Chapter Fourteen

Will took a deep breath, only now realizing he hadn't been breathing. He swung and leaped down from the rigging, as most of the others were doing, too. Guns were more likely to be needed now than sails. He joined Elizabeth and Norrington at the bow.

"Ready port guns!" shouted Gibbs.

"Port guns, Aye!" answered the crew, part of the response muffled by the fact that half the crew were already belowdecks.

Elizabeth greeted him with a worried smile and returned to staring at the Tarantula. Will knew what she was looking for, and he also peered ahead, looking for a glimpse of a familiar powdered wig.

Stanley appeared, with a calling cone.

"Parley!" he called.

Still at the helm, Jack smiled. "Very good, Mate!" he called back. "Parley it is. What do you want?"

"Back away, out of range until we've made repairs!"

"I don't think so," Jack replied. "Your guns are aimed at the sun. Why should we go anywhere?"

Behind Stanley some men came forward, pushing another man to the rail of the ship. Will and Elizabeth tensed, and she gripped him tightly.

"Back off or Governor Swann is dead!"

"Father," Elizabeth said.

Will and Elizabeth looked anxiously back at Jack.

"Sparrow …" said Norrington.

Jack ignored him. "What's the old man mean to us?" he called back.

Elizabeth made a slight sound, and Will squeezed her.

"You're bluffing!" Stanley said. "I mean it! He's of no use to me now."

"Sparrow, they can't repair that damage!" Norrington called back toward the helm. "They're sinking."

Jack nodded, still looking at the Tarantula. "Here's my offer, Captain Stanley. Send the Governor over to us or I'll blow your ship to splinters and feed you to the sharks right now."

"There's no profit in that for us," answered Stanley. "We'll sink anyway. Can't you conduct a proper parley?"

"Damn fast learner," Jack complained to his own crew. To Stanley he said, "You can't make repairs, Captain, so what's the point and purpose? We're your only hope."

"Here's my offer," replied Stanley. "You and all your crew get into your boats. My crew transfers to your ship, and I'll be happy to leave the Governor behind with you."

Those crewmembers who were still on the Pearl's deck cried a protest.

"Quiet, you dogs!" Gibbs ordered.

Elizabeth sobbed and buried her face in Will's chest. She knew, as Will knew, that nothing would part Jack from his ship. Over his wife's head he saw the somber expression on Norrington's face. Will looked back at Jack.

Jack shook his head sadly. "Sorry Captain, you've overplayed your hand. But I'll make you a counter-offer. You and your crew get into your boats, leave Swann behind, and we'll leave you here at the Isle de Muerte."

"Sparrow!" cried Norrington.

"Shut up, James!" said Elizabeth, wiping her face.

They all waited to see what Stanley would do. Surely, Will thought, he wouldn't throw away his only leverage by killing Swann, would he? Unless he decided bargaining had become useless. But Jack had offered an alternative, still dependant on Swann being left alive.

After some deliberations with another man, whom Will thought might be the Chief Mate, Stanley called back, "How do I know you'll keep your word, once we've left Swann behind?"

Elizabeth gasped with relief, and Will too, took a deep breath.

"It's your next lesson, Mate!" Jack called back cheerfully. "It's called marooning. Properly, I can't give you to the authorities, but I can leave you here. Maybe the Navy will come for you and maybe they won't. Or you can feed the sharks - your choice."

"Captain Sparrow," Stanley called, "we have an accord."

The pirates on the Black Pearl raised a wild cheer. Elizabeth flung her arms around Will and the two embraced joyfully.

Norrington strode toward Jack.

"Stanley stays behind!" he called to Jack. "I want Stanley!"

"That wasn't part of the deal, Commodore. You want him, you'll have to come back for him. Or save the Navy the trouble of a trial and just let him starve here - your choice."

-----

Elizabeth sat in the Governor's parlor, a visitor in the house that had been her own for most of her life. Her father, recovered from his ordeal, sipped tea across from her. Her concerns for him were eased, but now she worried about her husband. Too quiet for days, and uninterested in his work, Will spent many long moments staring at the sea. As he was doing now, standing at the window, his back to the room. The mansion, being on a hill, had a view of a lot of ocean.

"Father," she continued without Will, "I don't care what the Commodore says. He promised Captain Sparrow and his whole crew a pardon."

Her father gave her that maddening look. The look that said "You really can't understand the affairs of grownups."

"Sparrow was to capture or kill Stanley and his crew, my dear, and he did neither."

"Oh, that's nonsense! He marooned them and took the Commodore back to the Deadly Earnest. The murderous crew were all taken prisoner. It's not Sparrow's fault that Stanley himself escaped our fine Navy soldiers."

"Sparrow's crew pillaged the Tarantula. They should be happy with the wealth they found in her hold."

"He saved your life, when he didn't have to, doesn't that count for something?"

Her father looked uncomfortable. "And I am grateful, Elizabeth, please believe me. But I was replaced as Governor, and am only acting now because the new Governor was killed aboard the Patriot. They may send a new replacement soon. I don't have the right to hand out pardons."

"Yes, you do! This may be your last chance! Do it now, before anyone takes the power away from you."

Her father shook his head. "I'm sorry my dear. Now, you'll have to excuse me."

He stood, adjusted his perfect waistcoat, and left the room.

Will still did not turn around.

Elizabeth joined him at the window. "I'm going with you," she said.

Will gave her a puzzled look. "Where?"

"Wherever you go. I won't stay behind."

She saw self-conscious understanding in his eyes. "I don't ... where do you think Jack is?"

"Spending his money, I imagine. He'll be at sea again when it's gone."

Will nodded, smiling. "That's when we'll see him again. We'd better be ready."

She kissed him, and they left the mansion, never looking back.

The End