A New Life, A New Love

Chapter Thirty: Fortune

     “Well!” Rachel exclaimed. “Two such fine gentlemen I see before me.”

“Don’t rub it in, luv,” Jack replied. “This is just till we get back, remember.”

     The crew stopped to look at the spectacle before them. The two men standing on the deck
were gentlemen from head to toe. Jack was resplendent in a forest green frock coat with lace at
his wrists and throat. His trousers were dark brown velvet, and his boots were fine crafted leather.

On his head rested a tricorn hat with lace decorations and a green feather. His hair was tied back
with a green ribbon and his beard was waxed to a point. Not a single bead or bauble was in sight.

Jarod wore a royal blue frock coat with black trousers. His face was newly shaven and his head
supported a long, brown wig as well as his hat. He tugged at the lace at his cuffs.

“And the sooner we leave, “ Jarod injected, “the sooner that will be. It’s just too bad that the lady
can’t join us in our finery.”

Rachel grinned. “I almost wish I could. This binding hurts worse than a corset. Let’s do this.”

“Now,” Jack cautioned, “remember, we do this by the code. If we get caught its every man for
himself. Or woman. “ He sketched a slight bow toward Rachel. “If we have to split up, luv, you
go to ground. Blend in and make yer way back to the Pearl.”

“And what about you and Jarod?” Rachel objected.

“We’ll be doing exactly the same, Poppet,” Jarod replied. “Making our way back to the pearl the
best we can.”

Jack grinned. “Besides, what could go wrong, luv?”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*****~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

     Rachel stepped out of the small boat, tying it securely to the dock. She turned, adjusting her
frock coat and admonishing Jack to watch his step as he disembarked.

“I’m sorry you had to come ashore like this, sir,” she rasped. “But there was no way to bring the
ship closer for you.”

Jack stepped onto the dock, followed by Jarod. “It was expected. Think no further on the
matter.”

Jack turned to the rough looking man who passed for a harbormaster in Tortuga. “Here you are,
my good man.” He paid the coins required to leave the boat at the dock. “Can you point me in
the direction of the King’s Ransom, perchance?”

The man pointed down the dock. “Can’t miss it,” he said. “It’s the biggest one here.”

“Ah, yes,” Jack replied. “Thank you. A good day to you.”

Jack and Jarod started walking in the direction of the large ship, Rachel trailing slightly behind.

“What’s he doing here?” Jack growled.

“Oh no, Jack!” Rachel exclaimed. “Maybe we’d best just go back to the ship. Norrington knows
what I look like. If he’s hanging around, it could mean trouble.”

“No, luv. You need to see the midwife. Besides, he’ll never think to look for you dressed as a
footman,” he grinned. “We’ll just stay as far from him as we can.”

Rachel took a deep breath. “Then we’d best change course, because we’re heading straight for
him.”

“We will, luv, but it has to be natural. A sudden veer off will just arouse his suspicions. And we
don’t need that. The man is like a dog with a bone once he’s got his back up.”

“We’re going to have to pass him to get off of the dock,” Jarod added. “But that stack of crates
should provide some amount of cover for us, I should think.”

The trio angled their course just slightly to allow them to pass behind the crates, taking
themselves further away from Norrington.

“See, luv,” Jack whispered. “No worries.”

“I wouldn’t speak yet,” she replied. “We still have to get out again.”

The trio made their way off of the docks, walking calmly and serenely through the streets of
Tortuga. They passed several reward postings before they arrived at the home of Madame Sophia.
Rachel knocked upon the door and it opened immediately

“Come in quickly,” Madame Sophia whispered. “You should not have come. It is dangerous for
you to be here. The smell of misfortune is in the air today.”

“Kind of you to warn us,” Jack replied with a grin as he walked through the door. “Some reward
that is, eh?”

Madame Sophia led them into her sitting room. “Listen to me. This is the last time I will see
either of you until the babe is born. The child is healthy and vital, I can feel this. But the future is
not clear. I sense danger for all of you. You must leave now. Go right to your ship and do not
return to Tortuga until the time is right.”

“But . . . ,” Rachel began.

“Shh,” the seeress replied. “There is no time to waste. The longer you are here, the more danger
you are in. Trust me. Now go.”

“That was interesting,” Jack said as the door closed behind them. “ Perhaps we’d best take her
warning.”

“I was thinking the same thing,” replied Jarod. “What’s the plan?”

“Start moving for one thing,” Jack answered. “We blend as best we can and split up when we
have to. Keep a sharp eye.”

They began to move toward the docks, and the relative safety of the Black Pearl.