Chapter 9
John took a deep breath and sighed. I did it, he thought as he lowered the weapon.
"Do you really mean it? You'll make me a part of your crew?" John asked.
"Aye! Ye have the heart of a tiger shark. Would be a shame to not 'ave ye aboard the Sultana." Black Sam reached for the boy, embracing him in a one-armed hug.
John gave the pistol back to Captain Black Sam and smiled up at the man. He was speechless.
"Say yer goodbyes, get yer stuff an' we'll be on our way," the pirate captain said.
John rushed past his mother into the captain's quarters and pulled his extra clothes out of their luggage. Alice followed her son into the room.
"Are you not going to say goodbye?" she asked.
John turned to her while he stuffed his clothes and shoes into the net bag that Jack had given him. Alice was a stoic woman and not one prone to cry easily, but John could see her eyes becoming moist with emotion as she looked at him.
"You've grown up so sudden," she cried her voice cracking.
In a rush of pity, John ran to his mother and flung his arms around her neck as she stooped to hug him.
"I'll come back for a visit," John said. He felt another pang of guilt for pointing the pistol at her, but didn't apologize. He wasn't sure if he would ever see her or his father again, but he decided, in that moment, if he could, he would try.
Alice nodded as a tear rolled down her cheek. She pulled back from him and wiped it away.
"Make sure that you do," she said.
John nodded, and then quickly left the captain's quarters, leaving his mother behind. The pirates were waiting for him by the ladder when he entered the common room.
"Are ye ready then?" Captain Black Sam asked.
"Aye, aye captain!" John yelled. As he passed by the cook he smiled and nodded at the man who had become like a father to him. He felt a yearning to stop and hug Jack, but decided against it.
"Be safe," Jack said and waved goodbye. A tear glistened in the corner of his good eye.
With his head held high, John waved back to Jack and then nodded to the crew of the Bonetta as he made his way through the common room. When he reached the pirates, Black Sam waved him forward.
"We'll be followin' yer lead young John," the pirate captain said.
John's smile widened so much it began to hurt his cheeks. He climbed the ladder to the deck of the Bonetta for the last time, feeling as if he had just entered a dream. He climbed through the hatchway and hurried over the gangplanks to the Sultana where he stood by the captain's cabin and watched the pirates board their ship.
As soon as the last of Captain Black Sam Bellamy's men were aboard the Sultana, the Captain turned to John.
"Come into m' cabin John, thar's some business we need to discuss," the captain said. He opened the door and waited for John to enter.
John did as the captain asked. He stood by the table, which was covered in nautical maps and charts, and watched as the captain closed the door behind him.
"Sit," the pirate captain commanded. He pulled a chair away from the wall towards the table and motioned for John to take the seat.
John did as he was told, dropping the heavy net bag on the floor as he sat down.
"First off, I must tell ye since yer not familiar with our ways that I can't just make the decision to bring you aboard. Ye see, it's against our Code of Conduct," the pirate captain sighed. He pulled up his chair, so he could face John, and sat down astride.
"What do you mean, you said—" John blurted.
Black Sam interrupted holding up his hand to silence John. "Aye, I know what I said. What's to happen next is a vote. Yer stay on the Sultana will be decided by the majority of her crew. Those are the rules. Thar's nothin' I can do about it."
"A vote?" John asked, bewildered. What was the use of being a pirate captain if you couldn't make your own decisions, he wondered.
"Aye, the quartermaster has already begun the process below deck. When he comes up, we'll know how the vote went," Black Sam explained.
"Oh," John said, sure the men would reject him. He was deeply disappointed. His mind filled with fear and doubt once more.
Black Sam sighed. "Don't look so down lad. As ye've said before some of the other men will vouch for ye."
John remembered the two pirates who once guarded the hatchway on the Bonetta and their kind words the last few times he went to see the captain. He felt his spirits lift.
"So what do we do now?" John asked.
"Well for now, ye can be an honorary pirate's apprentice. But truth be told, I'm at a loss. I'm not sure what to do with ye," the captain said. He picked up a golden pitcher off the table and used it to fill his coconut chalice with grog.
"I can climb up to the crow's nest and keep a look out for ships. I can work in the galley. I'll even swab the deck. I can do lots of things."
"'Tis true ye can do all those tasks. Well then start with the first. Off to the crow's nest with ye. I'll call ye down when the quartermaster has the results of the vote," Captain Black Sam said, sounding more confident.
John leapt up, "Aye captain," he said enthusiastically and ran to the door, throwing it open. After quickly sizing up the two masts to see which one housed the crow's nest, he ran for the rope ladder of the mainmast and climbed to the top.
From the crow's nest, John had a perfect view of all three ships. The Marianne and the Sultana had disengaged from the Bonetta and were drifting east, leaving the pilfered ship on her own. John watched the Bonetta's deck. Her crew had come to life and they were scurrying about, hoisting the ship's sails to catch the wind, and preparing to leave.
John saw his mother on deck. She faced the Sultana, holding a hand to her face to shield her eyes from the sun and wind. Just then, as he watched the Bonetta's sails fill, he felt a surge of panic as he realized if the pirates voted nay, they'd want him off the ship. What will Black Sam do with me then, he wondered.
As far as John could figure there'd only be two options. The pirates could chase down the Bonetta again and leave him with his mother, or they'd just drop him off somewhere. John hoped for the second scenario. At least that way he could continue his adventure.
John watched the Bonetta until she disappeared over the horizon and continued looking in her direction long after she vanished from view. The minutes passed slowly as John surveyed the empty ocean. Without anything left on the water to hold his attention, John felt his gaze drawn to the hatchway. When the vote was done, Richard, the quartermaster would come up onto the deck. Any minute now, John told himself.
John stood rigid with his hands firmly gripping the railing of the crow's nest. He couldn't stand waiting. He found himself wishing he could hear what the pirates were saying about him. Then a thought bubbled to the surface of his mind. He could try spying on the vote.
He began the climb down to the deck anxious to find out how the vote was going. When he reached the bottom of the ladder, he ran to the hatchway and stopped suddenly over the opening, straining to hear voices. Before descending, John stuck his head through the hatchway and looked to see if anyone would notice him.
It was dark. As John's eyes adjusted to the dim light, he realized he could hear voices coming from a closed off room in the stern of the ship. It quickly became clear no one would see him if he climbed down. The end of the ladder would place him inside the hold rather than at the edge of the common room, as it would've on the Bonetta.
John slid down the ladder and tip-toed towards the closed door left slightly ajar. A beam of candle light escaped the common room through a crack in the doorjamb. Beyond the door, voices grew louder as many pirates argued their point. John pressed an eye to the crack to see what was happening.
It was a packed room. The pirates inside the common room were standing shoulder to shoulder, crowding around the quartermaster who stood elevated on the seat of a wooden chair.
"So it's settled then. Arguments have been put forth for yea and for nay.
We'll vote on whether or not we'll keep following the capt'n's orders," the quartermaster yelled over the din of mumbling pirates.
John was confused. They weren't supposed to be voting on keeping the captain. They're supposed to be voting on keeping me, John thought.
Richard, the quartermaster, yelled over the mumbling pirates. "All in favor of continuing to follow Black Sam Bellamy as captain of the Sultana, place the white marble in the tin. If ye wish to vote nay, place the black marble in the tin." He sat down on his chair and held the tin can up for the first man to place his vote.
The marbles clinked into the container as the men lined up and placed their votes. John felt time slow down. As far as he could tell, there were at least a hundred men in the crew and each man took their vote very seriously. When they were done voting, the quartermaster poured the marbles onto a wooden tray and began counting. After a few minutes, he cleared his throat and stood to announce the results.
"The majority has spoken and the answer is yea. Now for the issue of young John. Will ye allow him to stay on an' learn the sweet trade, or will ye cast him out?" The quartermaster sat down and held the tin up so the men could make their decision.
Again the pirates made an orderly line and placed a marble in the tin. John's eye began to dry out. He moved his face away from the door and rubbed the moisture back into it before he placed his other eye over the crack. This time, the pirates seemed to take even longer to finish voting.
Many stood talking and arguing amongst themselves for quite some time before finally casting their vote. Hendrick Quintor was the most vocal against letting John join. John's heart sank as he listened to the first mate speak ill of him.
"That pup will jus' get underfoot," Quintor growled to a man standing next to him. "Pups 'ave no place at sea. It's against the code."
"Since when do ye care so much 'bout the code," Richard said. "I've already thought of a place fer 'im. I've been actin' as cabin boy ta the capt'n fer too long after the last one died," he complained.
"If he gets the vote, ye an' the capt'n will be responsible fer 'im. I'd jus' as soon slit his throat an' throw 'im to the sharks. An' I'm still might if he doesn't stay outta me way," Quintor shot back.
To make his thoughts clear Quiontor made a big show of choosing a black marble. He dropped it into the tin while pushing his face into the quartermaster's until their noses seemed like to meet, forcing Richard to take a step back. The quartermaster lifted his hands and nodded his agreement as a deep growl burst from Quintor's throat.
John could tell Richard was thoroughly intimidated by the man. He was shocked, both by Quintor's threat and by Richard's insistence that he join. The quartermaster had always been so cold towards him in the past. He had no idea that the man wanted him to come onboard.
Finally, the last man made his decision and the quartermaster took the tin back to the table with the wooden tray and methodically counted the marbles. When he was finished he stood and regarded the men with a look of astonishment.
"The vote was yea," he squeaked as he looked at Quintor's disgusted expression. Then he seemed to choke on his very words and cough as the first mate glared at him. Tapping his chest with his fist and clearing his throat, the quartermaster pushed through the mumbling crowd and disappeared as he walked towards the back wall.
John stood by the door, dumbfounded for a moment, but he soon regained his senses when he heard the men walking about the room. Afraid that someone would find him, he sprinted back to the ladder. Just then, the lunch bell began to ring, sending John into a panic. He rushed up the ladder, and ran back to the mainmast where he jumped onto the rope ladder. John was back in the crow's nest before anyone saw him.
When he looked down at the deck, the quartermaster was just beginning to come out of the hatchway carrying a tray of food. Richard brought the food to the captain's door and knocked just as the door was being opened. The captain must be eager to hear the results as well, John thought. A few moments after the quartermaster disappeared into the cabin, the captain stuck out his head and yelled for John to come join them.