A Pirate Princess (11 page)

“That’
s what I figured,” Burke chuckled. “Let’s eat first.”

The pair sat down in the covering of trees, hidden temporarily from
The Beloved Loss
. However, they were close enough to hear a loud crash when Cori’s door fell away from the locks. Burke and Cori both gasped aloud, meeting eyes as they realized what the source of the noise was. Then, to reaffirm their silent question, Falco screamed clearly and unmistakably, “
MEVROUW
!”

“Off we go
!” Burke commanded with a smile on his face. They grabbed the remainder of the fish and fruit, throwing it into Cori’s small bag. Burke threw her bag over his shoulder and they raced ahead into the dangerous surroundings.

After over thirty minutes of running into the rainforest, Burke had to sit down and rest. “How can you possibly not be tired?” He asked between breaths.

Cori giggled, “I am just tougher than you, Burke Belcourt! Come on, let’s at least keep walking. I do not want them to catch up!”

“Surely they
will not look this direction for us. They shall search the village first,” Burke shrugged, standing back up.

“If
they cannot find me there they shall look here. They will search Hispaniola from side to side,” she whispered in fear.

Burke elbowed Cori playfully, “Then we better find a good hiding spot.”

They walked through the rainforest for hours, trying to stay close enough to the shore that they could hear the waves crashing. The last thing either of them wanted was to wind up lost in an extremely deadly environment. Later into the afternoon the sound of distant cannons erupting were heard. “What’s that?” Cori questioned.

“
Cannons. I’ve heard enough of those in my day to know. It’s coming from behind us, where we left
The Beloved Loss
. If I was a betting man, I would say that
The Heart of Calais
just showed up,” Burke said in relief.

More distant crashes were heard as Cori replied, “Why do you sound so calm about it?
They are waging war back there!”

“I’
m calm because
The Beloved Loss
is no concern for my crew. Acel will bring down your father’s ship, then do all the arresting required, realize we’re not onboard, and come looking for us. No problem, right?” He surmised.

Cori shook her h
ead at him, “Oh, you think it shall be that easy, huh? Keep in mind, you might be the most feared
buccaneer
on the sea but my father is the most feared
pirate
on the sea. I hope you are right and it is truly that easy to bring them down, but I am not going to breathe until it happens and I am safe and free in France!”

“
I am no buccaneer! Silly girl,” he chuckled, “But do not worry about them. Let’s just worry about finding our way to a good hiding spot before it gets dark.”

If he
is not a buccaneer for France, I guess he is a pirate. Then why does he have a home in France? How can he live on land and on the sea both? Is he not afraid of being caught?
Cori wondered. She opened her mouth to ask him her questions but her shrill scream came out instead. “SNAKE!”

Not an inch in front of Burke’s face was a tall tree, full of leaves and vines. One of the vines he was about to grab was no vine at all. It lunged
toward them as Cori screamed. The Boa Constrictor tried to wrap his giant mouth around Burke’s hand but thanks to Cori’s warning he jerked his arm away with less than a second to spare. Burke stumbled backward and landed right on top of Cori. They both lay on the moist ground for a few moments, laughing at themselves as the snake slithered away. “Get off of me!” Cori giggled, “I am going to get bit by some horrible bug and die!”

Burke grabbed Cori’s hand and
helped her to her feet. “I do not like snakes, but it’s sure beautiful out here, is it not?” He asked, still holding Cori’s hand in his own.

“Yes, it is.” She agreed, blushing and dropping her hand to her side.

The rainforest was filled with tall trees, towering so high above the couple that they could not see the sky. Each tree was covered in weaving vines and lush greenery. Exotic flowers bloomed all around them and the peaceful sounds of distant waves crashing on the beach, small animals communicating, and the light rain falling on the trees above filled their senses. “Yes,” Cori repeated again, “The forest is stunning.”

“It is,” Burke con
curred, “but the rainforest is not what I was talking about.”

Cori looked at him in confusion for a moment until she understood his compliment, “Oh,” she whispered quietly.

“Come on, beautiful. Let’s keep going. It’s probably early evening by now and we still need to get several miles further from
The Beloved Loss
before making our way to the beach,” Burke planned, changing the subject.

Cori did no
t answer, she just followed his lead. She wondered to herself what life would be like married to such a man as the
pirate
captain, Burke Belcourt. Trying to avoid that subject though, she wondered about the men she would meet in France. She remembered Burke telling her a few nights back that she was beautiful enough to marry royalty. She did not care about titles, as long as he was an honest man who had no affiliation with pirates!

She wondered what the men of France were like.
Are any of them as handsome as Burke? Do they smell as good as Burke? Are they as charming and funny as Burke? Are any as smart as Burke?
She did not deny Burke’s hold on her senses. He was an amazing man, attractive and kind. She would never allow herself to fall for a pirate though.
Never, never, never
, she silently vowed.

“When we find a good location to spend the night we will eat the rest of our food, alright?” Burke
suggested.

“Sure.”

Burke pondered the beautiful woman following behind him, “Why have you been so quiet lately?”

“Just trying to think, I guess. I have a lot on my mind.”

“Like what?”

“Like what could be
happening with
The Beloved Loss
and
The Heart of Calais.
I don’t hear any more cannons but that could be because we are so far from them now, not necessarily because the battle is over. And even if your crew wins, the natives of Hispaniola are loyal to my father. Your crew better not try to waltz off their boat like they have been invited because it would be a disaster. They should just sail around the island until they spot us!” Cori began.

Burke felt a tender spot in his heart for the caring
girl, “Acel’s smart, Cori. He shall figure that out. Do not worry about them!”

“I a
m also worried about finding a suitable hiding spot. A beach cave would be ideal, but alligators probably agree. Then, assuming we even make it to France alive, where will I stay? How shall I live from day to day? I have never thought about money, housing, or a real job before,” Cori distressed.

Burke decided that this was a good enough moment to tell her something he had been pondering on for the past couple days, “Well, you are welcome to stay at my home in Calais for a
while until you decide what you want to do or where you want to go. And do not worry about money. I plan to sell
The Beloved Loss
and all the goods on it. All the money I earn from that will be yours. Deal?”

“Oh, Burke, no.” She s
hook her head in denial, “I cannot stay at your home and burden you.”

“It would only have to be for a few days, Cori. I
will not be home much anyway. I shall be in Versailles handing your father and his crew over to the custody of King Louis. By the time I get back to my home in Calais, you will have had time to gather your wits and decide what you want to do with your life. You shall have plenty of money to live on until you get married,” he convincingly suggested.

Cori smiled pol
itely, “We will see, Burke. I shall consider all my options, even that one. Besides, why do you think anyone, besides the occasional pirate, wants to marry me? I am a pirate’s daughter. People probably will not consider that I have the potential to be a good wife!”

“You a
re beautiful, kind, caring, intelligent, and young. Trust me; you shall be much sought after. Moreover, your father may be a pirate but I have come to realize that you are no pirate at all!”

“You really think so?” Cori asked hopefully.

“Definitely. I am sure it will not take long at all to find a man for you,” Burke replied with a damper in his tone. He really did not enjoy planning Cori’s courting experience. Once again, making him wonder why he even cared!
Yes, I shall give her the credit of being breathtakingly gorgeous, intelligent, mature, caring and kind, but no matter if she was a saint I could not marry her, I already have one marriage on my hands!
He inwardly huffed.

“Now who is being
quiet
?” Cori inquired sarcastically.

Burke chuckled at her humor.
She is funny also,
he added to his silent list of compliments. “Yeah, yeah! Maybe I have a lot on my mind too!”

“Like what, Mr. Confident?” she teased.

“Like all the snakes in this world!”

“Oh gracious, Burke! We will be out of the rainforest and safely to the beach in an hour or two!”

“No, I do not mean on this
island
, Cori! I mean all the snakes in this
world
. You know, bad men out there who shall fall for you and will not be worthy.”

Cori scoffed out loud, rolled her eyes, stomped one foot, and put her hands on her hips. “I have you know, Captain Belcourt, that I am a grown woman! I have been aroun
d men all my life and I think I am a pretty decent judge of character!”

“You have been around seven or eight men in your whole life and the whole time you were under the protection and provision of your father. Yes, he
is a pretty mean fellow, but he would not have allowed you to be harmed. Out of the thousands of men you might meet in France, how will you know which ones are honest and which ones are not?” Burke reasoned.

“Well,” Cori
tried to begin. “I shall figure it out! How do all the other women in France pick a respectable husband?”

“Women of prominence and men of esteem are raised around each other from an early age. If a lady meets a man who claims royalty or affluence that she had never heard of before, her father will surely know him or his family and can make a judgment. It could be that he is from a distant region of France or even has a title in a different country! Many times, women are paired with men of their father’s choosing,” he explained.

That was one thing Cori understood easily, “Then it is not so different from a pirate ship!”

“Why did your father choose Falco for you?
Why not Laron or Yvet?” Burke questioned.

Cori shrugged with an over exaggerated sigh, “He likes Yvet to much to burden him with me. And Laron is
the black sheep of
The Beloved Loss
. He works hard and does a great job but distances himself from everyone else. Falco asked my father for my hand in marriage four years ago. They have been waiting on me to turn eighteen so I could be
given
to him. I do not care if I ever marry or not! I just do not want to marry Falco.”

“Most women obsess over marriage,” he stated, thinking of Odelia’s life-changing plans.

“Most probably do,” Cori agreed. “All I want is happiness! If I found a man who made me happy then I would gladly marry him. No matter if he was titled, prominent, wealthy, or not! All I shall refuse to marry is a pirate.” She felt truly saddened as she said the last sentence. Cori hoped it did not hurt Burke’s feelings or insult his career. The young beauty thought Burke was an amazing man and would marry him in a heartbeat if he had a respectable job. She just wanted to make sure he knew not to fall for her. It was hard enough on Cori not to have feelings for Burke. It would be impossible if he was interested in return!

To Cori’s surprise, Burke seemed to agree completely with her comment, “
That is quite understandable. I would certainly not want you marrying a pirate.” Then, under his breath he mumbled, “At least I would be better for you than Falco, if only by careers alone!”

Cori heard his mumbled words but did not understand his meaning.
What kind of strange captain is he? He says he is no pirate then he says he is no buccaneer! Yet, he travels the sea striking deals with pirates, trading with islanders and taking prisoners?

Cori knew that b
uccaneers and pirates were almost the same thing, but used different terms to classify themselves.
Burke must be something related to pirates and buccaneers, with some small variation, and claims a different title.
She did not want to look stupid by asking him what exact categorization of illegal thieving criminal he fit into.
Regardless of what he wants to call it, a pirate is a pirate to me!