Book One - Chapter Eleven: About a Wife

While moored in Tortuga, an unexpected letter arrived from Amelia addressed to H. B. Smith. Amelia was convinced that this location was frequented by the Roving Maid enough that it would be the fastest way to ensure that her letter be received. When Barbossa read it, he found that it left him with very mixed feelings.

"March 2nd,

Dear Mr. H. B. Smith,

I sincerely hope that the weather at sea has been favourable for your voyage. I think fondly of you and the rest of the crew and pray that you all shall be returning to us in the near future. I have been quite well. My tutor has been pleased by my language skills, especially in French and Spanish, which I must thank you for allowing me to converse with native speakers of both languages during my last visit. My music skills, however, have not been quite as favourable as my tutor would like. The other young ladies in our circle will be holding a recital at one of Mrs. Williams' soirees, one in which the invitation has failed to include my name. I am not saddened by this, however. I acknowledge that music is simply not my forte and would feel quite foolish to perform in front of an audience in any respect. Mother is quite concerned about this, more so than I. Other than that, she is doing well.

I will move on to the purpose of this letter. Unusual it is, I know, for me to be writing to you now. I had no fixed address for you, though I assumed that the captain would make a stop there in Tortuga, and I happened to recall the name of the tavern which I believed he would be certain to visit. I am not sure how soon you are likely to receive this letter; nonetheless, I felt it of the utmost importance to inform you that my address shall be altered come the end of the month. Mother, it seems, is to be married before the month is out. Colonel Crestcastle had proposed to her some while back now it seems, and though he had established himself as our benefactor these past couple of years, she could not accept the proposal while still married. It was quite strange and I have no other way of describing it better. She somehow came into possession of a notice that announced that my father, her husband, had met misfortune while on his merchant ship in the East Indies. A funeral was held back in September, in memoriam of him since we were unable to retrieve his body. Her period of mourning, it seems has come to an end. For the sake of our prosperity, she felt inclined to accept the Colonel's proposal. Once they are married, we shall relocate to his home. Should you continue to write to me, please address your letters to Crestcastle Hall, it is the largest estate and the only estate along the arbour lane. Should this not reach you before you send your next letter, please be well assured that I shall continue to check the post at our current residence.

Please pass on my affection to your crew,

I wait eagerly to see you again,

Sincerely, Ms. Amelia Barbossa"

The thought of his wife having declared him dead was quite a strange thought to begin to accept. Barbossa reread that passage a few times, not because he believed that his wife was incapable of doing such a thing, but he needed to reconstruct his conscience from the lingering guilt he had so often felt. It was almost like being set free in a way, in an unusual way. It was freedom that one was reluctant to take not because one did not want it, but because one had deemed it impossible to come by for so long that now that it was right here in front of him, he could not fathom what to do with it. The second issue, and the largest one that Barbossa felt strongest towards, was that his daughter would now be forced to live with this new man whom he knew nothing about. The wealth and prosperity of this Colonel did not reassure Barbossa of the security and wellbeing of his daughter. The thought crossed his mind that if Amelia had any insecurity about the Colonel Crestcastle, she would have mentioned it. The name was not totally unfamiliar to Barbossa and did know that Victoria would never endanger their daughter, however obscure her priorities were. Also, Amelia now had discovered a means of addressing him should she feel it urgent to. What perplexed Barbossa was that he had never thought of establishing a location for communication prior to this moment. He applauded himself for raising his daughter to be smart enough to come up with the plan all on her own.

He quickly sat down to reply to her letter, not adding much detail, only acknowledging that he had in fact received her letter and that she should feel welcome to send any urgent notices to Tortuga where he would be certain to find it. If nothing else, Barbossa felt that the local harlots would secure any mail of hers, having been acquainted with the "sweet face".

After having written his reply, Barbossa set himself up in a mood for celebration. He bought several rounds of ale and made toasts for his funeral, his good fortune, and his freedom.

"Me own dear wife has cast me off, good as dead, she has. May my immortal soul rest in sweet eternal serenity," Barbossa said raising his mug to his fellow tavern patrons. He drank the ale incessantly until the mug was dry. Some of his crewmates who knew the first mate to traditionally be the sensible one were greatly puzzled by his sudden change in humour. To appease their curiosity, Barbossa passed his daughter's letter around, though only a few of them could actually read it. It lastly found its way into Ragetti's hands, and though he too could not read it, he had over heard some people who had read parts of it aloud, and so pretended that he read it and then folded it up and placed the letter into his jacket pocket for safe keeping, not fully trusting his superior to do so in his soon to be quite drunken state.

"And here's to the ol' witch herself!" Barbossa resumed with a fresh mug of ale. "They say that the devil comes in many forms. God save the poor fool 'bout to take on the very creature itself! May she drive him as mad! To the she-devil!" he said raising another toast.

The celebration, of course, was not complete without adding company. Barbossa put out a little more money and found himself a companion for the night, one which even Captain Jack Sparrow was envious to see go to his first mate.

With the saucy woman on his knee, Barbossa asked her with large roar of laughter in his throat, "And you, my fine woman, ya don't believe in the sanctity of marriage, now, do ya?"

"I ain't have no reason to be married, and lord knows I wouldn't be havin' you," the harlot replied.

Barbossa laughed and slapped her bottom, "Aye, that'll do for me!"

Barbossa finished another round of drinks, and then gave the woman his money purse. She gladly led him to the back of the tavern and fulfilled her duty as a temporary devoted companion, much to Barbossa's fancy.