Page 156 of Storm over the Caribbean
“Oh, how terrible! The life of a pirate is truly filled with nothing but blood and violence. It’s abominable.”
“Indeed.”
The days passed, and as they did, the hoard of Captain Rockface grew and grew. As did his horde, incidentally. Word of the new king of pirates seemed to have swiftly spread across the Caribbean, because within a week or two of starting his raiding spree, hundreds of thugs, ruffians and other men who weren’t very fond of the pesky annoyance called “the law” began to bolster the numbers of his crew. Or rather,crews. Long since had the time passed when only a ship or two would be sent out at a time. No, whole fleets were now roaming the seasimultaneously, only some of them commanded by Mr Rikkard Ambrose himself. Regardless, every single one of them returned successfully.
“You know…” I cocked my head to peek over his shoulder, at where he was currently running his fingers lovingly over the ginormous mountain of gold piled up in front of him, “is it just me, or are you enjoying this pirate thing a little too much?”
Straightening, he pulled back his fingers and sent me a cool look. “I have no idea what you mean, Mr Linton.”
“I’m sure you don’t.”
“I am merely taking the appropriate steps to counter my nefarious competitors.”
“Your hands are stroking the gold again.”
“Ehem.” Clearing his throat, he quickly tucked his hands back and straightened. “I must go. I have business to take care of.”
“And would that business involve sailing over the seven seas while stealing treasure and shouting ‘Har, har, har’?”
The fact he didn’t answer that and instead strode out of our treasure cave at his fastest possible speed amused me to no end. I couldn’t help but watch him lovingly as he marched down to the shore in full pirate-captain mode, ready to welcome the crew of a ship that was just returning to the island, most likely laden with treasure.
There was an actualspringin his step.
Goodness. He was really enjoying this, wasn’t he?
Well, Lilly, he’s currently making ridiculous amounts of money, while at the same time putting down his competitors, all without having to invest a single penny. So, what do you think?
Yep. He wasdefinitelyenjoying this.
I nodded happily. He was always so stiff and stressed. It was about time he got a hobby. Granted, I had maybe hoped for golf or fishing, not plundering the Caribbean with a sabre inhand…but I simply couldn’t begrudge him his fun. It would be nice to watch Captain Rockface enjoy himself for a little. And why not? After all, there was no way anyone could believe that distinguished British businessman Rikkard Ambrose would ever steal money, right? Inconceivable!
“To success, men!” Roared Captain Rockface, who, by now, had settled down with his newly arrived sailors and was celebrating. “To gold and silver, all ours to plunder!”
Yep, definitely. Rikkard Ambrose would never do something as dastardly as stealing.
“To success!” the enthusiastic pirates roared, smashing their tankards together in a toast. “To the captain!”
“Drink, men, drink!” my dear husband shouted, lifting his tankard. “The one who’s the last to fall unconscious will get ten gold sovereigns!”
And the others will get nothing, no doubt.I smirked.
The pirates happily cheered and began to guzzle their drinks, blissfully ignorant that they had just signed away their share of booty.
Speaking of which…where was my share?
…
Goddammit! That bloody son of a bachelor managed to cut my pay again! And this time, he didn’t even bother to tell me!
But before I could stalk over to Captain Rockface and test his new nickname with a good punch, my attention was drawn by a shout from the shore.
“A ship! A ship approaching!”
Now, normally, this would be nothing out of the ordinary. Vessels of the pirate fleet left and arrived at this place all the time. But there was one problem with that: currently, the entire pirate fleet was anchored at the island.
Crap!
I leapt out of the treasure cave, or at least tried to until the weight in my belly reminded me I wasn’t particularly aerodynamic right now. By the time I managed to struggle over the rocks at the entrance, Mr Ambrose was already halfway to the beach. Moments later, he reached the palm on top of which our lookout was posted. The lookout who was currently waving and shouting. He leapt down, his ashen face becoming visible for all.
