A Pirate's Love

Africa

Jake's POV:

After barking countless orders at the crew to make a hasty escape, I took my telescope, placing it over my eye, and looked south. I could see the torches of Dan Deranged's crew falling back into the line of trees. We made a good head start, but they would be chasing after us soon. I lowered the glass and folded it up, wiping sweat from my forehead with the back of my hand. I quickly looked at my compass. Northbound.

My mind raced as I thought of the quickest way to England. I tried to think back to my stock book, remembering we were low on supplies. I quickly looked up at the sky and searched the fading stars, making careful calculations of our precise location. "Head northeast, Mr. Tills," I called to Tills who was at the helm, making a mental note of the direction we were headed.

"Aye, Captain," he said as he made a slight adjustment in position.

Smith climbed up from the main deck to the quarter deck, meeting me at the helm.

"Just in time, Smith," I called to him, clapping a hand on the front of his shoulder and handing him the telescope. "Man the ship and keep 'er steady," I commanded, giving him control.

"Aye, Cap'in," he responded. I turned to walk away. "Cap'in, if I may," he asked and I spun around, looking in his direction, "Sam and Miss Elenor are in their proper chambers, but the boy's in rough shape, Cap'in. Exhausted from runnin' he is. Passed out near' as soon as I opened the door," he explained in worry.

"I'll have Six prepare him something to keep his strength up. A good stew will do him good," I replied, acknowledging his concern.

"Aye, Cap'in," he nodded and smiled. I nodded back and turned to make my way down the steps and to the sleeping quarters. Walking past all the hanging hammocks of the crew and into the kitchen, I poked my head into the doorway quickly. Six stood at the counter, whistling and chopping vegetables. "Six," I called after him, his six fingers holding the knife suddenly stopping as he looked up, "Stew for our guests, please, and tell them to meet me in my quarters for a brief meeting when they've finished," I asked, keeping both of them in mind.

"Oui, Capitaine," he spoke in his French accent.

I quickly made my way back up the steps and to my own quarters, shutting the door behind me. Pausing for a moment, I rubbed my hand over my eyes and face, stopping at my chin, pulling my face down in exhaustion. I sat in my seat at the table and scratched at my stubbly cheek, looking down at my map with tired eyes. I stared at it for a minute before finally picking up a small piece of led, drawing a straight line from our position to the harbor in Brighton. Measuring the distance between the two, I pinched the bridge of my nose and did quick equations in my head, dividing kilometers by kilometers per hour, then converting hours to days. I sucked in a big gasp of air, not realizing I was holding my breath. Twenty-four days.

I opened one of the drawers of the table and pulled out my stock book. I hurriedly glanced over the numbers. We wouldn't have enough food for the last four days of the trip. I sighed in anguish, stress and anxiety filling my body to the point of panic. We were never given enough time to prepare for this trip. I flicked my hair out of my face and onto my shoulder, looking at the map once more. I picked at my lip, searching for an answer on the flat lines, when suddenly the word 'Africa' caught my eye. I sat up in my seat and hunched over the map, speedily drawing lines between our position and an island off of the coast of Africa, then to the harbor in Brighton. This could work. I sighed in relief, but anxiety still filled my mind. I measured the distances, only to hear a loud knock at my door, breaking my concentration. Damn it.

"Come in," I called, still focusing on my map. I heard the door open slightly and the shuffling of feet. I briefly looked up to see the boy and the girl, looked back at my map, then up again, realizing something had caught my eye. I looked at the girl up and down, her feet bare and trousers rolled up, her chest fondled by white linen, showing more bare skin than before. She was wearing my clothes. My heart danced in my chest for a moment, but was cut short when I glanced at their hands, locked and intertwined with one another. I made eye contact with her green set of eyes as I could feel her staring. She blinked and brought her eyes down, shifting her weight behind the boy, a slight blush in her complexion.