Author's Note

Wow, I'm at chapter ten already! Many thanks to A Real Life Fallen Angel (Jack may be the funniest character of all time! I just love him!), Readerfreak10 (Glad you think so!), Little Miss Sparrow (I hope this chapter is exciting!), and Hell is Freezing Over (Glad you like it!). Of course also to enigmagirl2727 (So V for Vendetta, amazing right? Hope we can get JA-spy to see it!) for doing the beta-ing.

Chapter #10

Anna Maria waited almost an hour after she had finished the ale to head back to the Black Pearl. The streets she traveled on were dark but not quite deserted. Their were soldiers everywhere. Norrington was also there, Anna Maria recognized him and could barely keep her pace even and relaxed.

But it wasn't Commodore Norrington she should have been concerned with. Instead it was one of the local soldiers who thought she was suspicious.

"You," he called out to her, "halt now and identify yourself." For a moment Anna Maria toyed with the idea of making a dash for the Pearl but she knew that there were too many soldiers to make a clean escape.

Anna Maria gathered her strength as she turned to face the soldier walking over to her.

-- --

Jack crept, careful not to run into a soul. It was taking him longer then he had thought to travel through the main part of town and to the secluded place where Jacky's house was located.

He frequently was forced to stop and wait while large numbers of British soldiers marched around. No doubt under Norrington's commands to patrol in case Jack was stupid enough to venture into the town.

Jack watched with detachment as the soldiers led someone towards the prison. He could only guess what crime they had committed.

Then his heart stopped, the moon had peeked out from behind the clouds and in it's milk white beams he could clearly she the face of Anna Maria. She looked as angry as ever as she was marched into the dark prison.

He was torn for only a moment. Jacky may be mad if he missed their meeting but she wouldn't die. As a pirate, especially one suspected of working with him, Anna Maria's death wasn't a question of 'if' so much as 'when'.

Also was the little voice in the back of Jack's head that reminded him he had never told her how he felt.

Jack toyed with the idea of going back for reinforcements but decided in the end that this was something that should not be put off for another second.

It was also not a job for Jack Sparrow even though he was the only one there that could help. In order to pull this off Jack would have to think as someone else would. He had to be inconspicuous and completely unnoticeable.

-- --

Jackalyn stormed through the town, her anger growing with every step. Her no good father had stood her up. He had abandoned her yet again.

But he wouldn't anymore. Jackalyn had made up her mind. She was going to confess everything to Commodore Norrington, to James. He would be furious, and probably would never speak to her again, but he would help her. He would see to it that Jack never entered her life again, even if he had his own reasons for doing it.

Then Jackalyn Wolf would disappear, never to be seen again. And in some little town, far from here, a strange woman would show up and buy a house on the outskirts of town.

Her thoughts and her plans were completely ruined when two figures came silently yet swiftly out of the darkness. As the two people came into view Jackalyn froze and stared. They saw her and they froze as well.

It was Jack and Anna Maria. Jack was dressed in the red uniform of a British soldier. It was maybe this, more then anything else about the whole scene, that made Jacky stare and do nothing as her father embraced her warmly.

"Oh it's good to see you love," he said happily before becoming all business. "Okay now you have to hide us."

"I have to what?"

"Do you really want to be responsible for the death of your father?" Jack asked pleadingly clapping his hands together as if praying.

"If you only knew," Jacky muttered. But something strange had happened. Jackalyn knew that no matter what he was, in fact, her father. The thought had never fully registered before that moment.

Before Jacky really knew what she was doing she had led Jack and Anna Maria back to her house. The sensible part of her told her it was a mistake. The child in her told her that she had to trust Jack. One part of her brain argued that while she couldn't trust Jack she couldn't throw him to the wolves either, while one part of her mind was too busy thinking about James to know what was going on.

But it was the observant part of her brain that asked the first question once the three of them were safely back in her house.

"You work for Jack Sparrow?" she asked Anna Maria. Jack opened his mouth to lie but Anna Maria spoke first.

"Yes."

"I should murder you myself," she roared turning to face her father.

"Now, now," Jack said quickly, "keep in mind that I was only trying to help you."

"How?"

"Well," he said after a long pause, "I ummm-" and then there came a frantic knocking from the front door. "You'd better answer that love." Jack said quickly. He and Anna Maria hid in the closet, leaving it open a crack so they could see what was going on.

Jackalyn opened the door to find herself face to face with the woman, Elizabeth, that she had met that morning. She was accompanied by a young man with dark hair and dark eyes.

"Is Jack still here?" the woman asked without so much as saying hello.

"I'm here," Jack answered from the closet. The man and the woman pushed back Jackalyn who, speechless with rage, did nothing to stop them.

"We have to warn the town," the man said, "Captain Randy and his crew are planning on burning this town to the ground at sunrise."

-- --

Commodore Norrington walked up the front path to Jackalyn's house slowly. A neighbor had reported strange activity and, after the pirate who had stolen the map had escaped, he was forced to check up on the tip. He did not, of course, even think for a moment they were true. He could only hope that if Jackalyn saw him looking around her house she would understand.

Inside the house Jack Sparrow, Anna Maria, Jacky, Elizabeth, and Will were too busy discussing the imminent attack and what they could do about it to notice Commodore Norrington looking in the window.

A second later there was a pounding on Jackalyn's front door. The with a sigh Jack headed into the closet followed by Anna Maria, Elizabeth, and Will. Then Jackalyn went and opened the door.

Without a word Norrington stalked over to the closet and flung the door open dragging Jack out by the arm.

"James," Jackalyn cried coming up behind him, "what's going on?"

"What is he doing here Jackalyn?" Norrington demanded without answering.

"This is the James you've been going on about? The one you said would be able to help?" Jack asked incredulously in a loud voice.

"You'll have to ignore this man James," Jackalyn said smoothly, "he's just a distant relative who will be leaving -"

"Jacky," Jack interrupted, "Commodore Norrington and I have met on a previous occasion."

"You two have met?"

"Yes."

"And he knows-?"

"Yes."

"I know," Norrington interrupted pain laced in his words despite his cold face, "that you have deceived me. You have been aiding and abetting a criminal, a pirate." He turned away from her. "I thought that you cared for me but now I see that it was all just a trick."

"James," she began, "I never meant-"

"I think I've heard quite enough from you," he snapped.

"There are details you do not know," Elizabeth said stepping out and joining the scene, "you have to hear her out."

"She's right," Will added stepping in front of Norrington.

"I see you two still stand in front of this pirate," Norrington spat, "just like you Jackalyn."

"I have to James," Jackalyn pleaded, "he's family."

"I am Jacky's father," Jack said putting an arm around her.

Norrington said nothing. The whole room seemed to be holding it's breath, waiting for what would happen next. It was Jack who broke the silence.

"Of all the gents in the world you had to choose one on the right side of the law," he sighed looking crestfallen.

This seemed to break Norrington out of his spell. Without a word he turned around and stalked out of the room. Jacky followed, calling out to him, but to no avail. He slammed the door behind him on his way out.

It was Will who ran outside after the Commodore. As he caught up the man spun around glaring at Will with cold fury.

"I'm going to see you all hung," he threatened, "tell that to Jackalyn."

"You don't have time to hang us all," Will told him bluntly, "by morning this whole place will be ashes if you don't help."