Disclaimer: I don't own POTC. Title is a poem by Emily Dickinson.
Chapter 13: The Mystery of Pain
"It is in Colombia, and that is exactly where we are headed," Jack calmly explained to James. They sat in the kitchen, as the women did the dishes.
"How do you know it is in Colombia?" James inquired.
"That's exactly what I'd like to know, as well," Ana Maria joined in, looking a bit frustrated.
"Are you questioning me?" Jack asked haughtily. "Are you skeptical? I might've expected this from you, but Ana Maria?" he asked.
Ana turned around. "Jack, there's somethin' you're not tellin' me. I'm no fool, so you best not be treatin' me like one."
Jack drummed his fingers impatiently on the table. It would be difficult to try and explain this one. "Well, I do have a map," he said simply. Camille scrubbed the dishes harder than ever.
"A map that mysteriously appeared just as the mark did?" Ana Maria asked. She and Camille were two of the few people who had permission to access most of the Captain's maps. And as far as she'd known, there was no map with anything about a Devil's Dowry on it.
"No Ana Maria, just because the mark has a name does not mean that the point on the map is called such," he said in a matter-of-fact tone.
Camille turned around, wiping her hair out of her face. "I've got to go sit down. I can't breathe," she said, gasping.
"Darling, are you all right?" Jack said, suddenly aware that Camille was in great distress and it wasn't an act to draw the suspicions away from him. He stood up just in time to catch her from hitting the floor.
Ana Maria dropped the rag she was holding, and gasped. "Call the doctor!" she said as James stood up and rushed over.
"Now, there's no need to panic," Jack said calmly, checking her vitals. "She's simply passed out. It's probably due to her corset," he said, taking her in his arms. "Ana Maria, could you prepare her bed for me?" he asked.
She nodded, scurrying out of the kitchen and up the stairs. "Aye, Captain!" she called. When she got to Camille's room, she called for Gretchen. There was no reply, as Jack came in and placed Camille on the bed. She growled. "That woman is trying my patience. I can't get these clothes off myself."
Jack closed the door. "Not to worry. I know my way into and out of a woman's undergarments," he said very seriously. They both began to quickly undress her, and as Jack took the dress off Ana Maria worked on loosening the rest of the layers. But there was no corset to be found. "Jack, she's not wearing a corset."
Camille's breathing wasn't returning to normal. Jack joined Ana Maria in searching for anything around her upper body that was tight or restricting. He looked over Camille's body. "Something's not right, she looks like she's in pain. I think we may need a doctor after all," he told Ana Maria. She nodded, leaving the room. He could hear her speaking to James, and shortly after the front door opened and closed.
Ana returned. "Mr. Norrington has gone to call on a doctor. Have you figured out what's wrong with her?"
"Aye," Jack replied as Ana Maria got nearer. Camille had a large bruise just beneath her left breast. She was nearly completely stripped of her underthings, and Jack put the covers gently over her. "Looks to be a broken rib."
Ana Maria made a face, putting her hand to her own ribs. "But what caused it if not a corset? Perhaps it's from a previous day?"
Jack lifted the covers again, fingering gently around the blackish blue mark. "Possibly, but it looks fairly new. Look," he said, showing her.
She nodded. "It looks as if someone hit her. Maybe she fell," Ana Maria suggested, dismissing the thought of anybody abusing Camille.
"Seems likely," Jack said. He was a bit worried, but it was really nothing new for a woman to have bruised or broken ribs from the apparel they wore. He waited out in the main room patiently with Ana Maria, and Will came down from putting Cadence to sleep in a few minutes to see James and the doctor come in. Ana Maria sprang up, showing the doctor where Camille's room was.
"What's going on?" Will demanded, frowning.
"William, calm yourself. Camille's simply got a broken rib or two is all," Jack explained calmly.
"A broken rib? How did she get that?" he asked, not calming down.
"Most likely a corset that was too tight." Even though Jack hadn't seen a corset, he'd assumed that Camille had worn it for a couple of hours and then taken it off. He knew she could barely stand wearing them for extended periods of time.
"How can you not be the least bit worried about her condition?" James asked.
"Camille is a very strong woman; it's not going to kill her. Besides, it does no good to panic, does it now?" Jack replied casually.
The doctor was down in no less than half an hour, with his little medical bag. He looked extremely bored, and spoke to the three anxious men without any excitement in his voice whatsoever. "Two broken ribs," he explained. "Though from the looks of it, they have been cracked for quite some time. No doubt unable to correctly heal because of the impending pressure of the young lady's corsets. As this is the second time, she's going to need to be confined to bed for twice as long."
"Second time?" Will asked. "When was the first one?"
"I don't know that gentlemen, I assumed one of you did. Anyhow, it appears to me that the bones never did knit together right, and were very easily breakable to begin with."
"Her ribs have been broken before?" Jack demanded. "How?"
"My guess is that somebody broke them. Probably a man," the doctor drawled on. "If the lady is still in pain in a week I shall need to submit her to the hospital for another examination. Good evening, gentlemen."
"Thank you, Doctor," James said, shaking his hand.
Jack was now standing, frowning with his arms crossed in front of his chest and stroking his split beard. "They were broken before, by a man…" he pondered.
"I thought you went out of your way to protect her from physical danger when she was your hostage," Will asked.
"I did, mate. She didn't receive that injury when she was with me," he said, thinking about the past year. "Long John…no, she wasn't injured when we dropped the…Thatchers!" he said, making his way up the staircase.