Chapter Two
Madeline leaned against the counter of the smoky tavern with a fake smile plastered on her face. She was slowly getting back into the flow of things, after months of being locked in a cabin of the _, she needed to get out and see the world. But for this, she would need a ship. She had to call back her old best friend, her fake charm. The charm that she used to con many drunken pirates of their ships. Pirates who were never heard of again.
She handed the man another bottle of rum. He grunted a thank you and chugged. She nodded and waited impatiently. This man could hold his rum. He was barely tipsy. "Alright," she sighed, her patience worn thin, she went to the table that he was sitting at and grabbed the chair across from him. She spun it around and straddled it, resting her chin on the back of it. She grabbed the rum from his hands and took a gulp. "Me and you are more alike than we appear, ya know." She stated, slamming the rum down on the wooden table.
He smirked, "How so?"
"We have no where to go. No money to get there."
He grunted, "Aye."
She cleared her throat, "I –uh- I happen to have a map."
He looked up from his rum, his drunken eyes glistening. "A map?"
She nodded, "A map. But, ya see, I have no way to get there."
He smiled, "I have a ship."
"Ok," She moved closer to him, with a smile, "You let me control the ship and the crew, make me the captain, and we'll split the treasure when we get it."
He hesitated.
"Do we have an accord?"
There was a deep throaty chuckle behind Madeline. She sighed and dropped her head.
"There ain't a real treasure, mate." Came the voice.
She shot her head up, "There is too. Don't listen to him," She said to the drunken man, "Jack Sparrow is nothing but a-"
"Show him the map." Jack said, a smile obvious in his voice.
Madeline stuttered, she hadn't expected to get that far. She was planning on killing him as soon as they were all alone, so she could… commandeer his ship. "It's back at-"
The man got up from his chair with a smirk, and walked out of the tavern. Madeline turned to Jack, "Why would you do that?"
Jack laughed heartily, "I was helping a friend."
She sighed, "Father."
"Aye." He grabbed the rum from the table, "You really spooked him with your last stunt, lass."
"I'm not his concern." Jack took another swig, and she snatched it from his grip, "Gimme that." She gulped the rest of the rum and let it fall to the ground. "I'm going to find myself another victim, please stay out of my way." She stated this as a command, instead of a plea.
"He wants you to stay, Mad." He said, leaning against the counter.
She spun around on her heel and looked into his eyes. "Since when does he want me around?" She asked, "He's constantly dropping me off at ports and leaving me to fend for myself. And you, you just stand by and watch." She was growing angrier by the word, "I was 10 years old when he left me in Tortuga to commandeer my first ship."
"That wasn't my fault." He stated.
"I looked up to you." A tear glistened in her eye but did not fall. "I wanted you to convince my drunken father to keep me on the ship. But you just stood there, more sober than you've ever been, watching a 10 year old girl walk alone into the alleys of Tortuga."
"That doesn't sound like me at all, mate." He moved back quickly when he felt the tip of a sword tap the bottom of his chin.
Madeline glared at him while holding the sword there. She sighed and lowered the sword. "Why does he want me to stay?"
He shrugged and turned to leave, but threw over his shoulder, "Ya know, you should really watch that temper, missy."
Madeline sighed and threw herself onto the chair behind her. And watched Jack disappear from the bar.