Note: I'd like to dedicate this chapter to DaisyMay71, who was clever enough to guess Mary Hannigan's real life inspiration! Enjoy everyone!
For six days the Beast's Heart followed the Black Pearl to Spain. Annabelle and her children were moved back to their original quarters for the time being, causing extremely high tensions. Roisin and Joseph were back on speaking terms, though all their conversations were short and rather formal.
On the morning of the sixth day, it seemed Joseph had had enough.
"This is stupid!" he shouted, throwing his half empty bowl of porridge against the wall, splattering a gooey pattern about it.
"Joseph!" Annabelle reprimanded, surprised at her son's behavior.
Joseph payed her no mind, rising from his cot and approaching Roisin. "What is your problem? What have I done to you? You'll barely even look at me!"
Roisin remained silent for a moment, staring at the stained and splitting wooden boards of the room before speaking. When she finally looked up, her eyes were burning with anger.
"I don't know if your walnut of a brain can comprehend this, but my mother is dead! And meanwhile, you're galumphin' about, drinkin' rum and havin' such great fun with the pirates that killed her. Not to mention, you decide it'd also be proper to go on and bed a whore while you're at it! Why should I want to look at you? You make me sick."
Instead of being deterred by this, it seemed to fuel Joseph's anger further. "What do you think they would've done if I didn't do what they said? They would've killed me without a second glance! I did what I had to to surive! And why do you care if I bedded someone or not? It's not as if we're married! Hell, you're four years older than me! There's no way I'd marry you! You're practically an old maid anyway!"
Roisin shot up from her seat, glowering down at Joseph, who was several inches shorter than she. "I'm going to give you five seconds to change your tone," her tone was deadly and waspish. "Or you'll get something much worse than the cold shoulder, you little bastard."
Joseph simply stared back at the girl, his chocolate gaze smoldering with anger under steely determination. After a long bout of this, he finally turned away, stalking out of the room. Roisin laid down on her cot in a huff, facing away from Annabelle and Lily, who had watch the row go down in relative shock. Annabelle rose from her cot and followed her son out to the poop deck, were he stood staring angrily out at the turqouise waters about the ship
"Joseph," she said carefully, stepping up beside her son. When she tried to place her hand on his shoulder, he shrugged away from her. "Joseph, that was uncalled for, you know that."
Joseph turned and glared at her, but it did nothing to phase Annabelle, who'd endured this treatment many times before. "Try and understand where she's coming from. Put yourself in her place."
"I loved her too," he replied, and Annabelle could hear true pain in his voice. He was talking about Mary.
"I know, and she knows that too. We all did. But imagine losing me the way that Roisin lost her mother. That's what she's feeling right now."
Tears flooded the boy's dark brown eyes, though he tried to blink them back furiously. "This is so hard," he managed to get out before his mother enveloped him so as to hide his tears.
"I know," she soothed, stroking his dark auburn hair. "I know. I promise, I'm going to make this right. I swear it."
When Joseph had finally gained his composure, he pulled away from her, looking at her with puffy red eyes. "I didn't actually bed anyone, Mum. She took me to the room and I got scared when she kissed me. It didn't feel right. I guess she felt bad about me bein' so young and all, so she said we could just sit and pretend. Then I paid and left."
Annabelle chuckled slightly, imagining the sight in her mind. She bid Joseph back to their quarters, and strode up to the helm where she could get a better look at where they were headed. She could see nothing but clear blue water for miles. She sighed, walking back to check on the children.
It was almost dusk when they made port. She and the children were pulled back up to Jacob's quarters until they were given further instructions. Roisin was finally given a down of her own; a light green piece with lace about the collar and sleeves. Like Annabelle's, it was rather low cut. Annabelle and Lily helped to comb through all her light brown tangles, leaving it softer than before. Teach entered soon after, ready with orders for them.
"Teague's arrived here too," there was an edge of excitement to his rough voice. "You're to play totally innocent, understand? Pretend you're simply shopping in the market. Sparrow should come around soon, and if my intuition is correct, so will Teague. Be careful not to give yourselves away. And if anyone begins to speak to you in Spanish," he addressed Lily and Joseph, "just reply with 'No hablo espanol.' Understand?"
Both children nodded, and soon they, Roisin, and Annabelle were all escorted from the vessel. Again Rusty was posted as guard, and was accompanied with the black man who had broken Jacob's ribs. They soon learned his name was Moses. As they walked down the dock, Annabelle took a quick look at the ships that were docked around them. One that caught her eye was the Troubador, a very well kept ship, but with a rather menacing air about it. She averted her gaze and set her sights on the open air market that seemed to be slowing business down for the night. She dared not to make eye contact with passing citizens, for fear that she might meet a confrontation. Just as she was looking about a cart of fruit, she heard a whisper to her left.
"Psst," it hissed. Annabelle turned tentatively, pulling the children closer to her. Its source was a young girl, no more than eighteen, feigning interest in the quilts on the stand next to them. Her light brown hair was tied in a thick braid that fell over her shoulder. She was rather tall for a girl, with slight figure. She wore a white blouse tucked into a dark blue skirt, which fell to her ankles. When she made eye contact with Annabelle, it was discovered that she held brown eyes. For some reason, she seemed familiar to Annabelle.
"I know why you are here," she said softly, edging closer to the group of foreigners. Her voice held a light Spanish accent. "I can help you if you come with me."
"I don't need any assistance," Annabelle replied tightly, sure that their pirate-guards were watching attentively.
"I know where Jack Sparrow is headed to next," the girl replied quickly, moving away from the stand and beckoning to them. "Please, let me help you."
Could this girl be lying? It seemed not, for how would she know the very person they were looking for? Annabelle gripped Joseph and Lily's hands, and Roisin pasted herself next to them like a shadow. Annabelle nodded to the girl and they tentatively followed her away from the market. They walked down a few back alleys before arriving at a quaint terra-cotta home. The Spanish girl held out a hand to stop them and whistled, a clear four note run. The door to the house opened slowly, and in the doorway stood a woman, dark and obviously Spanish. Her face was covered in a shadow due to the falling light. She beckoned for them to come inside. As they passed the threshold, she heard the woman speak.
"Rebekah, I'm impressed. You were quicker than I thought."
Annabelle, Joseph, Lily, and Roisin all sat in the small sitting room of the Spanish women's home. Annabelle felt rather nervous, though in the back of her mind she could not deny how familiar the girl, Rebekah, seemed to her. Finally she heard their footfalls coming into the room. As they sat in the room with them, Annabelle's breath hitched. The woman who had bidden them entrance looked almost exactly like Lily, the only exception being her eyes, which were a dark brown instead of blue. She smiled as she noted Annabelle's recognition.
"You're…you're…"
"Yes, I am Liliana Teague. Sister to the infamous Captain Jack Sparrow. This is my niece, Rebekah." she gestured to the girl next to her. "I know why you have come here, and I want to help you." the woman's voice was warm and kind, and Annabelle had an unbidden thought in the back of her mind that she would be proud to see Lily grow up to be like this woman.
"How do you know-?"
"My sources are not important," Liliana replied, cutting Annabelle off with the flick of her hand. "What is important is how you are to escape the clutches of Henry Teach."
"That's harder than it sounds," Annabelle said, adusting her light blue skirts. "I cannot attempt anything too drastic, for he has my husband. If I don't do what he says, they'll kill him."
"Don't worry, dear sister, we will find a way. We just have to wait for the right opportunity to come." Liliana's voice was sly under her Spanish accent. "But first, introduce me to these lovely children of yours."
"I'm Lily!" Lily piped up, sticking her hand out the the Spanish woman. "Lily Rose Montel. It's nice to meet you."
Liliana brushed her dark hair back, resembling so much the hair that sat on the little girl's head and shook her hand formally, a smile on the corners of her full lips. She turned to Joseph next.
"Joseph Montel," he said, and Annabelle was surprised to hear a slight drop in the boy's voice. "It's a pleasure, ma'am."
She smiled slyly at the boy before turning to Roisin.
"Roisin Hannigan," the girl said, taking the woman's hand gracefully. "A family friend."
"Ah, I see," Liliana said softly, releasing the girl's hand lightly. "I expect you're all very hungry. I have food in the dining room, if you'll be so kind as to follow me."
The group obeyed, and aligned themselves around the circular dining room table. They feasted on meal of rice, beans, and some kind of meat wrapped up in a thin breading, with glasses of milk. After days of the rotting food aboard the Beast's Heart, it was a welcome change in diet. They had just finished their meal and were sitting back in the parlor area when they heard the door open.
"Lily!" a deep, raspy voice called. "You home, luv?"
They heard footsteps lead all the way to the entrance of the sitting room, and stop abruptly.
"Anna?"
Annabelle looked up to see the confused face of Captain Jack Sparrow staring back at her.
