Author's Notes: Fifteen reviews for one chapter! You guys are amazing! Simply amazing. I never expected to get that many. I was hoping to get at least one or two . Keep it up guys! It keeps a girl encouraged! No one has guessed the mini-contest yet. Hint: It is a scene from Dead Man's Chest. The music is the key. There should be another story up shortly, written by my friend and co-writer, RedBud-Tree. The real reason Giselle slaps Jack. It's amusing, I'll tell you.

Disclaimer: Don't own. If I did, would I be writing this?

This was not the way she had planned for things to be.

She was supposed to be home with her husband. Raising children and being as loving and as devoted of a wife as she could be. While the life of a lady had never been as interesting to her as most of the ladies her age, she was content to finally settle down.

That was how things should have been.

They weren't.

Instead she was in the middle of a bed, having no idea where she was, or who she was with. Images of the previous nights flashed through her brain, making her thrash trying to erase them. She had been torn from her happy home, thrown in a prison, made to watch her husbands murder, beaten and violated.

The only comfort had been the cool, rough hand placed upon her head throughout the next night.

Her eyes fluttered open briefly, widening as she was sure she saw a familiar face. It couldn't be. There was no way he . . .

She shook the notion from her mind.

She had once been told the deepest pit of Hell was reserved for traitors, mutineers, murderers and other such sort.

For Elizabeth Turner, this was Hell.

The girl hadn't moved in over an hour. Not a turn, not a cry or whimper. If not for the fact Jack could see her stomach movie, the pirate would have feared the girl dead.

Maybe she was dead.

Physically, the girl would heal. The cuts and bruises would eventually fade, the deeper turning into scars she would always carry. Emotionally, she would take work. Just by looking at her, Jack had a vague idea of some of the horrors Elizabeth had been placed through. Yes, it would take lots of work to restore her to what she once was.

She might never be the same again.

A knock startled Jack out of his stupor. "Come in."

AnaMaria entered the cabin. "Is she any better?"

Jack shrugged. "She sleeps. Wakes up. Screams a bit. Goes back to sleep. 'Onestly, she's a bit boring."

The woman fixed Jack with a sharp look. "She's your friend, Jack. Deny it or not, you would not have saved the lass if she didn't mean something to you."

Jack made a non-committal noise and grabbed a nearby bottle of rum, ignoring AnaMaria. "I mean it, Jack."

Jack made a shooing motion with one hand, taking a drink from the bottle. AnaMaria rolled her eyes, "Think about it, all right - she means something to you. Figure out what."

Jack watched her leave, then turned back to Elizabeth's still figure. Her eyes fluttered, then opened. For once, they were focused. Elizabeth's eyebrows furrowed in confusion before her eyes rested on Jack. They widened. ". . . Jack?"

"Mornin', luv."

She sat up, blinking in confusion. "Wh. . What am I doing here?"

"Seems I found you in a prison, darling.

Elizabeth stiffened noticeably. Jack shrugged. "Not uncommon, though I found it unusual for you. How are you feeling?"

"Sore."

"I would imagine. Anything else?"

She nodded. "Hungry. And thirsty." She placed a hand toward her stomach, rubbing it as though it were uncomfortable. "I haven't eaten since . . . Since before . ."

"No need to go on," Jack stated, rising to his feet. "I'll get you food. You lie there and . . . Rest. Not that you can do much else in your state."

He received a glare., which he ignored. "Shouldn't take too long, luv," then he paused and looked her over almost thoughtfully. "I'll send AnaMaria in t' stay with you for a bit."

"Jack - wait."

He paused, "Aye?"

"Thank you."

"Don't mention it, luv," Jack replied and walked out of the cabin. Elizabeth let her eyes drift closed, assuming that the slightly choked up sound in Jack's answer was merely a figment of her imagination, brought on by her condition.

Once outside the cabin, Jack swallowed roughly, then hastily covered it it up with his "Captain" face. Striding around the deck, he glanced around until he spotted the sailor he was looking for up in the ratlines.

"AnaMaria!"

The woman climbed down in response to her captain's call. "Aye, Captain?"

Jack tipped his head in the direction of the cabin in an unspoken command, and AnaMaria nodded. "She awake?"

"Aye. See to her needs."

AnaMaria nodded, heading into his cabin. Jack laughed to himself at the irony. Two women in his cabin, at least one who had been his fancy at one time. Had the situation been different, that might have been kinky.

Such thoughts were not appropriate. Then again, he was a pirate.

Elizabeth didn't eat much when Jack brought her the food. She ate a few bits of bread, picked at the meat, and took a few sips of the water. When AnaMaria offered her the lemon, she turned it down. "If I eat anymore, I think I will be sick"

Jack had expected that. Prisoners often came back with little appetite, no matter how hungry their bodies might be.

"Alright, luv. That'll be enough for now. Now, go back t' sleep. You need it."

As it turned out, Jack needn't have said anything. The small amount of food in her stomach had apparently been enough to put Elizabeth right to sleep. With a shake of his head, the Captain left his cabin, content to spend the evening sleeping on the deck.

He had just begun to doze off when he heard a noise. Footsteps weren't uncommon on a ship, but they were uncommon at what had to be at least three in the morning. Another footstep. Cracking his eye open a bit, Jack could see the shape of a person.

He grabbed his pistol.

"State your name and what means you have crawling around in the middle of the night."

The person froze. An intake of breath. "Elizabeth Turner. I'm scared."

Jack was awake now. He sat up, taking in the sight of the governor's daughter wrapped in a blanket like a small child. "Elizabeth?"

"I hate that room," Elizabeth muttered. "I was alone. I don't want to be alone."

Slowly, she made her way toward Jack, settling herself down across from him. "You don't have to pay any attention to me," she stated quietly. "I was married for six months, Jack. I don't like sleeping alone." With that, she dozed off again, leaving Jack wondering what the heck was going on

Forget it .

When the crew found them the next morning, Jack was sure he would have some explaining to do.