Jem looked like he wanted to speak, but instead he stayed quiet and held her hand.
Uncle Finn nodded thoughtfully. “This treasure—all of it, the place, the birds, the jewels—is badly in need of a guardian. Nearly every Old Worlder in the tropics would kill to get his hands on it. Certainly, it’s protected by animals and spirits, but even those aren’t invincible. We got past them, after all. And now that those pirates have the map, well . . .”
He gave Scarlet a meaningful look.
She bit her lip and nodded. Uncle Finn was right, of course. She’d known it ever since she realized she’d found her home. She’d certainly proven herself capable of leading the Lost Souls, but a guardian of Island X and all its treasures? Now that was a daunting job.
“I can’t,” she said.
“Why not?” Jem asked.
Scarlet shook her head. “I mean, not alone.” Then she smiled at them. “This is a job for all the Lost Souls.”
Jem drew a quick breath. He turned to Uncle Finn. “We can stay, right? At least for a while? I want to help.”
Uncle Finn stroked the whiskers on his chin, pretending to mull it over. “You’re in no hurry to get back to school, are you? Funny, that. Well, I do have a few hundred new bromeliad species to study.” He smiled. “Of course we’ll stay. For a while.”
Jem punched the air in triumph. “Thanks, Uncle Finn. And, hey, I just thought of something. This treasure”—he gestured to the birds—“means that the legend is true. Rubies really do fall from the skies!”
Uncle Finn’s mouth dropped open. Then he laughed. “So they do!”
Just then, a voice floated up from below, and the trio looked down to see a few Lost Souls staring up at them.
“What do you see up there?” Ronagh called.
“The view must be jolly from that height,” Smitty said. “Can you believe this place? What a treasure!”
From their perch in the tree, Scarlet and Jem grinned at each other. What a treasure, indeed.
GLOSSARY
Amulet: an object worn, often as a piece of jewelry around the neck, to ward off evil
Blimey: an expression of frustration or surprise as in, “Remember when you dropped the anchor on my foot? Blimey, that hurt!”
Broadsword: a large, heavy sword with a broad blade
Buccaneer: a pirate. The term buccaneer comes from a French word (boucanier) which means “barbecuer.” In the 1600s, buccaneers were humble men who sold barbecued meats to sailors passing through ports. Eventually they realized the opportunity passing them by and gave up their grills to make their fortunes by pillaging and plundering.
Careen: Cleaning the ship’s hull involves beaching it, tilting it to one side, and scraping off the barnacles.
Castaway: a person lucky enough to survive a shipwreck and wash ashore, hopefully not on the Island of Smelly Wild Pigs
Crow’s nest: the lookout platform near the top of a mast, not the best place for pirates afraid of heights
Cutlass: a short, curved sword with a single cutting edge, a pirate’s best friend
Doubloon: a Spanish gold coin, similar to the chocolate variety, but less tasty
Drivelswigger: a pirate who spends too much time reading about all things nautical
Flotsam: floating debris or rubbish
Fo’c’sle: the raised part of the upper deck at the front of a ship, also called the forecastle
Gun deck: the deck on which the ship’s cannons are carried
Jack-tar: a sailor
Keelhaul: the worst possible punishment on board a ship. The offender’s hands are bound to a rope that runs underneath the ship, and he is thrown overboard and dragged from one end to the other.
Long drop: the Lost Souls’ own term for the toilet
Mast: a long pole that rises from the ship’s deck and supports the sails
Piece of eight: a Spanish silver coin
Plank: the piece of wood that hangs off the side of the ship, like a soon-to-be-dead-man’s diving board. Unlucky sailors must walk it to their doom.
Plunder: to steal, or an act of thievery
Poop deck: the highest deck at the stern of a ship. It has nothing to do with the long drop, by the way.
Port: a sailor’s word for left
Quarterdeck: the rear part of the upper deck at the front of a ship
Quartermaster: usually the second-in-command on a ship
Scalawag: a rascal, rogue, scoundrel, or general mischief-maker
Schooner: a ship with two or more masts. One explanation suggests that the name comes from the Scottish term “to scoon,” which means “to skim upon the surface.”
Scuttle: a word used by the Lost Souls to describe something awful as in, “Hardtack for breakfast again? That scuttles!”
Sloop: a small, single-mast ship
Spyglass: a much more intriguing name for a small telescope
Starboard: a sailor’s word for right
Swain: a short form of boatswain, meaning a sailor of the lowest rank, more of a servant
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Many thanks to many souls. To my wonderful editors: Lynne Missen and Patricia Ocampo at HarperCollins Canada and Pamela Bobowicz at Grosset & Dunlap. To my agent, Marie Campbell, for believing in a ship of pirate children. To Alison Acheson, for feedback and encouragement throughout the first few drafts of the novel. To all who read thoughtfully and offered suggestions as the story changed course and shape, notably Louise Delaney, Sarah Dodd, and Allan Mott. To Tara MacDonald and her students at Greenview Elementary School, for dreaming themselves pirate. To Paul Colangelo, for cheering on the Lost Souls. To my family for unfailing support.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Photo by Shanna Baker
Rachelle Delaney lives in Vancouver, Canada, where she works as a writer, editor, and creative writing teacher. In 2010 she was named the top emerging writer in Canada by the Canadian Author’s Association. The Ship of Lost Souls is her first novel.
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