The Pirate Raiders (13 page)

S
he immediately unleashed a barrage of insults, most of which I didn’t even notice because I was too exhausted.  It did anger me that she was lashing out in front of the entire crew, but again, I was simply too tired to care.

  “It’s nice to see you again too,”
I said with a forced smile.

  “Although I don’t agree with your decision to exclude me, I am grateful for the fact that you somehow managed to pull this off,” she said
, climbing the steps to join me on the quarterdeck.

When she finally arrived at my side, she abruptly and rather forcefully grabbed the back of my head, pulling
my face to hers.  Our lips connected and she kissed me long and hard.  The men all watched the comical display, and then they erupted in boisterous applause and whistles.

  “That’s the kiss you were promised,”
she said after releasing me.

I smiled at her and suddenly forgot about the insults that occurred seconds earlier.

  “Well it’s nice to see you are a woman that keeps her promises,” I said. 

I then re
turned my attention to the crew; it took a moment for the laughter and banter to die down after the surprise kiss. 

  “Alright you scallywags,
lend me your ears now,” I ordered them, and the ruckus finally began to dissipate. 

  “You all fought bravely and I cannot thank you enough for your efforts.  Although the taste of victory is quite sweet,” I paused and scanned the crowd until I locked eyes with Joe.  “There still lingers
a bitter taste as well.  We lost two men today…may we never forget their faces.  When we fight on in the future, think of those men and fight for them.  We’ve still got a monumental task ahead of us mates.  It will take a lot more than lions and tigers to defeat Captain Trimble and the crew of the
Sea Witch
.” 

I paused another moment to let that sink in.

  “However,” I continued.  “We’ve increased our odds significantly by acquiring this impressive ship we now stand upon. 
Neptune’s Castle
is ours mates!”

The men roared in applause.

  “Our heading is New Providence and I promise you that once we are sailing, the rest of the evening will be spent celebrating our victory.”

  “Hop to it you scurvy dogs!” Oliver Langley cried out.  “There’
s a fresh bottle of rum calling my name and I don’t like to keep my friends waiting.  Let’s get this girl in the wind at once!”

With that, all of the men scrambled to their stations and p
repared to set sail.  I jogged across the deck and then shimmied down a rope that ended on the main deck of
Henrietta. 
Ricardo and his men had just finished tearing the sails and rigging off of the ship’s masts. 

  “
This old lady won’t be taking these men anywhere fast,” he told me, and then he drew near so only I could hear him.  “Are you sure you want to leave these men alive?  It will take some time, but they will eventually name you as the responsible party for the deaths of many of their mates.”

  “Aye, I know they will,” I agreed.  “But I’
ve never been keen on killing men that surrender and I am not going to start now.”

I took a moment to look over the pit
iful lot of defeated sailors.  They were bloody and their hands were tied behind their backs.  They’d lost many of their comrades, but despite all of that, they were alive. 

  “
Henrietta
is dead in the water,” I added thoughtfully.  “We’ll leave them tied up and just before I shove off, I’ll throw a knife on the deck.  It’ll take them some time, but one of them will eventually get to it and find a way to get free.”

It was at that moment another idea occurred to me.  I knew the men were listening to our conversation and I decided to use that to my advantage.

  “Besides,” I continued.  “By the time these blokes get free, we’ll be halfway to Madagascar.”

Ricardo quickly picked up on my ploy and immediately joined in the lie. 

  “Aye, I hope you’re right…these redcoats are quite crafty,” he added.  “There’s a lot of water between here and Africa.”

  “That there is,” I agreed with a wink.  “We’d better set sail at once. I’ll meet you at our next destination.”

  “See you there, mate,” Ricardo replied, and with that we both returned to our rightful ships. 

Once I was standing safely on the decks of
Neptune’s Castle
, as promised, I threw a somewhat dull dagger onto the deck of
Henrietta
.  The weapon wasn’t in the vicinity of any of the tied up sailors, but with a little coordinated effort, they would be able to reach it eventually.

I stood at the helm of my new ship and took the wheel in my hands.  I wanted to be the first to take control of her.
  I gazed out across the vast sea ahead of me and marveled at the large golden sun setting on the horizon off to the west. 

Once the ship was moving I inhaled the cool, fresh breeze that was currently caressing my face in a different light.  The sweet air I was breathing was a wonderful reminder that somehow I was still alive.  I’d cheated death so many times over the past few days, I wondered how much longer it would be before my luck ran out.  There was still much more to accomplish and things were not going to get any easier.

Gordon suddenly appeared from below deck and came up the stairs to stand by my side.  There was a long period of time that neither of us said anything.  It seemed Gordon was having thoughts similar to my own.

  “
William, I will find a way to repay you for what you did for me today,” he finally said in a somber tone.

  “Gordon, the way I see it, I was repaying you,” I replied.

He stared at me, confused.

  “Well, I
did
force you into piracy,” I explained.  “You certainly didn’t volunteer that day we met.”

Gordon smiled at that and nodded his head in agreement.

  “I suppose you’re right about that,” he said.  “It was not a life I wanted at the time; however I grew to embrace it.  I just sort of accepted it as punishment for what I did to my wife and her lover.”

  “Do you have regrets?”  I asked.

  “Every day,” Gordon replied.  “It was a terrible thing that I did.”

  “Aye, but it was a terrible thing your wife did to you as well,” I reminded him.

He looked at me, a shameful look upon his face.

  “She still didn’t deserve to die,” he said.  “I allowed jealous rage to take over and the next thing I knew, they were both dead.  I wish I could take it back, but of course I can’t.  So because of that fact, I have embraced my life as a pirate and I will do all that I can to make the most of it.  Men like you and Oliver make the journey somewhat easier.”

I could almost feel the pain Gordon was feeling and it made me pity him.  I reached over and put a firm hand on his shoulder.

  “
I’m glad to have you on my crew,” I told him.  “But please know that you are free to go any time you like.”

He smiled as he stared at the setting sun.

  “I know that, William,” he replied.  “I do not want to go.  This is my life now and if I try to live it any other way it just wouldn’t feel right.”

He took in a deep breath of ocean air.

  “Now,” he continued.  “Enough about the past; I assume you’re still hell bent on chasing down Captain Trimble.”

  “Aye,” I replied.  “And I assume you’re still with me?”

  “Of course,” Gordon said.  “I’m not going anywhere.”

Jolly Jack suddenly scrambled up the stairs from
below deck with a familiar scrap of black cloth bundled in his arms. 

  “Cap’n, I think it’s time to hoist this ship’s true colors,” he said, shaking the bundled black cloth out to reveal an image of a white skeleton with a red skull holding a cutlass.

  “I agree, Jack,” I replied.  “Hoist the ‘jolly roger’ and there it shall remain until a better pirate rips it from the mast!”

Chapter
10
:

Gordon Littleton became more like his old self every day.  The trip to New Providence took only a few days’ time and it seemed as if I’d spent almost every minute of it trying to reawaken the spirit of my loyal navigator.  The Gordon I’d known before the Royal Navy arrested him had been a flamboyant and opinionated bloke that frequently challenged my decisions and loved to question my every move.  I had always believed (although I’d never admitted it to anyone) that Gordon was a key component to the good fortune and success my crew and I had always enjoyed.  It was very difficult to make a rash decision on anything because Gordon was always there to make me think every intricate detail of every mission through until there was almost no room for error.  During these trials, as I liked to call them, I frequently made it known to Gordon that I was the captain and if I wanted his bloody input I’d ask for it.  When I said the words, I meant them.  It was only later, after a successful raid or battle occurred; that I would come to realize many of the points he’d forced me to listen to came to fruition once the action began.  It seemed that this was always the case but I was always too stubborn to give Gordon his due praise.  I suppose I feared that if I did so the opinions and input from him would only get worse. 

The Gordon Littleton that I rescued from the clutches of Captain Edward Sutton was not the same man that had been taken from me; at least not at first.  The new Gordon Littleton was unusually cooperative with everything I asked of him.  One would think that this new ‘attitude’ (for lack of a better word) that had taken hold of my good friend would’ve been something that I would eagerly embrace.  To be honest, at first I did.  But as time grew on I found myself longing for the old Gordon to return. 

When I’d finally had enough of his strange behavior, I did the only thing I knew to do.  I told him.  His initial response was surprise and an immediate denial of my charges.  I suppose it would not have been so bad if it were not so blatantly obvious that Gordon believed and meant the words that he spoke.  It was at that moment that I finally decided what needed to be done to awaken my old friend’s true spirit.  I was going to have to do something so appalling and egregious that Gordon would have no choice but to challenge my authority. 

I’d noticed that Gordon had taken quite a liking to Joe, the former slave that joined my crew back in Port Royal.  Joe was the epitome of what one would envision to be a gentle giant.  Everyone on the crew liked the man and he was arguably the hardest working seamen that I had.  So with that in mind, I gathered Joe and Andrea into my quarters to tell them of my plan to bring Gordon to his senses.  Joe smiled his wide toothy smile as he listened and Andrea even managed to crack a half-smile herself.  That was a welcomed sight.  Andrea had probably been the one member of my crew that I trusted the least.  The truth was I wanted to trust her.  I just wasn’t sure if I could.  She was the daughter of the fearsome Captain Winston Trimble, the very pirate we were hunting.  She’d been very adamant about not wasting time and effort on a rescue attempt for Gordon.  I was beginning to think she just didn’t like the man, but when we managed to rescue him from Captain Sutton I could see the relief on her face.  I suppose it could’ve been relief that her own skin had survived the battle, but I just wouldn’t allow myself to think that way.  She had to be happy that Gordon, the very man that risked his own neck to rescue her, had been rescued and was back where he belonged.  And now, her willingness to help me try to help Gordon just reinforced that belief.

When I was satisfied that everyone was comfortable with their roles, the three of us went about our respective parts.  Joe performed his usual chores that day and when it came time for him to go below the decks to see to our chickens, I waited a few moments, and then asked Gordon if he minded helping Joe gather eggs and hardtack from the store to take to Jolly Jack.  As expected, he eagerly obliged and went to help Joe.  Meanwhile, Andrea waited in the ship’s galley in place of Jolly Jack and I hid in the shadows to watch the entire scene unfold.

When Joe and Gordon arrived with their goods, Andrea wasted no time making a fuss about the lack of eggs that were in Joe’s basket. 

“This cannot possibly be all of the eggs we have,” she snapped.

Joe pulled the kerchief from his head and nervously wrung the cloth in his large hands.  “Yes ma’am, that’s all that was there today,” he replied, his head toward the floor.

Andrea glanced down at the basket and then back to Joe.  “I don’t believe you,” she argued.  “The reason I’m here is because Jack told the captain that he suspects you and your friends are stealing food, Joe.  Redd wanted me to look in to the matter.”

“Now hold on a minute,” Gordon interrupted.  “I was with Joe and he got all the eggs that were down there.  He can’t make the chickens lay them any faster!”

Andrea turned to Gordon and made no attempt to hide the fact she was annoyed with his interference. “Gordon, my dear,” she began.  “Do you think our suspicions just began today?”

Gordon opened his mouth to speak, but thought better of it.

“I’m afraid we’ve been dealing with this matter ever since Joe and his friends boarded Henrietta,” she said.  “I know that you’ve only known Joe for a couple of days, but take it from someone who’s been at sea with him while you were away, this man is stealing food.  Why do you think that the captain sent you down to help him gather the food?” she asked, raising an eyebrow. 

Gordon’s eyes widened as he suddenly realized that I’d tricked him into spying on Joe.  I saw a brief flash of the old Gordon there, but just as quickly as it had arrived, it then vanished.  He took a long look at Joe.  The large man was still fumbling with his kerchief and staring at the wooden planks below his feet.  “Joe, are you and your friends taking food?”

Joe’s head rose quickly and he wasted no time answering.  “No sir,” was the reply.  “We eat our meals with the rest of the crew…that’s the truth, Mr. Littleton.  I swear it.”

Gordon nodded then looked back to Andrea.  “I’m sorry but you are wrong.  This man is not taking food and I just witnessed him gather all of these bloody eggs.  You don’t have any hard evidence to back up your accusations.”

My time had finally arrived to enter the scene.  I stepped forward into the dim light that shone from a nearby lantern.  My sudden presence briefly startled Gordon.  “But Gordon, you didn’t arrive to help him until he’d already been down there for a few minutes, mate,” I said softly.  “He had time to hide some of the eggs when he heard you approaching and I bet some of his friends have probably already gone and gathered them while you have all been discussing the matter here.  I know you’ve taken a liking to the man…the truth is we’ve all taken a liking to him.  But the scoundrel and his knaves are bloody scum, they are.”

There was no mistaking the utter look of shock all over Gordon’s soft face.  He literally gasped as if the last sentence I’d spoken had been a slap in the face.  It was all I could do not to smile, but I had to wait for Gordon’s tirade to begin.  I would only be comfortable that he was back when that moment began.  He looked to Joe again, an expression of pure pity in his eyes.

“Please, Mr. Littleton,” Joe said.  “You have to believe me…we didn’t take any food, sir.”

“I believe you Joe,” Gordon replied, and then he looked back to me.  “What will his punishment be?”

“He signed the articles,” I said.  “You bloody well know what his punishment will be.  We have to treat him like any other pirate on this ship.  We’ll drop him off at the next strip of land we see.”

“You can’t maroon him, Redd,
” Gordon said in his most pleading tone.  “At least not yet…give me some time to prove his innocence.”

I shook my head.  “Sorry, mate.  I can’t do that.  I’ve got no tolerance for thievery.”  I stepped forward and grabbed Joe’s massive forearm.  “Let’s go, mate.  You’ll remain in the brig until we spot a piece of sand to drop you on.”  Joe hung his head low but did not utter a single word in argument. 

I turned away and began to lead him away.  It was beginning to concern me that Gordon was not putting up much of a fight on the matter…and then it happened.  Joe came to an abrupt stop, his free arm now clutched in Gordon’s grasp.

“I can’t let you do this, captain,” Gordon said.  “This man is innocent and I will not stand idly by while you condemn him to death.”

I tugged Joe toward me.  “I do not need your permission, or your thoughts on the matter,” I growled.  “As I said before, Joe signed the articles just like everyone else.”

Gordon tugged Joe back to him.  “You’re not taking him, Redd.”

I pulled Joe to me again.  “Yes, I am.  Now get your bloody hands off of him or you’ll soon find yourself joining him.”

I watched as Gordon’s face turned to a shade of red I had not seen since that night at The Parrot’s Landing when I told him of my plan to rescue Andrea.  His eyes narrowed and his jaw clenched.  Then, quick as lightning, he drew Andrea’s cutlass from its scabbard before she even knew what was happening.  Gordon then pointed the blade toward my throat.

“Let him go,” he said coldly.  “And draw your steel.”

Suddenly it seemed that the old Gordon had returned, and in a sad twist or irony, I quickly found myself longing for the cooperative one again.  I carefully let go of Joe’s arm and allowed a smile to creep across my face.

“There’s the Gordon I know,” I said calmly.  “Good to have you back, mate.”

“Draw your steel!” he exclaimed.

“Now just calm down, you rascal,” I replied, raising both of my hands.  “I will not draw anything.  Put your sword down so we can talk about this.”

Gordon kept his icy gaze on me, but directed his voice to Joe.  “Go and get Oliver Langley, tell him to get down here quick.  Tell him I need his help.”

Joe looked over at me, wide-eyed and confused. 

“Stay right there, Joe,” I told him.  “I told you our little plan would work.  See how smart your captain is,” I said, winking at him. 

Joe didn’t return a smile; he just continued to stare at Gordon’s sword pointed at my throat.  I suppose from his point of view, I looked anything but smart at the moment.  However, my statement did seem to get Gordon’s attention.

“What are you talking about?” he asked.

“This was all a bloody trick, mate,” I answered.  “I was just trying to get a rise out of you so that the old Gordon would return to us.”

Gordon’s hard expression softened; and the sword lowered slightly.  “You…
tricked me?”

I slowly put my palm on the flat side of the cutlass and gently pushed it away.  “Aye, you were doped, mate.”

“We were just trying to get you back to your old self, you dolt!” Andrea chimed in. 

Gordon looked over at Joe.  He was still wide-eyed and somehow seemed to be the most uncomfortable person in the room.  “Is this true?” Gordon asked him. 

The big man nodded slowly in response.  “We were just trying to help you, Mr. Littleton.”

Gordon dropped the cutlass and took a step back.  He then peered over at me with a glare that was all too familiar.  “You’re lucky I didn’t hack your skull asunder,” he quipped. 

“Aye, I could tell you would have too,” I replied.  “Must be that killer instinct.”

Gordon scoffed at that and trudged back to the waist without saying another word. 

When he was gone, Joe asked, “Is that the Gordon you wanted to come back?”

I nodded and smiled.

Joe stared at me in disbelief.  “But…he tried to kill you captain!”

“Aye, verily…and I wouldn’t have it any other way, mate.”