The Jackdaw

Chapter 15: Kingston

Being on the Jackdaw again, it was as if you had never left. The boys had been weary at first. They were mostly concerned about how Edward would react if they goaded his 'secret' lover. But it seemed almost natural to fall back into the habit of teasing each other. It's how you imagined a real family would behave.

You spent most of your time listening to Edward's explanation of the Assassins and how James Kidd, her real name Mary Read, fit into all of it. He admitted that he didn't care for their cause nor did he assassinate targets for their sake. He was doing everything for the coin, coin for himself and coin for the boys. A ship full of pirates had a deep hunger for gold, rum, and ladies and that needed to constantly be quenched.

You hid away in the cabin when Adé mentioned that the ship was only hours away from Kingston. You hadn't seen the bustling city for some time and there was a part of you that dreaded returning there. You'd grown complacent out on the open water, far away from the reminders of your past. It had been good living at the Great Inagua, a respectable woman who worked to build the island into a stable business. Here in Kingston, you were nothing more than a street cat clawing her way to freedom.

The cabin door creaked open, Edward poking his head in with his usual cocky grin. "You coming, love?"

You forced yourself to look up from the table's maps that were sprawled out before you. You hadn't truly been looking at them. You had been too consumed with your thoughts to even register what you'd been staring at.

 "Of course." You sashayed over to him, slipping an arm around his waist while he did the same, his warmth providing you some stability. "How long do we plan to stay?"

"A few days at most." He waltzed slowly across the deck, taking his time with you. He wasn't in much of a hurry to set to any form of real work. "I sent a message to Vane. He should be meeting with us where I suggested."

Your fingers curled against the thick fabric of his jacket, clenching onto him tighter. "Well, then there's certainly no reason why we can't celebrate."

Edward laughed loudly as the two of you walked from the ship along the gangway to the docks. "You sure you aren't a pirate, love? I think you like to drink more than any of the boys do."

You huffed, playfully shoving against him as you neared the edge of the dock and the crowded fish market just up ahead. "Shut up and buy me a drink, Edward."

The corner of his mouth tugged into a smirk. "Yes, ma'am."

You rolled your eyes out to the crowd and you hardly paid any attention to the faces until you heard your name being called out. It was a woman's voice, familiar yet different enough that you couldn't quite place it. You searched now, brows drawing together as you considered whether or not this would be an ally or an enemy. They knew your name but then again there were quite a few disgruntled people in Kingston who knew you.

She shoved her way through the crowd and it was then that you saw her face clearly enough. Enemy, your brain alerted. This woman, draped and garbed in the finest silks, was your worst nightmare. Her hair was pulled up in tediously pinned curls, her hat just as unnecessarily extravagant.

Your heart swooned sickeningly, stomach flopping as fear took over. "Edward." You jerked away from him and searched for an exit plan. You saw the docking poles sticking up out of the water, forming a line towards the other side of the marketplace.

"Guards." The woman couldn't push her way through the rest of the bustling crowd but she did manage to catch the attention of a few passing guards.

"I'm sorry. Meet me at the tavern later." You started shuffling away from him.