The Curse of Blackbane - Chapter 5
Escape
Chapter 5
He scowled at Naamah while he considered the idea. Blackbane knew he dared to die for treasure. He had the blood of many men stained on his hands to prove that. But relying on faith in God’s word was something never really considered. Yes, the ghosts filled his nightly dreams. Somehow, he learned to handle their disturbing nightmares. And it was an angel who claimed the immortality that Blackbane held. In the end, Blackbane recognized he carried no convictions beyond his destination after death.
Do I really believe that I’m immortal on the word of an angel?
“Do we have a deal? You hear boots coming down the steps,” the woman pressed him. “Are they coming for you?”
A split second later, a procession of men entered the narrow passage at the far end of the dungeon. Blackbane turned and pressed his face against the iron bars. He saw the small group of guards as they walked toward his cell. His mind raced for a decision. Finally, he relented.
“I’ll take your deal, but only if Bingham comes with me,” he hastily told the woman.
She smiled and took his hand.
Mating with a demon sounded better than dying. Blackbane’s thought caused the symbol on his neck to turn red. The burning pain in his neck grew intense. Still, he tried to disregard the sensation.
“Follow me,” she said as she led him to the stone wall. The woman walked right through the cut stone. Blackbane hesitated, then he felt her firm grip pull him forward. His eyes widened as he watched his hand disappear through the rock wall. In the blink of an eye later, Naamah and Blackbane were standing in the dungeon cell of Bingham.
Immediately, Bingham suppressed a cry while he pushed his back against the bars in terror. With his blue vest halfway over his arm, the first mate kept glancing back and forth at his captain and the woman.
“I’ll explain later,” Blackbane told his friend, then turned to the woman as the footsteps drew closer.
“Now what?”
Naamah sighed and grabbed both men by their arms. She pulled them with her as she walked to the inside wall of the dungeon. An instant later, the trio stood inside a dark storage room on the other side of the prisoner’s cells.
“They’ll have quite a time trying to understand how you escaped,” she boasted. “No doubt, a few heads will roll when the Beyik doesn’t like their answers.”
“She’s a witch!”
His long and dirty red hair partially hid the terrified first mate’s round face. Bingham finally scrambled away to the other side of a barrel. However, Naamah remained between him and the door.
“He looks like a cornered baboon,” Naamah hissed in disgust.
“Calm down, you damn fool. She’s not a witch, and she’s on our side,” Blackbane said.
He glanced at her before looking back at his friend.
“Well, that’s for the moment, at least. Bingham, get yourself together,” Marshall commanded.
“What kind of sorcery do you call that?” The first mate’s shaky voice grew high-pitched while he still sought a way to leave.
“I have power much older and more powerful than a witch,” Naamah scoffed with an amused grin while the terrified man backed to the wall.
“Why is he coming along? He is mortal and stinks of fear.”
“Because he’s loyal to me and part of the bargain,” Blackbane growled back. “Enough of this bickering. We need to leave this fort and get to a ship.”
The room went silent at the question as the captain looked at his companions. He rubbed his neck, feeling the scar. It remained warm to his touch.
“We have the sea on one side. I can’t take you through the walls and end up in seawater,” the woman told them. “We’ll need to go through the main gate.”
“We might just get that ax yet,” Blackbane told them. “Let’s find out where the door leads. Come along, my loyal friend. Let’s find whether or not I’m insane!”
~~~
It was dusk before the trio finally escaped from the fortress. With some coaxing, Blackbane got Bingham to join him. The two men found white robes hanging near a courtyard, which they stole and put over their clothes. They also cut away parts of another garment to fashion crude-looking turbans. The effort made them appear less conspicuous as they made their way down the passage to the gate. When they reached the entrance into the fort, the two men caught sight of guards. Quickly, the trio crouched behind the corner of the wall.
“Just be quiet,” Naamah confidently told them before she rose and walked toward the two guards in their colorful, bellowing uniforms. As she drew close, they appeared uncertain about the woman in the strange attire. They made the mistake of letting Naamah come too close. Instantly, her long arms transformed into nebulous, smokey tentacles, which lifted the men from the ground. The guards grabbed for their throats as the nearly invisible strands of her shadow wrapped tightly around their throats. By the time Blackbane got to the gate; both guards were dead. Naahah’s ghostly tentacles faded away. The dead men, with their tongues hanging out of open mouths, flopped to the ground
“Christ protect us,” Bingham automatically crossed himself. Naamah gave him an evil glare.
“Get their weapons,” Blackbane ordered the first mate. He carefully approached Naamah.
“Your secrets appear in your powers as well, demon woman. Is my fate to look like these men when you finish with me?”
The question caused her to pause.
“I assume you are stronger and smarter than such pawns,” she replied, as her face displayed the innocence of a young child. “I’ll do far worse to you if you forget our agreement.”
The woman in black turned away, swiftly walking away. Bingham stepped next to his captain and handed him a guard’s belt that held a sword encased in a leather sheath.
“Captain, you’ve made a deal with the devil,” the first mate told him under his breath. “I didn’t realize you were in earnest when I overheard your conversations with her back in the cell.”
“Aye, you thought me still mad. Well, everything you’ve heard and seen is true. There’s no turning back now. Let’s move!”
After they slowly closed on Naamah, the pirate leaned closer to his friend.
“It appears I’ll need to learn the ways of demons quickly if I’m to survive what’s coming,” Blackbane whispered.
“I’m more worried about those mortals around you,” Bingham quietly observed. His tone was even, but Blackbane understood his anxiety.
“I have no words of comfort, my loyal friend. I’ve followed a path to hell. You knew that, as well. A buccaneer searches for riches and often finds the hangman’s noose. Yet you remained trustworthy, even to the point of death. I would not betray you with a lie now.”
Blackbane paused, debating how much to explain.
“As I’ve rotted in that cell, I’ve tried to discover another path. But my soul is too black for redemption. You’ve seen how demons will call me out. I have only enraging dreams, which tells me nothing. You would do well to follow another captain.”
The two men went silent at the thought. Their footsteps on the hard-packed ground, along with their winded breathing, overwhelmed the distant rush of the nearby surf. The dark form of Naamah remained ahead of them. Both men glanced at each other at the lack of sound coming from the woman’s footsteps. However, her pace forced them to increase their speed.
“I know you as William Marshall,” Bingham finally spoke. “You remember when I joined the Ranger? It was you who kept that damned Black Sam Bellamy from stringing my neck from the yardarm. While you’re not fit to enter a church, you’ve always shown loyalty to those that follow your orders. I’ll walk the path to hell or worse with you.”
Blackbane recalled the incident with a nod.
“Bingham, you’re a good man,” he replie carefully. “However, I’m afraid that’s the path we have no option but to follow. We’re dealing with creatures that carry hearts blacker than ours.”
Built on battle and blood, each man held an admiration for the other. To Blackbane, it was more durable than a mere friendship.
“Let’s catch up with our lady friend before she kills the crew. We’ll need some of them to get us out of Tunis,” the captain replied with a frown that remained partially hidden by his flowing beard.
After walking along the empty road until the moon peaked above them, Blackbane saw his ship still moored on the dock.
“Most of the crew will no longer follow you,” Bingham warned him when he saw the captain’s eyes staring at the dark silhouette. “They’re afraid of your insanity. Seymore became the first mate under Hamidu. He told them you are a lunatic.”
“After meeting that woman in black, perhaps you’re a lunatic as well,” the captain joked.
Bingham briefly grinned while he glanced at his friend, who kept observing the movements on the ship. Blackbane’s eyelids narrowed at the sight of only a single person on deck. The watch wore the turban of a Turk.
“Still, no matter who the men of the Diano Marina follow, we’re not going far without my maps and sextant,” Blackbane decided with a growl.
Next Chapter
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