Chapter 27:  Imprisoned

 

Captain Jack Sparrow opened one eye slightly when he heard the door to the prison open, trying to appear asleep while seeing who had entered.  His eyes widened, however, the moment he realized who was being led down the stairs to join him.

“Jackie…” he breathed.

Robin did not appear to notice him as she was thrown roughly into the cell with Jack and the other occupant, a little boy who had yet to speak.  The boy watched Jack’s daughter being thrown into the cell with wide eyes.

“Robin?” Jack said hesitantly when the soldiers who had brought Robin to the prison had left.

Robin sat up and held onto her arm, which had been twisted rather painfully when the soldiers had thrown her into the cell.  She met Jack’s eyes.  “Jack?”  She looked around, appearing to not the boy’s presence, but not saying anything to him.  “I had hoped that you had not been captured.  Knowing you, you could have found some crazy and quite nearly suicidal way to escape Lord Beckett’s grasp.”

Jack smiled slightly.  “True enough, love.  Usually I would have.”  They fell silent for a while, until Jack’s curiosity forced him to ask, “So why are you here?”  Robin turned to him, arching an eyebrow.  “Last I saw, you and Norrington were headed to the Dutchman with the map.”

Robin chuckled uneasily.  “Well, yes…I suppose you can see how well that turned out,” Robin remarked, motioning around her.  Jack looked at the dress Robin was wearing.  It was far more expensive than any gown she had ever worn before.  Only one man could have had that made for her.

“So did Lord Beckett grow tired of you?”

Robin appeared to desire to slap him, but she did not.  “For your information, I saved the lives of your crew—something that Lord Beckett clearly did not appreciate me doing.”

“Am I to expect you to be taken away tonight?”

Robin glared at him.  “Lord Beckett has not taken advantage of me.”  She paused.  “Not in that manner, anyway… And I would appreciate it if you would stop with the insinuations.”  Robin hugged her knees to her chest.  “That isn’t really an image I want in my mind,” she added under her breath.

The door opened again, and Admiral James Norrington came down the stone steps almost at a run, apparently in a great hurry.  He nodded to Jack almost in respect, which confused the pirate captain greatly.  Norrington then looked at Robin, who had her back to him and had not bothered to turn around and see who had come.

“Lord Beckett is giving you another chance,” Norrington said quickly.  Robin remained silent.  “It is your last opportunity.”  Robin still said nothing and did not turn around.  Norrington glanced at Jack, appearing slightly nervous, and he suddenly knelt down by the cell.  “Jacqueline, please, hear me out…”

“I have nothing to say to Lord Beckett,” Robin said coldly, her back to the Admiral.  “He knows full well why I won’t agree to his terms.”

Jack looked from one to the other.  How did the Admiral know Robin’s Christian name?  Perhaps he had heard Ragetti while aboard the Black Pearl.  But Robin often reacted strongly to the name Jacqueline, yet she did not seem bothered in the least that Norrington had used it.

“Don’t you understand?” Norrington said pleadingly, his eyes wide with worry.  “If you do not agree now, you will die on the gallows tomorrow.  Do you expect me to allow you to throw away your life like that?”

Robin suddenly turned to face Norrington, her eyes cold.  “Being Beckett’s whore would be throwing away my life,” Robin said harshly.  “Or is that what you want me to become?”

Norrington’s face revealed that he was nearly as appalled at this idea as Jack was.  Why he would care so much for a pirate, Jack did not know—though perhaps it was that, at heart, Norrington was a gentleman, and the idea was simply horrible in general.  However, something in Norrington’s eyes seemed to suggest that he specifically cared about Robin…which made no sense.  Jack continued to watch the conversation rather suspiciously.

“No, no, of course not,” Norrington said quickly.  “But if Beckett has offered you a way out…I mean, he said that his terms would give you freedom.”

“Did he happen to mention what I had to do in order to be granted that freedom?”  She scoffed as Norrington slowly shook his head.  “’Be granted’…I would provide an heir.  A male heir.  And now I’m sure you are thinking of what would be involved to complete such a task.”

Norrington flushed considerably in embarrassment as Jack felt his own face grow hot in anger.  That bloody Company bastard…he had probably already taken what he wanted from Robin, despite her claims, and wanted more…

“I wasn’t…” Norrington said somewhat sheepishly.

“I’m not marrying him, James,” Robin insisted, turning her back on the Admiral again.

Norrington stared at her for a few moments.  He glanced to the stairs, checking to see if anyone was around, before he slowly reached into his coat.  Jack noted that this movement revealed a pistol, but the Admiral seemed to be reaching for something further inside the decorated uniform.  Jack’s eyes glinted as Norrington withdrew a key.

As though sensing that Norrington was holding their freedom in his hands, Robin suddenly turned around to look at him.  Norrington raised his eyes to hers as he held the key loosely in his hands.  “I can distract the soldiers guarding the prison long enough for you to escape,” he said quietly.  He tightened his grip on one end of the key and stood.

Robin leapt to her feet.  Jack, trying not to seem too eager, slowly raised himself up onto his feet and leaned casually against the wall of the cell.  The little boy in the corner watched the adults’ movements, remaining quite still and silent.

Norrington was about to put the key into the lock of the cell door when Robin suddenly reached through the bars and wrapped her fingers tightly around his wrist.  The Admiral’s eyes widened slightly in surprise.  Jack smirked slightly at this reaction.  Norrington should know not to trust a pirate.

But instead of forcing the key away from him as Jack had assumed she would, Robin pushed Norrington’s arm away.  “What’s wrong?” Norrington asked with confusion.

“There’s no way we can get out of here unnoticed.  It’s too heavily guarded,” she said softly.

“I told you, I’ll take care of that,” Norrington whispered, reaching a hand through the bars and gently stroking Robin’s cheek.  Jack’s eyes narrowed dangerously as he glared at the Admiral.  He did not like men in wigs touching his daughter.  “You and your father need to concentrate on getting out of Port Royal—I’ll worry about the fort.”

Jack’s mouth dropped and his eyes widened.  Norrington knew that Robin was Jack’s daughter?  But how?  Surely Robin would not have told him herself.

“And then Lord Beckett will have you killed.”  Robin took a step away from the bars and out of the reach of Norrington’s hand.  “I won’t have your death on my conscience, James.”

“One moment here, Jackie.”  Jack grabbed his daughter by the arm and pulled her further back into the cell and spoke to her in a low voice.  “Since when did you have a conscience?  Now is a bad time to get one—he’s giving us a chance to escape.  I have no idea why, but he is, and we should take it.”

“Not at the cost of his life.”

“He’s willing to give it!  You don’t question a gift, Jackie; you take it.”

“No!”  Robin turned back to Norrington.  “No,” she repeated gently.  “I will not allow you to sacrifice yourself for me.  Unlike Elizabeth, I can’t live with that on my conscience.”

“There’s that word again…” Jack muttered in annoyance.

Robin’s mention of Elizabeth seemed to have great effect on Norrington.  He grew rather pale and looked down at the ground, his eyes filled with sadness.  Robin stepped toward him, reaching through the door of the cell and lifting his chin so he was looking into her eyes.  “I…I’m sorry.  I didn’t mean to…”

“Yes, you did,” Norrington interrupted.  He shook his head.  “If you are trying to prove that you are better than Elizabeth…you dying will prove nothing.”

Robin stared at him for a moment in silence, apparently speechless.  She took a deep breath, trying to calm her sudden anger.  “The world does not revolve around Lizzie!” she said, pulling her hand back into the cell.  “This doesn’t have anything to do with her.  I was just bringing her up so that you would realize what a foolish thing you were planning to do, and that I won’t let you!”

“Elizabeth didn’t ‘let’ me die,” Norrington said through clenched teeth.

“Didn’t she?” Robin countered harshly.  “If it wasn’t for her, you would not have freed those pirates, am I right?”  Robin did not wait for a response.  “If you had not freed them, you would not have been killed!  Did she even bother to try and help you?  She wasn’t worth it!”

Norrington appeared as though he had been slapped.  “What?” he exclaimed in disbelief.

“She wasn’t worth it,” Robin repeated quietly.

“And you are?”

“I didn’t say that,” Robin said, her cheeks darkening in anger.

The two fell silent.  Robin sighed heavily, her arms crossed across her chest.  Norrington had a hand on the bars of the cell, seeming to lean his weight against it.  Jack stood by awkwardly, a little confused about what was going on.  Memory of the last time he had seen the two fighting surfaced, and the image of them kissing passionately was suddenly in his mind’s eye.  He grimaced as he watched the two avoid eye contact, their breathing rapid in frustration.

“Are you in love?”

Everyone turned to the little boy when he spoke.  He looked very uncomfortable as everyone turned their attention to him.  Jack glanced at his daughter to see her reaction, and was quite surprised to see her flush deeply.  She coughed nervously.  Jack looked back at Norrington, who had also grown quite red.

“What makes you ask that?” Robin asked the boy, smiling uneasily.

The boy bit his lip.  “Father and mother used to fight like that,” he said quietly.  “But then they would say that they loved each other and be happy…”

Robin knelt by the boy, who watched her carefully as though a little frightened of her.  “What’s your name?” she asked quietly.

“John.”

Robin ran a hand through his tousled brown hair.  “What are you in here for, John?”

John looked at his hands.  “Father was a pirate.  So his family needs to be punished.”

Robin’s mouth dropped open.  “You’re in here for something your father did?”  The boy nodded.  Without turning around, likely still hiding her reddened face, Robin asked, “When does he get out, James?”

Norrington shifted his weight.  “I’m…from what I know, all the prisoners currently being held in the fort are to be hung tomorrow.”

Both Jack and Robin spun around to look at him.  “What?” Robin exclaimed, straightening and walking towards Norrington.  “He’s just a boy!”

Norrington held up the key again.  “I will let all three of you out.  As I said—I can hold off anyone who tries to come after you, at least long enough for you to get a safe distance away.”

“I won’t let you!” Robin said firmly, grapping his wrist again as he attempted to unlock the door to the cell.

“Jacqueline,” Norrington said quietly.  “Please, do not worry about me.”

“My God…” Jack breathed as he realized what emotions he was seeing in Norrington’s eyes.  “Why is it always men in wigs?  I don’t like men in wigs…”

Norrington looked up at him in confusion and offense.  “Excuse me?”

“He doesn’t know what he’s talking about,” Robin said quickly, flushing slightly.

“Will you just let us out already, Norrington?” Jack said in frustration.

“He most certainly will not.”

Jack felt a sickening jolt travel through his body as he heard the voice—Lord Cutler Beckett’s voice.  He glared at the man hatefully as Beckett walked quietly down the steps.  “I do have to wonder how you managed to get a key, Admiral—and why you appear to be offering to aid the pirates.

Norrington made a motion as though to put the key away.  Jack held his breath, remembering the pistol hidden beneath the coat.  But Beckett held out his hand for the key instead, and Norrington slowly lowered the key into Beckett’s hand, now having no excuse to reach for the weapon.

“Have you reconsidered my offer, Miss Sparrow?” Beckett inquired casually, stowing the key safely in his coat.

Robin laughed harshly.  “I’ve given you my answer, Lord Beckett.  It has not changed.”

Beckett stared at her and sighed.  “Do you realize what you are doing?”

“She’s a Sparrow, Lord Beckett—you must know that the lot of them are less than sane,” Norrington said suddenly.  Robin arched an eyebrow at him, and Norrington shrugged, probably thinking the same thing as Jack—she refused to let him save her life, so she must be a little crazy.

“Then tomorrow you die,” Beckett said, ignoring Norrington as he turned and headed to the stairs.

Robin suddenly clutched the bars of the cell and called after him.  “Cutler, you don’t have to do this—you don’t have to follow orders!  You can fight them!”

Beckett spun around and gaped at her.  “You are very much mistaken,” he said darkly.  Glancing at Admiral Norrington, he added, “I don’t take orders from anyone.  Come, Admiral.”

Norrington followed, turning back and locking onto Robin’s eyes.  At first, Jack could only see concern and caring in his eyes—then suddenly his entire face changed, as though he finally understood.

There was much more going on than he had believed.