A Pirate's Love

Captain's Quarters

Sam opened the chamber door carefully, our hands still intertwined. Upon entering and following closely to Sam, I peeked from behind his back and saw the Captain sitting at a table, focused on a map. He quickly glanced up at us, back down at the map, then up again, doing a double take. His eyes locked first on my body, then to our hands, and quickly shot up to my eyes in an intense stare.

Suddenly feeling self conscious, I hid behind Sam again and slowly unlocked our fingers. I could feel him reluctant to let go, but he respectfully dropped his hand to his side.

"You wanted to see us, sir?" Sam asked, cordially.

"Captain," the Captain stressed for formality, "and yes, sit down," he ordered, coldly.

"My apologies, Captain," Sam said. I could sense the annoyance in his tone. I looked to Captain Blacksmoke to see if he sensed it as well, but his face and eyes showed no obvious emotion. We sat on either side of him and followed his eyes to the map on the table.

"This is a map of the world as we know it," the Captain gestured to the map that had lines all drawn through it, which I assumed represented different pathways he had traveled. My father had a map quite like it. He continued, "our position is currently— here," he placed the tip of a small metal pointer on a dot just outside of the Caribbean Islands and then moved it to mark England, "The straight line distance between our current location and England is approximately 6,562 kilometers, a vast distance right through the middle of the Atlantic. If we go at maximum speed of 6 knots, it will take us about twenty-four days of travel," he paused and sighed, "However, I cannot afford to put my men at risk by going a consistent top speed through the middle of the Atlantic. Foul play of the weather is inevitable. It's a shipwreck waiting to happen. In addition, considering the danger of Dan Deranged on our stern, I would suggest taking a different, longer, yet safer direction, by traveling at 5 knots and first making port in Africa. That way we can gather provisions, stretch our legs, then make it to Brighton." He sounded intelligent as he spoke, though I did not understand the nautical terms he explained.

"How much longer would we be at sea if we stopped in Africa?" Sam asked, obviously following along better than I was.

"Well," the Captain sighed again, "considering we would go at a constant speed of 5 knots for safety precautions," The Captain leaned back in his seat comfortably, looked at the ceiling and tapped the pointer on the table, "chuh-chuh-chuh," he made a noise between his teeth, then made eye contact with Sam, bringing the pointer from his fingers to between his teeth in concentration "Approximately thirty-four days."

"Approximately?? Is that all??" I yelled. His black-brown eyes finally making contact with mine, yet showing no emotion.

He removed the pointer from his teeth, "Excluding the weather and possible 'interactions' with Dan Deranged and his crew," he said plainly with raised eyebrows, now sitting up in his seat.

Sam rubbed his chin and started, calmly, "Our best option is to take the route which keeps Elenor the safest. If you think stopping–"

"Captain Blacksmoke—" I urged as I cut Sam off, "may I speak with you alone please?" I stood up from my seat for emphasis.

He stared at me blankly, "Very well. Sam, you can see yourself out," he directed. Sam looked at me in confusion before standing up and closing the door behind him. "I'm all ears, love," the Captain said, still no emotion in his expression.

I took a deep breath in annoyance, rolling my eyes, "Firstly, Captain, since you insist on formality, you may only address me as Miss. not love, not princess, Miss. Secondly, twenty-four days compared to thirty-four are too many days I cannot afford to lose–"

"I didn't say you needed to call me Captain, just the boy," he cut me off, "You can call me whatever you like, dear," a smug smirk appeared across his face as he once again lifted the pointer between his teeth, propping his legs up on Sam's seat and leaning back.

I stared in disbelief before taking another deep breath, ignoring his devilish comment. "As I was saying," I continued as I walked around the room. I saw him shuffle in his seat, watching my every move. "I cannot waste another day waiting around for safety. We need to take the quickest route to England, to my father. I do not want to hear another word of it," I turned around to see him now standing from his seat, leaning against the other side of the table with crossed arms.

"Can't do that, love," he answered as he clenched his jaw.

"And why not??" I yelled, now completely annoyed, moving closer to him.

"For the safety of my crew, miss," he barked back, now standing tall and looking down at me.

"To hell with your crew!!" I yelled louder.

In that instant, the Captain grabbed the base of my throat and pushed me against the wall, his other hand just above my head. He shifted his knee between my legs and against the wood of the wall, holding me still, all happening in an instant.

"DON'T argue with me, princess," he spoke in a guttural tone under gritted teeth. "You are an errand, not a priority. My men come first." His dark eyes stared intensely into mine.

My heart began racing from the shock, my eyes welling with hateful tears, my neck sore where he held onto it because of the scratches I acquired earlier. His eyes faltered and fell to my lips, then to my neck. I could feel his breath against my chin as he slowly released my throat, moving his eyes back to mine, now a soft brown.

"Don't argue with me," his voice softened, "All accommodations were made with your safety in mind. If you want to make it out of here alive, the crew's lives will matter to you," he stressed, "We're making port in Africa." His last remark was as quick as his movement away from me, leaving me in shock again. "You're dismissed," he ordered, his back to me.

I quickly rubbed my throat and opened the door, Sam just outside in the hallway, no doubt listening, his eyes wide. We locked eyes for a moment before I closed the door and quickly moved past him, making my way to my room.

"Elenor," he called after me, "Elenor, wait!" He grabbed my arm but I quickly tore it away, spinning around to face him.

"Don't touch me," I yelled, Sam's eyes a sad and confused glaze over them. I stormed off to my room, left him in the hallway, and locked the door behind me.