Usual disclaimers… bother!

Pen – will get the edit back to you as soon as I can. Between it being my birthday, school half-term and being poorly, I've not had time to concentrate.

Here's a second chapter to keep you sweet… well, sweeter than you already are! ;)

Chapter 27 – The Isla de Muerta

"You want us to what?" Joshamee exploded, looking at Jack in disbelief as he and the rest of the men crowded around the chest containing the cursed coins. He had thought his captain intended to return the coin and reverse the curse, but he had been wrong. "Are you bloody mad?"

"Gibbs! Gibbs!" Jack held up his hands placatingly, glad that he had insisted Bessie and the children remain on board the ship for he had known that his plan would not pass without argument. "We have t' use whatever we can… there are what… nine of us? Against two ships?"

"Ten!" Jacob argued.

"Yer'll have t' improve yer swordwork if it's t' be ten," Jack cautioned. "Yer've never killed b'fore… are yer sure?"

"I'm sure," Jacob assured him.

"All right then… ten of us against two ships…" Jack reasoned.

"You're worse than mad!" Joshamee raged, still in shock at what Jack had asked of them. "You're insane! After Barbossa I thought…"

"Enough!" Jack barked. "Yer are clearly distraught, Gibbs," he said, his voice dropping. "I'll overlook yer words this time, but not again…"

"You are asking us t' curse ourselves too?" Henry queried, praying that he had misunderstood Jack.

"How else can we get th' Pearl back?" Jack reasoned, perching on the edge of the chest. "An' I don't think Bessie'd take too kindly t' any of yer getting killed…"

"That's a low blow, Captain," Jem sighed, reluctantly seeing the reasoning behind Jack's plan.

"Pirate!" he shrugged, grinning. "But I can see no other way that we can get back th' Pearl without all of us bein' killed an' Corbin getting all he wants…"

"You know we won't let that bastard get his hands on Bessie," Henry argued.

"Pretty hard t' stop him if yer are dead…" Jack replied.

"What do these coins do?" Mark said, gradually overcoming his awe at the treasure within the cave to stare at the coins within the chest. Jacob shuddered, knowing all too well what the curse did.

"Th' curse is that yer cannot die," Jack explained, "or that it's as close t' that as makes no difference… yer cannot be shot, yer cannot drown…"

"And the downside?" Mark frowned, wondering why the other pirates seemed so reluctant to take a coin.

"Th' downside is that in moonlight th' curse turns yer body t' a skeleton an' that it cannot be reversed until every coin is replaced an' th' blood price paid…" Jack continued.

"The blood price?" Mark wavered, suddenly understanding the pirates' unease.

"Just a prick… a drop of blood from yer body…" Jack said, waving his hands and dismissing Mark's worries.

"Ah, t' hell with it!" Henry reached around Joshamee, taking a coin from the chest. "I want th' Pearl back an' I want that bastard dead… an' if this is the only way to do it, so be it!"

At Henry's acceptance, the other men each took a coin until only Joshamee Gibbs stood, unmoving, staring at the coins. "I don't like this, Jack!" he growled.

"As soon as we've got th' Pearl back, we'll make this our first port of call," Jack tempted. "It won't be fer long…"

Joshamee glared at him. "I'm only doin' this fer Bessie!" he snapped, snatching a coin before stomping back towards the waiting boats, muttering to himself under his breath.

Jack breathed a sigh of relief for now there was more of a chance of his plan working. He let the others return to the boats ahead of him, pausing to take a small, stout trunk laden with coins and a small, dainty pearl necklace. Bessie had not mentioned her missing necklace, but he had realised what she must have had to have done. When all this was over, he resolved to spoil her much, much more than he had in the past.

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"Can we see it, Papa?" Henrietta asked eagerly, grinning as Jack placed the gold and pearl cross onto the pearl necklace, fastening it around Bessie's neck. "Can we see th' treasure… please?"

"I don't know…" Bessie interrupted.

"Why not," Jack grinned, smiling at Bessie's startled expression. "It won't delay us much an' perhaps it will show th' children what we're fightin' fer…."

"But…" Bessie flustered, clearly unsure if it was a good idea.

"An' yer can come too," he assured her, kissing her warmly. "An' pick whatever treasure catches yer eye…"

"I…" she began, but Henrietta whooped and ran off, shouting at the top of her voice to the other children that they were going ashore.

"Everythin' will be fine…" Jack said assuringly. "Trust me!"

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Despite his assurances, Jack made sure that the lid of the stone chest was firmly in place as he led a stunned Bessie around the caves, Henry and Gethin trying in vain to keep an eye on the older children as they ran around, laughing with delight and throwing handfuls of gold coins at each other. Jem had stayed with Frances and Emily as it was reasoned that they were too young and would not realise what they were seeing – but the older children clearly did. Although they had never wanted for anything whilst living in Tortuga, their time in Hamilton had clearly brought home the importance of money to them.

"All of this is yours?" Bessie gasped, looking around her in amazement.

"Well, mine an' th' mens," Jack explained. "So I reckon about a fifth of this belongs t' us…" Bessie had thought that her father's treasure had been a fortune, but clearly Jack had been far more successful than she had ever realised. "A silk dress fer every day of th' week…" Jack tempted, remembering a time before Pearl had been born. "Or do yer still have simple tastes?"

"Perhaps I should acquire some expensive ones," she teased.

"Yer should have a maid," Jack offered. "Someone t' help with th' children… especially when…" His eyes fell to her large bump.

"I have Jem," she assured him. "He's far more competent with a new born than most I know – women included!"

"But don't yer want th' company of another woman?" he frowned, reaching to fasten a pair of earrings that had caught his eye to her earlobes.

"I doubt you'd find anyone willing, if I am to live on board as you say…" she sighed. "Are you sure it will be safe? For the children…"

"Trust me," he smiled, wrapping his arms about her. "I told yer I have a plan…"

"And that plan is?" Bessie prompted, wondering what he was thinking.

"A secret," he grinned, kissing her before releasing her from his embrace. "But we'd best be goin'. We need t' get supplies in before headin' t' Tortuga…"

"Tortuga!" Bessie gasped in horror. "But Corbin…"

"How else can we get th' Pearl back, luv?" Jack laughed.

"Oh," Bessie said quietly, colouring slightly.

"You'll be safe…" he assured her, caressing her cheek. "I'll never put yer or th' children in danger…"

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Double chapter means double reviews… savvy?