Author's Note -

See, I keep true to my word. Make sure you read the author's note at the bottom, there are important notes.

-A-

Author Thanks -

Anaknusan - Thanks! Eh, I don't think I'll kill you, I'm not so into the whole murder lark, lol. Its all good, goofy moods are fun. Hey, my comp's been spazzy lately ... can you send me that site again ... the email got eaten by my inbox. Enjoy!

mich2004 - can't tell you, mate. Sorry. Enjoy!

RMB - Thanks! Can't tell you if it is or not ... sorry. Tall Dark and Handsome ... love it! lol. Do I speak Spanish? Nope. Well, truthfully, I know a bit but not nearly enough to communicate. French and Norwegian for me. But I have a friend who spent a year in mexico last year and she offered to help me if I need anything in Spanish. Enjoy!

Moulin-Rouge-Pirate - Thanks! Can't tell you! lol, no worries. Enjoy!

S.S.I. - Thanks! Yeppers, I'm a good author. I deserve a reward, lol. Enjoy!

TriGemini - Enjoy! Thanks for your review!

-A-

Last Time -

As I turned and padded gently down the hall, I was filled with relief that no subsequent questions met my ears. That man was curious ... but I didn't think that I wanted to find out how.

-A-

Beyond the Horizon

Chapter 7 - Tad's Truth

The morning was spent simply. Helping the men drink the bitter tea, talking with Colin and trying to get Tad speak more than two words at a time to Colin...I wanted him to be at least somewhat comfortable with him before I left the boy alone. I had a suspicion that there was something more to the story of his life than he was letting on.

After I had everything relatively stabilised, I retired to the galley and began crushing the cinchona bark. I decided that it could be wise to crush a large amount at once, save time in future, so undertook half of the bag. By the time that I had finished, I had spent at least two hours mashing the hard bark into powder. My face was glistening with sweat and my hair stuck to my neck and face. My arms were sore from the task and all I wanted to do was sit down for a long, long time and not be bothered.

This time, I decided, I was well within merit of a nice break. Using some of the water that I had left over from the morning's dosage, I poured enough in to make a strong tea for myself. Only rather than the bitter cinchona root, I used mint leaves that I had unearthed in the back of one of Colin's numerous cabinets. While the tea wasn't nearly as good as it could have been, it definitely served to relax me into a calmer state.

After I moved one of the chairs from the table closer over to the window overlooking the ocean, I settled into, kicked my feet up in a very Jack-like manner and proceded to fall asleep.

-A-

My nap in the galley, while it may not have seemed comfortable was exceptionally worth it. When I woke, I was well refreshed and wide-awake. My muscles had all unknotted themselves from the grinding of the cinchona and I felt like a brand new woman. There was even a fresh bucket of water boiling near the fire. I had a guardian angel watching out for me this afternoon.

And I had a very good idea who it was...

Feeling in a wonderful mood, I ladled water into the mugs, rationed out some powder for each mug and took my frequent journey back to Colin's cabin.

As I had expected to find the room, I found it quite calm. The men were resting, Colin was sitting up (although he lay back down immediately after seeing me) and Tad looked scared.

Upon entry, I set the tray down on a corner of Colin's bed and turned to survey the room. My patients were starting to colour up more and they seemed more restful. In short, I was pleased.

The boy bounded immediately to my side when I walked in, like a lost puppy finding his owner after being separated for ages.

"Miss me?" I smirked.

He nodded but didn't really speak, just stood there.

"Well, I'm glad to see you too, but how about you help me with these, all right?"

Once again, he nodded.

"You going to talk tonight?"

He shook his head.

"Any reason why?"

The brown head shook back and forth once more.

"Okay. I guess that I'll have to give the prize to Colin for telling me how the afternoon went, won't I?"

I could practically see the ears under the mop of hair perk up.

"Yep, looks like Colin's the lucky one today," I said, winking over at my friend.

"Whatcha get me, Chrissy?" Colin asked eagerly.

I dug my hands into my pockets and drew out a lump of sugar. "Oh, nothing, just some sweets. Nothing that anyone else here would want, I suppose."

Tad actually turned his face up to me and stared into my eyes with his own grey ones, the longing evident even to Colin.

"Thanks, Christy," Colin said, stepping up the attack. "That be righ' nice o' ye ta think o' me like that."

I grinned. "Don't mention it, Colin. Specially since you're the only one talking to me about these men's conditions..." I let the sentence hang for a moment before adding, "And with you being still ILL and all, I know its a majour strain."

There was a moment of silence and then I felt a faint tugging at my sleeve. I looked down, knowing that Tad was still there, the desire practically leaping out of his eyes.

"Yes, young mister?" I asked as if nothing had gone on.

"Miss Christy?" he said quietly. "That one's fever is lower, I be thinkin'. He don' flail as much and he ain't so hot to the touch as 'e was fore."

"Which one, lad?"

Tad tugged me over to the man who had been the worst only a few days before. "Him."

"Thank you. Anyone else?"

"Them's be wakin' up 'cassionally. They didn't stay up long, though. Wen' back ta sleep, I reckons."

I smiled down at the boy. "Thank you. You were a big help." And with that, I handed him the piece of sugar that I had saved.

He popped it in his mouth immediately, his eyes going big from the treat.

I smiled down at him once more and ruffled his hair playfully. "How about you help me with these, okay? Do you remember how?"

He nodded and grabbed one of the mugs from the tray.

'Yet another victory for Christy,' I thought to myself as I began distributing the bitter medicine.

-A-

After my patients had been sufficiently bothered with my questions and my constant pouring of hot bitter liquids down their throats, I decided that the time had come for me to have a conversation with Tad. I wanted the boy to trust me but I couldn't afford to not know what made him so skittish. If there was something lying in his past, then I'd rather know about it so that I could prevent another trauma to him.

"Why don't you come with me, I've got somethings that I would like you to help me with." Okay, so it was a lie, I didn't need his help but I needed his answers and this was the easiest way to draw them out of him.

He nodded, still in his silent mood from earlier.

So, deciding that enough was enough, I handed the boy the tray with the empty mugs and led him off to the galley.

Once we were in there, I had him lay them in the sink, with a mental note to myself to wash them later and had him sit down at the table. While he did that, I bolted the door and went to one of the cupboards. Knowing exactly what I was looking for, I quickly found my prey.

Something that every young boy loves and wants.

Honey.

Colin always had a stash of honey for odd things and I knew that this was one of the ways that it could come in common.

Keeping my back turned to the boy, I poured some into a saucer and withdrew a spoon from a cabinet.

"All ready?" I asked as I sat down across from him.

"Mmhmm. What did ya need me fer, Miss Christy?"

I smiled. Ever the questioner. "To be honest, I need some answers. That's all. Is that a good trade?"

"Trade fer what?" he asked hesitantly.

"Trade for some honey."

Tad's ears literally perked up. "Honey?"

I nodded. "Honey."

"Prove it."

'Ahh,' I thought. 'The stakes have been raised.'

I smirked slightly. "Fine." I dipped the end of the spoon into the honey and held it out.

Like someone starved for ages, the hand darted out and snatched the spoon from me. In a flash the spoon was clean and a blissful expression was on the boy's face.

"Savvy?"

He nodded.

"Good." I waited for a moment before drilling on. "So, what really happened to your family, Tad? Where are they?"

Silence.

Slowly, I met the boy's eyes and saw sheer terror staring back at me. I raised my hand slowly and reached across the table to touch his arm gently.

But...

Before my hand was halfway there, the target arm had jerked away in fear.

'Hmm ... perhaps this hadn't been a good idea ...' I thought dully as I let my hand drop back to the table in a non-threatening fashion. 'Okay. Let's try something more harmless.' I heaved a deep breath. "Tad, I was wondering, what is your favourite colour?"

There was a small smirk. "Do I get honey if I tell ye?"

I nodded.

"Red."

"Know what? That's Colin's favourite colour too," I said as I extended the spoon with some honey on it to the boy. "Mine is blue and Jack's is black ... and sea green. Jack likes the ocean a lot, which's why he sails. He says that everything is simpler at sea."

"Yer with the captain."

I nodded. "You're right. I am with him."

"Yer in love with him."

I nodded again, smiling. "Yes, Tad. I love him very much and he loves me."

"Then why ain't ye with him eva?"

"Because we have a daughter and we want her to be raised on land like both of us were. We thought it'd be better for her."

"Ye've a daughter? Wha's her name?"

"Her name is Rhiannon but everyone calls her Rhia. She's four and a half."

"She's justa babe, still."

I smiled. "I know she is. But she's not too much younger than you are, I don't think. How old are you, Tad?"

"Dunno."

'Well, that was surely to general for my tastes.' I tried again. "Surely you know, didn't your mum ever tell you?"

"No."

'Okay. Let's try plan B,' I thought, trying to keep from getting frustrated. Dipping the spoon more deeply into the honey, I raised it to Tad's eye level. "Let's try a new game, okay? If you don't tell me the answer, then I get some honey. If you do tell me, you get honey. All right?"

He nodded, eyes locked longingly on the honey.

"Okay, how old are you?"

"'leven."

"Thank you." I extended the spoon out and quickly it was licked clean and back in my hand. "Where is your family?"

There was some hesitation. "Me sistas be in Antigua."

"And your mum?"

"Dunno ... she left. She shot me pa and left. Pa caught 'er wif a navy man and he shot the navy man. So ma shot pa and dun a runner."

The sheer magnitude of the sentance stunned me for a moment. Slowly I handed out the spoon. And quickly it was back, the boy eager for more. "Did you see it?" I asked quietly.

More hesitation.

Then, the slightest of nods. "I were hidin' in the corner o' the room. Heard me pa comin' and warned me mum. Saw her wif him. Doin' ... doin' ... and then me pa came in and all I could do was hide ... Ma jumped away from the navy man and ran to Pa when he came in. She says he were threatenin' her but I know he weren't. Pa shot him and then Ma grabbed the gun outta Pa's hands. She screamed and hollered him for to leave but he didn't. He kept askin' why she be wif otha men. She yelled an' he didn't leave ... so she shot him."

My jaw dropped. Dully I handed him the spoon and waited for it to be returned to me. "Then what happened?"

"Ma saw me in tha corner ... Pa's blood on me and ..." Tad's composure broke for a minute and he sniffed loudly. Scrubbing his eyes roughly, he finished, "And then she left. Said that if anyone asked nuffin happened sept the navy man and Pa had a fight and shot each other. She run off. Me sistas took care of me."

Automatically I extended the spoon. "How did your sisters take care of you?"

"Me oldest sistas became wenches at the tavern. But the men they brought back used ta beat me up somethin' awful. I'd get bruises and couldn't leave me room til they went 'way."

"Did you have younger sisters?"

Tad's composure broke completely at this. Tears started pouring slowly from his eyes as he spoke. "Aye. I had a baby sista. She weren't a year old when me Ma left. Ma were still feedin' her ..." The tears came faster now and I moved over to Tad and wrapped my arms around him. He leaned his head into my shoulder and whispered, "When Ma left, we couldn't get her to eat. She cried always. But she wouldn't take nuffin to eat. She got so tiny. I coulda counted the bones in her if she didn't have nuffin on. One night me olda sistas were out and my baby sista started crying. I held her and rocked her and tried to shush her because I heared my sista comin' home with a man and knew to keep her quiet. But I couldn't get her to be quiet. I held her tighta to me and rocked back and forth but she didn't stop cryin'. She ... she were sick and she were dying and I couldn't stop it. I tried to shush her and make her betta but she just started breathin' funny. I rocked her back an' forth but she jes went still ... right in me arms ... she went all still and there weren't nuffin nobody could do..."

Tears of my own were falling now, comingling with the tears of Tad as I listened to more.

"I run wif her to the doctor in town but he couldn't do nuffin. He was drunk and threw a bottle at me. So I took the babe and run home. I buried her meself beside me Pa's grave and then ran for it ... I snuck into my room and took my clothes and shoes and grabbed some coins from the man that me sista was with, from his bag and ran to the harbour. I snuck on a ship to Tortuga and then met up with Captain there. I miss me sista, Miss Christy. I miss 'er real bad," he wailed into my arm.

With nothing more sensible to do, I wrapped the boy in my arms and rocked him back and forth, tears falling from both our eyes as I tried to soothe his hurt.

And yet, I knew that there was nothing to be done for him except let him get it out and move on with life.

A good part of an hour had passed before either of us was ready to make a re-appearance to the crew. Tad asked me to not share this with anyone, even my 'captain-lover' (as Tad called him) and I solemnly swore to keep it secret as long as one of us survived.

When finally we went our separate ways, I tucked the secrets into the corners of my heart and went back to Jack's cabin. After what I had found out, I desperately wanted to either talk to someone or be alone or both at the same time ... even though I realised that it wasn't possible.

-A-

Author's Note -

Well, another chappie finished! I hope that you all enjoyed it...it was long! 11 pages on my laptop! So, ya'll had best enjoy it!

And by the way, I know that it was a tough chapter ... or it was tough for me to write ... I was crying while I wrote it.

So, here's the info. I have a girl from Germany coming to stay with my family until November 3. So, my updating might be more sporatic than it is already ... yes I know ... majour pain for you guys. Anywho, I'm gonna try to update next weekend something, savvy?

Well, I rejoin the ranks of everybody who's in school. We start back up on Monday ... gag me with a spork.

Until next weekend (hopefully)

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Mange Klemmar

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