Alright… chapter number four! Man I'm on a roll. It's hilarious. I love this stuff.

Please comment; seriously your comments keep me writing! Thanks a ton!

The next morning Isabelle was roused gently from her bed by Catherine and she opened her eyes right away. "Oh, Katie, it's just you," Isabelle said sounding relieved.

"You must go to Kingstown today with your father, Elle," Catherine said sadly. Isabelle nodded and seemed to be deep in thought for a moment.

"Then I shall go. But I shall not return," Isabelle said, helping herself out of bed. Catherine stood shocked and finally realized what Isabelle was talking about.

"You're going to run away from your father? How?" Catherine asked, picking out a gold dress from the armoire and plucking a corset from the shelf.

"No corset today. I fear for my side, Katie," Isabelle said and Catherine nodded. "I will throw myself out of the carriage," Isabelle said quietly. "I do not care if I live or die. Either way, I will be away from my father," Isabelle said ruefully.

"I agree," Catherine said, helping Isabelle wash and dress.

"You…agree?" Isabelle said, confused.

"Yes. You must be a free woman. I don't care what route you take. I don't care if you become rich and powerful on a completely different island. I don't care if you become a bloody pirate. I do care about your happiness. I want you to be free and to be happy. How you do it, doesn't matter," Catherine said, adding the last few touches to Isabelle's hair. Isabelle nodded slowly and smiled. She applied the rest of her makeup and turned around to face Catherine.

"I will miss you terribly, Katie," Isabelle said and wrapped her arms around one of her best friend's neck. Once she released her she began to talk. "If you hear any news that I am dead, don't believe it. If I survived living here, I can do anything," Isabelle said and smiled.

"Don't worry," Catherine said and winked. "Now hurry, you'll be late," she said and followed her friend out the door.

There was a carriage parked outside the house with her gather already inside. Isabelle turned to Catherine one last time. "Thank you for everything, Katie," she said and hugged her again. "Tell Elizabeth, Will, and James that I will miss them too and thank them," Isabelle added.

"I will, Isabelle," Catherine said. "Write to me, I will always be here," she said and Isabelle nodded and promised. "Goodbye, dear friend."

"Goodbye, Catherine," Isabelle said and walked toward the carriage, sitting on the opposite side of her father.

Catherine waved to Isabelle from the front steps of the house and knew very well that that was the last time she would see her friend in a very long time.

Isabelle sat in silence, waiting. Her father just looked out the carriage window, not paying any attention as Isabelle checked the handle on the door. Everything was right and all she needed was the perfect place to jump out at. She inched slowly over toward the door and every time her father would look at her she would pretend to be enthralled with something that was outside, allowing her to scoot even further to the door. There was a patch of woods coming up and her side of the street and she figured if she jumped out then, she could roll into the brush.

Now or never.

In one swift motion, she opened up the door and leaped from the carriage, rolling into the woods for cover. At once, she ripped off the barely sewn on skirt and was immensely thankful Catherine had bought her new riding pants yesterday. She tore off the top of the dress to reveal a white silk shirt. She pulled the pins from her hair as she ran, regardless of her aching side. Soon, her hair was tumbling down to her waist in soft black curls, trailing behind her as she dashed through the thick.

When she came out, she knew she had not chosen the best place to jump out at. There were rough looking men everywhere she turned, and ships that didn't look like they were merchant. "Shit," she cursed and walked quickly down the street. She noticed after a little while there were three extra shadows behind her. She turned and one of them grabbed her arm roughly.

"Lookie 'ere boys. Wha' d'we 'ave," one of them said, smiling to show his rotten teeth. She shrugged his hand off her arm harshly and back up. "aw, don' run away 'fore the fun's over," the same man said sarcastically. She eventually backed straight into a wall and her eyes grew wide.

"No way out, kitten," another one of them said in a deep, raspy voice. She cursed herself for being so stupid. Just as they were advancing on her, a tall dark figure stepped out in front of her, his back brushing against her chest.

"Now, now gentlemen. That's not very nice," the strange man said to the three dirty looking men, raising a bejeweled finger.

"Jack, step away from the pretty little girl," one of them said.

"Captain and no. I like the sun I'm getting from this angle," Jack said casually. "Besides, she's already sworn herself te me," Jack said, lying through his teeth. "Savvy?" the men started to grumble about him ruining their fun and turned back to the next pretty thing on legs. He turned to look at the woman, still clinging to him, but she backed up once she saw him turn around. He looked down at her. "What's a lass like ye doin' round here, love?" Jac asked her, looking into her scared brown eyes. Isabelle didn't know what to say. Jack nodded, placing a soft hand on her shoulder. "Keep yerself out of trouble, love," he said and removed his hand, walking away into another tavern.

Isabelle decided to walk around a little, dodging glances from men and keeping her eyes low to the ground. It wasn't long before she was threatened again. This time, she was caught totally off guard. Someone came up behind her and covered her mouth with their hand, dragging her away from where she was standing. They dragged her fighting and kicking all the way to the docks and only let their hand off her mouth when they were climbing onto the ship. There were more behind her, snickering and laughing like dogs. She screamed with all her might, but she knew it was useless, no one would hear. "No!" she yelled again and again. "Let me go! Put me down!" she screamed frantically. All that got her was more snickering and unwanted touches. She felt the ship start to move out to open water and panicked. What would she do? What would happen to her now?

They were just out of port when Isabelle heard a familiar voice. "'Ey!" someone shouted from across the way on another ship, also setting out. "Just what do ye think yer doin'!" Isabelle tired to remember the voice but couldn't. The two ships neared as they became farther away from the port. The man that had saved her before appeared at the ships rail. "Lass, what are ye doing?" he asked her looking at her like she was crazy. She shook her head and he rolled his eyes. Isabelle looked back to the port but could no longer see it. "Trenton!" the man shouted from the other ships rail. "Trenton ye dirty bastard, come out here!" he yelled. A man with a black hat on stepped out on the deck and approached the rail. Isabelle tried to stay standing but her side caused her to hang limp in the pirate's strong hold.

"Ah, Jack Sparrow," the man named Trenton said. Isabelle froze, this was the man from all those stories. So he was real!

"Captain, Captain Jack Sparrow," Jack muttered to himself. "What are ye doin' with that fine young lass there?" Jack asked Trenton, cocking an eyebrow in question. Trenton looked to Isabelle and shrugged.

"A little fun fer me crew," he replied. Jack laughed and shook his head.

"Sorry mate, I be wantin' her back," Jack said with a tone of laughter and grabbed onto a rope. He hesitated, brought his finger up to his mouth and furrowed his brow. "Or, I could blow yer ship into tiny bits and pieces," Jack suggested.

"Alright, alright. Ye can 'ave the lass," Trenton said and grabbed Isabelle by the arm, yanking her upwards causing her side to scream out in pain. Jack swung over to the ship and pulled Isabelle to his side.

"Thanks very much," he said and held her around the waist, his hand pressing against her side. She winced and held onto his neck. Once they landed safely on his ship, Jack let the mysterious woman go. Instead of standing upright, she dropped to the deck like a full sack of gold. He let go of the rope and motioned for Gibbs to steer them away from the other ship and in the direction of Tortuga. Jack knelt down next to her and she struggled to breathe. "What is the matter with you, love?" Jack asked her and he picked up under her arms. She stood, but only leaning against the rail. She choked out a moan of pain and started to fall backwards. Jack caught her and picked her up. Isabelle didn't argue and Jack wondered what had gotten into his young woman.

Jack carried her back to his cabin and laid her down on the bed. He noticed that she was unconscious, but decided to check on her later. He made his way up to the helm and took the wheel from Gibbs. "what's in yer head, Cap'n?" Gibbs asked Jack, standing with his arms folded across his chest. Jack looked at him with confusion at first but then he shrugged.

"She was in trouble once before today and then that? What did ye expect me to do?"

"Leave 'er?" Gibbs suggested. Jack smiled.

"Nah, mate. Let's hear her story first," Jack said and turned the wheel toward Tortuga.

Isabelle woke up to find two chocolate brown eyes staring back down at her. They seemed to be identical to hers so she narrowed her eyes, just to make sure she wasn't looking in a mirror. They eyes next to her didn't narrow, so she figured they belonged to someone else. "Nice of ye to join us," Jack said and walked over to her. She didn't draw back from him but her eyes did widen. "Who might ye be, love," Jack asked her, sitting on the edge of the bed. Isabelle sat up and looked at him. She might as well tell him her name. He did save her twice.

"Isabelle," she said slowly, but soon regretted talking when a sharp pain shot through her side again. She squeezed her eyes closed but reopened them soon. Jack was looking back at her in confusion. "My side…" she said and stopped when he reached down to touch it. He pressed on her left side first and she did nothing. Then he moved his other hand to her right side and pressed. She let out a little moan of pain and tried to move away from his touch but his other hand held her left side. He kept moving his fingers around and poking her side lightly like he was playing the piano. Each time he touched her side she would try to shy away from his touch. He stopped poking her side but let his hands linger, and Isabelle noticed that the hand on her right side was lighten than the hand on her left.

"What happened to you, love?" Jack asked her. Isabelle was silent for a moment, wondering if she wanted to tell this man how her life began and ended years ago.

"Who are you," she asked him quietly, still in a great deal of pain.

"Captain Jack Sparrow, love. Welcome to the Black Pearl," he said proudly. She nodded her head. Yes, she had heard his name countless times. "But what about ye?" he asked her. She looked away from his eyes. He could see pain clearly written across her face and embedded deeply inside her eyes.

"My, my father," she said softly. Jack was silent for a moment.

"Ye mean, yer own father broke yer ribs?" Jack asked her distastefully. Even he himself, and he was a pirate, would never harm another woman. Unless they really, really deserved it.

"My ribs are broken?" she asked, breathless.

"That they are, Isabelle." Jack wrinkled his nose at the use of her name. And smiled a little, he had never heard that name before. And he had heard a lot. "I'm going to have to wrap them for ye. Sit still, I'm going to get some bandages," Jack said. He got up to leave and he couldn't help but feel sorry for her. He knew how painful broken ribs were, and she seemed to have quite a lot of them broken. That's a lot of pain for such a small woman. He came back a little while later with the said bandages and shut the door behind him. He noticed Isabelle hadn't shifted from her position at all and still seemed to be in immense pain. He sat down next to her. "I know I'm a pirate but yer just gonna have te trust me until yer all bandaged up." Isabelle thought about it for a minute, then thought she would rather dance naked around the ship than be in this much pain. She nodded her head. "This may hurt a little," Jack warned and pulled her shirt off, sitting behind her. Her shiny curly hair covered most of her back. Jack pushed it over her shoulder and began to wrap the bandage around her chest and stomach like he had done so many times before.

Isabelle couldn't stand the pain. It hurt so much she resorted to crying silently instead of crying out every time Jack moved on the bed. Jack brought his arms around her chest and a single teardrop landed on his forearm. He was amazed she wasn't doing more than crying, and he respected her for so much bravery. He tied the bandage off tightly in the back and turned her around so he could help her back into her shirt. He noticed her tear stained rose cheeks and felt for her. He knew how it felt to be bandaged so tightly, but it had to be done. "Ye can stay in me cabin, love. Ye look like ye've just gone through hell and back," Jack said. As he was turning to leave, Isabelle caught his arm.

"Why are you being so kind to me?" she asked him, new tears starting to well up in her big brown eyes. Eyes that should have been so full of life, they should have been glowing with the thrill of life. But they weren't. Even when she was crying they were empty and dull. They had lost their glow and Jack knew it. This wasn't just an ordinary woman. She was hurt and broken, and tossing her aside wouldn't help put her back together again. But did her want to put her back together? Isabelle kept her hold on his arm, and he made no move to shrug it off. She stared up at him with a pain filled face.

"Everyone deserves a second chance. Pirate or not," Jack said simply. She looked at him like she was deciding whether or not to believe him.

"Thank you, Captain," she said and her hand dropped from his arm to her side. Jack let her sleep the rest of the day and brought her food that night. He decided she was in no condition to walk and so she would dine with him. He came in and set the plates down on the table, walking over to the bed where Isabelle was sleeping. "Hey, love, dinner," Jack said softly. "Isabelle," Jack said and Isabelle opened her eyes slowly. "Dinner, love," Jack said and helped her out of bed and to the table. She sat opposite him and ate hungrily. Jack watched and ate some of his every now and then. She stopped eating but didn't lean back on her chair. She sat ramrod straight, afraid if she moved she would fall into the hands of pain again. "What happened, love?" Isabelle bit her bottom lip, looking at her empty plate as if asking it for all her answers. She finally looked up and met Jack's dark eyes rimmed with kohl and sighed, nodding her head slowly.

Isabelle started to tell the Captain about her father and how she escaped him. Jack seemed to actually be listening, not just looking at another pretty face. "I'm sorry, Captain."

Jack looked at Isabelle a little confused and caught off guard. "What are ye talking about?" Jack asked, leaning back in his chair and thinking about what she had just asked him.

"This, I don't mean to be a burden." Jack narrowed his eyes like he was thinking about the true meaning of her words.

"It was my decision to save ye, was it not?" Jack asked, raising an eyebrow. Isabelle nodded. "alright then," Jack said. "But once yer better ye are gonna have te work for yer passage on this ship, love. Savvy?" Jack said suddenly. He watched Isabelle's face and saw no change in it. She wore a very plain, unconcerned face.

"That sounds alright, Captain," Isabelle said shortly and took another drink of her water.

"And yer not afraid of workin' with my crew?" Jack asked, a little worried.

"No, Captain. I've been through worse. I think I can handle myself thank you," she said and put her water glass back down. Isabelle looked as though she was going to drop off to sleep right where she was.

"Alright, love. Let's get you to bed," Jack said and rose from his chair. Isabelle pulled herself out of her chair and walked herself over to bed, albeit with a great deal of pain. Jack respected the way she wanted to do things herself. "I'll be on deck if ye need me," Jack said simply and moved toward the door.

"Goodnight, Captain Sparrow," Isabelle said and rested her head on his pillow. He nodded and walked out the door, shutting it lightly behind him after stealing one last glace of the sleeping beauty in his bed.

Alright, there's some Jack for ye!

Comment pleaseeee!

-Desperado