Pirates Of The Caribbean Love Story - Treasure Of The Heart

The girl gasped for breath as she hit the water. The shock of the cold waves made her adrenaline race as she sank to the bottom. Her head hit barnacle-encrusted rocks, and she could see blood starting to stain the waves. She felt dizzy and sick, but she knew this was not the place to black out. Biting her cheeks to distract herself from the other pain, she used the rocks as leverage, pushing herself back up to the surface. Already, she could see her ship heading towards the horizon, and she knew she was never going to catch up.

She trod water, wondering what to do. And that’s when she realized she couldn’t remember anything. Not who she was, or what she was doing. Not even her name.

Fear took over, and the nightmare of losing everything. Not just your ship and your home and your friends, but yourself.

Behind her, she suddenly heard shouting. She swirled round and saw an enormous ship bearing down on her. A man was standing at the prow. His lips were moving urgently, but she couldn’t make out the words. The ship drew alongside her, and someone threw down a rope. The girl did not think twice. She grabbed hold, feeling the rope burn her palms. She was hauled roughly aboard the ship and deposited upon hard boards. She landed on her knees, but she quickly staggered to her feet. Water dripped relentlessly from her.

Someone put a blanket gently round her shoulders and the girl turned. A man with straggly dark hair gave her a beautiful smile. “I’m Captain Barbossa,” he said. “Are ye alright?”

Before the girl had time to answer, someone else approached. A man with wild gestures, and even wilder hair. “Hello, love,” he said, looking her up and down. “Not often we get pretty girls aboard the ship.” He held out a grubby hand. “Captain Jack Sparrow. At your service.” He flashed her a wink. There was a long pause, and the girl knew she was supposed tell them her name. The Captain must have got tired of waiting, because he said: “And you are?”

They were both looking at her expectantly. The girl hesitated. “I don’t know,” she said, finally.

The two men looked at each other, a look that clearly said We have an insane girl aboard the ship…

“No, I’m not mad!” she snapped, spiritedly. “I… I knocked my head on the rocks when I fell off my ship. And, when I got to the surface, I couldn’t remember.” She shrugged. “Believe it or not, it’s the truth.”

Barbossa raised his eyebrows. Jack narrowed his dark eyes. There was a long, awkward silence, finally broken when Barbossa said:

“Either way, yer wet through. Masters Pintel and Ragetti. Show our guest to a cabin, and get her some clean clothes. Now!”

Two men came up, one small and fat, one tall and thin. The girl looked back over her shoulder and smiled gratefully at Jack and Barbossa. She was led below deck and shown into a tiny cabin. She was handed some pirates clothes and then left alone.

The girl stripped off her wet dress and looked at herself. It was like looking at the body of a stranger. There were no clues as to her identity, except a necklace. A diamond necklace.

The girl picked up her dress. It was beautiful. Well-made, with little gold spirals running down the sleeves. And when she spoke, her voice was clear and cultured. She was well-bred, that was for certain.

Finally, she came to the most frightening part. She looked at herself in the mirror. She was slender, but pleasingly curvaceous. She had long, black hair, that might be lustrous if it wasn’t dripping wet. She had enormous green eyes, that looked absolutely terrified. And she was completely soaked to the skin.

She rubbed herself dry and put on the new clothes. Leather trousers. White blouse. Huge belt. And strange boots that were about ten sizes too big for her.

She took a deep breath. She wanted to cry, because the girl in the mirror was a complete stranger. She had been hoping, a forlorn, wild hope, that seeing herself would bring the memories flooding back. It hadn’t happened.

Would she ever remember who she was?

She gave her reflection one last glance, as if it held the answers to her questions. And then she opened the door and left the cabin. It was time to find her rescuers.