"I mean, today could have been worse," Jasper said when all his friends were in the prisoner's cabin after dinner, trying to lighten the mood.
"That is because you only had to climb a rope ladder and hoist the sail. We ended up having to load and shoot the cannons multiple times," Charles complained as he tried to wipe the soot off his face.
"And I was forced to wash clothes that seem like they have not been properly cared for in years!" Meg added.
"I have been on this ship for what has felt like a month and have had enough of this!" Robert exclaimed.
"Knowing that our last attempt did not work, we need to think of something else," Benedict pointed out.
"But what do we do? Last time, when Charles and I jumped out of the ship to get in the dinghy, the pirates had pulled the rescue boat out of our way, and we fell into the water," Robert said.
"It does not help that Captain Moncilia and the rest of the pirates are light sleepers," Charles moaned.
"Annie, you told me this afternoon that you had an idea on how we can escape. Is this a good time to share it?" Meg prompted her cousin.
"It sure is! When I was in the kitchen today, I noticed a small bottle of some sort of sleeping draft. That made me think; what about we try the plan again, but this time, we give the pirates that sleeping draft before bed?" Annie suggested.
"What do you mean?" Charles asked.
"Well, since they made me the cook on this ship, I ought to take advantage of it. How about you guys unlock the window so we can sneak into the dinghy once again? Then tomorrow, I will see that the pirates have some of that draft, which will put them into a deep sleep," Annie explained.
"I will also make sure that their night clothes are extra comfortable so they can drift off to sleep easier," Meg added.
...
After another day of pirate training, cooking, and cleaning, everyone on the Air Mando sat down and ate the crab and potatoes Annie had made.
"That was a lovely dinner, Miss," Aslan complimented.
"What's for dessert?" Joseph asked.
"A boiled treacle pudding," Annie answered as she placed the spiked sleeping draft dessert on the table.
"Oh, boy! I have not had any proper dessert since I left Plymouth !" Benedict exclaimed.
"Sorry, but it is not for any of the captives," Annie explained before cutting the dessert.
"I thought you were our friend!" Benedict yelled.
"I think she is using that to put the pirates to sleep," Meg whispered to Benedict after some people looked at him.
"Oh, never mind, I am fine."
"Well, folks. Today, you did a lovely job, but now, it is off to bed for everyone," Timothy said through yawns after finishing his pudding.
...
"Alright, guys. We are alone once again; the crew should be in a deeper sleep than before, so let's get out of here!" Jasper proclaimed quietly to his friends.
Charles walked up to the window above the dinghy and worked to unlock the window as quickly and quietly as he could.
"There, that should do it. Now we can make our way to freedom!" he declared.
"I can not believe this is happening!" Robert said as he crawled out the window and into the little boat.
"I am going to see my homeland once again!" Benedict added joyfully.
"What are you all up to in here?" someone from behind asked.
"We are simply rejoicing about how great pirate lessons were today and that we can not wait to learn more," Charles lied, unaware of the asker of the question.
"If that is the case, why are you leaving?"
Meg and Annie turned around and saw that Captain Moncilia and The Terrible were in the room with them!
"I thought you ate the pudding!" Annie exclaimed, horrified by the unexpected guests.
"Well, actually," The Terrible began as he and Captain Moncilia pulled out small handkerchiefs from their pockets that were full of pieces of Annie's spiked pudding.
"If you are trying to give a group a sleeping draft without them knowing it, I would recommend not making a comment about that dish being only for them," Captain Moncilia said.
"Here is the deal. If you agree to bring everyone in the dinghy back inside the ship and promise you will not try this again, no one gets hurt."
"And if we do not agree?" Caden challenged.
"Otherwise, the next person to try and escape gets shot," The Terrible threatened as he pulled out an old pistol from his belt.
"I thought that we left that gun with your father's body when he died!" Captain Moncilia stated, horrified by the reveal of The Terrible's secret weapon.
"Well, I thought that it might be useful to have a gun on board and this moment proves me right."
"Alright, we agree!" Caden exclaimed, his heart racing as he helped Benedict and Robert back into the Air Mando.
"Not under my watch! We tried to leave this ship once and will not give up until we win!" Charles yelled.
"He is either very brave or very stupid," Meg whispered to Annie as Charles charged toward The Terrible.
"Why am I not surprised?" the second mate asked aloud as he held out the pistol, ready to fire. However, this time, Charles knocked the weapon out of The Terrible's hand and sent The Terrible to the deck with the same swift motion. At the same time, Jasper decided to fight with Captain Moncilia to give his friends more time to get out of the ship.
"Get out of here while you still can!" Charles exclaimed. As he tried to run to the window again, he fell over as The Terrible reached out and grabbed Charles's right ankle.
"Has being on this ship for nearly a week taught you nothing about us?" The Terrible asked as he stood up with the pistol once again.
"Yes, but have you learned anything about ME?" Charles replied as he grabbed hold of The Terrible's wrists.
"No brother of mine is going to die under my watch!" Caden declared as he ran to the two fighting men. He grabbed The Terrible and held him back long enough for Charles to stand up again and escape.
The battle continued with Jasper and Benedict keeping the captain occupied while Caden and Charles tried to keep the pistol away from The Terrible. The battle finally ended with two gunshots and The Terrible throwing the gun right next to Jasper's feet.
"What's going on here?" Chris asked after he and Aslan rushed into the room.
"The captives have been trying to escape the boat again. And to make it worse, one of them shot the Captain! I tried to save him, but it only resulted in the captive shooting me," The Terrible exclaimed as he motioned toward the gun and Captain Moncilia, who was lying on the floor, bleeding from the gunshot wound in his chest. The Terrible was also now sitting on the ground, clutching his wounded leg.
"The Captain's been shot! Who committed such an act?" Aslan panicked, tears immediately forming in his eyes.
"Rosella, my love. I am sorry I left you so many years ago. But now, I will finally be able to see you again after all this time," Captain Moncilia whispered before closing his eyes and breathing his last breath.
أنت تقرأ
Secrets from the Deep
المغامرةWhen Caden's friend Robert is kidnapped by the feared Captain Modi, he decides to go off on a quest out on the sea. However, he leaves his friend Meg behind, believing she's not up for the task at hand. So with the help of her cousin Annie, Meg sets...
