by R. V. Bowman
Rommy narrowed her eyes. “That’s all you know. Papa did tell me why he’s here and why he wants revenge so badly, but if you assume I’m telling you...” she crossed her arms.
“Never mind about him,” said Alice, shoving Finn to the side. “Tell me!” The little girl leaned in close, her eyes huge in her face.
Finn leaned back against the pole that went up through the middle of Little Owl’s home. “Yeah, why don’t you tell both of us, if it’s such a good reason.”
Rommy looked at both of them, Alice’d eyes wide with curiosity and Finn looking bored. She blew out a breath. “My brother was a Lost Boy,” she said. “Pan nabbed him while Papa and Mama were picnicking in the park. He was only 5. Before Papa could find him, my brother was killed fighting your One-Eyed Willy. My mama died, too—from the shock of my brother’s disappearance, according to my father.”
Finn stared at her, his mouth slightly ajar.
“Blimey! No wonder your old man hates Pan so much!” said Alice.
Finn shoved his hands into his pockets. “What was his name?” he asked.
“What?”
“His name—what was it?”
“Sebastian,” said Rommy. “His name was Sebastian.”
Finn snapped his fingers and pointed at her. “I knew a Sebastian. He arrived not long after I did. There was a big battle with old One-Eyed Willy. He was a brave little chap.” Finn coughed and rubbed the back of his neck. “I reckon Captain Hook has reason enough to hate Pan. I guess he ain’t as bad as I thought.”
Light suddenly slanted in as the flap to the dwelling opened. “You don’t know how relieved I am to hear your elevated opinion of me,” drawled a familiar voice.
Chapter 16:
Papa’s Anger
“Papa!” Rommy gasped as Finn looked around wildly for another exit.
Her father stopped Finn with a piercing stare. He stepped to the side of the doorway and pointed his hook at the boy. “Get out,” he said in a menacing voice. “Get out and don’t ever come near my daughter again, or you will be sorry.”
Rommy saw Finn swallow, but he didn’t move toward the entrance. “I...I want to be sure she’ll be okay, sir—before I leave, that is,” he said. He looked over at Rommy who was staring at him, her mouth ajar.
Hook gave a bark of laughter, but the sound made a ripple of dismay go up Rommy’s spine. “Your devotion is nothing short of alarming,” he said, and walked to where Finn stood. “However, she wouldn’t need your tender concern if you hadn’t brought her here in the first place.” His voice came out in a bellow, his breath making Finn’s hair blow backward. Hook closed his eyes briefly and straightened. Drawing a deep breath, he exhaled slowly.
Then he continued in a softer voice. “But, as I understand it, your bringing her to Little Owl probably saved her life, so I’ll let you leave here in one piece. However,” Hook leaned forward and thumped the end of his hook on Finn’s chest, “if I catch you in her vicinity again, I won’t be quite so understanding, boy.”
Finn didn’t shrink back, but his clenched fists shook a little.
Hook straightened and stared down his long nose at Finn. “Now,” he said, enunciating each word, “get out.” Hook pulled open the flap to the tent and gestured. Finn gave Rommy one last glance, and then, with his head up, he walked out.
Hook swung his gaze to Rommy. She shrank back from the anger in his eyes. “And you,” he pointed his hook at her, but he seemed too angry to even speak. He closed his eyes, and his nostrils flared as he took several deep breaths before opening his eyes again. It didn’t seem to help all that much.
In two strides he was by her bedside and had grasped her arm. He shook it, and she hissed as his fingers closed over the new wound Pan had given her. Seeing her response seemed only to fuel his rage. “You’re hurt? Again?” he all but shouted.
Rommy tried to pull away from him. This was a Papa she didn’t know, with his blazing eyes and teeth bared in a snarl. She stared at him mutely. She couldn’t help the tears that welled in her eyes.
Instead of softening him, though, her tears only seemed to make her father angrier, which she hadn’t thought was possible. “Enough of that, do you hear me?” he shook her arm again. “I won’t be pulled in by those crocodile tears again. I’ve been entirely too soft with you.”
“Stop it, Papa! You’re hurting me,” she said. Her arm was now throbbing where his fingers dug into the cut.
He gritted his teeth. “You’re lucky I don’t do worse, young lady. How could you be so foolish as to present yourself to Pan like some kind of gift? Do you realize what he could have done to you?”
“I ain’t seeing that you’re much better,” came a small voice. Rommy and Hook both turned to see Alice standing there, her arms crossed and a ferocious scowl on her face. She turned to Rommy.
“This your old man you keep telling me about?” She looked Hook up and down, and the look of contempt she gave him wasn’t one that belonged on a six-year-old’s face. “He don’t seem all that wonderful to me.”
Hook dropped Rommy’s arm and stared down at the little girl. “And who are you?”
“I’m Alice, and you’ve gotta be Captain Hook, Rommy’s old man.” She shook her head and looked at Rommy. “How did you not know he was a pirate?”
Rommy took in her father’s flowing black hair, the gold hoop winking in his ear, and the dagger strapped to his waist and realized Alice was right. Her father not only looked like a pirate, but at the moment, he was acting like one, too. Papa had always been larger than life when he’d swoop in on his visits, but standing in the dim light, he seemed dangerous. Rommy blinked away her tears and took a deep breath. She knew Papa would be angry with her. Now, she just had to deal with it.
She swung her legs over the side of the bed, and Hook whirled around to face her again. “And where do you think you’re going?”
Rommy pushed to her feet. The room swayed, but she stiffened her knees. She lifted her chin, and there was an edge to her voice now. “I’m getting ready to leave, Papa. That’s why you came, isn’t it? To take me back to the ship?”
“Do not speak to me in that tone, Andromeda,” Hook said, looming over her. Rommy forced herself not to step back. She felt her own anger flickering to life. “You are fortunate I don’t turn you over my knee right here and give you the thrashing you so clearly need. Of all the harebrained schemes...” He punctuated his words with his hook.
“Well, her schemes sure helped me out, harebrained or not,” said Alice. “Being stuck with Pan was no picnic, and you jolly well made sticks and stones the first time around, didn’t you?”
Hook spun to stare down his nose at the small girl frowning up at him. He lifted both brows. “I’m not sure why you would think I care a tuppence how you feel, little miss, but I’ll thank you to keep those thoughts to yourself. This is between my daughter and me.” He curled his lip. “You are fortunate I’m willing to take on a little baggage like you.”
Alice snorted. “Bag of wind, you are!”
“Why you...”
Rommy latched onto her father’s arm. “What is wrong with you, Papa? Why are you acting like this? I’m sorry I worried you, but I didn’t have a choice.”
“No choice? No choice?” Hook was bellowing again. “Do you know how it felt to have Little Bear tell me my daughter had almost died? I didn’t even know you were gone!” Hook’s voice cracked on the word gone, and guilt washed over Rommy at the anguish on her father’s face.
“Oh, Papa, I am sorry. Truly, but Pan sent a note. He said if I didn’t come, he’d hurt Alice. I had to go, and I couldn’t...” She stopped and bit her lip.
“You couldn’t what, Andromeda?”
Rommy looked away from her father and said nothing.
“Answer me,” he said.
“I couldn’t trust you not to go after Pan again, Papa,” she said finally in a small voice. “I couldn’t...I couldn’t risk Alice getting hurt.”
Hook stared at her for a long moment. “
I see,” he said, his tone flat.
In one swift motion, he scooped her up in his arms.
Rommy squirmed. “I’m fine, Papa,” she said. “It’s not too far. I can walk.”
He squeezed her until she was still. “It’s for me to say what you can and cannot do.” Looking back at Alice, he said, “I’m assuming you can keep up then?”
“I ain’t the one you oughta be worrying about,” said Alice.
“We shouldn’t impose on Chief Hawk Eye’s hospitality any longer,” he said. He strode toward the entrance, and Alice scrambled after him.
Rommy opened her mouth to protest but her father gave her a hard look. “This conversation is not over, Andromeda, but we will finish it on the ship. If you know what is good for you, I’d advise you to be silent.”
Rommy snapped her mouth shut, but her mind was whirring.
As he carried her out of the tent, they were met by Chief Hawk Eye, Little Owl, and Little Bear. Without ceremony, Hook turned and dumped her into the arms of Big Red who was standing close by with Gentleman Jack. Rommy’s cheeks heated. She was embarrassed at being hauled out of the camp like a bag of flour. Gentleman Jack caught her eye and winked.
Her father seemed to expand as he turned back to Chief Hawk Eye. He gave a small, formal bow.
“You have my thanks, Chief Hawk Eye, for your excellent care of my daughter.” He turned and inclined his head toward Little Owl. “And you have my deepest gratitude for saving her life. I am in your debt.”
Chief Hawk Eye’s face was inscrutable as he looked at Hook for a long moment before replying. “Your daughter is welcome here. She is a noble girl with a good and true heart.”
Rommy noticed the Chief said nothing about her Papa’s heart. Of course, her father had tied Tiger Lily to the rock in Mermaid Lagoon. He made everyone think he would let her drown if she didn’t tell him where Pan was. It would be unlikely that Chief Hawk Eye and her father would be friends after all that. Still, she was relieved the two seemed to have called a truce of sorts.
Rommy looked across at the Little Owl. The older woman met her eyes and walked to where Big Red was standing. She put a gnarled hand on Rommy’s and squeezed it.
Rommy smiled at the older woman. “Thank you,” she said. “I owe you my life.”
“I am always here to help, Child. All you need to do is ask.” Then the older woman gave a smile and wink.
Chief Hawk Eye came to stand next to his mother. He put a hand on Rommy’s shoulder. “May you wake healthy and go forward with courage,” he said in a kind of benediction. His mouth curved in a slight smile before he stepped back.
Alice had no such reservations. She hugged first LIttle Owl, then Little Bear and finally Chief Hawk Eye. He gently tousled her dark brown curls. “Go safely, little one.”
Hook made an impatient gesture. “Come along,” he said. “We mustn’t impose any longer.” He nodded again at the chief and turned away, striding down the path away from the encampment.
Big Red followed with Rommy in his arms. Alice trotted next to him and Gentleman Jack brought up the rear. A heavy silence fell over the group as they walked up the path. Rommy wasn’t looking forward to the conversation that was sure to happen once she got back to the ship.
Chapter 17:
Papa’s Threat
When the little party finally reached the shore, Big Red set Rommy gently into the rowboat next to her father. He didn’t acknowledge her presence. Alice, her face rather pinched, sat crowded against Rommy. Big Red and Gentleman Jack pushed the boat out into the water and then jumped in after, making the boat bob wildly from side to side.
Rommy took in Alice’s white face and the death grip she had on the seat and put her arm around the younger girl. “We’ll be fine,” she whispered in Alice’s ear, but Alice didn’t seem reassured. Her body remained tense as the two crewmen rowed them out to the big ship.
When they reached the side of the ship, a rope ladder was slung over the side. Alice shook her head. “I ain’t getting on that thing. No way, no how!” she said.
Rommy squeezed Alice’s hand. “You don’t have to,” she said. “You can just fly.” Alice pushed off into the air, but before Rommy could follow, her father grasped her around the waist and slung her over his shoulder.
Her face burned by the time her father made it to the deck railing and climbed over with her hanging upside down. He set her down on the deck with a thud that reverberated through her injured leg and made it throb. Rommy wished a large hole would form in the deck when she saw the dozen staring eyes. Alice sidled up to her and stood close.
Her father looked around at the men. “What are you looking at?” he barked. “Get back to work!” Turning to Rommy, he said in that same flat voice, “Show Alice to your cabin, and then I want you to wait for me in mine.”
Without even waiting to see if Rommy would follow his directions, he strode off across the deck, shouting orders, and scattering men as he went.
Her father’s expression sent prickles of alarm up Rommy’s spine. Her father usually blustered and bellowed, but this was different. Without a word, she led Alice to her cabin and opened the door.
“You should probably stay in here,” said Rommy.
Alice looked at her with worried eyes. “Your old man ain’t gonna beat you, is he?”
Rommy swallowed. “He’s never lifted a hand to me in my entire life.”
“Well, he didn’t have no problem grabbing your arm and about rattling your teeth out of your head.”
Rommy straightened her shoulders. “He was just upset and not acting himself. He would never truly hurt me.”
Alice grabbed her hand. “I’m sorry. You’re in all this trouble because of me.”
Rommy smiled down at Alice and squeezed her hand. “Alice, this isn’t your fault. It’s Pan’s fault. He’s the reason Papa is here. He’s the one who took you, and it certainly isn’t your fault that my father has a terrible temper.”
Alice wrapped her small arms around Rommy’s waist. Rommy hugged her back and then gently pushed her away.
“I’ll be fine, Alice,” she said as she moved confidently toward the door.
“Good luck!” said Alice as Rommy shut the door behind her.
Out of Alice’s sight, Rommy’s shoulders sagged. She wasn’t nearly as sure of things as she had wanted Alice to believe. Her father’s angry face kept looming up in her mind, and her arm still hurt from where he’d grabbed her.
She walked into her father’s cabin on wooden legs and took a seat on a chair by the table. The minutes ticked by and with each moment that passed, her dread grew. Her imagination supplied all kinds of terrible possibilities. When the door finally opened, it was almost a relief. She shot to her feet and faced her father.
He came into the cabin and shut the door behind him with exaggerated care. He folded his arms across his barrel-like chest and stared at her long and hard without saying a word. She would rather he bellow at her. At least then, she knew how to react. His long stare was unnerving her.
“Papa, I...” she began, unable to take the leaden silence a moment longer.
Her father held up his hand to stop her. “I brought you in here to tell you we are leaving. As soon as I can get the ship ready, we will pull out to return to London.” She opened her mouth, but he continued talking. “No, don’t say a word. Not. One. Word.” He bit off each syllable with a dangerous calmness. “You’ve made it clear that you don’t trust me, and because of that, I can’t trust you not to pull another stunt like you did tonight. I cannot constantly worry about something happening to you. I should have sent you back immediately, but fool that I am, I succumbed to weak emotions, wanting you here with me.” He paused and drew in a deep breath.
“Papa, I want...”
Her father crossed the room and before she could blink, had her chin in an almost painful grip. He leaned down until they were almost nose-to-nose. “I don’t want to hear it,” he said through gritted teeth. “You are my daughter, an
d I said we are leaving. We will return to London, and you and your little friend Alice will stay at the townhouse until I find another place for you. I’ll leave Big Red with you for protection, and that is the end of this discussion. You may go to your cabin and stay there until we are under way.”
“But Papa,” she said, pleading, “I can’t leave. You don’t understand. Pan is stealing children just like he did with Sebastian. We’re the only ones that can stop him. Don’t you see?”
Her father straightened. “We don’t have to do anything. I will take care of Pan—after you return to London.”
Rommy grabbed his arm. “But I can help you,” she said.
Her father stared down at her and shook his head. “You could have so easily died today, Andromeda,” he said, his voice catching. “I will not lose you, too. I won’t.”
“I won’t stay,” she said desperately. “Once we get to London, I’ll find a way to come back.”
Her father narrowed his eyes as he pulled his arm away from her grasp. “Do you or don’t you want Alice to come along with you? She doesn’t have to, you know. I’m sure Little Owl would be happy to take her back.” His lip curled. “She’d still be better off than where she came from.” He straightened his cuffs. “I suppose you’ll have to hope Tiger Lily won’t make another kidnapping attempt.”
Rommy stared at him. “You don’t mean that!”
“I think you know that I do,” he said, stepping away from her. “Don’t make me be the villain because I assure you, I can be.” He gave a thin-lipped smile. “I’ve gotten used to it.”
He walked to the door and put his hand on the doorknob. For a moment, he looked back at her, his face twisting, and then, whirling, he was gone.
“Oh Papa,” said Rommy softly, “I’m afraid you already are.” Slowly, she walked toward the door. She had to leave Neverland. Pan would continue to steal children. Her father would continue to chase him for who knew how long. He might die. And there was nothing she could do about it. A sob wrenched out of her as she opened the door.