Ch. 10

"I've been talking with some of the elders and studying their old maps," Jack said, sitting down next to Will on one of the logs that surrounded the large fire. "Now I at least have a rough idea as to where we are. We're about three days west of Kelumar; we could reach Tortuga in about five days."
Will nodded absently and stared into the fire. "That's good news."

"Everything alright, mate?" Jack asked, frowning in concern. "You seem distracted."

"Something doesn't feel right…It's probably nothing…I'll be back later," Will said, standing up to leave.

---

"Juan, have you seen Marie anywhere?" Will asked.

Juan looked up in surprise and shook his head. "I haven't, sir," he replied. "At least, not for a while."

"Well, when was the last time you saw her?"

"About…half an hour ago," Juan said after thinking. "She said she was bored and wanted to go on a walk. I offered to accompany her, but she insisted that she wanted to be alone. She should be back by now."

"Well she's not," Will said shortly. "Nobody's seen her anywhere. Which way did she go?"

"She went that way," Juan said, pointing off into the trees. "Let me come with you. I'm worried too."

Will shook his head. "I'll be fine on my own." He started to head off in the direction Juan had pointed, but the young man stepped in front of him.

"What do you have against me, Will?" he asked. "What did I do?"

"It's nothing personal," Will said, looking away. "I generally don't approve of my daughter becoming romantically involved with people I meet in jail."

Juan looked offended. "Hey! To each his own. Anyway, I do believe you were in jail at the time yourself, and on far worse charges."

"That's different," Will muttered. "I just don't want to see her hurt."

"Then I suggest we get going. Regardless of your personal opinion of me, a young woman that we both care for very much could be in danger. For now, I advise that we agree to disagree. Deal?"

Hesitantly, Will shook his hand. "Deal."

Juan grinned and motioned for Will to follow. "Then come on. She went this way."

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Marie walked quietly through the dark jungle. It was nice to finally be alone and able to think without interruptions. As she wandered through the close darkness, she vaguely sensed a presence behind her. Quickening her pace, she thought she could hear footsteps other than her own. She grew anxious and sped up slightly more, turning her course back toward the village. The faster she went, the faster the other footsteps grew, until she was practically running in the direction of the distant lights.

Suddenly her arm was grabbed by a rough hand. She whipped around to see Blakey grinning at her. "'Ello there, poppet," he sneered, pulling her so close that she could feel his rancid breath on her face. His clothing reeked of liquor, and he was swaying back and forth unsteadily. "Awfully dangerous, a young lass like yeself out in the middle o' nowhere on a night dark as this. Never know what kinda lunatic lurks in the shadows…" Marie lashed out with her feet, loosening his grip enough for her to break free. She ran away desperately, but Blakey was in close pursuit. A sharp pain shot up her left leg as she twisted her ankle on an unseen root. She tried to continue to crawl, but his heavy boot pinned her sleeve to the ground. "Thought you could run away, didja?" Blakey said, drawing closer until he was almost on top of her. Marie struggled to unsheathe her knife with her free arm. Grinning, he casually grabbed her wrist and twisted it backwards until she was forced to drop the knife. "Yer a fighter, ain'tcha," Blakey growled. "Good. I like 'em that way."

"Let me go!" Marie shouted, but her voice sounded weak even to her own ears.

"Oh, I'll let ye go, luv. First, I'll have my way with ye. Then, I'll kill ye nice an' slow, just for bein' so much trouble. But after that, I'd be more'n happy to let ye go."

"My father won't let you get away with this!" she said desperately.

"Yer bloody father don't need to know, now does 'e? It's a big jungle; bodies are hard to find. An' even so, I can be back at the village 'fore they ever know yer missin'." He started to advance again, but was stopped by a hand on his shoulder.

"I swore that if you ever laid a hand on my daughter, I'd kill you," Will said, punching the man squarely in the jaw. "That is not an oath I take lightly." As Blakey fell to the ground clutching his bleeding mouth, Will knelt over Marie. "Are you alright?" he asked in concern.

"I'm fine. I wrenched my ankle a bit, but I can walk," she replied.

Growling, Blakey lunged suddenly at Will. "One o' us is gonna die tonight, but it sure as 'ell ain't gonna be me!"

The two men struggled against each other, exchanging blows so furious that neither one could keep track of the other. Despite the obvious size difference, Will seemed to be holding his own. If Marie had thought he was fast against Blackbird, now he was practically untraceable. He ducked and weaved, never in the same place for more than a second, delivering fast but potentially lethal blows. He almost seemed to be winning when something metallic flashed in Blakey's other hand. Will staggered backwards, clutching his stomach in pain. His opponent started to draw closer, but suddenly a single shot rang out in the darkness. Moments later, the large man collapsed on the ground. Marie looked at Juan in surprise; in his hand was a smoking pistol.

With Juan's help, she stood up and hurried over to Will. "Father!" she exclaimed, studying him in concern. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine, love," he lied, still holding his stomach. "Just a little scratch."

Marie looked down at his blood-covered hands. "You don't look 'fine.' And that's not just a little scratch."

"I'll be alright, Marie. All that matters right now is that you're safe. Can you walk?"

She nodded. "Well enough."

"Then let's get going," Will said, starting to walk toward the village with some difficulty. "I want to get back before something worse happens."

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"Will, what happened?" Blackbird asked in concern as he walked by.

"It's nothing," he muttered, trying to push past her.

She stood in his path stubbornly. "You're hurt, Will. What happened?"

"Blakey won't be a problem any more," he replied shortly. "Marie went for a walk, and he followed. I came just in time, and we fought. Then, Juan shot him." The words came in short spurts, as he had difficulty breathing.

"Is she alright?" she asked. Will nodded wordlessly. "Are you alright?"

Will sighed and sat down on a bench. "I've been better, but I'll be fine."

"Your shirt is soaked with blood, Will. That's not fine."

"It's just a scratch…"

Without his permission, Blackbird went over and opened up his shirt, revealing a deep knife wound on the right side of his stomach. "A scratch indeed," she muttered dryly. "This looks serious. Please let me at least clean it for you."

"I'll be fine, Blackbird," he said in annoyance. "I've had worse. Right now all I need is sleep. Good night."