Cutlass Anne

Cutlass Anne - Chapter Forty

Chapter Forty

The men loaded the crates of cargo onto the longboat and head back out to the bay.

"Where do we go now?" Jane watched the longboat cut through the water.

"Virginia. Once we dock I want you to get to someplace safe."

"Where could be safer than with you?" She hugged me.

I nervously looked from Flynn to Christopher for some sort of help. "We will be facing John Jacks in Virginia."

"There is that pesky we again."

"I am fighting alongside my crew," I whispered.

"But you are a woman. Women do not participate in such barbaric things as sword fights."

"I am the captain of The Gilded Lady. I will fight alongside my crew. John Jacks has not just wronged us," I said, grabbing her delicate hand. "He has hurt a lot of people. Much of my crew did not willingly go into this. They were also taken from their homes. Others were tricked into working for him, traded like they were nothing more than cargo instead of people."

She looked at Christopher. "You?"

"I was on his pirate crew as an agent for the colonies. Your sister got me off the ship before they found out who I was. She saved my life. I owe her."

"What do I do?" she asked.

"When we get there, you will be taken ashore and to safety. I do not want him to even look at you." I turned away from her. I knew she wouldn't be happy.

Scully rowed the longboat back to us. The ship was ready for its last leg of our amazing journey. It was finally going to be over, but I could not help but wonder what would become of The Gilded Lady's crew once John Jacks was defeated.

I took up my seat next to Flynn as the small boat made its way back to the ship. Flynn reached under his jacket and produced a small box and handed it to me.

"What is this?" I examined the present closely before opening it.

"Something I thought you may need."

Inside the box, lying on a bed of blue velvet, was a silver pistol. The handle was an iridescent pearl and it fit my hand perfectly.

"I don't know what to say." I picked it up. It felt so much heavier than it looked.

"Just do not let my father kill you. All right?"

"You worry too much, love." I kissed his cheek.

"He had no problem shooting me and I am his son. You are a woman who lied to him, escaped with his ship, killed one of his men, stole one of his girls back, and have been pursuing him for months. He has every reason to shoot you."

"I suppose I will just have to be smarter and faster than he."

"Anne, he will not be easy to defeat. He is fast, he is smart, and he is conniving. He will have no issues killing his own men if it means killing you. Or me. Probably both of us."

I swallowed hard. I knew it was dangerous. I knew that we would not all make it away unscathed. In fact, I knew there were some who would die, but what if it were Flynn? Or Scully? Could I live with the possibility of one of them being gone forever?

I climbed up the Jacob's ladder to the deck of The Gilded Lady and stared into the faces of my men. I could see fear in some of them, others looked ready. Almost determined. They were about to get their revenge. I ascended the stairs to the helm and stood at the wheel. We would have a few days' journey south to Virginia.

"Before I shout out the orders, I have to tell you all something." The men gathered round and gave me their undivided attention. "We are preparing for a battle. Not many of us were willingly brought aboard any of his ships. Many of us were driven there either against our will or out of loyalty for someone he may have wronged in order to get revenge."

The men murmured amongst themselves as they continued to watch me.

"This is not going to be a simple battle. It will not be a battle that we come out of unscathed. Do expect casualties. Look at the man next to you; he may not be there next week. What we are asking you to do is something I never thought I would have to do. We are asking you to go into this battle knowing there is a chance you will not make it out alive."

Some of the men looked at me with horror on their faces, others looked excited.

"Flynn and I, we are even preparing ourselves for the moment if it may come."

"Anne! No!" Jane screamed, tears welling in her lovely eyes.

I closed my eyes, my bottom lip quivering. "It is something we are both prepared to accept. We are asking you, as free men, to fight with us. To avenge whatever wrong this devious pirate has levied against you or your family. We go into battle knowing that this monster will be stopped. He will not harm another person or family!"

The cheers of the men rang up from the deck. But they did not hide Jane's face. They did not get rid of the tears she shed, but it had to be done. Captain John Jacks could not be allowed to go on doing what he was doing. Flynn grabbed my hand and smiled.

"After the battle, we will travel to South Carolina and, in the bay, we shall marry."

"That sounds marvelous," I said. I was as unsure about my fate as was my crew. If things turned bad, Flynn may end up planning my funeral instead of marrying me.

"You do not have to do this," Jane cried, running to me.

"I do."

"Why? I am fine. I am alive. I want you to remain the same way!"

"It is no longer just about me or even about you, Jane. It is about stopping him and keeping any other girls from ending up with the same fate."

"Anne, you are trying to be this person that you are not. You are not an avenging pirate. You are a lady. You enjoy needlepoint and balls, not fighting."

"People change, Jane. I have seen the horrors that are in the world. I am not about to let a man go to continue his evil ways of taking young women as payment for debts owed by their fathers. What if it were me? Or your daughter?"

She opened her mouth to speak but quickly closed it, furrowing her brows.

"Precisely. So once we are in Norfolk, you will go to a safe location until I or Christopher comes to retrieve you. Do you understand?"

She nodded her head and went back to the cabin.

"Let's go for a ride, boys!" I shouted.

The exciting battle cry that erupted from the men was thrilling. Despite being terrified they were ready to face John Jacks for the last time.