Treasure Tides (The Coins)

by Greene, Deniece

  inch from the space she currently occupied… in the Captain’s

  stateroom…aboard a ghost ship. Holy crap, Royce was going to pitch a

  colossal fit.

  Stede jerked to attention, and Blackbeard laughed loudly. “We will

  see, wench, when I am more than I am now. We’ll just see how far

  you want to stay away from me. I’ve been told that I’m very talented

  with the lasses,” he bragged.

  Stede looked at Blackbeard in surprise. With the exception of the

  word ‘wench,’ there wasn’t one trace of pirate in his speech. Stede

  narrowed his eyes suspiciously. “Why have we been speaking in

  pirate jargon, Matey?” He moved toward Blackbeard running his

  fingers over the black handled dagger sheathed at his side. “I did

  not realize you were such a student of the English language these

  days.”

  “Just keep’n you on your toes, Matey. I can’t reveal all of my

  secrets, now can I?” Blackbeard said blandly. He chose not to

  acknowledge the none-too-subtle combative gesture made by Stede. Seriously! Was she listening to this insane conversation, between

  two dead pirates? What was Stede going to do? Kill Blackbeard?

  News flash-- someone had already been there-- done that. Stede made his way toward Joanna. “May I introduce myself,

  Lass?” he asked, in a gentlemanly manner. He then paused to wait for

  her response. At her nod he continued, “My name is Stede Bonnet. I

  am also known as the gentleman pirate,” he emphasized the word

  gentleman. “At your service, my lady,” Bonnet declared as he bowed

  low at the waist.

  “Oh, for Neptune’s sake, Stede…. Stop fawning all over her. The

  lass is smart enough to know which of us in this room is privy to the

  location of Blackbeard’s hidden treasure… and who in this room is not,”

  Blackbeard boasted gleefully. He strode pompously forward inserting

  his body between Stede and Joanna.

  Stede shrugged in temporary defeat and moved to retrieve his glass of

  grog. He drained it in one large gulp.

  “As I was saying before I was interrupted,” Blackbeard said casting a

  narrow look in Stede’s direction, “when I am again a flesh and blood

  man, I would suspect you will not be so stand-offish toward me, Lass. I

  promise you I know how to please a fire-filled woman such as yourself,”

  he said raking his eyes boldly from the top of her head to the painted tips

  of her toes.

  Joanna took a step back retreating from his invasion of her space. Blackbeard puffed his chest out, the ruffles down the front of his

  shirt adding to his impressive albeit ghostly image. “I happen to be very

  rich,” he declared, “as well as heavily endowed.” He grinned while

  waggling his eyebrows up and down.

  At that, Stede barked with laughter, slammed his glass back on the

  table, and crowded Blackbeard out of the way. “I too am very rich.

  Additionally, I’m much more refined than this scalawag. As to the rest, I

  will let you draw your own conclusions, my lady.” As he finished, he

  strategically tucked his thumbs into the waistband of his velvet britches,

  bringing attention to the bulge in his trousers.

  The Quartermaster was long gone, having fled shortly after shoving

  Joanna into the stateroom. Joanna rubbed her head as it was beginning

  to pound incessantly.

  Really? Not one-- but two horny pirate ghosts! Joanna stifled a chuckle by

  turning it into a groan. God, Royce would never let her hear the end of this. That

  is, after he got over being pissed that she had boarded a ghost ship alone in the first

  place.

  “Please. Sit down my lady,” Stede insisted as he grasped her elbow to

  guide her to a large table dominating the room. “May I get you some

  sort of refreshment, something to eat or drink?”

  “Um-- I’ll stand. Thank you. I’m not hungry, but I could use a drink,”

  Joanna said, casting a wary glance toward the assortment of bottles and

  glasses lining the table.

  Blackbeard scrambled to direct Joanna’s attention back toward him.

  “Allow me to pour for you,” he proposed grandly, already splashing grog

  into a mug for her. He winked broadly as he wrapped her fingers around

  the mug full of dark liquid.

  Joanna eyed both pirates suspiciously. They each grabbed a mug

  and poured themselves a drink from the same bottle. Stede and

  Blackbeard crashed their mugs mightily together in a silent salute, took a

  deep swallow, and then held their mugs high in her direction. Ok, maybe it was safe to drink? Trying not to think about how many

  hundred years the refreshment had been on board this ship, she lifted

  her mug to salute them with a gentler bump. “To new friends,” Joanna

  toasted before drawing in a healthy mouthful of the liquid. Oh, God! Room temperature grog flowed over her taste buds.

  Joanna felt tears sting her eyes and try as she might; she just could not

  bring herself to swallow. Reflex and self-preservation overtook good

  manners…Joanna could not help herself; she spit the disgusting muck

  back into the mug.

  “What-the hell-- is that foul tasting mess?” she asked scrubbing her

  tongue on her hand. She desperately searched the room for something

  to clean her mouth with. They evidently didn’t stock bar napkins on pirate

  ships.

  “You idiot,” Stede said reprimanding Blackbeard. “She is obviously

  too delicate for the potency of grog,” he observed, snatching the mug

  of regurgitated liquid from Joanna.

  “Please accept my apologies, beauty,” Stede beseeched. Nodding

  toward Blackbeard, he observed, “He obviously left his brain in the

  grave. Not,” he continued in a loud whisper, “that he was all that

  smart to begin with.”

  “Grog?” Joanna croaked, “What the hell is grog… and is it fatal?” “No, my lady, ‘tis nothing harmful. Just a refreshing bit of fire.” “You’ve obviously never heard of a skip-and-go-naked or sex-on-thebeach,” Joanna complained, shivering a little. Talk about an after-taste. Both men began to chuckle, eyeing her with great interest. She was

  going to be a fine shipmate for one of them. She was beautiful and full

  of enthusiasm.

  “We will, no doubt, have to duel for her,” Blackbeard announced to

  Stede wearing a bemused expression. “Pistols at dawn?” he suggested. Ok, enough is-- too much! Joanna decided it was time to get some

  answers. She took a moment to pull herself together by finger

  combing her hair and smoothing her shorts. She was desperately

  wishing for a mirror, her favorite tube of lipstick, oh… and a breath

  mint.

  Joanna took a deep breath as she prepared to dive into the Where’s

  and What For’s. Both pirates’ eyes immediately dropped to her breasts

  and intently watched as they expanded with her indrawn breath. WTF? She felt a static-electric sizzling feeling engulf her and fought to control the surge of anger. These two idiots would not understand a sparking

  Witch.

  “Excuse me, boys,” Joanna gritted between clinched teeth. Bending

  her knees to put her face in their line of vision, she pointed out, “My

  eyes are up here.”

  Blackbeard sighed. “Ah, but you have such lovely--”

  “Stop
right there!” Joanna interrupted. She spied a coverlet draped

  over the foot of the bed. She snatched up the piece of cloth and

  wrapped it securely around her shoulders.

  Distractions concealed, she began, “If you would have a seat,

  gentlemen,” she said gesturing toward two of the uncomfortable looking

  chairs surrounding the massive table. “I have some questions. I would

  appreciate honesty from you both,” she insisted as she aimed an I-meanbusiness look toward both men.

  “Now, as I started to say--” Joanna began, only to be interrupted as a

  knock sounded on the door to the stateroom. This knock sounded more

  frantic in nature than the previous one had, the one announcing Joanna’s

  arrival.

  “Oh, for the love of--” Blackbeard rolled his eyes and bellowed.

  “What is it now?”

  “Cap’n, the Ranger be fast approachin’ ‘n she be sailin’ th’ Jolly Rodger

  from ‘er mast.”

  “Vane,” Blackbeard said gravely.

  “Aye, and Calico Jack,” Stede added.

  “My lady,” Blackbeard said with a sigh, “we must continue this

  conversation at a later date. It seems I have company, and I must warn

  you that these scurvy bilge rats know no honor. They’ll not think twice

  before making you walk the plank. Fear not, we will stow you away.

  You are a fine treasure, and this room was built for hiding valuables,” he

  confided mysteriously.

  “I’m quite capable of taking care of myself,” Joanna assured him. She

  hid a smile imaging their surprise at her particular skill-set.

  “Cap’n she’s droppn’ anchor,” the Quartermaster reported urgently

  through the door.

  “We will be on deck shortly to meet Calico Jack and Vane. And,

  William…” Blackbeard paused.

  “Aye? Cap’n?” Quartermaster William Howard responded. “Anyone mentions the lass, loses their tongue,” Blackbeard promised

  darkly. “Savvy?”

  “Savvy, Cap’n. I’ll be spreadn’ the word.”

  As the Quartermaster hurried away, Blackbeard crossed the room to

  open an armoire positioned on the far wall. He pushed aside a wide

  array of ornate coats and lavish poet shirts, the real pirate variety with

  ruffles galore. He felt around until he found the release trigger he was

  looking for. With a click, the false back opened and… surprise of

  surprises… an entire room was hidden behind the armoire.

  Stede escorted her across the room and kissed her cheek before

  bundling her quickly into the secret room. As he pushed her through the

  opening, he whispered “Be very quiet no matter what you hear. You will

  be safe in there.”

  “Really,” Joanna protested, “this is not necessary. I--”

  “Be silent, Lass,” Blackbeard added his warning. “We will protect

  you. Worry you not.” He strode past her to light a candle sitting on a

  mammoth desk littered with various maps and trinkets.

  # Joanna was still sputtering as Blackbeard swept past her on his way out of the secret room. The panel closed quickly, effectively putting an end to her protests. Glancing curiously around the room, she spied several hanging chandeliers loaded with candles. With a wave of her hand the candles danced to life completely illuminating her safe room.

  Joanna was surprised to find a lavish hide-away complete with velvet covered armchairs and silk wall covering. The smell of tobacco lingered in the air. Looking more closely, she noted the cleverly placed vents which allowed fresh air to continually flow into the chamber.

  Blackbeard’s journal graced the center of the desk. The open journal looked as if he had started the log for the day. Joanna ran her hands lightly over the journal to see if she could pick up anything out of the ordinary. She found nothing particularly threatening in nature and began flipping through the pages. She read about one voyage after another. Queen Anne’s Revenge had certainly been busy in the year 1717.

  Blackbeard’s notes cataloged his life. Joanna smiled at some of the entries depicting adventures from the time he had been a young man. He actually had been quite popular with the “lasses” judging from his notes detailing the virtues of each and every one of his dozen wives.

  One entry, dated within the past month, was particularly interesting; “There will be a grand gathering of pirates on Pinckney where we shall finally close Davy Jones locker for all time. Calico Jack has also heard rumors of the coin’s reappearance. He cannot be trusted! He shall not get his hands on such a weapon again.”

  Joanna’s heart began to race as she flipped rapidly through the next few pages. A more recent entry read, “The coin has been retrieved from beneath the sea once again. I shall settle the score with Vane for the part he played in deceiving me. He and Calico Jack must not be allowed to reclaim the coin. With it, they would have the power to-- alas, I dare not even put the possibility of such atrocity to paper.”

  The power to what? Joanna wracked her brain as she read and reread the passages. She suddenly gasped. Blackbeard has the coin? Was it possible that the coin referenced in Blackbeard’s journal was the same coin ART had been commissioned to recover? Even more concerning after reading Blackbeard’s writing was the fact that she suddenly remembered…Vane and Calico Jack were boarding the ship.

  There it was again! The inexplainable pull grabbing at her subconscious. Joanna shook it off, determined to stay focused on the tangible…well, somewhat tangible anyway. She moved quickly to place Blackbeard’s journal in the exact spot where she had found it, remembering to turn it to the proper page. There was no reason for Blackbeard to know that she had been snooping.

  Suddenly the ship pitched starboard; almost simultaneously, she heard shouts and pistol fire. As she stood quickly, one of the large rubies littering the desk rolled onto the floor. Joanna crawled under the desk to retrieve the ruby just as the ship rolled once again with even more force. Crack! She banged into the underside of the desk with the back of her head.

  “ Mother-” Joanna cried out, instinctively pacing her hand over the injury to check for blood.

  “That freaking hurt,” she exclaimed, relieved to find a small gash rather than the expected gaping hole in her head. Wishing for an icepack, she backed out from under the desk planning to see for herself what the hell was happening above deck. It sounded like a war was going on up there.

  As Joanna backed up the last few inches, she glanced at the offending timber to see if she had left any blood on it. Immediately, she noticed that one of the wooden panels had become displaced when she hit her head.

  “That’s great, Jo, destroy a piece of history,” she muttered. Reaching out to pull the panel back in place, she could not believe her bad luck, when it completely came off in her hands. “Oh for crying out loud,” she lamented. That was when she noticed a small velvet-wrapped bundle stashed behind the obviously removable panel.

  Her breath seemed to be caught in her throat as she slowly reached for the prize. Joanna didn’t take time to unwrap it but quickly stuffed it in the pocket of her shirt and replaced the false panel on the desk. Joanna’s hands began to shake. This was the coin! She just knew it.

  She hurried over to stand directly underneath one of the chandeliers thankful that she had lit them all earlier. Barely daring to breathe, she untied the silk cord securing the swatch of velvet.

  As the contents of the pouch was unveiled, Joanna reached out to touch the diamonds surrounding an ancient ankh symbol of inlaid rubies. The cross consisted of a loop for the top extension and a shorter crossbar. This was the symbol of life used in ancient Egypt.

  “No!” Joanna heard and barely stopped her fingers from making contact with the coin. “Hide the coin. Danger.�
�� She turned abruptly to see who had spoken to her, but she was alone in the chamber. She carefully turned the coin over, making sure not to touch it directly. On the reverse side was a black spider fashioned from black onyx and surrounded by rubies. She quickly wrapped the coin in its velvet shroud, and then tucked it securely in her bra.

  She slipped the cell phone out of her back pocket and dropped a text to Sean. Chas Harb. Don’t tell R. B home soon. Jackpot! Joanna hit send taking comfort in the fact that if something went wrong they would at least know where to start looking for her.

  She extinguished the candles preparing to transport herself back home. She did not want to be responsible for a fire aboard the ship. Could ghost ships catch fire? As she snuffed out the last candle a loud crash emanated from the other side of the secret door. She tiptoed across the room to press her ear against the panel. Blackbeard and Stede did not seem to like Vane and Calico Jack. From what Joanna had read in the journal, they were indeed “without honor” as Blackbeard had advised.

  History had not been one of Joanna’s strongest subjects. Although she remembered that Calico Jack had designed the famous Jolly Rodger flag with a skull and crossed swords, she struggled to recall even one fact about a pirate named Vane. Another crash sounded. This one was followed by an angry booming voice. “Give me the coin, and maybe I will raise you along with the rest… but if you continue to run this blockade, you will find yourself in Davy Jones locker for eternity. Savvy?”

  Joanna rubbed her temples and furtively wished she had been more attentive during history classes. Who is this Vane? Swords clashed and voices raised as the struggle carried on in Blackbeard’s quarters.

  With a sigh, Joanna pushed away from the panel. Looks like it’s time for an intervention of the magical variety. She heard a soft click as the panel swung open. She hadn’t been locked in after all. She slid out of the secret room into the armoire.

  Seriously, does one pirate need this many clothes? Pushing her way through yards and yards of ruffles and billowing shirts, she decided pirates were a vane lot.

  Boom! Joanna stopped short of swinging the armoire doors open. Was that pistol fire?

  She burst out of the armoire, stopping abruptly. Unfortunately, she came face to face with an angry pirate waiving a pistol in one hand and a sword in the other. He was not handsome, nor did he ooze charisma like her two hosts. This pirate looked downright mean even with a head full of curls hanging past his shoulders.