This chapter will be interesting. Amid tornados and the arrival of a new niece, I've pieced together this bit. So, enjoy the craziness!

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Chapter 13: My Father

I always wondered what it was like to have your Father home every single day. I saw the other boys in their village with their fathers. Their fathers could do big, strong things. I wondered if my Father could do those things.

He looked big and tall, bigger than the other fathers, probably. I think he could do those things good. I decided to ask him.

"Can you build things?"

He blinked. "Like what?"

I shrugged my shoulders. "Things. Mr. Allen can build chairs and tables. Can you build chairs and tables?"

"I suppose. I," he stopped talking, "I was a blacksmith in Port Royal."

"What's that?"

"A blacksmith shapes metal into useful things."

"Oh," I thought for a minute. "Then you must be very strong."

"Wha…" he didn't finish the word and a funny look came over his face. He laughed a little then. "No, it is heated first. That makes it easier to manipulate."

Sometimes I wish grownd-ups would stop using such long words. They were confusing. It was like the word 'whelp'. I didn't get that word very much. Maybe my father knew what it meaned. "What does 'whelp' mean?"

"Well, it's-" he stopped again. "You will have to direct that question to Jack."

I wrinkled my nose. What did that mean? How did you dirret something?

My Father must have knowed that I was confused. I didn't know how but I think mums and fathers have a special something that tolded them those things. "Jack's the only one who knows what 'whelp' means."

That made me grumpy. "But I asked him already. He didn't tell me what it means. He just said his head hurted."

But my Father wasn't listening anymore. His eyes were closed so tight that there were wrinkles. He had one hand over his chest like it hurted real bad.

That had me worried. "Are you hurted?"

"I'm fine." His eyes opened and he smiled at me. It wasn't like Mum's smiles though. It looked strange, like he didn't really mean to smile.

"Mum lies down when she's hurted." I pushed at his shoulder. He was sitting on the bed already. Then he'd feel better and we could play on deck. I could even show him my friends and maybe he'd get that parrot to let me pet it.

"Willie…" My father's voice sounded sad.

I looked up at him. Didn't he want to feel better? Mum always did.

"Willie, I-I have to go."

"Go where? Can I come?"

He smiled that same funny smile again. "Not this time."

"But…don't you want to see Mum?"

His eyes closed real tight, so tight that there were wrinkles. "You will have to see her for me."

"Oh,"

"Keep her safe for me, will you?"

I nodded. "I'll keep all the bad monsters away."

"Good." He patted my head and stood. He walked out of the cabin so I ran after him. I didn't want him to go. Not yet!

"But I don't want you to leave!" I grabbed his jacket and tugged hard on it.

He knelt down in front of me. "Willie, you have to stay with your Mum."

"I can't find her! There was a scary storm and I losted her!" My throat started to hurt real bad and my eyes burned. I didn't want to but I started to sniffle, too. "I don't want to be alone!"

"You have Jack. He'll find your Mum." My father's eyes went all shiny.

"But why can't you stay now?"

"Willie, I can't. There is something special that I have to do. I can't come back until that is done."

"Why not?"

He didn't talk for a while. "When I was a blacksmith, if I left a sword before it was finished it would be ruined. The metal wouldn't lie properly and I'd have to do it all over again. The same is true for what I do now. If I leave early..."

"Will you come back?"

"With all the strength I have within me."

And that I believed.

He started to stand and I didn't want him to go quite yet. So, I put my arms around his neck tight and put my face against his shoulder. He was stiff like Jack at first but slowly, he hugged me back.

I let go when my throat wasn't hurting so bad. My father's face was very sad, like Mum's when I told her the story.

"Tell your Mum...tell her that I love her?"

I nodded.

"Be a good boy for your Mum. I'll be back in four years, I promise."

I watched him walk over to Jack. Jack looked sad too. I never seened him look so sad. His shoulders were hunched and he said in a quiet voice, "She loves you, whelp, an' she wouldn't have married you if she didn't."

"I didn't mean for it this to happen. If I knew..."

"If we knew, things would have been different. But's tha's life. Not knowing wot's next and learning to deal with the hand you get dealt."

My father held out his hand to Jack. "Thank you, Jack, for everything."

And then, do you know? My father turned to me. He smiled. And this time, he looked happy. Really happy.

I blinked and he was gone.

TBC...

Well, folks, one chapter to go!