Chapter 06 – It was bound to happen, succession plan

Another year passed, and as said, after three years, we were, yes, a legend, but also the most wanted couple of pirates of the Caribbean. There was even a little fleet of more lightly armed frigates roaming the seas with the specific purpose of catching us and ignoring any other pirate ship, unless to save other ships or already engaged in combat. Caterina found what she desired in a farm boy in Jamaica, not far from Port Royal. They married and built a home together, with a little economic help from me. Although I never revealed my identity, since she stayed in my old cabin for a few days and then we were in our secret bay for over a month, she knew I was a woman, even if when we have guests, I keep the make-up on. If the noise from our cabin wasn’t enough, I saw her watching me once when I was bathing nude and without make-up in a hidden pool on our small secret island. After that, she only became more affectionate to me and much less wary, but never spilled a word.

So, it was about one and a half years after the capture of the Carletta that what we knew could happen to any of us happened, but we never really believed it, as we’d expect to die fighting during a boarding. During a secret landing in La Havana to meet a local informer, John was captured and killed.

We always had some loyal members of the crew, sometimes one, sometimes more, alone, in groups, separated, etc… to go in the city during the day. They would pretend to be from one of the many merchant ships in port at the moment, and the evening of the meeting, get in the tavern where the meeting was supposed to happen, and some of them would even pretend to get so drunk that they dropped asleep on the table, waking every now and then just to drink more. Their duty was to listen and warn of eventual traps, or eventually help if possible. Or pretend to be just a casual customer and then run to warn us. It was so that we managed to free our men a few times or avoid traps.

So, our man was laying his head on a table, a hand on the flask, the other on the mug, when John and two men entered the place to speak with the tavern keeper, who was one of our contacts. As soon as they exchanged a few words, the tavern keeper casually closed a blind, and not fifteen seconds after, the tavern was swarmed with guards. Resistance was futile, and John and his men dropped their weapons. The guard captain gave orders to a couple of his men, who ran away.

While waiting, John asked the tavern keeper why he betrayed, and the other simply said that the Alcalde paid better. Half an hour later, the Governor himself, Alcalde Hernan de la Sierra de la Coronilla y Sinagra in person, entered the tavern.

“Blackeyes… John Hood, you and your second, Ash, have been a pain for the whole Spanish dominions and fleets of the Caribbean for years. Now you are in my hands. You know what’s in store for you?”

He moved a hand, and the two men with John were killed on the spot.

“That’s your destiny. Unless, of course, you would help me capture Ash. That way you’ll save your skin, and only pass some time in our prisons.”

“I know how much Spanish word is worth, and yours is worthless even compared to the average Spanish… I will never betray Ash. And if he can’t free me, he’ll sure get revenge. You won’t see it coming!” Then he laughed. Alcalde Hernan backhanded him in the face and got a mouthful of blood spat back in his own face. The governor cleaned it, barely controlling his rage, then continued.

“You know, I had to think a lot about this. So, I then made a decision. Ash won’t have a chance to free you, this time. I will expose only your dead body.” Then he stabbed John in his stomach, sat, and calmly watched him die painfully.

“Ok, get the bodies and hang them in the main square, with his name written on a post below him. Get everyone here and put them in jail for a couple of days. I don’t want people talking about what happened too soon.”

Then he left. The guards started to get the few other remaining customers, and when they got to our man, he pretended to be asleep. I’ve seen him act once, and he’s very convincing, and could have a successful career in acting. At a certain point, the guard was losing his patience and said: “The Alcalde doesn’t want it known that he’s been here for at least a couple of days!”

Slurring the words as if he were drunk for real, our man answered. “The Alcalde here? Hey, man, you must be drunk! The Alcalde would never come to a cesspool like this. Ahahahah.” And he swallowed another mouthful from the mug of ale, and pretended to fall asleep again. A few more exchanges like that, and the guards were convinced he didn’t see anything, too passed out to witness anything. With already too many angry and drunk men to manage, they allowed him to leave. He kept pretending to be really drunk, and even dropped to the ground a couple of times while he was in sight, once pretending to briefly fall asleep, until he turned enough streets to be out of sight and near enough a place where he could disappear. Then he started to run, and an hour later was on the ship, relating everything to us.

I cried. Oh, God, how much I cried that moment. Then I took some very loyal men, and at two in the morning, I was already in the city. There were ten hidden guards around the square, ready to ring the alarm. None of them survived. And the four around the bodies didn’t get better treatment. Then, while a group brought the bodies back to the ship, I paid a visit to the tavern keeper with the rest of the men. We waited until he threw out the last customer and started to close, and entered forcefully. Then completed closing the place.

“Do you know who I am, tavernkeeper?”

“Y… yes… Captain Ash… What can I do for you?”

“You can tell me how much you’ve been paid to betray a man who saved your skin and kept your secret countless times. Even when your betrayal was killing him.”

“I… Captain, I don’t know what you are talking about… There must be a mistake!”

“No mistake. One of the guards was one of our informers… if he had known in time, he would have warned us, but he didn’t and could do nothing. So, I know exactly what happened here, to the last word said.”

If anyone was spying or eavesdropping, or for any reason, the tavern keeper would manage to save his skin, they would look for a corrupt guard, nothing else.

“I was forced! I didn’t want to…”

“Enough! I know you told him that the Alcalde paid better. And I know why Blackeyes didn’t spill your secret.”

“Why…?” He was truly very scared.

“Because he knew the city prisons would have been much softer on you than I would, and spilling your secret and making you end there would have put you under protection, instead.”

“No… no… I’ll do anything you want! I’ll tell you informations, all informations I know! I know secrets, a lot! I can be very valuable!”

“You smell badly of fear. Do you have a secret stash of money?” I was softer… like if, after all, as a pirate, I would be practical and accept monetary compensation.

“Uhm… ehr… yes… why?”

“I was thinking about compensation…”

“Uh… yes, yes… that could be arranged… what sum were you thinking about?”

“Allow us to see what you piled up betraying friends… then we’ll see…”

He knew showing money to pirates was a good way to lose them all… but it was his only chance to save his own skin. He knew he gambled dangerously and lost; it was time to try and save what he could. So, he indicated a door. “Downstairs.”

“Ok… traps?”

“No… no, none… we go back and forth the whole time, it would be impossible to have traps.”

“Ok, Jonas, Henry, go down, and get ready if he makes any unexpected move. Just don’t kill him. A stab in his leg should be enough. As fat as he is, he wouldn’t be able to walk anymore.”

So, the tavern keeper brought us down, moved a few barrels, removed a flat stone from the floor, and took a small chest out.

“Ok, open it, slowly, then step back.”

It was indeed full of coins. Atop the pile, there was a small pouch. “That’s the payment for betraying Blackeyes?”

“Yes…”

I took it, apparently not paying interest to the rest, and counted them. He sold John for fifty doubloons. There was a reward of one thousand doubloons that he could ask for, and he sold a friend for just fifty.

“You know… fifty doubloons over a reward of a thousand. To sell a friend of yours. A friend who has protected you for a long time. And judging by this chest, you didn’t even need to. It’s an insult. It’s a total lack of respect. If you took the whole thousand, I could have understood, maybe. But fifty… shamefully pitiful, and incredibly stupid.”

I put the money back in the pouch. “Tie him.”

The men took some ropes around the cellars and tied him very tightly and mercilessly. They admired Blackeyes more than any pirate would ever admire anyone, after all, he was a legend, and they were the crew of that legend. The traitor was sweating, and his eyes were pleading. He would have begged, if his fear allowed him. Instead, he was wetting his pants.

“You are disgusting, not even a man… look, a little child pissing himself. Who is living above the tavern?”

“Nobody. It’s only me. The boys working for me live several houses away.”

“And the next house?”

“It’s just a warehouse. This isn’t a residential quarter…”

“Very good. Now, open your mouth wide. Wider. More.” Then I forced the pouch into his mouth. It wasn’t fitting, and I hit the pouch with my fist to force it in, breaking several of his rotten teeth. I then personally broke his arms and legs with a club, while listening to his muffled screams, while now he writhed on the floor like an agonizing snake, which in a sense he was. Two men brought the chest of coins away.

We took several bottles of rum and poured them on his writhing body, then broke some around the basement, and opened many barrels. With the help of another man, I capsized a full big barrel on his legs, so he was totally pinned down. We poured much more rum in the basement, to the point that there was at least one centimetre of alcohol on the floor. Then took all the lamps and torches in the tavern, threw them down, and closed the door. We left quickly from the back door, leaving the tavern sealed, and running as if we had the devil on our heels. The explosion, with a high, light blue flame toward the sky, happened when we were already several streets away, and we still heard it. In a few moments, there would be half of the city would be converging there.

We left the city quickly, and an hour later, we were back on the ship. I left the whole chest of money to be split in even parts amongst John’s crew, since it wasn’t loot, which, amongst pirates, would have specific rules for the partitioning. Then I talked with Robert, and he agreed that I was already more or less the second in command, trusted by everyone, and there wouldn’t be anyone from the old crew refusing my rule.

So, we told the crew. A group of the most recent acquisitions grumbled, and one of them openly refused.

“I don’t think you should be the Captain, I’m much more experienced than you, and bedding a captain isn’t a valid reason to get the command. I’ll keep bedding you when I’m in charge, don’t worry.”

“You should challenge me before that happens. Since the majority of the crew backs me up, you don’t have much choice.”

Being so recent, he never saw me in a fight, or he wouldn’t be so bold. He thought Ash’s fame was just a reflection of being Blackeyes’ mate. So, he promptly accepted.

“Ok, but when I scratch your skin, don’t start crying. I won’t be easy on you only because you are a woman.”

I saw some of the old crew barely managing not to laugh. They knew the game and knew to keep their mouths shut.

“Fine, because I won’t be easy on you only because you are a man.” I mocked him. Then added. “Before we start, though, I want the pledge from your group that if you lose, they’ll be loyal to me, the rest of the crew, and the ship. We can’t work if we have to look our backs constantly.”

His five friends talked a little, then four moved amongst my men. “We agree. We’ll be loyal to the winner. Your crew is famous, and so is your name. If they side with you, it must be because they are confident in you. No reason to doubt it, we shouldn’t have since the beginning.”

The other one instead said: “I will never plead loyalty to a bitch. Your place is a brothel, not on a ship. But that’s not important, since you’ll lose, then we’ll be able to get a piece of your ass, we just have to cover your face.”

“Fine. Let’s start!”

At the first lunge, I disarmed the guy. “Sorry, probably you were distracted. Get your sword back.” And I waited for him to get it back. My men were sneering at him. The second time, I told him, “Didn’t you say you wouldn’t go easy on me even if I was a woman?” The third time it happened, I asked him if he was tired, maybe we should try it another day. He was quite angry and threw a knife at me. Which I avoided. “Ok, nasty tricks, I guess you want to continue. But maybe I’ll try some trick too, since you like them, ok? Like this one.” I attacked, and when he was totally focused on defence, I swept his legs from under him and jumped back before he touched the floor. “Do you like nasty tricks?” He watched me with hate. “Your expression tells me not. So, stop trying them, or it won’t go well.”

Then, I started the usual playing. First, I literally shredded his clothes, leaving him naked, then I pierced his secondary arm’s muscles from hand to shoulder, one by one, several times, until his arm was limp at his flank. I allowed him to see a path in my attacks, ready for when he would try to attack in the small opening. But he proved to be one of those overconfident bullies who mostly advance through brute force and backstabbing, and never got it. At last, I pierced the sword-wielding arm, and he dropped it. I noticed him moving so his companion would be behind me, after he moved so as to be isolated enough not to be stopped if he tried something. I raised the sword to see behind me in its reflection while looking at the man’s face. He was enraged, but with an evil smile. At a certain point, he said: “You really think I’d let you win so easily?”

At that, I dropped to the floor, and the knife thrown by his friend planted itself in his chest. Not a mortal wound, but very painful. My men blocked the thrower, and I walked to the wounded man. “Did you really think you would survive my men after killing me or even just wounding me with a trick like that? But you two have proven you aren’t worth this crew. Normally, we would heal you and disembark you at the first haven. But you are just scum, and I wouldn’t forgive myself if I let you cause problems on another ship. Plus, you chose the wrong moment to be an asshole.”

I pierced his heart, took the knife from his chest, turned to the other man, who was scared shitless, and spoke. “I think this belongs to you. Here, have it back!” And planted it in his stomach. Once he too was dead, we threw their corpses in the sea. Then proceeded to a ceremony in honour and memory of John ‘Blackeyes’ Hood, the strongest and best Captain who ever sailed a pirate ship in these seas.