head, turning back towards the window. "Have pirates crossed your mind?"
"Excuse me?" Will asked, the word 'pirate' catching his attention.
"Pirates! They make enemies of everyone! They could be planning to kill every Governor, hoping to work their way up to the King himself!"
The idea sounded a little sketchy, but a definite possibility, one that James wouldn't mind spending time on, if it meant the Governor would live. "And with that in mind, you can go question a pirate!"
James frowned, "Governor, we have no pirates in our custody."
He turned, "Sure we do! I was informed of it right before you all came! Jack something or other I do believe."
. . . .
Will and Elizabeth couldn't pass up the opportunity to see Jack, if it was truly him. But how many pirates were named Jack? So they both accompanied the Commodore to the garrison, hoping to see their old friend, and hoping they would be able to release him.
"Commodore!" Lieutenant Nicolas Gillette stood as soon as James Norrington entered the office.
"Am I to assume there's a pirate in our possession, lieutenant?" James asked immediately. Gillette shot a glance towards the guard by the door and then looked at his commanding officer, "Yes sir."
"And the reason I was not informed immediately was because…?"
"Sir, we went to the Turner house, but you weren't there…so we waited for your arrival, here."
James paused, nodding, believing his story. He looked towards the door where a guard stood, "Is the prisoner…" he wasn't sure who he was, so he left that comment open.
"Jack Sparrow, sir."
Will's eyes enlarged and James shot a look to him before allowing the guard to move so they all could go down.
"Gillette, what was he charged with?" James called as he walked down the stairs, the Turner's following him and Gillette after them.
When they reached the floor Elizabeth gasped before anyone could answer. It was indeed Jack Sparrow, but he didn't look like the same captain any of them had seen the year before. He had a black, swollen eye, his lip was bleeding, and he was chained to the wall.
James turned to the Lieutenant, "Can you explain to me his injuries, why he's chained to the wall and what he was charged with?"
"Sir, what did you charge him with a year ago when he saved Mrs. Turner?"
The Commodore raised a brow, "That is not what I am asking, Gillette."
"Sir, what I meant was, some of my men picked him up and thought because you had charged him on the basis of being a pirate, that I could too. As to his injuries, they were there when we found him."
"Found him?"
"On our doorstep, sir. Someone thought it humorous to put him there while he was unconscious."
James nodded, looking at Jack. He still looked a little out of it. But the fact that he hadn't seen the Turners or recognized them was a lot.
"And the reason he's chained to the wall?"
"We took it as a precaution, sir." Answered the guard in front of Sparrow's cell. James looked at him, he had come on to Port Royal right after Sparrow's escape and had joined the Royal Navy soon after. His name was Jonathan Wilson.
James nodded but said, "Well take him down. He had no need to have his arms outstretched like that. If you were going to chain up anything, then chain his mouth up."
Will smirked, despite what he was feeling. Something about this felt wrong, and if Elizabeth's grip on his hand was any indication she was feeling the same…then she was.
"Yes sir." Jonathan answered, unlocking the door and about to go in, but Will had to say something, "Commodore!" he said suddenly, James looked at him, wondering what he was going to say, but he had a feeling that he already knew. "Can I?"
James smiled slightly and nodded. The officer opened the cell door and Will went in with the keys, towards Jack. They shut the door behind him, just in case and Jonathan whispered, "Doesn't he know Sparrow is a dangerous pirate?"
Elizabeth only smiled and shook her head, going up to the bars and leaning against them, as if to get a better view. She watched as Will walked to Jack. He put one arm around his torso, to support him and then unlocked one of the chains. Jack fell slightly, but the hold Will had on him was enough to keep him upright. He then carefully reached across and unlocked the other chain.
Will wasn't expected the weight that came from that, though. They smoothly fell the to ground, though Will made sure Jack's trip was smoother than his. It was then that Jack woke up and looked around. When he spotted Elizabeth gripping onto the bars, he knew Will couldn't be far. But when he turned his head and saw him next to him, all he could say was, "What took you so long?"