Second on the Right (44 page)

“Eileen,” Benedict said, but immediately fell
silent.

Finally, she spoke. "Robert," she began, but
the words failed her.

He cleared his throat and collapsed in his
chair. “It’s been a long time, Eileen.” He attempted at a smile,
though it waivered "Been searchin’ fer treasure. Years, we’ve been
at sea. But none so much as came close to tha time we had. After ye
were taken, we were attacked, tha
Mistral Thief
and her
crew.”

"You survived," she noted, a slight smile on
her face.

"Aye,” he said, locking eyes with her.

"I'm sorry," she began quietly. "Sorry I
wasn't here. Sorry for—" Tears threatened to well up, brightening
her blue eyes.

“Lass, give it time.” He opened his arms to
her. She fell into his embrace, taking in the warmth and security
he now provided, feeling at home. It then occurred to her. It
wasn’t the
Mistral Thief
where she felt at home. It was with
Captain Benedict.

"Ye be here with me now,” he whispered.

Eileen was amazed at how Benedict was
treating her, as if she were the thing he valued most. Still
excited by the rescue her heart swelled when he was present and
ached in his absence. She found herself looking forward to each
evening when he would retire to his quarters. The time spent in his
company, hearing his seafaring stories, was thoroughly enjoyable.
Discussions of his experimentation with various plant life and
poisons she had found fascinating. Ever the eager student, she
implored him to share his knowledge.

Eileen secretly wished the time with Benedict
would not ever end. Still, there were moments when the void in her
heart ached at the thought of the deaths of James, her son and
stillborn daughter. When they came to mind, she couldn’t bring
herself to be intimate with Benedict.

As romantic as their relationship seemed in
the beginning, Captain Robert Benedict was anything but a romantic
man. Long ago, when Eileen had first met Benedict, she wasn’t
attracted to him. Though he had won her over, it had been more as a
mentor. She admired his tenacity, his spirit, and his confidence.
She had looked to him for guidance. He helped her to be more than
what she had been, to find her way to a new destiny. For that, she
would always be grateful.

She had been Peter Pan’s prisoner for several
months. Benedict had been the one to find, rescue and, consequently
gain her love. Eileen realized she had confused her admiration for
her mentor with romantic feelings. She had truly believed she had
fallen in love with him.

Benedict seemed happy to take any affection
Eileen would offer him. She knew he had always been attracted to
her. She wondered, once he had her for a time, would his desire for
her fade? And would her love for Benedict wax or wane?

It was a long and hard journey. Wendy did her
best to help, but she had a huge learning curve before she could
understand even the most basic of skills. Often, her lessons ended
in frustration.

By the time they had left the island, though
Wendy remained a young girl in years, her time spent with Peter had
changed her physically. As the boy had taken more and more energy
from her while requiring her to care for the others, her body aged
prematurely. Though she still had the mind of a thirteen-year-old,
her body reflected someone closer to twenty. With all the hormonal
rages of a typical teenager, Wendy explored the advantages that a
newly developed curvaceous body offered. Most young girls might shy
away from leering glances; however, Wendy thrived on them. The
looks and catcalls gave her a boost of confidence that was usually
knocked down whenever Captain Hook appeared.

Infatuated with the older man, Wendy followed
him like a lovesick puppy, if he allowed it. More often than not,
he would end up irritated, flying into a fit of rage which ended in
having her either confined to quarters or locked up below in the
brig. Her young and inexperienced mind imagined he was acting the
part in front of his men, while being secretly, madly in love with
her. Most days and nights, Wendy dreamt of romantic interludes with
the captain that only temporarily satisfied her desires. She had
yet to gather the courage to approach him, to aggressively pursue
him.

In time, I will have him.

James had felt sorry for Wendy. He had no
idea what had happened on the island, but he was certain Pan had
managed to damage her, at least emotionally. Though he would have
tried to help her, he had no experience and felt uncertain about
how to talk to her. Plus, the way she looked at him made him
altogether uncomfortable.

Trying to take his mind off such matters,
James focused on his destination: El Tiburón. Reaching the island,
James stepped into the Green Man for a drink and word on anyone who
might be looking to join a crew. As fate would have it, Benedict
was en route to El Tiburón and would be there within the week.
James, needing Benedict's advice to deal with the new Peter Pan,
remained in port and spent the week relaxing until he arrived.
During that time, James listened to stories of Peter Pan sightings.
The end of the week finally came, as did the
Mistral
Thief
.

"Benedict!" James called out.

Benedict stopped short of disembarking. His
eyes widened at the sight of James, the color draining from his
face. He seemed to struggle to respond.

He's still angry?
James thought with
annoyance. He tried to catch up to Benedict, but the men got in the
way.

Benedict had spun around and fell into a
heated discussion with a shorter crew man wearing a large hat. The
crewman, after having received a tongue lashing from Benedict,
turned and ran back on board the ship. Benedict gestured and two
other crewmen followed after the first.

What the—
James thought, watching
Benedict with suspicion. "I know you may still hold ill will. I
need only a moment of your time. Something has come up since last
we spoke."

Benedict turned back around, heading for
James. "Jas! Tis good ta see ya, lad!" He wrapped an arm around
James, forcing him to turn away from the ship. "Let's have a
drink." Benedict pushed James towards the direction of the
tavern.

James relented and followed Benedict's lead.
He was merely happy Benedict was in such good spirits.
Perhaps
convincing him will be easier than I had originally
anticipated.

Inside the Green Man, James and Benedict sat
at a table in the far corner. "So, what has happened to you since
we last saw each other?"

Benedict scanned the tavern and said,
"Survivin’."

“Ever the survivors, we are,” James
commented. Ordering a round of drinks, the two looked at each other
in silence.

Benedict broke the silence, "Did ya kill tha
whelp?"

James looked down, brow furrowed in
disappointment. "Yes, I killed him.”

Benedict raised an eyebrow. "But?”

James continued to stare at the table. "It
was a soul trap, the knife. At least, I think it was. The moment
Robbie picked it up—" He was at a loss for words.

Benedict shifted uncomfortably in his seat.
"Ah. Sorry, Jas."

James nodded. "Thanks." He watched his
reflection in the mug of ale placed in front of him. Staring at the
dark liquid, he thought aloud, "I was so close. So close. I begged
Robbie not to pick up the knife, but it was as if he were
brainwashed. He didn't remember me. Couldn't remember me. He didn't
even remember his mother, Eileen." He looked up at Benedict,
anguish in his eyes. "After all this time, you'd think the pain
would ease, but it doesn't. I miss her so much!" He turned away,
hoping Benedict didn’t notice the tears in his eyes.

"Jas, I won't be stayin' long here. Got ta
make port at Kingstown."

James nodded, "Of course. I just—" He
hesitated, looking back at Benedict. "Wait. You’ve only just
arrived. I need your help with Robbie."

"I really don't think I'd be much help ta ye.
I am but an old man," Benedict answered, struggling to spit out the
words. "Perhaps after Kingstown? I could offer ye a bit o’
supplies."

"I really could use your help now. I plan to
head directly back to Neverland," James explained. “I need all the
help I can get."

Benedict took his mug and downed the drink,
liquid pouring out the sides and down his chin and beard.

James watched him, curious.
His behavior
is odd, even for him. Why is he in such a hurry to leave?

"Sorry, Jas." Hastily setting his drink down,
Benedict stood and said, “Well, I must be off.” He rushed out the
door.

James sat for a moment, wondering why he had
been in such a hurry when he had just arrived at El Tiburón.
Curiosity driving him, he left his drink behind and followed. James
kept his distance, hiding among the trees. Benedict reached the
ship and headed up the ramp onto deck. He shouted orders for the
crew to weigh anchor and prepare to set sail. He was obviously in a
hurry.

James shrugged and was about to turn back to
the tavern when he heard a woman's voice. He looked up from the
shadows of the trees, squinting his eyes for a better look. Her
back was to him, her hair hidden underneath a large brimmed hat. It
was the crewmember Benedict had been speaking to when they had
first arrived. He couldn’t make out what she was saying, but from
her body language, he could tell she wasn’t happy. Benedict seemed
to have a hard time countering in the argument.

The
Mistral Thief
began to move back
out to sea. James watched, leaning against one of the trees.
Benedict has a mistress? Never would have thought him the
type.
James smiled in amusement seeing that Benedict's supposed
mistress appeared to be more than he could handle.
My kind of
woman.

The woman, who had just told Benedict off,
turned towards the island. Standing at the railing, she held her
head up to the sky. Pulling off her hat, she let her hair flow down
around her. James straightened. He ran to the dock for a closer
look. He gasped at the thought.

Eileen
.
It couldn’t be her, but
what if?

Taking a chance, James called out, "Eileen!"
For a moment, she didn’t move. He called out louder, "Eileen!"

The woman looked from right to left. At that
moment, Benedict came up behind. Sufficiently distracted, she
turned to him. A moment later, she pushed past him and disappeared
further into the ship. Benedict called out more orders and the ship
was underway to Kingstown.

James stood on the dock in disbelief.
Was
that really her? Was that truly Eileen?
For so long, he had
resigned himself to the fact she was dead, but yet, when he called
out her name she responded. Then it hit him. The way Benedict was
acting on the dock and at the tavern and the fact that they had
just arrived only to leave shortly thereafter.
It has to be
Eileen.
Benedict had previously made it clear he was in love
with her.

"Son of a—" James ran to the Green Man, and
began shouting for his men to abandon their drinks and head to the
Jolly Roger.

James scrambled on board and prepared the
ship to set sail, crewmen assisting as they boarded. Wendy
sauntered over to the captain, only to be roughly pushed aside. As
James hurried to set sail after his true love, this young girl was
becoming an annoyance.

"Wendy,
darlin
g, either get out of my
way, or be thrown in the brig," he said sternly. She gave him sad
hurtful eyes, but he was not affected. His wife was with Benedict,
he was sure of it, and he planned to get her back. "Now!" he
snapped. Wendy jumped, but didn’t leave. She thought perhaps if she
acted more confident and brave, he might become more attracted to
her. This move had the opposite effect on James. "On second
thought." He shouted, "Smee!"