Book Three - Chapter Six: A Fool's Errand

The voyage to the island only made Captain Jack Sparrow even more eager to get there. As much as being at sea did free him, there was only so much ship in which to escape in. Amelia, after revealing yet another scene of unrestrained intoxication, was being doubly guarded. Barbossa barely trusted her to be left alone with herself let alone a single crew member.

The parchment map was not the easiest article to follow but Jack seemed to be able to decipher it well enough. He led the Roving Maid unwaveringly. The ship finally came upon a small chain of islands, one of which was their destination. A very small salvaging party was created by the captain. Jack did his best to ensure that Barbossa would stay aboard the ship by putting him in command lest they should face any circumstances similar to that which passed at Ewould's island. The insistence was successful, however, adding Ms. Amelia to the party did invite some hearty protest from the first mate. Amelia played her part, though, and demanded to go. It was a difficult sell considering all the trouble that had surrounded Amelia's participation in the past.

"Well, I haven't been pursued by any pirate lords since," Amelia argued to her father, "so there's slim chance of me gaining you a second lordship."

"Besides, she's proven herself handy enough with pistol," Jack added, "I wouldn't expect the lot of them to defend me half as well."

Reluctantly, Barbossa agreed to let his daughter go. "And no rum!" was his final order before seeing his daughter off in the boat.

Once ashore, Captain Jack Sparrow entrusted the map to one of his crew members. The map seemed to say that the treasure would be found on the other side of a cavern. They followed up to an odd formation of rock that branched off from the initial mountain. This deformed sub-mountain was where the cavern was to be found. The entry point was not at ground level and so it required climbing half a story to reach. The entry, as well as the revealed passage, proved to be very narrow.

Normally the captain led the group but this time he hung back. It would have been noted as unusual behaviour had not their party been so small this time. Amelia stayed near the captain, not as a partiality but as a principle, staying nearest the man in charge. As they walked cautiously through the dank caverns Jack took hold of Amelia's arm. She was going to ask what he meant by it but he already had his finger over his lips to signal her silence. While the rest of the group was still slowly moving forward, Jack felt the wall beside him. As the passage began to widen he instantly knew where they were located. Keeping the girl nearby, Jack moved off centre. He shuffled his feet in the thick dust below. When he was certain, he tugged Amelia's arm once more and jumped up only to land back down harshly, breaking the hidden plank that covered a hole in the rock. Both he and Amelia fell through. Amelia instantly screamed. The remaining party members instantly rushed around the gapping hole. The captain landed harshly on the ground below and Amelia fell on top of him. Jack groaned in pain.

"Are you alright, down there?" those from above shouted down.

Amelia stumbled to rise and helped her captain to his feet.

"Just fine," the captain said though his voice suggested otherwise. "What about you, love?" he asked Amelia in a quieter tone, "You alright?"

"Yes, I'm fine," she replied.

"Should we find a rope, Captain?" the crew asked.

"No, don't bother," the captain replied. "There looks to be an opening just up ahead. I'm certain we'll be able to regroup there. Go on, no use standing around here."

Amelia could see three possible passages from where they stood but had no idea why her captain assumed that one would open up to the story above. Even stranger still was that he was leading her in a different direction than where they had been heading just moments ago. She kept wanting to voice her questions but Jack kept her silent as they wandered through the narrow tunnel.

Amelia saw light ahead. It was a wonderfully surprising sight, but it lead to more questions than answers since Jack did not seem the least bit uncertain of where he was going. The light was dancing on the rock walls. The closer they came to the opening the more Amelia had begun to think that it was not an opening at all. It was a grotto - and one with a very narrow ledge in which to walk around the dark pool below. Still Jack continued to lead her without a single change in his determination. After clinging to the coarse rock for some distance, the true source of light revealed itself. Bright blue sky lay before them at the grotto's mouth. More surprising still was the breathtaking beach that was nestled in this small space below the mountain. The waters here were clear and shallow, and the waves broke gently on the soft sands.

"We're here," Jack finally said.

"What do you mean here?" she asked him. "Is this where the treasure is?"

Jack laughed and took her by the hand.

"No, not here," he said. "But this is where I wanted to show you."

"You mean you've been here before?"

"Many times. My very own home away from home you might say."

"I don't understand," she said. "I thought that you – I mean, what about the drunken buccaneer you stole the map from?"

"There was no buccaneer," he admitted.

Amelia eyes widened and then she looked away, completely befuddled.

"I made it up. The buccaneer, the map, everything," he continued.

"So you lied?"

"Am I not a pirate in the end?" he said.

"So there is no treasure?"

"Now that was not a lie. There is gold, plenty of it. I should know, I buried it myself," he explained. "When I begun pillaging for myself, I didn't quite have the same expenses that I do now. So from about the age of eight to eleven or twelve I just stored my share here. Figured that it might come in handy one day."

"And is it coming in handy?"

"Ah, very much so," he replied. He put his hand against her bare neck. "I've decided to make a very serious investment, which in turn grants me a little time and a little privacy." He pulled her in close to him and wrapped his other arm around her. "Some very badly needed time and privacy."

Jack kissed her and she kissed him back. He removed her belt and then his own. Slowly, he brought her down to the sandy ground where, for the first time, he had no worries of being caught. All was bliss, and there was time for the bliss to be savoured.