They sailed for about a week before stopping. During that whole time, Perseus was forced to stay below deck. They couldn't risk any passing patrol ships to see him and attack. Annabeth spent most of her day with him, but when she wasn't, he would make a habit of sitting next to a canon hole watching the water. Smelling the salty water and feeling it spray against his face was beyond relaxing. Being out on the sea has been part of his everyday life for six years. To be away from the salty water for so long, it felt that part of him was missing.

The island they arrived at looked to be inhabitable from the beaches. There were tall thick trees and bushes extending from the beach into the island. Several of the crew men were already on the beach following behind Chiron.

"Where are we?" Perseus asked, getting off the ship with everyone else. The water felt cool and refreshing against his dirt covered feet.

"Tulum," Annabeth told him. "Come, there are a few people who will like to meet you."

She led him down a path cut out of the forest. The tall trees created a canopy above them, blocking out most of the harsh sun light. The path wasn't completely cleared out though, because they had to climb over a few fallen trees and climb up to the next level. Just when he thought they were lost in a strange forest, the area opened up to a hidden village. Almost all of the wooden huts were built in the trees, with platforms connecting them together. The village was small but was busy with people.

"Welcome to our hide out. Not many people get to see it," Annabeth said, watching his reaction.

"This place is amazing," Perseus told her.

"It is. This place is where many of us call home."

As they walked further, Annabeth explained all about the history of this place and how it was founded. She also pointed out some of the huts were used as homes, another as a hospital, the food and weapon storage and one another as a meeting place. She pointed to a clearing area where the training ground was.

Near the village was a small pathway leading to a small waterfall and watering hole. It looked like paradise to Perseus.

"You can clean up here. I will have someone bring you fresh clothes," Annabeth told him, leaving to give him privacy.

Once he knew she was gone, he stripped of the old clothes and sank into the water. Not wasting any time, he dived under the water and swam around for a while. The water itself was slightly cold but he didn't care. The dust, dirt, and sweat washed away leaving him feel renewed. Once he knew he couldn't scrub anymore, he sat against a rock and closed his eyes. The sun was shining down, birds singing in the trees, and the sound of water fall lured him in to a relaxed daze.

"Are you going to stay here all day?" A voice behind him broke the silence.

Perseus jumped from the sudden noise and turned around with a rock in hand ready to throw at the intruder. The rock fell out of his hand when he saw who was standing there.

"Grover!" he shouted. "What are you doing here?"

"Get dressed and I will explain everything," Grover said smiling, setting down some clothes.

Perseus quickly got dressed and they sat together on a large bolder.

"Is the rest of the crew here? I didn't see Blackjack near when we stopped," Perseus asked.

Grover shook his head. "Last I heard they were on their way to Fort Charlotte. The crew has made a personal pack to avenge your arrest. When Annabeth told me about how you two were ambushed and you were arrested, we set out to find you. By that time, we were done searching all the known prison ships, you were already in Fort Tortuga. That is when we contacted Annabeth again for her help. She too wanted to recuse you, but it was too dangerous for us to do alone.

"She brought us here to the Nightingale secrete hide out where we meet with Chiron. At first, he was only sympathetic to our problem, but he didn't think you were important enough. Our crew didn't like that and left. I stayed behind with Annabeth to try to convince Chiron for his help. Just last week Chiron and Annabeth suddenly left and returned with you. I don't know how they did it, but at this point I am just glad you are alive and here."

Perseus sighed, kicking his feet lightly in the water. "Honestly, while I was locked up, I didn't expect anyone to rescue me. I had accepted my death very early on. But I am glad I am alive and well. When I was leaving with Chiron, I saw Leo in one of the cells."

Grover looked at him with wide eyes. "And?"

"He had long lost his mind. I probably would have faced the same fate had I not escaped when I did."

"A shame." Grover was quite for a moment before saying, "What are you going to do next? Will you captain Blackjack again?"

He ran a hand though his hair in thought. "Honestly, I don't know, man. I never set out to be a pirate and do all that I have done. All I ever wanted was to sail the waters on my own terms and the pirate life gave me that freedom. Captaining Blackjack is something I will never forget. Some of my happiest memories have been on that ship with the crew. Maybe my time in prison was a warning for me that if I continue living this way I will end up dead."

Grover placed a hand on Perseus's shoulder. "Whatever you chose to do I will support your choice."

The next few months passed in a blur. Every day he thought about his future and what he wanted. The more he thought about it, the more he realized that his dreams had changed from sailing on his own terms to sailing with Annabeth. Since their declaration of caring for each other from the night of his rescue, they had gotten closer than ever.

While he was gone, Chris had taken over as captain of Blackjack with Travis and Connor as his quartermasters. The crew was excited to see Perseus again when they stopped in Tulum about two weeks after he arrived there. He told the crew that he was proud of being their captain, but he was no longer going to sail with them, that Chris is their captain now. That night, they threw a large party on the beach in Perseus's honor.

Since he wasn't a pirate any more, he worked with the Nightingale group on expanding the trade business to Europe and other areas. His new goal in life was to set up their trade, make a lot of money to go back home, and buy land by the sea to build a house on.

"That is an ambitious idea. What if I want to do something different?" Annabeth asked one night when he told her of this plan.

"Then we will do what you want," he told her.

It was still many years later when that happened.

Perseus had a new ship called Riptide and sailed back to Europe with Annabeth. Even though he had long since quite being a pirate, his fleet of ships still answered to him, making him the strongest force in the Caribbean. He sailed with Chris and his old crew a few times, but mostly he worked with them form from a distance. Luke Castellan and his forces had eventually left the islands when the pirates and privateers grew so strong they were unstoppable.

There was still some of Olympus's influences, but not as strong as before. Clarisse had left the islands and went to terrorize ports in the north a few years later. When the majority of Olympus forces left, along with Clarisse, some of the lesser known pirate ships left as well. However, the effect on the area was still as strong as ever. Grover chose to stay behind in Kingston to oversee what they have built in the hopes they would continue to be just as strong.

With his move back to Europe, the Nightingale group was able to expand out to more areas. Just because their work in the Caribbean was done didn't mean their cause was over. Annabeth and a few of her friends that joined them to Europe worked hard to build up their numbers.

Life back home in Europe was going great for them. They had a large house overlooking the sea, something Perseus loved the most, along with constant wealth and contacts. For once, Perseus was happy and enjoyed life that did not involve breaking the laws and ship battles.

"Will you sit down for a moment?" Annabeth asked, looking into the large mirror watching as Perseus walked around their room.

"They are going to be here any moment now! It's been so long since I last seen them. What if they think I am a disappointment for what all I have done?" Perseus asked, tugging at the sleeve of his jacket.

"They are your parents. Besides, the letter from your mother sounded as though she was relieved to hear from you," she said, smoothing out her dress.

There was a soft knock on their room door and Samantha, one of the handmaids, walked in. "Sorry to interrupt. Sally and Paul Jackson are waiting in the sitting room."

"Thank you Samantha. We will be there in a moment," Annabeth said. "Please get us some tea and treats ready."

"Yes Ms. Annabeth." Samantha left.

"Come. Let's not keep your parents waiting," Annabeth said, slipping her hand into his.

He kissed the back of her hand, feeling like the luckiest man in the world.