THE SAILS OF THE HIGH SEAS

- Chapter 51 -

There was something indescribably calming to Sandokan about the way Marianna looked in his chambers. There was something inexplicably fulfilling about the way she moved about the caves and among the pirates that had become his family. And there was simply no way for him to dismiss the light in her eyes whenever her gaze traveled toward him.

He fell in love. Ha! What a notion! How could a pirate like him, ruthless by reputation and tainted by infamy, find refuge in the heart of a woman as opposite from him as cosmically possible? And yet, he had. But most importantly, the woman that Marianna was herself, she had fallen in love with him as well.

She saved him.
She cared for him.
She brought him back to life not by compassion, but by the virtue of her love. She helped him heal, not from the outside by tending to his wounds, but from the inside by filling his heart to the brim. And, if Tremal Naik would ever come to be as lucky as he has, Sandokan knew that Lady Ada Corishant would one day be able to fill that void in Tremal Naik's heart as well.

"You make me feel as safe as I have felt when my mother and father were still alive," Marianna whispered softly as she and Sandokan walked along the moonlit path of the tropical jungle not far from the caves.

"Ahh, my dearest Marianna, it is You who makes me feel that my home is finally not as empty as it always felt to me after my parents had passed on," Sandokan embraced her tenderly.

"Thank You for loving me enough to bring me here to share this place with You," Marianna leaned in closer to his shoulder, but Sandokan stooped and turned her toward him.

"Marianna, my dearest Pearl of Labuan. All that I am, everything that I am - a pirate, a long forgotten son of Kaigadan, a man in love with You in every breath I take. My heart belongs to You. This place belongs to You. The caves, the stronghold of my people, these lands with its jungles and its tribes still fighting for their freedom. It all belongs to You, my beloved," he whispered softly, with his arms wrapped around her waist.

"Sandokan... You sure know how to sweep a Lady off her feet," Marianna smiled and looked deeply into his eyes. "The way You speak to me always makes my heart flutter within my chest."

"So, my Lady feels as though her heart flutters within her chest when she hears the words she inspires herself?" Sandokan offered Marianna a mischievous smirk as he playfully pulled at the loose strands of her hair.

"That is true. And You seem to do it so effortlessly," Marianna smiled and brought her hand to his left cheek. She caressed the spot where his scar used to be visible to others. It was now covered by a beard, but she knew it was still there.

Sandokan began to lower his lips to hers, so she closed her eyes. But because the kiss never came, she opened her eyes again. The piercing gaze of the moonlight in his eyes shot bolts of lightning and desire along the edge of her skin. He held his gaze in the moonlight, and whispered his words against those longing lips of hers.

"Smug,
I look into the eyes
That shine
With the light of Our love...

Happy,
I smile along with the smile
That forms on Your face
When You look at me...

Content,
I swoon to the rhythm
Of love that beats in my heart
From the moment I felt the strength of Your love..."

"Sandokan..." Marinna brought her other hand to his other cheek, and cupped his face. "Your words leave me speechless."

"That makes two of Us," Aruna came out of hiding, with her sword drawn.

"Aruna?" Marianna asked, baffled and scared the moment the blade of Aruna's sword reflected the light of the moon. She leaned into Sandokan, as if to shield him with her own body.

"What are You doing here, Aruna?" Sandokan asked her, but looked down toward Marianna. The sole fact that she thought to shield him with her own body knocked his heart out of its shackles.

"Making sure my family's legacy does not get forgotten any more than it already has," Aruna's fury was as apparent in her voice as it was clearly visible in her eyes.

"I would choose Your words wisely, Aruna. It is not only Your family's legacy You refer to. It is my family's legacy as well," Sandokan spoke calmly as he wrapped his arm around Marianna - not to shield her, but to be able to whirl her behind him at any moment.

"You are a fool to believe for a moment that the British nobility could be trusted. They killed Our parents. And now, they are aware of Our stronghold because of Your careless actions." Aruna took a step forward and turned the sword's handle in her hand.

"I trust those who believe in justice and honor," Sansokan tightened his grip around Marianna's waist.

"Ha! Then You are a bigger fool than I took You for, little brother," Aruna took another step forward.

"Would You really come to stand against Your own brother this way?" Marianna asked her with her head held high, but with sorrow in her heart. "He shares the same blood as You."

"You are the one to talk, Marianna," Aruna shook her head slowly, with sarcasm in every word she said. "British nobility. Birthright reserved for only the privileged. Tell me, beautiful Pearl of Labuan, how little does a bloodline mean to You if You left Your own uncle for someone like Sandokan?"

"Someone like Sandokan?" Marianna repeated Aruna's words. They burned her throat. They burned her heart. And they burned her soul. "How dare You speak of him that way?!?"

"Aruna, I will give You one piece of advice. Don't. Don't do this. Don't start something we are both aware that You will not be able to win on Your own," Sandokan tried his best to remain calm.

"Oh, but I am not alone. Not now, and not for quite some time," Aruna smiled wickedly and took another step forward. "You see, while You were preoccupied with some foolish notion of a fling with some mediocre British noblewoman, I was rebuilding the ties with those You had chosen to discard. We will rise against the British, and we will reclaim the freedom of Our people. WITHOUT Your help."

"You are a fool to think You can trust those men. Worst of all, You are a fool to think You can control them," Sandokan tried to take a step forward, but Marianna stood her ground and shielded him better than he anticipated.

"Bit of a hypocrite to call me a fool for trusting the wrong people, don't You think?" Aruna raised her eyebrow at Sandokan.

"I trust my own gut, not someone's reputation,"
Sandokan replied with stoic peace.

"You trusted Your beloved's cousin. Tell me, where do You suppose Lady Ada Corishant is right about now?" Aruna whirled her sword around with her wrist to show she held the upper hand.

"What have You done to her?!?" Marianna exclaimed with fear. She attempted to rush toward Aruna, but Sandokan gripped her waist and whirled her around and behind him as Aruna raised her sword.

"Your little cousin is as much of a coward as my brother is a fool," Aruna kept smiling.

"Liar!" Marianna exclaimed and tried to step forward.

"I warned You to choose Your words wisely, Aruna." Sandokan narrowed his eyes at his sister, but looked back at Marianna because she kept attempting to go around him. "Don't, please."

"But she hurt Ada!" Marianna replied with tears in her eyes.

"No, I didn't," Aruna lowered her sword, both amused and satisfied with herself. "As I said, Your cousin is a coward. Though I give her credit for coming to me and asking to be sent back to Lord Guillonk's estate. Then again, maybe I don't."

"How can I trust You that she will arrive safely at my uncle's estate?" Marianna demanded an answer.

"Because I know she will get exactly what she deserves at Lord Guillonk's estate. That in itself is enough of a reason for me to make sure she gets there in one piece," Aruna picked up her sword and admired her own reflection in moonlight.

"You're a monster!" Marianna cried out.

"No, Marianna," Sandokan turned around and whispered to her with utter sadness in his eyes. "She is the traitor..."