Chapter 19
"Here. Sit yourself down," Donovan pulls out the wooden chair from the desk in front of him, carefully guiding a disoriented Rapunzel toward it.
The room they're in is small, being one of the many cabins below deck of The Scarlett Storm. Stained-glass windows line the slanted white paneled walls. There's a bench seat beneath the window at the back of the room. A small bed is positioned along the wall, with a wooden table on one side. There's a dresser and wardrobe on the opposite end, next to a floor-to-ceiling bookshelf. There's a desk in the centre of the room, and a closed wooden door leading back into the hallway of the lower decks.
It's late in the evening, the black night sky outside leaving the room in shadows. Firelit lanterns line the walls and the candlestick atop the desk illuminates the small cabin with a warm orange glow.
They haven't yet left the harbour, the ship rocking stationary along the docks. The rest of Donovan's crew is currently above deck, preparing to set sail, though it is quiet down here.
Rapunzel lowers herself into the chair unsteadily. She clutches one of the armrests, her other hand raising to her clouded head that seems like it weighs a ton along with her eyelids.
"I feel dizzy," she murmurs, her fingertips digging into her short, brown hair.
It's a similar feeling she'd had when she'd woken up in that dark, cold cellar. She isn't sure how long ago that was, or even how she got here. All she remembers is that Donovan had been there too. Everything that happened since then is a blur.
The vessel creaks and groans beneath their feet, swaying to the rhythm of the soft waves that crash against the hull.
"It's only a fever," Donovan tells her, "You were in the rain when I found you, before you hit your head."
Rapunzel hears his heavy footsteps somewhere next to her, brushing against the hardwood floor. His back is turned to her, and he's fiddling with something on the desk in her peripheral vision, but she's too dazed to look over. She can hardly comprehend what he's saying, the words sounding faded in her mind.
"I imagine things must feel a little hazy with your concussion too. But don't worry, it'll all go away soon," he reassures calmly.
He hopes it will go away. He'd thought whatever sickness she is experiencing would have disappeared by now. She'd been well enough to walk here with him, but she isn't just forgetting things. There's something else still lingering, and he imagines her pregnancy must have something to do with it. It worries him.
Rapunzel remembers him telling her she had fallen off her horse, and that's when she had gotten the concussion, though she doesn't recall it happening. She supposes it's a likely thing that could have occurred.
Donovan pulls out another chair, sitting down in front of Rapunzel. He rests his elbows on his knees and leans forward, flashing her a comforting grin. "I promise we'll be home in no time."
"Home?" She struggles to remember where that might be. The idea of it seems so far away from her.
"Yes. To the kingdom of Ashford. Far from here." he takes Rapunzel's hands out of her lap, holding her fingertips in his own. "Once we sail away from this place, you'll be safe once again."
Safe – another word that confuses had told her someone was after her, trying to hurt her. He never told her why. She can't imagine what she could have done wrong, and why someone would want to do that, but it frightens her.
"And… that man… he won't be able to find me?" she asks.
A flash of irritation flickers in his chest at the mere thought of Flynn Rider.
Donovan has no idea where he is now, but something tells him Flynn can't be far. Donovan has had his eye out for the thief this entire time. Thankfully, they haven't found each other yet. Though, it's obvious Flynn is searching for Rapunzel. He'd already managed to find her once. Donovan just hopes he won't manage to follow them out to sea.
"I won't let him," he says.
Staying in that cellar any longer than they did might've led Flynn right to them, which is why they have to leave tonight. The sooner they get out of here, the better.
In any case, if Flynn does find them, Donovan supposes he'll have to take care of it, one way or another.
Rapunzel nods, though she doesn't look entirely convinced. She swallows, remembering what Donovan had told her before. "And we'll be married?"
He smiles, sighing with relief just from hearing her say that. "Yes. Yes, exactly. And then…" He glances down at her, leaning further forward in his chair. He releases one of Rapunzel's hands to gently press his palm against her stomach. "Then we'll raise our family. Together."
Rapunzel only stares at him blankly, before peering down at herself in confusion.
As his words echo in her head, and she observes his hand against her abdomen, her eyes widen in horror.
Rapunzel exhales sharply as realization hits her, her gaze trailing back up to his eyes. "I'm… I'm pregnant?"
Donovan purses his lips, his expression regretful. "Yes. You wouldn't remember. I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner." He rises to a stand, the chair scraping loudly against the wooden floor.
He wanders behind her, though Rapunzel is too stunned to speak, or even to look back at him. All she does is sit there in silence, her gaze frantically scanning back and forth as she wonders how any of this could be.
She listens to his footsteps circling her, almost tauntingly. She can't see him anymore, only hears his disturbingly calm tone of voice over her shoulder.
"I didn't want to overwhelm you. I know all of this must be confusing for you. But don't you see? We can finally be together, and we'll have everything we've ever wanted." He stops when he's in front of her again. He leans forward and plants his hands on both armrests of Rapunzel's chair.
It forces her to look up at him as she finds her face suddenly so close to his.
"Everything will be the way it was supposed to be," he says as he hovers over her.
Suddenly, she can't move, she can't speak. She can't do anything as Donovan slowly leans forward, closing the gap between their lips.
After a moment, Rapunzel finds herself dazed. She lifts her chin toward his face, letting her eyelids fall closed.
Just before their lips touch, she roughly stabs her dagger into Donovan's shoulder, causing him to cry out suddenly in pain.
He jumps back, doubling over as he clutches the handle of the blade now protruding out of his arm.
Rapunzel bolts out of the chair, stumbling away from him.
She pants as she stands on the other side of the room, watching him scream with terror in her wide eyes.
When he pulls his quivering hand away, his fingertips are coated in a deep red blood. It drips from the wound and begins seeping into the sleeve of his jacket.
"You're not who you say you are," Rapunzel snarls, glaring at him from beneath her eyelashes.
He'd taken her sword, but he'd failed to find the knife she always keeps hidden in her boot. He'd been too preoccupied with his own messed up fantasy that he hadn't even noticed her pulling it out.
After everything he had told her, Rapunzel realizes now that the only person trying to hurt her is him. He's been lying this entire time. Even though she can't remember her past, Rapunzel knows it. She can see it in his eyes. She hears it in his voice. Whether her pregnancy is also a lie or not, she knows more than anything that she is not letting her baby anywhere near this man.
As Donovan hisses through gritted teeth, his pained groans turn into laughter – a disturbing, maniacal laughter that sends shivers trailing up Rapunzel's spine.
He turns his back to her, clutching his head desperately as he shouts with frustration, "It's not working! you're not supposed to remember!"
What isn't working? What is he talking about?
"I—I don't know what you want from me… but I am not going anywhere with you," Rapunzel sneers, staring at his hunched over backside.
She has to get off this ship. Now. But he's standing right between her and the door. It's the only way out.
Donovan turns to face Rapunzel then, straightening his stance. The handle of the dagger is still protruding from his shoulder, though he no longer seems bothered by the pain of it.
His lips tug into a crooked smirk as he scowls, "I'm afraid it's already too late for that."
He whips out a syringe from his coat pocket, filled with a sparkling golden liquid.
The next thing Rapunzel knows, he is lunging himself at her, grabbing her by the arms. Her back slams against the wall behind her.
Completely pinned, Rapunzel fights against his hold, both of them grunting. The needle of the syringe hovers just inches away from her neck but she musters all of her strength to push him away.
She rams her knee directly into his groin, causing Donovan to finally release her.
He stumbles back, doubling over again.
The syringe clatters to the floor, rolling across the deck as the ship sways beneath their feet.
Rapunzel is frozen, her back still pressed against the wall, panting for breath.
Donovan shoots her a deathly glare.
There's a heavy knock at the door, causing them both to halt.
A male voice speaks up from outside the cabin, sounding frantic and muffled. "Captain? We may have a situation. A stowaway, sir."
Rapunzel and Donovan meet eyes across the room, both thinking the same thing.
A stowaway? Who could that be?
A flicker of panic ignites in Donovan's chest at the possibility that someone may know Rapunzel is here. Everyone is looking for the lost princess – the king, the royal guard, Flynn Rider, and probably every bounty hunter in the seven kingdoms. It's the first explanation Donovan can think of.
He tells himself it's nothing. Then his paranoia gets the better of him and he realizes he should probably make sure that there is in fact nothing to worry about, before he regrets it later.
"In a minute!" Donovan calls out.
There's a few moments of silence. Then they both listen to the crewmember's footsteps walking away on the other side of the door, gradually becoming quieter until they disappear completely.
Wincing, Donovan grips the handle of the dagger protruding from his shoulder. He clenches his fist around it as hard as he can, then slowly pulls it out.
Blood pours from the wound. It trails down his arm and toward the tips of his fingers. He doesn't scream anymore, or seem like he's in any pain. Instead, he's completely calm as he watches himself pull it out of his own squelching flesh.
As he holds the weapon out next to himself, drops of red drip from the point of the blade and onto the floor. There's a darkness in his eyes as he looks directly at Rapunzel again from across the room.
He steps toward her – slowly, torturously, footsteps brushing loudly against the deck and taunting her.
All Rapunzel does is stand there with her back against the wall, glancing nervously between him and the knife, terrified of what he might do.
He stops in front of her. Rapunzel swallows.
"You will stay here until I come back," Donovan demands in a low voice, his eyes threatening. "Then I will make sure that you forget this ever happened."
With that, he turns on his heel and swiftly picks up the syringe from the floor. He buries it in his jacket pocket as he strides toward the door of the cabin. When he swings it open, Rapunzel runs after him.
"No, wait!" she cries.
He slams the door in her face just as she reaches it, locking it closed behind him.