Disclaimer: If I owned Pirates of the Caribbean, I'd be rich and famous . . . but I'm not, so there ya go!
Sorry if I took too long to update. I've been working on the story . . . doing a lot of editing/revising kind of stuff, and I'm still not finished, of course.
Thank you all so much for reviewing! Please continue to do so! And now, I give you capitulo numero diez.
Chapter 10: The Truth Revealed
"Do we have to go in there?" Will asked.
They had arrived at a pub. Jack was striding purposefully toward it.
"You don' 'ave to," he said. "But you came to 'elp, so if tha's wot ye wanna do, then follow me."
Will and Elizabeth looked at each other, then walked in after Jack.
The pub was certainly more respectable than any pub in Tortuga would be. Some people were just happily enjoying a few drinks, some seemed to be depressed and drinking as much as they could, but some were noisy and were obviously drunk.
Jack walked mechanically up to the barman and ordered a rum.
"Would you two like anything?"Jack asked Will and Elizabeth.
"No, thanks," they both answered.
"Suit yourselves," he said, beginning to drink his rum.
"So, what would you like us to do?" Will asked.
"Well, you don' 'ave t' do anything, seein' as you've already 'elped me. If you want ter to somethin' though, you c'n mingle."
"Mingle?" Elizabeth echoed.
"Aye," Jack answered, drinking more rum. "Mingle. The purpose of mingling in the end is t' convince people that it'd be a good idea to join my crew."
"I see," said Will. He looked at Elizabeth. "I guess we could try."
"Why not?" she said.
So the three of them split up and began to, well, mingle.
After a short while of mingling with no luck, Jack found Will and Elizabeth, who had also had no luck.
"Well, guess it's off to another pub then," he said. Will and Elizabeth followed Jack outside. It was now mid-afternoon. Jack led them away, looking for another pub as quickly as he could, for it was pretty hot walking under the bright sun. As they walked, Jack thought he heard them whispering behind him. He looked over his shoulder. Will and Elizabeth stopped talking immediately. Jack kept walking. He heard it again. He looked again. They stopped again. They were walking near an alleyway when Jack felt Will grab him from behind and yank him into the alleyway, where Elizabeth flattened him against the wall.
He looked at her with his eyebrows raised.
"I'm flattered, Elizabeth, but…"
"Oh shut up Jack," she said, letting him go and allowing Will to take over the pinning him to the wall. Will seemed pleased.
"Wha's goin' on 'ere?"Jack asked them, alarmed.
"That's what we're wondering," said Will. "We've been helping you. We've stowed away on your ship to help you, and we've done all you've asked of us. Now I think we deserve to know what's going on with you."
Jack struggled, but Will had his arms pinned against the wall. Jack ducked suddenly and tried to make a break for it but Will grabbed his arms and held them in a lock behind his back.
"Turner you bilge-sucking-"
"You can threaten him all you want," said Elizabeth, appearing in front of Jack, "but he's not going to let go until you give us answers."
Jack gave her a squinting glare. He would've given Will a squinting glare, but that would've been difficult in his position.
"Whelp, I want you t' know I'm glaring at you in a very evil way right now," Jack grumbled.
"I know," said Will, holding Jack against his struggles. "Are you going to tell us what we want to know?"
"Aye, fine!" said Jack. "Let me go, an' I'll tell you."
Will let go. Jack rubbed his arms.
"So," said Will, "why are you looking for a crew?"
"Because my crew isn't big enough," he said. They looked at him. "You wanted the truth," he said, "tha's the truth."
"There's something more," said Elizabeth.
"Is it jus' me, or are women omniscient?" Jack asked Will.
Will nodded, "It's not just you," he said.
"Omnish-what?" Elizabeth asked.
"It means all-knowing," said Jack. "Aye, there is more to the story." Jack let out a great big sigh. He paused. Will and Elizabeth waited.
"Well, there are these pirates who...well, would very much like ter kill me an' take the Black Pearl. It's very likely they'd kill the crew as well. I need more crew members because my crew alone is not big enough to even think about fighting these pirates. There are a lot of 'em. Too many. I've been tryin' t' lose 'em for a while now, ever since they, er, reunited with us in Tortuga. The Black Pearl is fast, but no matter where I go, they're never far behind." He looked into both Will and Elizabeth's eyes. "Savvy?" He finished.
They stared at him. What have we done? Will thought. I knew I shouldn't have done this. Why did I do it? I've led Elizabeth and myself into danger. He looked at Elizabeth. She looked at him. She seemed to be thinking the same worried thoughts Will was. Jack broke the awkward silence.
"Tha's also why I've been movin' around so much," Jack continued, no longer meeting their eyes. "You know, takin' Will to Tortuga, an' then leavin' Port Royal so quickly. If ye keep movin,' you're less likely to be caught, ye see."
Will and Elizabeth didn't know what to say.
"I'll take ye both 'ome, and then I'll be on my way," said Jack.
"Jack," said Elizabeth, "what if…they catch you?"
"Stop right there," he said sharply. "I told you both, I can 'andle it. You will not be 'elpin' me, savvy? You will go 'ome an' live 'appily ever after, an' that'll be that."
No one broke the silence this time. What was there to say?
"The crew will be roundin' up in about an hour's time," said Jack, adjusting his hat as he spoke,"and then we'll take you 'ome." He turned andwalked out of the alleyway. Will and Elizabeth glanced at each other, then followed.
Aha! I smell a plot unfolding! Now, push the 'go' button. You know you wanna.