Pirates of the Caribbean: Fate Intervenes

Compromises for Admiration

I writhed around, trying to find something to grab onto and fight. He held my arms behind me roughly, and it felt like the skin on my shoulders was ripping apart from my bones.

"Billings, let me be! You're hurting me." I wailed before letting out a scream which scorched my throat. Without even seeing him, I knew the foul smell of my attacker.

"That boy who calls himself Cap'n isn't here ta save ya now, is he?"

I couldn't help but whimper.

"Yer lucky I don't drown ya. The trouble yer flappin' gums got me in wit' Ol' Samson leaves ya deservin' Hell itself."
A groan creaked its way through my set teeth. "You won't get away with this!"

His only response was a sick chuckle before he dragged me with him up the gangplank, fastening an arm around my throat.

Suddenly, an oh-so-familiar voice slinked its relaxed tones around the both of us, causing both my assailant to stop in his tracks and relief to chill up my spine.

"I'm going to give you a great abundance of options, mate, but I have one that I most kindly suggest because I would rather not have to wash blood out of my shirt again, savvy?" My Captain's words were smooth and rushed, falling around themselves with confidence.

The hold that Billings had on me stayed firm and squeezed, as if panic caused him to latch on to me even harder. He turned around slowly, and my desperate eyes searched earnestly for Jacks. His gaze was set and determined, yet playfully calm; had I not known him as well as I did, the concerned glance he flickered towards me would have been indecipherable.

"I suggest you let her go, head down that pier back into port, and make sure I never see your face again, and I'll let you live."

"You seem to have great concern with the little lady's safety." Billings was trying his hardest to be tough, knowing he stood no chance.

"Oh, come now." Jack swung a patient arm. "You're not being honorable, that's all. And what is a man without his honor, aye?"

"A pirate."

For a second Jack's eyes snapped from their cool state, his jaw muscle quivering in hopeless anxiety. This might not work.

"Listen here, good man, I care not for whatever conspiracies you have regarding the lass and me." Jack made sure to point at me carelessly while mentioning me, not even taking the time to fully look at me, to make it seem less earnest. "But I will not allow this kind of barbarity aboard my ship. And I'm sure there are plenty of men on the other side of that dock who favor the girl, and who'd be at her side in a moment's notice defending her safety. So unless you want Commodore Teague at your neck, I suggest you let her go now." His words carried the same calm fluidity, however, his eyes shot knives into the gut of his opponent. The auburn tones of them had completely leaked on to the floor as his jubilance had, and now their onyx intensity was radiating.

The staring lingered, and my breath stopped in my chest, suspense buzzing around my limbs. At length, Billings threw me from his arms briskly and scurried up the plank.

My ribs whacked against the stiff planks, and I curled myself into a ball, wincing. I'd felt nothing but adrenaline for moments on end, and now that had leaked out and only pain remained. Pain in my wrists, my neck. Pain from his grip. Pain in my joints, which had stretched to their capacity in my attempts to free myself. I lay defeated for a moment, feeling overwhelming relief that Jack had found me.

As soon as I was released, my Captain was on his knees beside me, pulling me closer to him and inspecting me.

"Are you alright?" He asked, slightly panicked, and I yanked my arm away with a pained gasp as he grabbed it too sharply.