Pirate's Promise

by Clyde Robert Bulla

  “I’ve seen them on a map,” said Tom. “Where are we going now? To Florida?”

  “No,” said Benjy. “We go to careen the ship.”

  “‘Careen the ship’? What does that mean?” asked Tom.

  “It means we clean the ship,” said Benjy. “We run close to shore and turn the ship on her side. We scrape away the sea plants and the little shellfish. They hold fast to the wood. We must scrape them away before they grow hard and heavy like stone.”

  “Where will you go to careen the ship?” asked Tom.

  “To our island,” said Benjy.

  “What island is that?” asked Tom.

  “The island of the pirates,” said Benjy. “It is where the pirates go to careen their ships. They stop there for food and water. They rest there after a long voyage. It is where they are safe from the law.” He smiled at Tom. “It is our own island. You will see it tomorrow.”

  10. The Island

  In the morning Tom saw the island. There was a beach of shining white sand. Beyond the beach was a bright green jungle. Birds flew in and out of the jungle and over the boats in the harbor. It was a beautiful sight.

  But the town on the harbor was far from beautiful. It was a town of huts and tents. The huts were made of driftwood and palm leaves. The tents were made of old sails that flapped in the wind. There were broken bottles in the streets.

  Tom went ashore with Benjy and Captain Land. Benjy carried a hammock, a water bottle, and the captain’s sea chest.

  There were ragged, barefoot people on the wharf. Most of them were men, but a few were women and children.

  “These people live here,” Benjy told Tom. “They hunt and fish and have gardens. On this island they can live without much work.”

  “Where did they come from?” asked Tom.

  “Many places,” said Benjy. “Some were shipwrecked here. Some came to be safe from the law.”

  “Why doesn’t the law come here?” asked Tom.

  Benjy told him, “Near our island the sea is not deep, and our ships are small and light. We can sail these waters. But the ships of the law are not small and light. They would be wrecked here.”

  Captain Land led the way past the town and down the beach.

  At the edge of the jungle they came to a small house. Vines had grown over it until it was almost hidden.

  “It is the captain’s house. He sleeps here when we are on the island,” said Benjy. “It is good and strong, this house. I made it myself from an old wrecked ship.”

  The door was open. Tom looked inside. There was only one room, and it was empty.

  Benjy told Tom and the captain, “Do not go inside yet. There may be snakes or spiders with poison in their bites.”

  He went into the house. With a palm branch he swept the walls and floor. He put up the hammock and set the sea chest beside it.

  Afterward Tom went with him to find food and water. They went to a clearing in the jungle. There was a well in the clearing.

  Benjy took the cover off the well. He let down the bottle and drew it up full of water.

  Near the well Tom found a vine heavy with grapes.

  “Pick some for our captain,” said Benjy, “while I find something more.”

  He took the pistol out of his belt. He went on into the jungle.

  Tom put two leaves together to make a basket. He filled it with grapes. Then he sat down on the well cover to wait for Benjy.

  He thought of his sister, Dinah. He wondered how long it would be before they were together again. How surprised she would be, he thought, if she could see him here in this island jungle!

  In a little while Benjy was back. He had shot a young goat. He carried it over his shoulder. Tom carried the water and the grapes.

  As they came out of the jungle, someone called, “Halloo!”

  They stopped and looked back.

  Three men were sitting on the beach. There was a cook-fire near them on the sand. Over the fire hung part of a roasted pig.

  One of the men was picking his teeth with a long knife.

  He called again, “Halloo! Boy! Come here!”

  Tom went to where the men were sitting. The man who had called him wore velvet and lace and fine leather boots. He wore a hat with purple feathers. A thick, red beard covered half his face.

  “Now here is a sight I never thought to see,” he said. “Here is a lad with hair as red as my beard! Where do you come from, boy?”

  “From England, sir,” said Tom.

  “Where do you go with your grapes and water bottle?”

  “To the house of Captain Land,” answered Tom.

  The man sat up straight. “Is Captain Land your master?”

  “I am my own master,” said Tom.

  The man burst out laughing. “You are not afraid to speak up, I see. No more was I afraid when I was young. Good day, lad. Get along with you. We may meet again.”

  Tom and Benjy went away.

  Benjy said, “You must not be so bold.”

  “Did I say something wrong?” asked Tom.

  Benjy did not answer. He said nothing more until they were back at the house.

  Captain Land was lying in the hammock. Benjy told him, “Captain Red is here.”

  “Ah,” said Captain Land, and a strange look came into his eyes.

  11. Captain Red

  That night the crew of the Sea Bird camped along the beach. The next day they were ready to clean the ship. They ran her close to shore. With ropes they pulled her over on her side and tied her to a tree that grew near the water.

  Captain Land kept to his house. He had a fever, he said.

  Benjy told Tom, “It is island fever. Always it comes to him here. But he is soon well again.”

  Benjy and Tom took turns staying with Captain Land. Sometimes, when Benjy was at the house, Tom walked along the beach by himself.

  He found a little bay where waves came up over the rocks. It was hidden from the rest of the beach by sand hills. He liked to sit there and look out to sea.

  One day a man came upon him in the little bay. It was the man with the red beard.

  “Halloo!” he called. “Why are you hiding there?”

  “I am not hiding,” answered Tom.

  “It would do you no good if you were. Anyone could see your red head a mile away.” The man came down over the sand hills. “I want a word with you, English boy. How did you come to this island?”

  “I came with Captain Land,” said Tom.

  “What brought you and Captain Land together?”

  “I was on an English ship,” said Tom. “I was bonded against my will. Captain Land kept me from being sold.”

  “And now you are your own master,” said the man.

  “Yes, sir,” said Tom.

  “Then you shall sail with me,” said the man. “There is my ship across the harbor. I sail tomorrow.” He began to laugh. “What a pair we will make—I with my red beard, you with your red head!”

  “Are you not a—a pirate?” asked Tom.

  “That I am, and one of the best,” said the man. “Captain Red, they call me. It is a name men know and fear around the world. Do you want adventure, English boy? I’ll show you adventure. Do you want gold? You’ll see more gold than you can count, and maybe some of it for you. Speak up, English boy. Has the cat got your tongue?”

  “I was only thinking,” said Tom. “Adventure and gold may be very well, but not—not the rest of it.”

  “Not the rest of it?” Captain Red frowned. “What do you mean?”

  “Not the life of a pirate,” said Tom.

  “Why, it’s the best life there is!” cried Captain Red.

  “Not for me,” said Tom.

  “You’re a strange one. You wouldn’t be bonded. The life of a pirate is not good enough for you,” said Captain Red. “What do you want?”

  “I want to go back to England,” said Tom. “My sister is there. I want to work and make a home so that we can be together.”

  Captain
Red asked, “How will you get back to England?”

  “Captain Land will help me,” said Tom. “He will put me ashore where I can find a ship to take me back.”

  “He cannot sail until his ship is ready,” said Captain Red, “and that will not be soon. I passed by the Sea Bird an hour ago, and no man was working. They were all in town or sleeping in the shade. But my ship sails tomorrow. You shall sail with me, English boy.”

  “Captain Land will help me find a way back to England,” Tom told him. “He has said so.”

  “And so do I,” said Captain Red. “Do you think I would turn a boy into a pirate against his will? One week from today I’ll have you on a ship to England. Is that good enough for you?”

  “Yes, sir!” said Tom. “I thank you kindly.”

  “I want no thanks,” said Captain Red. “Come. We’ll go to my ship.”

  “First I must see Captain Land,” said Tom.

  “Why?” asked Captain Red.

  “I must say good-by,” said Tom.

  Already he was on his way, running across the beach toward Captain Land’s house.

  12. A Boy in Carolina

  Benjy had built a small fire in front of the house. There was a kettle on the fire, and he was bending over it. He smiled when Tom came running up.

  “The medicine I make is good,” said Benjy. “Today our captain is nearly well.”

  “Is he inside?” asked Tom. “I want to say good-by.”

  Benjy stopped smiling. “Good-by?”

  “A ship is sailing from here tomorrow,” said Tom. “The captain is going to put me ashore where I can—”

  Benjy asked quickly, “What captain?”

  “Captain Red,” answered Tom.

  “No, no!” cried Benjy. “You will not go with Captain Red!”

  “But why?” asked Tom.

  “He is bad,” said Benjy. “You would not believe how bad he is.”

  “He is a pirate, I know,” said Tom, “but he promised to help me find a ship back to England.”

  “You must not trust him,” said Benjy. “Do you know why he is here now? He was in a battle at sea. Many of his men were killed or wounded. He is here to find men to take their places. His cabin boy was killed. If you sail with him, you will never go back to England. You will be the cabin boy of Captain Red.”

  “Why should he want me for his cabin boy?” asked Tom.

  “I do not know,” said Benjy. “It may please him that your hair is the color of his beard. Or he may wish to make our captain angry by taking you away. He has long been an enemy of our captain. Surely you knew that.”

  “How could I know it?” said Tom. “No one told me.”

  “Our captain once took a prize from under Captain Red’s very nose,” said Benjy. “The prize was a Spanish ship that carried gold and silver. Captain Red will never forget.”

  Captain Land had come to the doorway. He called Tom into the house.

  “It’s time I talked to you,” he said. “All that Benjy has told you is true. Captain Red is a friend to no one. He is cruel. He does not keep his word. I am a pirate, yet I can speak the truth. Do you believe me?”

  “Yes, sir,” said Tom.

  “Listen,” said Captain Land. “I’ll tell you a story.”

  The story was about a boy in America. He was born near the city of Charlestown in a place called Carolina. His name was Davy Tanner.

  His home was a plantation where rice and sugar cane were grown. His mother and father were good to him. They gave him a pony cart and a pony. They sent him to England where he lived with his uncle and went to school.

  When Davy came home he was a man. “Now I need you here,” said his father. “I need you to help me on the plantation.”

  But Davy was not ready to stay. He wanted to see more of the world. He and his father quarreled, and Davy left home.

  He fell in with a band of pirates. Their ship was wrecked off the Carolina shore. They were caught and thrown into prison.

  Some other pirates broke into the prison and set him free. He ran away to sea with them.

  But he missed the plantation. He missed his mother and father.

  One night he went back. His father would not open the door.

  “You are a pirate now. You have brought shame upon us,” said his father. “Leave this plantation and never come back. I shall try to forget I ever had a son!”

  Davy went back to his ship. He took another name, so that he would bring no more shame to his father and mother. Time went by, and he became captain of a pirate ship.

  But he was weary of the sea. He was weary of a pirate’s life.

  He could not go home again. He could not go ashore and live the life of an honest man. Too many people knew his face. He would be sent to prison or put to death.

  That was the end of Captain Land’s story.

  He asked Tom, “Do you know the man in my story? Do you know his name?”

  “Is it—Captain Land?” asked Tom.

  “Yes,” said the captain. “I know this life, and I’ll not let you be drawn into it. Trust me, and I’ll look after you.”

  They heard Benjy’s voice outside, “Why do you come here?”

  Someone else spoke in a loud voice, “English boy! Come out! I am waiting!”

  It was Captain Red.

  13. The Meeting

  Captain Land opened the door.

  Captain Red took off his hat and made a mock bow. “Good day to you. Where is the boy?”

  “The boy is here,” said Captain Land.

  “I’ve come for him,” said Captain Red.

  “The boy is here,” said Captain Land, “and here he stays.”

  “English boy!” called Captain Red. “I’ll have a word with you.”

  Tom went to the door.

  “Are you ready?” asked Captain Red. “Shall we go?”

  “No, sir,” said Tom. “I—I’ll stay with Captain Land.”

  “This is strange,” said Captain Red. “Half an hour ago you were ready to go with me. What changed your mind?”

  “I changed his mind,” said Captain Land. “I told him you were a friend to no one. I told him your word was not to be trusted. And there’s much more I might have said.”

  “You’ve hated me always,” said Captain Red.

  “And you have hated me,” said Captain Land.

  “That I have,” said Captain Red. “I hate you all day, and I wake up at night hating you!”

  He took a step forward. With his open hand, he struck Captain Land in the face.

  Captain Land stood still for a moment. Then he spoke in a quiet voice, “When shall we meet?”

  “Whenever you say,” said Captain Red.

  “Tonight?” said Captain Land. “When the moon rises?”

  “Good,” said Captain Red. “And where?”

  “On the beach,” said Captain Land, “by the old fort?”

  Captain Red nodded. “Swords or pistols?” he asked.

  “Swords,” said Captain Land.

  Captain Red showed his teeth in a smile. “Until tonight,” he said, and he walked away.

  Benjy had been listening. “Master!” he cried. “You must not!”

  Captain Land looked at the fire Benjy had made. It was almost out.

  “Build up your fire and make my medicine,” he said. “I need to be strong tonight.”

  He went back into the house.

  Tom brought wood for the fire. He asked Benjy, “What did they mean? Are they going to fight?”

  “Yes,” said Benjy.

  “Is it because of me?” asked Tom.

  “Do not blame yourself,” said Benjy. “The fight has been a long time in the making.”

  The new wood caught fire. The kettle began to boil. Benjy put in more leaves and bark. Tom heard him whisper, “Medicine, be strong!”

  14. In the Moonlight

  As the day went by, Benjy said over and over, “Do not fight, Captain. You are not yet well and strong. Do not fight tonight.�
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  At last the captain told him to be quiet. “I am well enough and strong enough,” he said.

  “Then call the crew and let us fight beside you,” said Benjy. “Call them together, and we will all fight Captain Red and his men.”

  “No,” said Captain Land. “This is between Captain Red and myself.”

  Night came, and the moon rose. The captain buckled on his sword.

  “If you must fight,” said Benjy, “may I be with you?”

  “Yes,” said Captain Land, “but no one else.”

  He and Benjy went away.

  Tom sat alone. The house was warm. Bugs and moths were flying about the candle flame.

  He went outside.

  The beach was white in the moonlight. He could see the tracks Captain Land and Benjy had made in the sand.

  He tried not to think about the fight. Birds were crying in the jungle. The sounds they made were lonesome and strange. He tried not to hear them.

  He went back into the house.

  It seemed a long time before he heard footsteps outside. He opened the door a little way. He saw Benjy’s face in the moonlight, and he opened the door wide.

  Benjy came into the house. He carried Captain Land in his arms.

  The captain’s eyes were closed. The front of his shirt was wet with blood.

  Benjy put him down in the hammock.

  The captain’s eyes opened. He tried to lift his head.

  Benjy knelt beside him. With a knife he began to cut away the cloth from the wound.

  “Stop,” said the captain.

  “Do not try to talk,” said Benjy.

  “I must,” said Captain Land. “Listen to me. Take the gold pieces, Benjy. Take the gold pieces in my sea chest. They are yours. . . . Tom?”

  Tom went close to him.

  “I lost the fight. I was too slow.” The captain coughed. He closed his eyes for a moment. “Go to Charlestown. Go to my people. They will help you.”

  His voice had become a whisper. He turned his face away.

  Benjy laid his hand over the captain’s heart.

  “Captain—!”