Chapter 2:
"When you said 'I'll take you to Havana,' I assumed you'd actually take me to Havana." Crouching behind a particularly bristly and thick bush, I wipe away the condensation gathering upon my forehead. Although it was not particularly hot, it was certainly warm and uncomfortable with the scorching sun blaring down the back of my neck, guaranteeing both sunburn and a lot of perspiration.
Beside me, Edward grunts in response, his eyes scanning the horizon.
In other words, the bastard ignores me.
With a groan, I shift my weight and again dab at my skin, this time the back of my neck. I was still in the clothes I'd donned for my mission to Abstergo – that meant tight jeans, knee length boots and a thick, black sweater, which I had tied around my waist – and due to the varying thickness and dark colour scheme, I was positively sweltering under the sun. It was Edward who, when I had complained of the heat, had humbly suggested removing my sweater – his face had twisted in confusion at the foreign word and judging from the way his eyes had widened at the thin, tight tank top beneath the knit, he was unfamiliar with my attire. Or maybe he just hadn't seen a woman flash a lot of skin before.
That I highly doubted.
His reaction, on the other hand, was worrying and only reinforced the knowledge that I wasn't anywhere close to home. However, focusing on that was only going to set me into another state of panic, so ignoring my growing concern, I focus on the situation at hand. Right now, my biggest anxiety was how was Edward going to take me to Havana without means to travel; well, that and receiving skin cancer from the sunburns I know I'd obtain on my exposed shoulders and neck.
"That schooner will do us just fine," Edward declares in a whisper, edging closer towards the beach, "sturdy, in good condition and has a crew. Should be able to hold up until we get to Havana."
"We're going to steal a ship?" I hiss, following Edward as he moves stealthy towards the reasonably large vessel.
He turns his head to look back at me, one blonde eyebrow arched in question. "You have a problem with the plan."
"Yes," I exclaim.
"Do you think I care?"
Before I can open my mouth to retort, voices float along the faint breeze to where we lie in wait. "The commodore's gone ahead to Kingston," the voice was saying, obviously tense and more than a little irritated with being left behind by his 'commodore.'
"We're to commandeer this ship and follow in due haste," the man continued and as I peak my head out from the bushes, I catch a flash of a red uniform accented with white, nonetheless, what really catches my attention is the slim sword strapped to his side.
Well-armed.
This wasn't going to be easy.
"Sorry," another voice interrupted, this one anxious and wavering from what could no doubt be nerves, "did you say K-Kingston? No, no…. our destination is the port at Havana. I'm just a merchant doing my rounds. Sorry, can't help you-"
"Quiet," the first voice commands, immediately shutting up the other, "bleeding pirate! You're going to hang for the mess you made out there and for impersonating an honest buisnessman, I'll make sure of it."
Pirate?
Quickly, I glance at Edward only to find he's not by my side but edging towards the small cluster of men closer to the shore, leaving me crouching behind bushes and beside a large sea-turtle pulling herself across the sand. "Kenway," I whisper frantically, hoping he'll turn around but just like I knew he would, he ignores my hysterical cry and continues to advance towards the men I realise are soldiers.
Bastard.
As silently as I can, I follow, trying to not step on loose foliage that could give away our positions – I'd be damned if I gave Edward the satisfaction of seeing me screw everything up for us. He'd probably expect that.
"Sir," the anxious voice argues, "I swear that we had nothing to do with that attack. We've just stopped here to gather water and take stock of our supplies."
"I said," the solider roars, drawing his blade and raising it above the now cowering man/merchant/pirate, "silence, you bloody pirate!"
Before the solider can bring down his rapier, I see a blur of blue and grey dash out from the safety of the vegetation and sink his own cutlasses into the man with timed efficiency – clearly the ease of a practiced killer. Jerking the bloodied blades out of the soldiers' body, Edward turns swiftly on his heel to face the remaining soldiers and with just as much competence as his first kill, he disposes of the other soldiers in a series of quick parries and strikes, leaving in his wake a trail of corpses.
For a moment, I sit there, stunned at what had just unfurled before my very eyes and with a start, I realise I'm trembling. It's not the first time I've seen someone die, heaven knows I've watched comrades and enemies alike fall in my days but I'd never been close enough to see the blood, to see the deed be done up close. It was terrifying and the ease to which Edward had carried out the assassinations only sought to further my discomfort.
As the buzz of conversation reaches my ears, I force myself back to reality and ricochet to my feet, glaring at Edward in an expression mixed with disbelief and simple horror. "You killed them!" I shriek, gesturing to the scattered bodies littering the once pristine beach, "you just – god – you just killed them."
"They were just about to kill Mr. Bonnet here," Edward calmly replies, nodding at the blond, rather plump by comparison man, "and God knows that after they did him in, we would've been next."
"But did you have to kill them?" I ask, feeling incredibly dumb with my obvious inquires.
"Yes," came Edward's firm response, his eyes narrowing as he watched me come to terms with what I had just seen.
"Mr… uh, Duncan was it?" Bonnet chirps, his rather small eyes uneasily darting between the two of us, "is this, uh, lady with you by chance?"
"Yes, this is my partner-"
"Duncan?" I interject once more, shooting Edward a quizzical expression.
"Tessa," Edward finishes, shooting me sharp look.
Obediently, I snap my mouth shut and fold my arms defensively across my chest, glaring at him as I did.
Turning away from both Bonnet and I, he studies the merchant vessel with great interest, his brow furrowed in what I now recognise as thought. Whilst Edward is distracted, Bonnet turns to me and offers a hand, taking the time to graciously introduce himself. He insists that I call him Stede, instead of Mr. Bonnet as I continually address him, and quickly informs me of his trade – a merchant of sugar across the Caribbean, namely Kingston and Havana, detailing his latest trip and how he came to end up on the shores of the Cape.
"And just out of nowhere, I'm being flagged down by the British Navy, accusing me of piracy," he huffs, "absolutely absurd, Miss North, if I do say so myself. Lucky for me, Duncan managed to, uh, step in and take care of things for me… is he always this impetuous?"
I open my mouth to reply, but Bonnet immediately cuts me off, "of course, I don't expect you to tell me that's the case. Doesn't matter after all, I'm alive now because of him. Unlucky that he didn't make it in time to save my captain…"
"Is he the only one who can sail the ship?" I inquire, following his gesture to see the bloodied corpse of burly, tanned man, "don't you know how to sail, Mr. Bonnet?"
"Stede," he automatically corrects, shaking his head, beady eyes filled with remorse for the loss of his able seaman, "unfortunately I don't know how to sail, Miss North, it's never really been a strong suit of mine and I realise now that I'm kind of stuck, since the rest of my crew don't know how to really circumnavigate either. We're going need expert navigational skills to make it out of the Cape, the cliff faces and sandbanks make it particularly difficult to steer the waters."
He pauses, pulling a handkerchief out of his embellished sleeve, dabbing at his perspiring face, "what to do, what to do? I have no idea how I'm going to sell all my sugar now and my contacts in Havana are waiting for their next shipment."
"I can pilot her myself, no mind," Edwards suddenly says, strolling past us to investigate the crates on the beach.
"You don't mean to abscond my ship, do you?" Bonnet frets, eyes widening as he watches Edward study his precious sugar.
Yes, I think, waiting for Edward to come up with a comeback.
"Mr. Bonnet," I start, prepared to take charge of the situation as the silence continues to stretch between the three of us.
"Stede," came the immediate and expected response, his eyes still locked upon Edward scrutinising his sugar.
"Stede," I reluctantly concede, taking a deep breath, "what Ed-Duncan meant to say was-"
"Bonnet, I wasn't sure if I should be letting you in on this, but I'm sure you're a, uh, respectable and trustful man and we're in dire straights," Edwards smoothly interrupts, throwing an arm loosely around Bonnet's shoulders, bringing him close as to bring Bonnet in on some secret. "You see, Tessa and I are on a secret errand for the king, God save him, and we must get to Havana with speed."
It takes all of my effort not to burst into laughter at the blatant, ridiculous lie.
There's no way that Bonnet is going to fall for that.
"Ah…" Bonnet sighs, offering a hesitant smile, "That's a relief. Well, you're in luck Havana is also my destination. Our ways, it seems, lie together!"
No freaking way.
"Natural allies, then," Edward chuckles, clapping Bonnet's shoulder.
You've got to be joking, I think in complete disbelief when the two men laugh merrily side-by-side, that was… that was…. Argh! How the Hell does Kenway do it?
"Oh, you two put me at ease, you do," Bonnet grins, "and to think I thought you two pirates!"
"Pirates huh?" I answer faintly, leaning against the trunk of a palm tree.
"Yes, well," Bonnet hesitates, "you do have an… uncommon way of handling yourselves – quick and easy. Duncan gave me quite a fright, he did, and then out you pop from the scrubs. All in all, it seems that it was meant to be – now I have a captain and two new – if I'm not being forward – friends, wonderful isn't it."
"Yeah," I whisper, sliding to sit on the soft sand, resting my forehead against my knees, "wonderful."
"Shall we set off then?" Bonnet inquires despite the fact that Edward is already marching out towards the marooned ship. His mouth gapes open at the palpable show of disrespect and he turns to me with a flustered, perplexed expression, which causes me to once again laugh out loud, shaking my head at his surprise.
"Ed-Duncan," I hastily correct, recalling the fake name Edward had given, "does things on his own terms. He's a… free spirit."
"Ah," Bonnet mumbles, "I see."
"We better follow," I respond, scrambling back to my feet. Nodding towards Edward's retreating figure, I offer a simply smile and begin setting off after my perplexing companion, "if we don't, Mr. Bonnet, Duncan will leave without us and I'm afraid he won't look back."
Without waiting to see if Bonnet follows, I turn quickly on my heel and hurry after Edward, determination quickening my step until I am sprinting down the length of the beach, a smile curled upon my lips.
0-0-0-0-0-0-0
Leaning over the left side of the ship – the port side, I tell myself, recalling Edward's directions as to how to navigate the rocking schooner – I watch the deep, sea-green ocean pass by, studying my reflection.
The distorted image of a red haired woman looks back at me, studying me with equal intensity with dulled blue eyes. My normally pale skin appears ghostly and green, my face tight with exhaustion and stress. I know, without even revising my reflection, that there are dark circles under my eyes that existed prior to my awakening on the beach of Cape Bonavista.
He's taking me to Havana, I reassure myself, shooting Edward and Bonnet a quick glance, watching as they chat casually about their respective lives, in Havana, I'll be able to contact Shaun and he'll be able to get me out of here.
But what if he can't? A little voice innocently inquires.
Those butterflies I thought I had shed begin to flap once again, causing me to brace the smooth wood of the ship, inclined back towards the sea in case I can't keep what little food I have left in my stomach down. I'm going to be fine, I tell myself firmly.
"Just fine," I say aloud, moving away from the edge.
"Tess," Edward yells, grabbing my attention instantly.
"Don't call me that," I scream back, folding me arms over my chest and leaning against the rail, "you don't deserve to call me 'Tess,' you ungrateful jerk!"
"Cruel," he laughs, handling the ship with ease. Even from where I stand, I can tell his eyes sparkle with life – this, piloting a ship, is obviously where he feels most comfortable, where he belongs. "It's not like I would've left you on the beach."
Sure, you keep telling yourself that, I think, glaring at the man.
"I was just going to say we're almost out of the Cape, keep an eye out," he continues with a slightly cocky smile.
"For what?"
As the question leaves my lips, I hear a loud splash emit from the left of the ship; the distinct sound of something heavy and large breaking into the body of the ocean. I watch in complete amazement as a Humpback Whale leaps into the air before crashing back into the sea with a mighty splash, the sea-spray flying into the breeze and damping my cheeks.
"You should see your face," Edward roars with laughter.
And I have no doubt that it's a picture of hilarity.
A/N: so here's chapter 2 :) YAY! It's getting there, slowly but surely... unfortunately, a new assignment and impending exams have forced me to sadly inform you all of my official upload schedule. So, I'm going upload on Friday or Saturday every week starting from today. I am so sorry for the confusion (please don't hit me *runs away*) but I promise each chapter will be worth the wait!
XOXO AshTree13