- Chapter 4: Father Seamus McNamara -
"Anchor the night, open the sky
Hide in the hours before sunrise
Pray for me not, I won't lose sight
Of where I belong and where you lie"
- Audioslave, Heaven's Dead -
-//-
The general norm of pirates tends to be arrogant, self-indulgent, and living life with reckless abandon.
But not all pirates sail on ships.
This was clearly true when it came to the residing priest at the Quebradillas Mission in Puerto Rico. Father Seamus McNamara had been sent to the island when he was newly ordained. Being so far away from his diocese, Seamus went rogue and not only lived vicariously through the sins of his patrons, but eventually provided the means for their vices by going as far as to foster a brothel next to his mission.
At first glance, it would appear that Seamus's scruples were lax if not completely gone, but he was loyal to his patrons because of the meaningless anguish forced upon them by the East India Trading Company; his contempt culminated with the mass hangings of innocent women and children authorized by Lord Cutler Beckett. With the Company's growing financial success in the region, England was colonizing more Puerto Rican territory by the day, which brought more of the Company's corruption to the island, shrinking the freedoms of its inhabitants, including McNamara's.
In Seamus's mindset, it was necessary to suffer lesser sins if the end result could bring a stop to greater evils. He believed wholeheartedly that God would condone his working slightly outside the boundaries of written law if it helped his patrons, such as providing sanctuary to fugitives and arranging care for the widows and orphans of convicted pirates.
It wasn't all for charity. In order for Seamus to continue his operations, and continue in the comfort he'd grown accustom to, his help came at a price. If the person craving his services did not have money, then Seamus would accept information for payment, which he'd sell as he saw fit. This was how, within the brethren, Father Seamus McNamara became known as the 'Priest of Pirates.'
Even though Jack gave some respect to Father Seamus for his virtue, he didn't like the man in the slightest. They had a long history and Jack was short on forgiveness. He'd rather rip out his own gold teeth one by one then endure the Father, but the man was a hub of endless information and Jack hoped that the trade winds had blown in a wisp of material that could prove useful.
The Misty Lady had docked at Quebradillas's wharf in the early afternoon and the crew had spent the first several hours there fencing the spoils acquired from the successful last raid for much needed supplies. As the sun sank beneath the horizon, a lively secession of men, with pockets full of coin, set out towards the brothel for a night of due recreation.
Unlike the crew, Jack was silent as he walked. His thoughts were not concentrated on the pert women of the brothel, but to the Priest in the adjacent mission. He broke away from the crew, chewing the inside of his cheek as he contemplated that visiting a priest instead of a strumpet was of the more absurd notions he'd ever set on himself.
Jack was reaching to pull open the door when he heard someone clear his throat. He turned and was surprised to see Denning and Snodgrass fidgeting behind him.
Jack raised a brow.
"Captain sir, would ya like our presence when ye meet wit' the devil dodger, sir?" Denning asked, his voice sounding as if the question was being forced out of him from gunpoint.
Jack couldn't stop the knowing smirk that broke across his face. A blind man could have seen that the two pirates were practically aglow with the anticipation of participating in all the jollity of shore leave. He credited their sense of camaraderie and duty to their captain, but he would not be the cause of delay to any man's duty to his parts below his belt.
"Go on with yerselves," Jack said, motioning towards the brothel with amused eyes.
The look of enthusiasm that the two elder pirates exchanged appeared to wash years off their weathered appearances and, without another word, they turned on their heels and headed to the brothel.
Jack watched them for an envious moment before entering the mission.
--
The mission's receiving room was a large open space with lanterns lining its perimeter. Beneath the somber light, Jack could see that the room was strewed with people of all origins but of similar state. Judging by the distress and wariness dulling their eyes, Jack figured these souls to be seeking refuge in the mission after being displaced by the spread of the Company.
As Jack scanned the room for McNamara, he found that he was under survey by a young boy who Jack guessed to be around the age of seven or eight. The boy approached timidly while he stared at the pirate with wide-eyed curiosity.
"'Ello, lad," Jack greeted.
Startled at being spoken to by the pirate, the youngster took a small step backwards. Jack smiled and dropped down to one knee, tucking his hat under his arm. "Do you like magic, lad?" he asked, keeping his voice genial so to not frighten the boy.
The boy came closer but remained at a cautious distance.
Jack pushed his sleeves back, waved his hands in front him, and then, with a flick of his wrist, pulled a coin from behind the boy's ear. The youngster's eye's lit up as he beamed, their sparkle equal to that of the coin reflecting in the lantern light.
Jack made a show of looking around and then said to the boy, "I wish to call upon Father McNamara. You can keep this here coin if ye'll fetch him for me."
The youngster, beaming even brighter, nodded and Jack slipped it into his hand.
The boy stared at the coin for a long moment before giving Jack an appreciative smile and tucking the treasure in his pocket. He spun around and darted through the room and disappeared around a corner into a hallway.
Jack stood and replaced his hat.
A moment later, the boy came back into the receiving room and pointed at Jack.
"Ah!" Seamus said with his arms out in an exaggerated greeting after he turned the corner. "The Prodigal Son has returned."
With that analogue being said, any form of returned friendly greeting died on Jack's lips.
"Launch your long boat? Extend your look-stick?" Seamus asked while draping an arm across Jack's shoulders and pointing to a buxom brunette walking near by, a woman Jack had visited before in the building next door.
Seamus felt Jack stiffen with irritation, but pressed on unconcerned. "What's the matter, Sparrow? Only flying at half mast?"
"Maybe later Father," Jack said impatiently after discreetly taking the brunette in from head to toe. "I'm in port to sate another need."
Seamus nodded, letting Jack know that he expected as much, then announced cheerfully, "I have rum in my study. Come with me."
--
Seamus sat himself behind an ornate desk in his study. The room would have seemed common for the study of an everyday priest if not for a woman's garter that had been randomly tossed into a corner.
The priest presented a bottle of rum, filled two chalices, and then got straight to the business at hand.
"Well, my son," he said while flexing his fingers together, "Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you."
"For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened." Jack replied sharply.
Seamus grinned at Jack's continuance of the verse he had started. Seamus may have strayed from following the words of the Bible, but could still recite them faithfully if needed. He also had no problem tweaking the verses if it was beneficiary to his wants.
"So, you are seeking the murderer of the great Captain Edward Teague. After veritas and aequitas?" Seamus started, obviously feeling that subtlety and tact were unnecessary. "Feel worth in this endeavor?"
"Vengeance belongs to me, I will recompense."
"Eye for an eye and screw the other cheek, ey? How very Old Testament of you," Seamus said, crossing his feet on the cluttered desk top. The priest turned an ecclesiastical eye on the pirate sitting across from him.
"Perhaps you should be looking inward and examining yourself. These conflicts and disputes among you, where do they come from? Do they not come from your cravings that are at war within you? For in much wisdom is much grief, and increase of knowledge is increase of you sure you are ready to know that of what you seek?" His tone turned accusing. "If you could walk on water, I'm sure the ocean would bubble about your feet. I sense the fury of Hell itself burning deep within you. Acrimony in its purest form. Wrath is one of the deadly sins, you know."
When the condescending lecture ended, Jack considered having 'assaulting a cleric of the Church of England' added to his extensive list of egregious offenses. His near overpowering want to slap that egotistical smirk off Seamus's face quite literally caused his palm to itch as if it was tingling with the anticipation of meeting a dear old friend.
"I didn't realize you still preach, Father," Jack said caustically, even though he realized the validity of Seamus's observation.
"Shall the occasion arise I will indulge," he replied smugly.
"Sounds like a situation where the blind is leading the blind yet further astray."
"Like all sheep gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way. I twist no one's arm."Jack inclined his head showing he agreed with Seamus on that point. Pirates would continue to do as they wanted with or without outside influence. It was why many turned pirate.
Seamus swung his legs under the desk and set a hand on its top, palm up. "We both know that I know why you're here. So, for me to help you, you need to help me."
"There are entire sections of the Good Book that orate the evils of greed and bribery, if I'm not mistaken. Especially committing such in His holy house."
"I didn't take you as a religious scholar," Seamus mocked with slight admiration.
"Looks can be deceiving," Jack said pointedly, baring his teeth through a humorless smile. Seamus knew Jack was implying that he was unworthy of the cloth he wore, but simply shrugged with indifference and wiggled the fingers of his up-turned hand. "If it helps you sleep better at night, just think of it as a donation towards the bettered good of Puerto Rico."
Jack presented a purse of rubies. It only took Seamus a flick of his wrist for the purse to vanish from sight. An experienced street pickpocket would have been impressed.
"One hand for yourself and one for the King," Seamus said, grin still in place, reverting to a Naval oath instead of biblical text.
"You're a gem of the divine."
"I am a dissident to the common norm of my like." He responded clearly pleased with himself. Seamus slacked in his chair and folded his hands on the desk top. "What do you plan to do if you find whom you seek?"
"When I find him," Jack corrected. "I know where he is going to be and I'm going to kill him."
"Your a cutthroat by title, but not by nature," Seamus said, his smug demeanor replaced by uncharacteristic seriousness. He grew quiet and regarded Jack thoughtfully as his forefinger rubbed his chin in concentration. "Live by the sword, die by the sword," he said his thoughts aloud after a moment.
"Some things are worth dying for."
"Some things... or some people?" Seamus asked, narrowing his eyes. "Is that where your acrimony stems?"
He stared at Jack waiting for a response When he didn't get one he continued. "If it be for anyone, may it be for Captain Edward Teague. He helped many in these settlements. One of the most honorable and good-hearted scoundrels to ever grace this earth. It's no wonder why your like named him Keeper of the Code." His smirk reappeared. "Criminals with laws, what a wonderfully logical contradiction."
Jack's head tilted to the side, seemingly by its own power, as he stared at the man across from him, amazed at how inane and hypocritical his last comment was considering that a priest, of all people, periodically delved into his own cookie jar of veniality.
As if reading Jack's thoughts, Seamus doubled his smirk but said matter-of-factly, "Our deeds determine us, as much as we determine our deeds."
Jack's nose twitched. It irritated him to no end when Seamus made sense.
Seamus's smirk vanished when he spoke of Teague again. "To my great regret, I never had the opportunity to deal with him directly."
"Ever had dealings with his either of his partners?"
"I never had the pleasure of meeting Captain Augustine in person. I always heard he was a good man."
"Johannes?"
"Once." Seamus answered in a way that gave Jack the impression he considered it one time too many.
"Of the people coming and going to this establishment of yers, have any mentioned a man with particular interest in the Keeper and the Code with the name Adolfe Godenot?"
Seamus paled. "He was here some time ago inquiring about the same quandary as you are now, but more in the area of the Codex itself. Said he was a representative of an antiquities dealer named Virgil Baines."
"Virgil Baines?"
"No one I recognize." Seamus answered with sincerity, yet Jack sensed he was not telling the whole truth.
"Actually," Seamus continued after a pause, "I may not have remembered Mr. Godenot at all if not for the way he said 'antiquities.'"
Jack waved his hand for Seamus to clarify the statement.
Seamus's face twisted as he recalled the incident and tried to put it into words. "He said it... in a way... that it was an inside joke of sorts."
The priest's eyes sharpened as something fell into place in his mind. He leaned forward and said in a low voice, "I heard a rumor not so long ago that the Wizened Guardians of the Codex disappeared, along with the very book they were sworn to protect, shortly before your father's death -"
"How interesting," Jack said casually.
"- and that the Codex itself was in the hands of the East India Company."
"Not to my knowledge," Jack replied absently while biting at his dirty fingernails.
Seamus leaned in further. "What is in Mr. Godenot's possession?"
"Book."
Seamus quirked a brow. "He's your man?"
"No," Jack answered, spitting a nail onto the desk, nearly hitting the priest.
Seamus's second brow rose and wrinkled his forehead as he straightened his posture. His finger returned to rub his chin. Seamus was perceptive by nature and vocation and far from bellicose. Only what could be described as a brainless lack in judgment could be blamed when he leaned forward again and risked his next question.
"Did you lend a hand in Teague's mur-?"
Seamus didn't have a chance to finish the accusation as he found Jack's pistol an inch from his face. He wished he could have taken back the last words he had spoke, across from him sat a different man, dangerous and cold, with a darker soul.
He swallowed. "Decidedly not. Never hurts to ask," Seamus said with a light shaky cocked the pistol. "T'would only hurt for second," he growled softly. His finger yearned to squeeze the trigger begging Jack to forget assaulting the cleric and go for the full-out trailed an aporetic look down the barrel and back to Jack.
A callous smile slowly crossed Jack's face. "It may be old and weathered and only holding one shot... but it's dead accurate, mate. Trust in that."
"Point taken," Seamus croaked and cleared his throat.
"Now, Father," Jack hissed through gritted teeth, "There will be no more of yer assumptions and semantic forked-tongue missives. As far as you are concerned with the disappearance of the Wise Brothers Severine in relation to the Keeper's departure, they are solely coincidental, savvy? I want to know what you know and how it was you came about knowing it. If any of this is at all not clear, know that I'll render yeh a mute if yer mouth as much as mutters another slanderous imputation. And if yer ever in need for someone to take liability for yer compulsions again, inquire elsewhere."
"You always enjoyed flaunting the charge of my impersonation," Seamus chided weakly in attempt to lighten the moment.
"I was rewarded for me charity by havin' only the backs of prison bars as me company for a long month, the escape from which resulting in a nasty nick in me arm." As Jack's voice deepened with anger, his pistol remained perfectly still on its target.
The priest raised his hands slowly and placed them in clear view on the desk. He rounded his shoulders and retorted out of spite, "your charity was rewarded by increasing your theatrical reputation by the spread of your many whimsical exploits, such as the looting of Nassau without firing a single shot, for one example."
The two men glared at each other in bitter silence until Seamus relented and spoke, crestfallen.
"Times are desperate for the common folk in these parts with the rich getting richer, the poor poorer. Many have been affected by the imminent progress of the Trade Company, even that boy out there." Seamus lifted a finger just enough to motion in the direction of the receiving room. "His father was a good provider for his family, but a pirate in the eyes of the Company." His voice faltered and pain colored his face. "They were going to hang the boy and his mother for consorting with the convicted man if they hadn't run away from everything thing they've ever known to hide here. The boy hasn't spoken a word since the day he saw his father's lifeless body swinging from a noose.
"As I said before, I never dealt directly with Captain Teague. He will be truly missed in these parts for he gave much to the community. Money. Protection. A touch of class," he added with a fleeting grin. "What bits of information and rumors I have acquired came among all manner of pirate that cross through my door. Of the serious inquiries, along with Mr. Godenot's, which supplied the most credible knowledge, included a foul tempered bloke and his lanky, one-eyed friend on behalf of Captain Barbossa-"
Seamus cut off suddenly, fluttering his hands in agitation, and sputtered, "It would be immensely easier for me to talk if your pistol was not before my face!" Seamus set his jaw and gave Jack a hard, but nervous, stare.
"Right," Jack started, glancing at weapon as if he'd just remembered it was there. "Pardon, Padre."He pulled the pistol back to his lap, keeping the mouth of the barrel visible at the edge of the desk, still aimed Seamus's way. "Please, do continue."
Seamus took a deep breath to summon what grit he had in reserve. "As I was saying, what has been mentioned regarding your father's death implied heavily that a wolf dwelt with the lamb.""He was murdered in New Shipwreck, of course it was by the hands of a fellow member of the brethren-"
Seamus interrupted before Jack could say more. "The accounts were more specific, claiming that the fault was committed by someone rather close to him." He raised both hands in an apologetic gesture. "Hence my poor-minded illation behind asking if you had any involvement."
Seamus watched silently, but with great interest, wondering if he'd revealed enough to satisfy the angry scallywag holding him at gun point, as Jack let what the priest had just said settle. There was no surprise that Barbossa would have done his own digging. Jack would have actually been shocked if the other captain had not done so knowing the man the way he did. As Seamus's submissions suggested that one of Teague's associates was responsible for his murder, Jack thought back to Samuel Augustine's hesitation about revealing his fears that Teague was involved with the Navy, and perhaps, even the Company itself. Yet, there no way the ever-loyal Saint Samuel would have betrayed Teague and it made no logical sense for Johannes to kill Teague on basis of the bountiful profit he acquired from their partnership. It didn't add up. There was another part of the puzzle he was missing.
Without moving its location, Jack uncocked his pistol. The priest slacked his shoulders."One more name has been brought up with others I have spoken with. It appears that this person had more interest in tracking the man behind the Book. Do you know of a Commodore Greitzer?" Jack carefully worded the question to not imply any connection between Teague and the commodore.
"The navy is involved?" Seamus flinched. He was quiet for a moment as he thought, then shook his head. "Unfortunately, I have no information on your Commodore Greitzer. I know of someone who may, perhaps," he said cryptically while scribbling on a scrap of paper he found amidst the contents on his desk. "Here is a name of a man I believe may be of some interest to you." Seamus hesitated before passing the paper across and didn't look up at Jack when he took from under his hand.
Jack recognized the name immediately and crumpled the scrap in his palm.
"Where?" He asked, returning his pistol inside the sash around his waist.
"Charleston," Seamus answered.
Jack nodded.
The men stood and shook hands ceremoniously, both eager to be rid of the other's presence. Keeping a distance between them, Seamus escorted Jack away from his office where the two chalices of rum were left untouched.
"How big, exactly, do you think this is?" Seamus asked with sincerity as he opened the front door for Jack.
Jack stepped outside and looked up to the sky. "There be only one who can answer that."Seamus nodded and pressed his palms together.
Jack made his way towards the docks, already plotting course for South Carolina in his head. He would have left the mission without as much as a look back if not for Seamus calling out to him."Be steadfast in your pursuit, Jack Sparrow. Nothing can harm us when God leads us." The Company oath stopped Jack in his tracks. He whirled around so abruptly he nearly tripped over his own boots.
From the look on his face, it was clear that there was more to Seamus's statement then what was apparent on the surface. The Priest of Pirates nodded and crossed his fingers before his chest.
"Peace be with you, Jack Sparrow," Father Seamus blessed and slammed the mission door shut.
Bible verses used in order of appearance:
Mathew 7:7-8
Hebrews 10:30
Matthew 5: 38
James 4:1
Ecclesiastes 1:18
Isaiah 53:6'
Our deeds determine us, as much as we determine our deeds.' From George Eliot's book, Adam Bede.
PotC note: The Wizened Aids who we see carry the Codex into the Fourth Brethren Court were not given names in the trilogy and it is unknown if they are brothers.
Historical note:Quebradillas was known as "La Guarida del Pirata" or the "Pirate's Hideout" before becoming officially called Quebradillas in 1823 when founded by Don Felipe Ruiz. I am well aware that the date of the town's founding does not fit in with the timeframe of my story but, embracing that oldest and noblest of Disney Traditions, I am tweaking fact in order to spin a yarn. And, honestly, I doubt anyone would check this for historical accuracy anyway. It's all for fun after all!