"Told you," Reggie muttered.
"You shut it," she hissed back, looking from the gun to Barnibus before dropping her hands at her sides and gesturing out at the ocean, "Killian's gone on the long boat to an island just past the shallows – you're more than welcome to follow in your big boat seeing as you've already got a map."
Barnibus shook his head and moved behind her, pushing at her with the barrel of the gun towards the plank and edging her onto it, "Cross, dear – or you'll find yourself falling head first into Davy Jones' locker."
"Typical man," she muttered, turning back to him, "All friendly for the drinks, then stabs you in the back when push comes to shove."
"Typical woman," he grumbled, "Talks a pretty talk and wastes your bloody time – plank, cross!"
Clara felt the barrel push into her spine roughly and she looked once to Reggie before taking the steps across, arms out when a wave rocked both boats. "I don't understand," she began, but he was across with his second henchman to his boat and removing the plank to leave Reggie back on the Jolly Roger.
"Hush your mouth, Jones," he spat at her, raising the gun at Reggie, who'd already taken a running start across the boat towards the ocean on the other side when he finally fired as Clara shouted out. Reggie fell forward and Clara swung out, giving Barnibus a good punch in the gut before she rushed to the opening to scream to the other man. She argued when she was restrained, and continued to watch the man who lay on the deck of the other ship, hoping he'd be able to lift himself up, but he lay still.
"Why did you do that!?" Clara shouted at Barnibus, her eyes watering slightly.
He straightened as he came around to face her, face melted into an expression of surprise, "How dare you strike me!" Lifting a hand, he aimed to backhand her across the cheek, but she leveled an icy stare at him and he took a breath, grunting and letting the hand fall at his side before moving to the helm and shouting, "Hoist the anchor, we're headed into land!"
"You can't," Clara warned.
"That so, lovely?" Barnibus responded with a nod that found Clara being pulled towards a set of barrels held together with netting, wrists tightly wound together in rough rope that burned at her skin, to be secured to it.
The boat began to move and she stumbled, shaking her head and offering, "Killian said the water was too shallow – you'd beach yourself."
Barnibus raised a hand and several men moved to raise the sails. Then he pointed, "I've been on these waters since before you were born, lass, I know how to avoid the shallows."
Clara glanced around, feeling them picking up speed and she shook her head, "Wait, no, untie me."
"And why would I do that?" Barnibus laughed.
She jerked against the rope and hissed at the pain, "Because I don't fancy drowning when you crash this heap into a pile of sand!"
Gesturing at one of his crew members, he barked, "Gag 'er," and the man descended on Clara, tying a rag securely between her teeth before giving her a low laugh and looking her over. "King's Ransom, boys," Barnibus hollered, and Clara looked about wildly as the men cheered.
Examining the map as they stood in the thick of jungle, breath heavy in their lungs, sweat drenching their clothes, and Killian shook his head and offered, "Shouldn't be too far."
Rufus watched him a moment and then sucked his teeth, tapping the map with a finger and asking him slowly, "So about where's are we, right now?"
Turning the map, Killian pointed, "Clump of green things, look like trees, just next to the skulls." He smiled and walked two fingers over the map, "And now we'll take a few paces towards what will inevitably be a great big heap of disappointment and wasted time."
The gun in the other man's hand shifted up, barrel pressed to the underside of Killian's chin, and he muttered, "You'd better hope we find something shiny or we'll be tossing you into the ocean with your woman."
Killian's brow dropped slightly and he clenched his jaw, "Clara has naught to do with any of this…"
"Don't care," Rufus barked, "You find us the treasure."
They began to move slowly, Killian aware that he had two guns trained on him and had for the better part of the past few hours as they cut their way through the trees. They stayed just far enough from him so he couldn't swing his sword on them and he found himself wondering how his new companion was fairing back on the Jolly Roger. He hoped the oaf they'd left watching over her, at the very least, stood close enough to provide shade.
Struggling to stay on her feet, Clara fell against the barrels and hung onto them as the ship struck something roughly and tilted as the men shouted. She peered up at Barnibus, who flashed her a scowl of anger before giving orders and turning the wheel in front of him, bringing them back upright. She found herself closing her eyes and breathing a sigh of relief, until she looked out at the waters ahead of them and saw the wreckage of other ships jutting out from the water that lead towards an island.
"Land!" Barnibus called.
Clara pulled at her restraints again and a sword landed with a thump in the wood beside her, snapping a piece of netting and she glared up into the angry eyes of a pirate who snarled, "Tug on those again and we'll free you of your hands alright."
He pulled the sword up and walked away as she stared, wide eyed, and froze to the spot wishing this were all some sort of insane dream she could wake from. Of course, she knew it wasn't, and as Barnibus steered them closer and closer, she listened to the loud dragging sound of something gliding against the underside of the ship and she took in the growing apprehension of the crew.
"Barnibus, please," she mumbled through the gag, "We'll all die!"
Of course, he only sneered at her and she shook her head, falling when they collided with something that turned the ship completely. Clara did a small flip, wrists twisting painfully as she went, and suddenly there was a commotion as a splash of cold water slid easily up the deck towards her. They began to straighten but just as they did, Clara realized the crew were abandoning ship and she picked herself up, clutching the barrels at her side, to see that they were sinking.