Pirate Souls

II - Chapter 6 - Tortuga, again

At last, the coastline of Tortuga appears. I find it difficult to swallow. I order a stop in the port.

Carpentier smiles.

That was my last card. I have no more aces up my sleeve. I have never been so nervous in my life. The Anarkhia is there. I am convinced of it.

However, she is nowhere to be seen. If I am wrong, I have signed my death sentence, and Gibs's too. If Carpentier does not kill me to get his revenge, Marcelin will do it.

Night is already well under way when we dock. The captain follows me everywhere. My lungs feel as though they are being squeezed in a clamp in my chest.

Fuck you Florence, where are you?

At this late hour, the docks are even busier than usual. The bystanders are in a fever of agitation. French soldiers are teeming everywhere.

"But what is going on here?" Carpentier asks. "If this is one of your dastardly plans, Kelly..."

"Don't you threaten me, Captain," I answer. "I have nothing to do with this."

Can it be? Is my mermaid behind all this excitement? Deep down, I know the answer. It should still my mind.

No.

I have to stuff my hands into my coat to hide my trembling. I am terrified. And I am not alone in this. People all around us look shocked. The inhabitants of the island wander from the port to the town centre looking for an answer. Scraps of conversation tell us of the origin of this nocturnal turmoil.

A massacre. Many dead. A revolt. A bloodbath.

I don't need to hear any more. I know where to go. I take Cook, Carpentier, Luc and Baptiste towards Marcelin's inn. The usual slaves who line the streets of Tortuga have given way to a whole garrison of the island's soldiers. I should not be here, among all these guards. No matter. They appear to have other fish to fry. Marcelin's brothel is well guarded. Impossible to get near it.

From the corner of my eye, I see a woman in tears in the recess of an adjoining alleyway. I go towards her. I recognize her. She is a young prostitute from the establishment that Rick adored.

"What happened here?" I ask with my sternest voice.

By way of an explanation, all I obtain is an even stronger bout of tears.

"Answer me," I insist, shaking her. "What happened?"

The poor girl is visibly in a state of shock. I do not have time to pity her. I must know.

"Gibs, grab her, hold her up, we shall get her to talk whether she likes it or not."

The whore struggles feebly while Cook holds her arms so that she is facing me. Carpentier is watching the scene behind my back, clearly frightened of the way things are going. Luc takes a quick look behind him to make sure that our behaviour is not attracting the attention of the ten or so soldiers who are on patrol in the main street. They wanted to play at being freebooters. I'll show them what it really means to be a pirate. The girl's black hair falls across her bloodied face. She does not appear to be wounded.

"Gather your thoughts and tell us all! And don't you leave out a single detail."

No answer. I slap her face and she whimpers. I have hit her hard enough to bring her out of her torpor, but not hard enough to really hurt her.

"Calm down, Kelly," says Carpentier, seething. "The poor woman hasn't done anything."

"Shut up," I say as I turn towards him.