Of Magic and Rum (Beyond a Contemporary Mythos)

Chapter 27

They all will die. Maybe all at once and it may also take years, but each person aboard that ship is responsible for the death of a man I considered a second father. He. Is. Gone. And they’ll pay for it. We all knew the risks of agreeing to be part of a pirate crew. Most days, we can avoid the inevitable, and then there are days like today when we become part of pirate jargon. And if I’m being honest, longer stretches of time without incident trick you into believing you’re unsinkable. But it wasn’t me they took. It’s far worse.

I’ve been standing in my quarters with my forehead against my arm, pressed to the door, for too many minutes to count. It’s not until soft fur brushes the insides of my calves that I even bother to open my eyes.

“Truffs,” I grumble, turning my back on the door and letting my body slide until I sit in a defeated slump on the floor. “I feel like shit.”

My cat purrs and saunters onto my lap, kneading the tops of my thighs much like he’d done to Duke’s stomach. The memory initially angers me, but watching Truffles curl into a secure ball on my legs melts some of it away. Sighing, I beat my skull against the wood behind me, my sinuses burning and stinging. Maybe this is why the likes of Low, Roberts, and Blackbeard became merciless. When you don’t give a shit about anyone or anything, it’s harder to feel it.

Not Calico Jack. I had to go and decide to be a righteous pirate.

Hooves slide across the dirt-covered floor, one at a time, with methodical slowness. The imp steps from the shadows, its fingers threaded behind his back. “Something happen? Heard lots of booms.”

My chest aches, knowing Duke had wanted this creature in our crew. Considering he hasn’t lit the ship on fire or drank half the rum while we slept, I gather he won’t be an issue. “Have they named you yet, imp?”

His chin lifts, his ears flicking tight, and his gaze brightens. “Yes. Laust.”

The name manages to pull a laugh from me despite my grief, and I motion for him to come closer. “Come here, Laust, and hold up your hand like this.”

Laust does as instructed, his black claws scraping together, hooves turned inward.

“Do you swear your undying loyalty to The Revenge and its crew? To never steal from your crewmates, never desert me as your captain or any of the crew?” I lift my brows, waiting for him to answer.

Laust’s orbed eyes blink, silent.

Bending forward, I lower my voice. “This is where you say yes , Laust.”

“Yes,” Laust shouts, immediately crouching in fear. When I make no move to chastise him for being loud, he regains his confidence and stands tall. “Yes. I swear.”

“Welcome officially to the crew of The Revenge, Laust.” I stick out two of my fingers for his tiny hand to shake. He does this so brazenly that it makes my entire arm wiggle.

A light knock sounds against the door, followed by a silky sweet voice saying, “Jack? I understand if you want to be alone, but I?—”

Anne. I slammed the door in her face, like an idiot.

Reaching above me for the doorknob, I twist it and let my back fall to the deck at her feet. Truffles, still sleeping on my lap, grumbles in protest. Anne’s head snaps downward once she realizes I’m not standing in front of her.

“I’m angry, Anne. Furious.” My jaw hardens.

A sympathetic wrinkle forms between her eyes, and I avert my gaze from it because the last thing I want is for Anne to feel sorry for me. There’s been enough bullshit happening to her without me adding to it.

“And I don’t blame you. But can we talk?” Anne presses a hand to the doorframe.

“No.”

She kicks me with her boot. “Get up, Jack.”

Groaning, I sit up and remove Truffles from my lap, plucking two clinging claws from my shirt. The cat flicks his tail when I re-enter my cabin without him, and Laust scampers past us, slipping through the door before Anne closes it.

“The crew needs their captain now more than ever,” Anne states, not missing a beat.

I sit on the edge of my desk, propping one leg up. “And they have me. I told you I’m angry, not incompetent.”

“They have you?” Anne folds her arms and crosses the room, taking calculated steps. Heel, toe. Heel, toe. “You’re telling me that you’re not consumed by thoughts of murdering the entirety of a certain Royal Navy crew?”

My top lip quivers, and raking a hand through my hair, I push from the desk to pace. “Of course I am. They killed five members of my crew. Five. And one of them happened to be a dear friend.” I whirl to face her, curling one hand over her hip. “So, you tell me, Anne, how do you expect me to be? I’ve already told you I’m a jaded man and a pirate scoundrel.”

“I expect you to be exactly the way you are.” Anne’s fingers press to the back of my neck. “But what I expect, my Captain, is for you to prioritize .”

I know what she means, but I don’t want to think about it. Putting Duke’s revenge as an afterthought feels like a betrayal.

“Bury him. Say goodbye.” Despite my fighting her, she pulls my forehead to hers. “And then you need to figure out how we repair our ship in the middle of English waters. After The Revenge is whole again, after we have the jewel to boost morale, then we seek vengeance.”

Anne sounds like a captain herself, and I struggle between admiration and irritation.

“As long as you look me in the eye and tell me you understand that I will kill every last one of them.” I lock gazes with her gleaming emerald eyes, steadfast and strong.

“I’ll be there with cutlass keen beside you, Jack.”

Securing an arm around her waist, I breathe her in, salty and sweet. I’m increasingly grateful this woman chose me. I let my lips brush hers, soft and fleeting. “I still don’t know what I’ve ever done to deserve you.”

“Maybe it’s not because of what you have or haven’t done. But what we’ll do together .” Anne cups my face and presses a kiss to my temple.

Another knock sounds at the door, this one harsher and with purpose. “We’re ready for you, Captain,” Red says without stepping inside.

Reality comes crashing against my chest like a ruptured dam. Anne takes my hand, securing our fingers tightly together, and curls my arm to her ribs, guiding me to the broadside of my ship, where five bodies wrapped in cream sailcloth rest on the deck. Ragnar and Mary hover near one in particular, and I know it’s Duke, but I can’t bring myself to stand by them.

Anne rubs my arm and delicately tugs me along. One crewman recites the funeral prayer we’ve always done, but it echoes in my ears, the words drifting in the wind. Other crew members lift one body at a time, letting it slide down a wood plank into the water.

Thy kingdom come…daily bread…forgive us our trespasses.

One after the other meets their sea burial, and my throat hardens more with each passing body. I’m choking, not breathing, by the time they reach Duke.

Lead us not into temptation.

Snapping out of it, I pat Anne’s hand and hurry to help lift Duke’s body onto the plank, resting it on the railing with Mary, Ragnar, and Aranck.

“Goodbye, old friend. May wherever you’re going be filled with mermaids and endless rum.”

“Amen.”

And with a final nod to each other, we tilt Duke, and I watch his shrouded body plunge into the sea, the waves enveloping him like an embrace, welcoming him. And I don’t look away until he’s so deep I can scarcely make out his outline. My palms squeak against the railing, knuckles cracking as I twist and grip, reining in the fury I know I need to swallow—for now.

“Everyone,” I shout, slapping my hand against the wood and turning around. “Pay attention. We need to repair the ship but don’t have the proper supply on board.”

Glog’s mouth gapes. “How the hell do we get supplies with the Navy at every turn?”

“We go to the only place we can.” Brushing past those standing near me, I make for the ship’s wheel, the wind picking up enough to fill the sails. “London.”

The gasps and stunned expressions are well warranted. I’d be lying through my teeth if I said the idea didn’t terrify me to my marrow, but we have little choice.

“Jack, with all due respect,” Red slides his hat from his head and holds it to his chest. “That’s suicidal.”

Locking my eyes with Mary, I don’t need to give a command because she sees me at the wheel. In a breath, she’s ordering crew members to ready the rigging and drop the sails. “No. So long as we’re not caught.”

“Not caught?” Red barks a laugh. “Cap, The Revenge isn’t the biggest ship in these waters, but it’s certainly not the smallest.”

I frown at this.

“And it’s known by the community at this point. We can’t simply lower our colors and pull up to the dock,” Red finishes, holding his arms at his sides as several mumbling crew members agree.

Anne steps to my side, arousing the urge to feel her skin against mine. I pull her to my side and kiss her cheek. Her smile in response is glorious and heart-shattering.

“We’re not making port at the London dock,” I announce.

Anne raises a quizzical brow, and I wink.

“There’s an island not far that I’ve used in the past. We dock the ship without colors and split up disguised as fishermen within what dinghies we have.” Reluctantly, I let go of Anne to use both hands on the wheel, turning us in the opposite direction. “As long as we’re not recognized as pirates and caught with no King’s permission papers, we’ll be fine .”

The crew goes silent, and my neck tenses. I’ve never worked this hard for their trust and approval.

Anne steps forward when several beats go on with still nothing but shaking heads and murmurs of disapproval. “I agree. We will be fine. This’ll work so long as we do precisely as the captain says.” She tosses me a sidelong glance. “This will work, right?”

“It has to. We’ve no other choice.” Though my confidence wavers, I flash her a cocky grin as reassurance. “But it’s under control. I am Calico Jack, after all.”

Ragnar raises his fist into the air. “ For fanden . We need supplies. And unless you all want to float around waiting for our asses to be handed to us by the next Navy ship we pass, you’ll agree on this too.”

Red and Glog hang their heads but start the sea of “Ayes” from the crew. And now that I have them all on board with the only plan I can muster, it’s time to prove why they trust me as their captain.