A Pirates Passion

Chapter 26

Madeline didn't look back as she made her way to her room. She lay down on her bed and silent tears fell. She only slept for about an hour. She went to Jack's room and saw he was snoring. She smiled and closed the door. She let him sleep the day away and it was dark when she heard him come on the porch where she was sitting. "Sleep well Jack?" she asked.

"Aye, very well, my God did I sleep all day," he exclaimed.

"Aye, ye did." She said smiling at him. "Ye were tired."

"I feel a little guilty, surely ye had things around here that I could have helped ye with instead of sleeping the day away," he smirked.

Madeline smiled at him. "Don't feel guilty Jack. Ye were tired." She said softly. "I cleaned the house, baked some bread. Had lunch with JJ and took a long walk this afternoon." She handed him a shell necklace. "I made this for you today."

Jack took it and smiled. "It's pretty." he said and hung it around his neck. "Well where is that son of ours now," he asked.

"He wanted to spend the night at his friend Timothy's. So I said it was alright, I hope ye don't mind." She said watching him.

"So does this mean it's just ye and me for dinner tonight," Jack asked.

"Aye." She said quietly. "If you're hungry. I have crabs boiling on the stove."

"That sounds good to me, I've not had any crab meat in awhile," Jack told her and sat beside her on the porch. "This is kind of nice," he said after sitting quietly for a few moments.

Madeline looked at him. "What's that?" she asked.

"Just the two of us sitting here with the breeze in our face and looking at the stars. Look a falling one," Jack exclaimed.

Madeline looked and saw the falling star. She looked at Jack. "Did ye make a wish?" She whispered.

"Maybe I did and maybe I didn't," Jack quipped.

Madeline smirked and slowly stood. "I should check on dinner. Would ye like to eat out here?" she asked.

"That would be nice," Jack said. "Can I help," he asked.

Madeline looked as he followed her into the house. "Aye, thank you Jack." They walked into the kitchen and she picked up some hot pads to pull the basket out of the boiling water. She lifted it up and brought it over to the sink. She wasn't paying attention and some of the hot water hit her hand. She dropped the basket in the sink. "Bloody hell." she swore sucking on her finger.

Jack rushed to her side, "Are ye all right Maddy love," he asked.

"Aye, I’m fine." She said watching as Jack began to examine her hand. "Stupid me, wasn't paying attention to the hot water."

Jack smiled slightly, "Do you have an aloe plant," he asked.

"Aye, in the bathroom." She said as she looked down at his hand holding hers. "Jack, what happened to your hand?" She exclaimed, seeing it wrapped in a rag. She pulled it off and saw the cut. Her eyes flew to his and she turned the water on and pulled his hand towards the water.

Jack pulled his hand back, "Leave it be, I'm fine. It was intentional, now let me find that aloe plant," he said releasing her and going to the bathroom.

Madeline watched him go and ran her own fingers under the running water. She looked at them and saw that they were red, but not blistering. Why had Jack cut himself? She wouldn't press the issue.

Jack broke off a piece of the aloe plant and took it to Madeline, "Give me your hand," he said. He saw the way she was looking at him and knew she was wondering about the cut on his. "Please," he said when she didn't move.

She slowly held up her hand to his. "I can't believe I was so bloody stupid."

"Not stupid, it was an accident," Jack shrugged as he squeezed the sticky fluid from the plant onto her burn. "Now, that should take the sting out of it," he smiled.

"Thank you Jack." She said looking up at him. "I'd feel better if you'd put some on your cut."

"I want a scar left behind," Jack said coyly. "So what can I do now to get dinner ready? Shall I set up a table on the porch?" he asked.

"Alright Jack, but please clean it so it doesn't get infected." Madeline raised an eyebrow at him, but said nothing more about it. "Aye, please set up a table."

Jack reluctantly went to the bathroom to clean his hands. He closed the door behind him. He stared at the cut and the washed the soil from his daughter's grave away. He winced slightly, not because it hurt physically but because his heart ached for what he'd never know. Sighing heavily, he finished and returned to the kitchen. "Ready for inspection captain," he quipped. He was trying to smile, trying to hide his pain.

Madeline smiled at him but could see the pain in his. She took his hand and gently placed a kiss on the cut. "There is a table in my room that should work for us." She said turning to move away from him. "Unless you would rather just lay out a blanket on the porch. You decide."

Jack went to her bedroom and got a blanket, "I think I'd rather go with the blanket, is this quilt all right," he asked holding up the one he'd found thrown over the back of a chair in her room.

"Aye, that's fine." She said as she saw the one he held up. She scooped out the potatoes from the pot. "Can you grab the silverware and the dishes please Jack."

"Sure let me get the blanket spread first," he called as he took it onto the porch and spread it out. He hurried back to the kitchen and grabbed the dishes and silverware up as she'd asked him too, "Still got a empty hand," he said offering to carry something else.

Madeline laughed. "Drinks?" She asked nodding to the counter. She smirked when he picked up the rum. She picked up the platter of food and followed him out to the porch. She set it down in the middle of the blanket and hurried back into the house for matches.

She came back out and had to stand on her tiptoes to light the torches that were around the porch. She hated being short.

Jack watched her as he set out the plates and silverware, "Need some help," he asked.

"No, I got it. I think." She said. "Bloody hell, they must have replaced the torches, these are taller than the old ones." She turned to Jack. "Jack."

Jack gently took the matches from her hand, "Perhaps tomorrow I'll cut them down a bit," he said softly. He lit the torches and sat down on the blanket, "Rum for the lady," he asked.

"Thank you Jack." She said taking a drink and looking up at the stars. "I hope you're hungry." She said turning her attention to the food and began to load up his plate.

"Haven't done anything to work up an appetite," he smiled but didn't stop her from what she was doing. "Thank ye Maddy," he said when she handed him the loaded plate. "This looks great," he said.

"Thank you Jack." She said quietly and they began to eat. She would glance at him as they were eating and would quickly look away when he caught her. She refilled their glasses and she swallowed down the contents of hers and sat back against one of the pillars on the porch. "Taste alright Jack?" she asked.

"Better then alright love," he said putting his plate aside and leaning back on a pillar as well with his glass of rum. "Worth ye burning yer hand I'd say," he chuckled.

Madeline laughed. She finished her rum and began to gather the dishes up from the blanket. "Would ye like some dessert Jack?"

Jack moved away so he was leaning on the pillar opposite her, "No, I'm quite full," he said and sighed heavily.

Madeline bit her lip in frustration as he moved away. "Alright." She said quietly and refilled their glasses and sat back down. She looked up at the stars again.

"Yer doing it again," he told her.

Madeline looked at him. "Doing what? Reading into something. No I'm not Jack." She said taking a drink. "I just don't want you to be uncomfortable with me."

"Well, let me just make it clear, if I were uncomfortable here, I wouldn't be here," Jack told her then looked down at his cut hand. "I'm just not ready to have ye too close to me," he said and looked up at the stars.

Madeline smiled sadly at him. "I know Jack." She said quietly. "Thank you."

"For what," he asked.

Madeline raised her glass to him. "For being here."

Jack lowered his head with a slight smile, "I know yer wondering about my hand," he said once again studying the cut there.

Madeline shook her head. "Ye don't have to tell me Jack. And I’m not going to pry."

She quickly stood up. "I'll be right back." She hurried to her bedroom and opened her jewelry chest. She pulled out one of two matching locket necklaces. She opened it and sighed heavily. She closed it and hurried back out to him. "I know that today has been an emotionally trying day and I'm not trying to bring you down, but I want you to have this." She said handing him the necklace.

"What is it?" Jack asked skeptically.

Madeline kneeled next to him and took it from him and opened it. "When I was alone with Angel in Port Royal, I wanted something to always remind me of her. So I cut two locks of her curls from her head. One for me, and one for you." She said in almost a whisper. She handed it back to him.

Jack handed it back to her, "Give it to JJ or Elizabeth, it means little to me," he said. He didn't mean to sound coldhearted.

Madeline took it back, shocked that he didn't want it. "Alright Jack." She said quietly. She knew he had his reasons for not wanting it, but like with his hand, she wouldn't press him for information. "Would ye like to take a walk?" She asked softly.

Jack closed his eyes, "No. Could you please stop talking for more then thirty seconds," he sighed.

Madeline shut her mouth and sat back down. She pulled off her boots and ran her feet through the cool sand.

Jack took another long sip of his rum. "I cut my hand when I was alone at Angel's grave. I wanted her to know that no matter what; a part of me would always be there with her, unlike when she was born. So I sliced my hand open, scooped up some of the soil, mixed it with my blood and returned it to her grave," he said softly. He breathed in deeply and let it out very slowly, a lump was threatening and he was not in the mood to cry anymore.

Madeline didn't look at him. She couldn't. Her emotions were in turmoil at his words. Silent tears fell from her eyes as she had her head down. She loved him even more with his admission of the cut on his hand.

"I never got to even see her, can only imagine it in me head. That's why the locket means nothing to me Maddy. But this cut, the scar it will leave, I'll think of her and hope she's smiling down on me every time I see it," Jack explained and hoped she'd understand and not think him as being coldhearted.

Madeline raised her head to look at him. She smiled at him through her tears. "I know she is Jack." She whispered. "She was beautiful." She said as her voice caught in her throat. "When I brought her here, Mr. Taylor insisted on helping me to bury her but I wouldn't let anyone help me. It was something I had to do for myself, just as you did with the cut on your hand."

Jack looked at her, "Maybe ye should send the locket to Norrington, he was there after all, I'm sure he looked at her as his. Although if she looked anything like me that might have not lasted long," he sighed. "I'm glad he was there, almost feel like I owe him," he half laughed.

Madeline smiled at him. "Her hair was exactly like yours and JJ's." She said quietly. She sighed. "I think I’ll give it to JJ. Even though he never knew her either, I think he'd like to have it."

Jack finished his rum and put the glass aside, he lay down with his head in her lap, "What do ye think she'd have grown up to be?" he asked.

Madeline reached down and slowly stroked his hair with her hand. "Probably a pirate." She said with a small laugh. "She was stubborn enough. I swear she didn't want to come out. It was a long labor." She said sadly.

"I wouldn't have allowed it, no daughter of mine would be a pirate. No, I'd make sure she'd have grown up to be a lady, a real lady. The kind that would marry a man like Norrington, who could give her a home. A real home, and babies. Lots and lots of babies. Can ye imagine me being surrounded by a herd of little rascals all calling me grandda," Jack laughed. "Course that can still happen, JJ might decide he would rather have a little more peaceful life, not one where he'd be on the run looking over his shoulder all the time," Jack said closing his eyes.

Madeline scooted down a bit so that his head was closer to her chest and she was more comfortable. She smiled. "Pappa Jack they would call you." She said continuing to run her fingers through his hair. "Who knows what JJ will be? Whatever path he chooses in life, I will always be proud of him."

"Pappa Jack? That makes me sound like some voodoo doctor, nay, Grandda," Jack said firmly. "He will make us proud," he added just as firmly.

Madeline couldn't help but giggle. "Aye Jack, he will make us proud." Without realizing it, her hand moved to caress his cheek.