Elizabeth could not believe she had been kidnapped by bloody pirates, she had expected to be killed, at the very least stabbed or shot, but not kidnapped.
"Heaven help me, I am a magnet for danger." She muttered under her breath, as she surveyed the room she had been imprisoned in.
It was a lovely room; but oddly gothic, something you didn't expect from a pirate. On the four-poster mahogany bed was a black velvet coverlet; along with the bed was a matching mahogany wardrobe. The walls were covered in some strange black and silver material that felt like silk, but Lizzie could see it was too thick to be silk. She then turned to see, the most beautiful mirror she had ever seen, it was all silver except for the top where an onyx rose sat. So great was its beauty, it took Lizzie a moment to notice the giant jagged crack that ran down the glass.
"Whoever did this must have been very ugly." She murmured off handedly, as she ran her forefinger over the crack.
"They were." A deep male voice rumbled, from behind her.
Elizabeth jumped guiltily, as if she had been stealing the silver, instead of looking at mirror in plain sight. She then turned to see the dark headed Will gazing at her with cold blue-green eyes.
"I suppose now you're going to ravish me, and then throw me to your crew to finish me off?" She said brazenly, trying to break his unnerving stare.
He looked at her if she was some kind of idiot. "Did you not hear me tell the crew that, neither they nor I would so much as lay a hand on you?"
Lizzie felt herself blush, darn her traitorous complexion! "Well, forgive me, but being manhandled by pirates tends to distract one." She said sarcastically, trying to cover up her blushing face.
"Yes, I suppose it would." Will replied, a distracted look on his face.
"Your name is Will, isn't it?" Lizzie asked, realizing that while she knew his name, he didn't know hers.
"Something of that nature," He said with a smirk, " now tell me your name." Will demanded, not even thinking to ask.
She was almost tempted to call him out on his rudeness, but instead chose to ignore it. "It's Elizabeth Bennet," Lizzie said finally, "but you can call me Lizzie. Actually I prefer Lizzie to Elizabeth." She nodded her head decidedly.
"Lizzie?" he murmured circling her, while shaking his head.
"What's wrong with my name?" she demanded nervously, while backing away from him, until her back hit the bed.
"Nothing," he said shaking his head, "it's just too plain, for such a-a-"
"A what?" Lizzie demanded, suddenly fierce. Her mother had always called her a brazen hussy, an unnatural wench. She hated it!
"Never mind," He said shortly, "I'll have the cook bring your dinner, and just so you don't wake up terrified, I'll be sleeping in here, as well. I refuse to demean my authority to my crew." With those words he strode out of the room, and slammed the door with a loud bang!
"What a strange man." A shocked Elizabeth said, with a shake of her head, before grinning mischievously. "What a incredibly stupid man." She added, as she strode to the door, and flung it open.
"He's so self-involved; he didn't bother to lock the door. What a lucky girl, am I." Lizzie chuckled, as she left the room, taking care to shut the door behind her.
Charlotte Lucas knew that working aboard a ship full of pirates, as a cook was not the ideal life for a young lady, or a lady in general, but what choices did an impoverished Countess really have? Charlotte had no kind hearted relatives to take her in, without a dowry and with her looks there was not even a small chance she could secure a marriage, unless she married below her rank. Charlotte's only other option would have been to become a governess and heaven knew that she was not a teacher, or a child person.
So when she had spotted Captain Will, asking after a cook, Charlotte had jumped at the chance to travel with pirates. Honestly, what did she have to lose? Her life meant very little without money, and she had no future to speak of. So she had left England, on a Pirate ship, and hadn't looked back since.
That was a three months ago, now she was starting to wonder about being a cook on a pirate ship. The crew ignored her unless they were hungry, and even then they never said thank you, only demanded more. It was beyond exasperating, and Charlotte had come to the conclusion if they weren't in the middle of the ocean, she would have quit.
"At least in London, I received sympathy for being a homely, impoverished, Countess. All I receive here, is orders, and demands." Charlotte grumbled, as she peeled a potato. "I suppose it's better than being a governess." She relented, after a beat.
The thin shoddily nailed together planks that posed as a door, was suddenly slammed open by Captain Will, "Mistress Charlotte!" he bellowed.
"Y-Yes, Captain?" Charlotte said, jumping up from the stool she had been sitting in.
"We have a woman prisoner, and she needs dinner. Don't worry about the crew's supper, they are out celebrating on a raid well done, and won't be home before dawn. Since you are only cooking for one, I expect her dinner to be ready within the hour." He finished, with a curt nod.
Charlotte didn't even get, "Yes, Captain," out of her mouth, before he left, as abruptly, as he came.
"Stupid bloody pirate." Charlotte muttered, under her breath, as she rushed to start supper. "If only I had the courage to stand up for myself." She said, shaking her head wistfully.
Lizzie crept around below deck, trying to avoid Will. It was a surprisingly large ship, and Lizzie already found herself lost, but she wasn't too worried about getting caught, ,she knew all of the crew was on land making merry, and only Will remained on the ship, as long, as she avoided him, she was home free.
She was just about to turn a corner, when she heard a door being slammed open. Lizzie peered around the corner to see Will marching off an angry look on his face.
"I'm glad he didn't see me." Lizzie shuddered, after he had disappeared from sight. "Now to see what room he just stormed out of." She grinned as she cautiously approached the weak looking door.
Lizzie opened the door to see a tall, thin, brunette, woman stomping around the kitchen, with a stormy look on her face.
"Bloody pirates!" she was muttering, as she slammed pots, and pans around.
"I suppose I'm not the only one Will infuriates." Lizzie said louder than she meant to, which caused the woman to spin around a large, deadly looking knife in hand.
"Who are you!" The woman demanded, pointing the knife at Lizzie.
"I'm Elizabeth Bennet." She said her hands up in surrender.
"What are you doing on this ship, Elizabeth?" The woman asked her dull grey eyes narrowing suspiciously.
"Well, Will, or whatever his name is, kidnapped me, and because he's such an arrogant, self involved, rogue, he left the door to where he was keeping unlocked."
"Well that's no surprise." The woman replied shaking her head, as she laid the knife down. "I'm sorry for waving the knife at you, but you startled me, and on a pirate ship you can never be too safe." She said, turning back to a pot that was now bubbling.
Lizzie saw the sadness, and beaten down look in the woman's eyes. She felt sympathy for her; it had to be hard working as a cook, for a bunch of crude, demanding, pirates.
"Let me help you." Lizzie said taking the wooden spoon the woman was holding before she could protest. "Tell me your name." Lizzie urged, as she stirred what appeared to be some sort of sauce.
She looked at Lizzie, as if she was torn between jerking the spoon out of her hand, or just sitting and telling this strange girl her name.
"Charlotte Lucas." She said finally, while taking a seat on a stool beside the stove. "Why did the Captain, bother kidnapping you? You can't be more than a child." She said eyeing Lizzie with some apprehension.
"First off I am not a child! I cannot understand why the people on this ship think I am child; and secondly if I was a child, I certainly would not be a child prostitute-"
"N-No, I would n-"
Lizzie held up her hand, silencing to Charlotte's protests, "Miss Lucas, don't even deny your thoughts. Your face is an open book, and it tells me what you're thinking."
"I apologize." Charlotte said apologetically, her cheeks crimson.
"No worries, I can't blame you. I'm sure you've seen these men with terrible women." Lizzie replied with a shrug, but to her surprise when she turned to look at Charlotte, she was shaking her head.
"No. The men they can do what they wish off the ship, but on board the Captain won't let won't allow them to have prostitutes." Charlotte explained.
Just as Lizzie was about to reply the kitchen door was flung open, by a furious Will.
"That bloody woman escaped!" Will roared furiously, not noticing Lizzie standing by the stove gazing at him with amusement. "She's a witch I tell you, a bloody sorceress!"
"I do believe that if I was a sorceress, I would have escaped off this ship, and not being hanging around the kitchen." Lizzie commented laughingly.
"You, you little-" He broke off cursing. "I ought to hang you by your toes, you little imp!"
Much to Will's horror neither Elizabeth, nor Charlotte seemed the least bit fearful of his temper; in fact they both started laughing wildly at his outburst.
"I am a fearsome, murderous, pirate! FEAR ME!" he roared, at them. He was Stone-Heart Will, not some amusement for two females.
"Oh. We fear you, Flint-Heart." Elizabeth said, suddenly serious, which made Will suspicious.
"You do?" Will, asked quizzically.
"Yes, you're very frightening, I'm so frightened now that I have to keep laughing, otherwise my nerves will tear me apart." She said looking at him innocently.
"You're mocking me!" He exclaimed, suddenly realizing what she was about. "You bloody little imp." Will, said angrily, as he grabbed her by the arm. "I ought to lock you in the brig, or better yet strap you to the mast!" He threatened, dragging her out of the kitchen.
"Charlotte have that meal in my rooms within the hour, or you will be receiving your own punishment." He called over his shoulder, gripping Elizabeth tighter, as she almost fell over from laughing so hard.
Charlotte's reply was a laugh and a roll of her eyes, as she watched Will all but carry Lizzie from the room
Jane felt an uncontrollable fury in her chest, as the captain yet again explained to her that they would not chase after the pirates in a attempt to save her sister.
"So I'll have to wait until we reach port, and you can contact the Navy!" She said in disbelief. "Do you understand, my sister was kidnapped by pirates? The captain probably stripped her, and threw her to the crew!"
"Madam, remember propriety." The captain reprimanded.
"To the devil with propriety," Jane shouted, "my sister is probably being raped and abused, and all you care about is bloody propriety. What kind of man refuses to save a young lady in trouble?" she demanded.
"The kind that has, at least fifty wounded men on board." He replied, while calmly place his hands on the desk and leaning back.
Jane was smart enough to see that this was getting her nowhere, and arguing further would only cause the captain to lock her in her room. She took a deep breath, and nodded.
"Thank you, captain for your time. I won't bother your further." She said with a serene smile, before exiting the room.
As Jane strode to her room, a plan was forming in her mind, a dangerous, life-threatening plan, but one that would save her sister. It was quite simple actually; she had to get the crew to mutiny.
Chapter three done! Sorry for the long delay, my computer was broken and I just got it fixed. I hope you enjoy, and if you do click the button and review.
