Evangeline McKenna has won Jack Sparrow's heart. Now, as she joins him again on his beloved Pearl, outside forces threaten to tear them-and everyone else-apart. The crew teams up with new and old forces to defeat a wealthy man in London who wants no...
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Evangeline's drink loomed in front of her like some dreadful beast. Everyone at the table sat quietly, waiting for her to conquer it. Even Jack, who would have never pressured her, looked on in interest as if to say, "You ordered it, dear."
She cleared her throat, rubbed her hands together, and took three large gulps before slamming the tankard back down onto the table, splashing both Jack and Barbossa. The men cheered her name, and she only coughed a few times, surprised that it went down so smoothly. Perhaps she was becoming used to it all.
Jack rubbed her back encouragingly as he chuckled. "Look at you. Regular ol' piratess, now."
"You'll have to deal with me once I'm drunk," she replied, coughing once more.
"Ah, I quite like drunk Evangeline. She's a flirt," Jack said, taking a drink from his own mug.
Cotton's parrot waddled past her, looking for scraps of food, but the bird settled for a few head scratches instead. He seemed to like Geline more than the others. It was dark now, and all the lamps had been lit, completely transforming the space. Those sailors who had been working the docks during the day filtered into the tavern, looking for a drink and some company. The music picked up speed, as if the musicians knew what sort of atmosphere to create now that the sun had set.
"Alright, what say you lot to a game of cards, then?" Gibbs asked, looking up and down the table to gauge everyone's mood.
"Geline ain't allowed to play," a young man seated next to Kippler said, crossing his arms over his chest in resolution.
That garnered a hearty chuckle from the crew.
"I beg your pardon?" Geline asked, looking down at him. "You're just afraid I'll leave you broke and you won't have any money to spend on that pretty young woman two tables over!"
Jack spit his drink out as he giggled, and Gibbs laughed so loudly, that other patrons looked to see what all the fuss was about. Barbossa shook his head in disbelief, but he smiled on like a proud father.
"Well, fine, yer on then. Ya can't take all our money," the boy retorted.
"Oh, lad. You've done it now," Jack sang, taking the deck of cards from Gibbs and shuffling them.
It had been the most Geline had laughed in months, and she only played better the more she drank. It made her unbeatable. Each time she bested another player, the crew cheered, hardly angry that they had to give up their coin. After a while, men from other tables had gathered around, pressed against each other to watch. She played strangers, too, who would look to Jack once they lost. Jack would lean over the table and wiggle his fingers, asking for payment. It seemed even the barmaids lingered to partake in the fun, hoping the member of the fairer sex bested every man who dared to try and play her.
The wagers became bigger as the night wore on and they all became drunker.
"Who taught you to play like that?" A French sailor asked, reaching into his pocket for his payment.
