Of Magic and Rum (Beyond a Contemporary Mythos)

Chapter 31

I’ve been in harrowing situations numerous times throughout my life. Since becoming a pirate, that number has tripled. But the gallows? This was a new one for me. And I was hanging from the noose for several seconds before Anne cut the rope free. I, Captain Jack Rackham, almost pissed my trousers. I had complete confidence Anne would figure something out, but considering it went so far as the blocks were being kicked out from under my feet, that split second when you think, this is it, can put many things in perspective. Was it enough to convince me to hang up my cutlass and dry off my boots? No way in hell.

The crew is all safely back on board, every head accounted for, and we’re on track heading for Greece with England forever in our wake. I’m unsure how Anne convinced the other pirate crew to risk their necks, giving us a distraction long enough to escape, and I can hardly wait to hear her story. All is right again. It’s unsettling without Duke at the helm with me, but matters could be far worse. The ship lurches, the seas violently crashing against the hull.

And this is what happens when you don’t follow your own bloody rules.

As I sprint to the railing to survey what in God’s name can make that prominent of a wave without the aid of a thunderstorm, I tense. A gold trident slips through the surface, the sun glinting from its three very sharp and very pointy prongs. I’m so tense my grip cracks the wood as a giant water horse leaps from the waves, eyes glowing a fiercely vibrant blue. It’s galloping toward the ship, and I widen my stance.

“Brace for impact,” I shout to the crew because what the hell do you use against that ? Any firepower we possess will go straight through it.

Anne uses the rigging to hoist herself to a barrel. Flailing her arms, she’s fearless against the water steed. “Poseidon,” she yells.

Poseidon? He’s real. Of course, he is.

The horse still gallops and rears, its front legs batting the air.

“Poseidon, stop. Please!” Anne climbs further up the rigging, still waving her arms and fanning her fingers.

Anne seems to know this fellow.

The first blow happens, the horse sending a tidal wave over the ship, slamming into barrels and soaking the deck. Mary is blown backward, but I catch her coat and pull her toward me. I snap my hair away from my face, running a hand over my eyes to rid them of water droplets. The attack puts several holes in our sails, but it is not so catastrophic that we can’t repair them. And then the horse rears, ready to strike again.

Anne stands on the bow. “Daddy, stop!”

Jesus. Christ.

My throat, my chest, my hands, they all go numb.

“Did she just call him daddy ?” I ask no one in particular.

Mary snorts and laughs behind me. “I certainly wouldn’t want to be the man who’s fucking a sea king’s daughter right about now.”

I’ve yet to release my death-like grip on the railing but slowly turn my chin at Mary. “I will throw you overboard.”

“You’d miss me too much, Cap.” Mary grins and bats my nose.

The titanic-sized horse begins to shrink, water dripping away, and in a surge of sea spray, a tall man with wavy ash blonde hair falling to his chest and a full beard appears. He’s holding his trident in one hand while his other reaches for Anne’s face, his eyes blinking as if holding back tears. The sun reflects off his golden armor, particularly the greaves, and the man is large enough to make me stand taller and flex my arms beneath my shirt.

“Rhode?” Poseidon whispers, his thumb stroking her cheekbone.

Anne smiles at him, pulling her sleeve back to reveal the cowrie bracelet she wears, tears glistening in her eyes. “It’s me, Daddy. You finally found me.”

Shit. Hours ago, I was being paraded through a London street to be publicly executed, then fearing for my life as a giant seahorse tried to drown me, and now I’m witnessing some bizarre family reunion between Greek deities. This is quickly becoming an average Tuesday for this crew.

Poseidon is oblivious to the rest of us as he pulls a matching bracelet tucked away in his gauntlet to show Anne. Her smile broadens, and she jumps, wrapping her arms around his neck. He catches her with one arm, still wielding the trident, and hugs her to him, breathing a relieved sigh.

Two more bursts of sea spray sprout on deck, and a shorter woman with chocolate brown hair and armor matching Poseidon’s steps forward, followed by a tall, slimmer, and younger man with short bright blonde hair wearing—cut-off trousers, I suppose? I’ve never seen such a garment.

“Triton?” Anne asks the younger man, pushing back from her father, but pauses when her gaze lands on the woman. Her expression is hard to read—confusion? Fear? Joy?

Rhode stands perfectly still in front of the woman, tilting her head from side to side. “Mo—mother?”

The woman cups her hands over her mouth. “Rhode, I wanted to?—”

The reunion is cut short by several barbed tentacles plunging from the depths and smacking against the ship’s sides.

Poseidon twirls his trident and runs to the railing. “Rhode? In your letter, you said you were safe. And you’ve had the Charybdis after you all this time?” His voice is an anguished roar.

“I—” Anne pauses and throws her hand out at her side, producing her Atlantean sword instead of her cutlass. “—I didn’t want you to worry?”

Poseidon shakes his head and points a stern finger at her. “We’ll talk about this later.” He hoists himself to the railing and looks at the other three sea beings. “Between the four of us, we should be able to put this thing out of existence for good this time.”

Poseidon, the woman, and Triton dive into the sea. Anne rushes to me, pressing a quick palm to my cheek. “I’ll explain everything after this is over, Jack. I promise.” Her lips brush mine, and she turns, joining her father in the ocean below with a flick of her sea nymph tail.

Nope. That’s not happening. I refuse to stay on deck while Anne and her family do my dirty work for me. I am still the captain of this ship.

I’m removing my belt and shirt when Mary shoves me. “You cannot be serious. I’m quite certain they have it handled.”

“And why should that matter? An extra pair of able hands can’t hurt.” I twist my cutlass handle in my hand and jump to the railing with bare feet. “Besides, I should probably start winning her old man’s favor. Perhaps it’ll lessen the lashings for corrupting his daughter in more ways than one, hm?”

“You’re insane,” Mary says, snickering.

“And thank God for that, Read.” After giving Mary a wink, I backflip from the deck and plunge into the frigid water.

The mythic sea beings are already a force to be reckoned with underwater. Three of them wield varying forms of tridents, with Anne being the sole sword wielder, and the sight of it makes my chest tighten. I swim beside Anne, ignoring her shocked expression and shouts of protest, which are muffled to my ears. Poseidon, her mother, and Triton give me equally fearful and bewildered looks, but I silence them by slashing my sword through two tentacles, dodging the barbs as the tips float away in swirling inky ringlets.

Once they see I’m not retreating, we become a fury of slicing and dicing. They’ve all conjured tails at this point, giving them more maneuverability, and I, in contrast, use the tentacles, latching onto them to get where I need to go faster.

Unlike the rest, my lungs are burning, and I know I’ll need air soon, which strangely irritates me. Such a trivial thing is taking me away from the fight. The sea monster nears the surface, and I spin, jamming my sword in its back. And as the Charybdis breaches, I’m riding its back like a damn raging bull. My head emerges, and I take a massive gulp of air before I’m back underwater, gripping both hands to the hilt as the monster does a barrel roll, attempting to launch me off.

Tiny bubbles spiral around me as we spin, and I roar into the water, still holding on until, finally, it stops. Triton zips past me at such speed he’s a blur, lunging his bronze trident into the creature’s side. Anne comes from below, her sword a sharp twirling nightmare, picking off barbs from the tentacles as she swims past. Anne’s mother swims from one side, Poseidon on the other, and, in unison, they launch at the monster with their tridents, stabbing it.

The Charybdis’ spiky tooth mouth gapes wide, its tentacles shaking, trembling, and lashing anywhere it can. It wails, and its mouth still hasn’t closed. This is when I always live up to my reputation for taking risks. With my sword stretched out in front of me, I launch into the monster’s mouth, pinning my elbows at my sides to avoid its dagger-like teeth and curl my knees to my stomach when the creature snaps its jaws closed, narrowly missing my feet. Holding the blade above my head, I use my legs to propel me forward, carving a line through the Charybdis’ innards on my way.

I reach the end and slice my way back to the water. My lungs burn, and my vision has begun to blur from the inky, bloody shadowing of the water. Holding my ribs, I feel my sword’s hilt go limp in my hand, darkness spilling over my gaze.

And then her mouth is on mine, breathing life into me. My Annie. She makes her sword disappear, carries mine now, her arm wrapped around my waist, and swims us to the surface. Her soft fins brush my feet, and the rest of her family form around us, all pushing skyward until we’re bobbing in the water near The Revenge’s hull.

“Did we win?” I ask, smiling, my voice croaking.

Anne laughs and pushes me to the rope ladder. “Yes, you handsome idiot.”

The crew cheers as Anne and I appear over the railing. I help her despite my mushy and tired arms.

“I cannot believe you did that, Jack.” Anne shakes her head, but she’s still grinning.

Pulling her to me, I slip a hand to the back of her neck and kiss her. “Can you not, though? Really?”

“No, I suppose you’re right.” Anne laughs, but her smile suddenly disappears.

Mine does, too. Standing several paces from us is a soaked King of the Seas, his hands wringing around the trident’s hilt, his glare capable of boiling the Baltic Sea. And he’s staring right at me .