"A Pirate's Tale" (closed)

[TimTimTyner]

"A Pirate's Tale"

(Closed)​

Thomas Lee Johnson held the empty bottle of rum out to a passing tavern wench, commanding in a gruff tone, "More!" One and two word sentences were actually quite common for the man known in Nassau only as Captain Jack Black.

Of course, the Captain part of that name was no more. He'd lost his commission and his captaincy of a Royal Navy Schooner for disobeying direct orders in a time of war. After evading capture by the Royal Marines in Kingston, Thomas reached The Bahamas. Here, he and a rag tag crew of eight stole a sloop and tried their hands at piracy. They succeeded in capturing and looting two merchant ships before Thomas's crew stole his stolen boat and left him adrift in a dinghy borrowed from their latest prey. So much for honor amongst thieves and the Pirate Code.

And now here he was back in Nassau with his share of the pirate loot, a handful of coins of various denominations and a bejeweled, golden cross he'd hidden in his boot and, thus, avoided surrendering to his treacherous crew. The former would succeed in getting him drunk, fed, and laid tonight; the latter, once sold to a party who cared not of its provenance, would buy him a small estate where he could raise goats for the milk market or grow sugar cane for Rum distillation.

Of course, Thomas wouldn't be going that direction. He was a sailor by choice, not a farmer by default; he was a pirate by circumstance, not a rancher by happenstance. He looked across the tavern to the entrance as the proprietor entered, calling loudly, "Woman!" As she met his gaze, Thomas lifted the cross and let it spin on the end of its chain; the bright light of a Caribbean afternoon spilling in through a multitude of windows sparkled off its diamonds, emeralds, and rubies.

"I need a boat, a crew, firearms, gunpowder, shot, provisions, and -- of course -- rum," he said, tossing the cross onto the table before the beauty as she arrived at his table, "and I hear you are the right person to come to for such things."

 

[AmyRoberts]

(OOC: I like the way you bold dialogue. Hope you don't mind if I do the same.)

"More!"

Katherine Phillips heard the call of an unfamiliar voice in the tavern a floor below her. She set aside the quill pen with which she was doing her books and ventured to the French doors of her second floor office. Pulling the semi-sheer drape aside, she looked down upon the man being served up a full bottle of rum.

"Who is he?" Katie asked the woman laying in a hammock on the balcony that overlooked the harbor. Belladonna Allard reluctantly rose and crossed the office to join her boss and lover. Katie nodded toward the corner. "New face?"

"They call him Captain Jack Black," Bella answered in a heavy French accent. "And oui, a new face. My girls say he has been here for only a short time."

Katie had an interest in knowing every man who drank or ate in her tavern, of course. Very few men came the the Dead Dolphin for alcohol and food alone but came to do business as well. Through her six warehouses scattered about the docks and city, Katie was responsible for more than 40% of the legal commerce in Nassau and more than 80% of the illegal commerce.

On occasion, the legal goods leaving New Providence -- whether through Katie or not -- sometimes returned to her in the holds of pirate ships to be repackaged and resold yet again. On occasion, Katie herself was responsible for the transit information that made it possible for the pirates to find, board, and loot those commercial ships, while other times she made more money by guaranteeing that a ship and its cargo would reach its destination unmolested. So, knowing who was in New Providence, in Nassau, and in her bar were things she needed to know.

Bella was often responsible for much of the information Katie needed. She held an important role as Katie's informant through her role as the Madam of the brothel in the adjacent building, a structure which was owned not coincidentally by Katie. Through the whore house, Bella gleaned a great deal of information as happy, content men loved to talk about their lives and their adventures, and never was a man happier and more content than during or following the pleasuring of his cock.

She collected information through other avenues of discovery, too, including an array of informants spread across the city, the island, and the boats that visited both on a regular basis. It was this later source that was responsible for her knowledge of the man downstairs.

Bella played a more personal role in Katie's life as well. For more than six years, the two of them had been on again, off again lovers, fulfilling each other's needs when there was no one else to do so and, on occasion, even where there was. It wasn't a relationship about which they were open to others, but there were those -- the brothel whores and most of the long term tavern employees -- who knew but couldn't have cared in the least. No one cared who dined between Lady Kate's thighs; they only cared that at the end of the day, she paid them their due coinage for a good day's work.

"Is he worth getting to know?" Katie asked, still looking down at the man while her hands pulled the petite, dark skinned beauty up close to her. "Or is he just another sailor who'll be dead from drink or dagger in a few days?"

Bella leaned in to kiss her lover on the cheek before turning to return to the hammock. "I hear his crew stole his ship."

Katie looked back to her departing lover's curvy backside and smiled. She would have preferred undressing Bella and spending the afternoon naked with her in bed to either doing the books or meeting new faces. But that little bit of information about the man's misfortune was valuable. It meant that he was likely hungry for revenge, and often such men were valuable to Katie in any of a number of ways.

She headed downstairs, pausing in the doorway to the first floor as the pirate called out, "Woman!"

She contained her smirk and crossed the floor, arriving to have an obviously valuable piece of jewelry tossed out before her. He told her what he needed, finishing, "And I hear you are the right person to come to for such things."

Katie picked up the cross and turned it about, examining the stones for quality. She wrapped the gold chain around it, then held it over her shoulder to man who'd inconspicuously followed behind Katie to the impromptu meeting. Joshua was a dominating presence at 6'6" and 230 pounds of muscle attained during more than 30 years of slavery on a sugar plantation.

"My man down the street will take a look at this and determine whether or not it is worth a boat, a crew, firearms, gunpowder, shot, provisions, and -- of course -- rum as you seem to believe it is," Katie said, referring to her expert -- her fence. She handed the cross to her bodyguard, telling him while still looking at the pirate, "Take a man or two with you, Joshua. I wouldn't want someone to rob our new friend here of his loot before we were able to accurate assess its value, or lack thereof."

The big man took the cross and departed as Katie gestured to a barmaid for more drink and sat in the chair adjacent to the pirate. Smiling politely and speaking with a serious tone, she warned him, "And while Joshua takes care of that issue, let me speak with you on another one."

The barmaid showed up with two glasses of Port, which was Katie's drink of choice, and as she leaned in closer to set one glass before her future business partner, she finished, "If you ever call to me as you did, I'll have your cock and balls cut off and hung over the entrance to my establishment."

She looked to the entry of The Dead Dolphin, to a shriveled up object that just may have once dangled between the thighs of a misfortunate man. Or not. It was hard to tell. She smiled to him again, lifted her drink in toast, and said, "Now, Captain Jack Black, let me introduce myself. My name is Katherine Phillips. You may call me Lady Phillips, or you may call me Lady Kate, or you can call me Katie."

After he'd responded in which ever way he wished, Katie drank from her small glass and asked, "Specifically, what can I do for you, Captain?"

 

[TimTimTyner]

Thomas followed Katie's gaze to the door frame. He didn't immediately see that to which she was drawing his attention, but when he did, he couldn't help but chuckle. "Lady Kate it is, then, as I prefer my cock and balls right where they are."

They toasted with the exceptional drink she'd had delivered to the table. Thomas answered her question, "Specifically, I need a relatively small craft, a ketch, preferably, built for speed. Perhaps 60 foot, with four guns, 4 to 8 pounders. We're not trying to sink anyone after all, just scare the bejeebies out of them and get them to lower their sails. A pair of swivel guns with a variety of shots for clearing the decks and taking out rigging. Pepper shot, chain shot."

He drank from his glass again, complimented her on the Port, and continued. "I'll need a dozen men who can be trusted. I know you're reputation, Lady Kate. If you trust them, then so will I. Good sailors who are even better pirates, men who aren't afraid to kill when necessary but can both understand when killing isn't and can refrain from doing so on my command."

A barmaid showed up again, this time with a platter of food Thomas had ordered earlier. There was more than enough for two people, and gesturing toward the platter he said, "I heard this was your favorite."

It should have been obvious that Thomas had planned on meeting Katie this day.

 

[AmyRoberts]

Thomas listed his specific needs. It wasn't anything Katie wasn't able to provide him. The cross he'd offered, for all its possible worth, wouldn't cover the cost, though.

"I heard this was your favorite."

"It is," Katie said with a bit of surprise in her voice. She picked at the dried fish, studying Thomas. "You can't afford all for which you ask, sailor."

She smiled at the description she used for him. She continued, "But I think we can work something out. Captain. I will get you your boat, your crew, your cannons, and your provisions."

Katie smiled even wider. "And your rum. I will get you all you need."

She looked about herself for eavesdroppers. In a softer voice, she told Thomas, "And I will provide you with valuable targets. Ships leaving here, ships arriving here. I know when they will leave Nassau. Often, more often than not, I know when they are due to arrive. I know their courses. Generally, anyway."

Again she checked for eavesdroppers before continuing almost in a whisper. "I will make you the most successful pirate working out of Nassau."

Katie's smile widened yet again as she said with a firm voice, "And you will split the profits with me, fifty-fifty."

 

[TimTimTyner]

Thomas's own smile was spreading with Katie's offers and then promise. "I will make you the most successful pirate working out of Nassau."

But when she demanded fifty percent of the profit, Thomas couldn't help but laugh aloud, not caring whether or not anyone noticed, which some did. "Fifty-fifty? You're mad."

He lifted Katie's bottle of Port, took a big swig, and set it down with a thud. "I take all the risk, me and my men. We spill our blood, and you want half of what we take?"

 

[AmyRoberts]

Katie laughed as well, quickly reminding Thomas, "My men. They are my men. I am only loaning them to you."

She studied Thomas. She said, "Most offers demand a counteroffer, and I'm sure you are about to make one, so let me present you with my second offer so we don't waste time. Forty-forty-twenty. You take forty percent, and I will, too. The other twenty percent will also come to me, but as payment for the boat, provisions, and the rest, which I will sell to you at cost. And once you have repaid me, I will give you the same deal I do for others of your like for the pillage you capture and sell me, plus five percent."

As Thomas had, Katie lifted the bottle of Port and took a gulp from it. She offered it out to him, asking, "Deal?"

 

[TimTimTyner]

Thomas listened to Katie's revised offer. He had a decision to make: take the deal and get on the water as a Pirate Captain in short order, while temporarily sacrificing a large chunk of his plunder; refuse the deal, go it alone, and keep all he took, but having to wait weeks, months, possibly even years before having all that Katie was offering him.

Of course, he could simply steal another boat and try it that way once again. But then, look at how that had worked out the first time. At least with Katie's offer, the men under him would be loyal to her and then to Thomas himself, if he performed well as their Captain.

She asked, "Deal?"

Thomas took the bottle, drained a swig, and said, "Deal!" He offered the bottle back, then -- for the first time -- let his gaze drop conspicuously to her breasts. It wasn't the most plentiful of bosoms, but then it wasn't Katie's tits that Thomas really had in mind. He looked her in the eyes again and asked, "So, does this deal of ours have room in it for a roll in the sack between us. I'm betting you have the most comfortable bed in Nassau. And I'm betting there isn't a man in this town you find worthy of spending time in it with you, is there, Lady Kate."

He knew this counteroffer wasn't going anywhere, and if she denied him, Thomas would accept the refusal with a shrug and a smile.

 

[AmyRoberts]

"Deal!"

Katie nodded her acknowledgment. "Good. This is good."

When Thomas solicited her, Katie laughed as loudly as he had on her original offer of a fifty-fifty split. "You are correct, finding a man worthy of my bed is a difficult task. But I do not get lonely, and I am not lonely now, sorry to say."

Katie pushed the bottle back to Thomas and stood. "I will arrange a room for you upstairs. And since you are obviously lonely, I will arrange you company as well. Eat, drink. Enjoy yourself."

She turned and departed, stopping to speak with Bella, who had descended to the first floor to watch the encounter between her lover and the pirate from behind the bar. After Katie took one last look at Thomas, smiling, she headed toward her office again. Bella crossed to the pirate, stopping and smiling to him as she said, "Follow me."

She led him up a second set of stairs and down the landing to the last door. Entering, she crossed to open the doors to the room's balcony, letting in a fresh breeze. From here, they could see the rooves of many of the town's buildings and -- in a gap between them -- the slightly higher ground on which was found the interior of the island. It was home to mostly large estates on which tenant farmers, indentured servants, and slaves grew tobacco, silk grass, cotton, sugar cane, pomegranates, and groves of figs and juniper berries.

"I will have food and drink brought up," Bella told Thomas as she reentered the room. "Do you have a preference in your girl? White, brown, black? Would you like a free girl or a slave girl?"

If his request was a simple one, Bella would leave and make the arrangements.

 

[TimTimTyner]

Katie offered Thomas free room, food, drink, and companionship, which pleased him greatly, obviously. When Bella came to him, saying, "Follow me", he was even more pleased. The young black woman was simply indescribably sexy, and Thomas misunderstood that she was the companionship he'd been offered by Katie until she began asking him what sort of woman he wanted her to send his way.

"I would prefer you, my beauty," Thomas said as he approached her with a slow, meaningful swagger. He gave her a conspicuous up and down ogle, taking in her narrow waist and boosted bosom with a spreading smile. "I cannot imagine there is a women in the brothel who matches you."

If she did or said nothing to stop him, Thomas planned on taking Bella into his arms for a passionate kiss. And more.

 

[AmyRoberts]

"I would prefer you, my beauty," Thomas told Bella as he approached her and complimented her beauty.

But as he moved into arms reach, Bella simply turned away and casually headed away, saying over her shoulder, "I'll pick one of my best girls for you, Captain, as I, myself, am not available for your pleasure."

Just as she was reaching the still open door, a pair of bar wenches -- followed close behind by Joshua -- entered, each of them carrying buckets of steaming water. They dumped them into a bath tub made from half a wine cask barrel and then left to get more. Between them, they would make twelve trips between Thomas's room and the water room across the hall, where a steel tank heated water all hours of the day.

During this process, one of the wenches broke off to go downstairs and back, bringing another platter of food. Also during this time, Bella returned with a companion she introduced as Claire. Bella explained, "She may not be the youngest or the prettiest whore in Nassau--"

The whore interrupted, "But I am by far the best."

The bath barrel was filled enough that the ever watchful Joshua shooed the girls away before leaving himself. Bella stepped over close to Claire and -- as she looked at Thomas -- caressed a fingertip across the woman's bared midriff as she said, "Take care of our friend. Lady Kate is making quite an investment in him, so he must be important to her."

Then, Bella moved up close to Claire, took the whore's face in her hands, and pressed their mouths together in an erotic kiss before disengaging and looking to Thomas with a smile. Before she departed, she only said, "Enjoy yourself, Captain."

Once the two of them were alone, Claire smirked devilishly, asking, "Would you like to watch me undress, Captain, or would you like to undress me yourself?"

 

[TimTimTyner]

Thomas watched the production taking place with interest. He'd never seen such energy and effort put into preparing an evening of sex for him. When he told Claire to feel free to undress herself, Thomas wasn't disappointed in what he saw. She claimed to not be the best looking whore in Nassau, and yet his cock hardened to full stiffness at the sight of her still young, still beautiful body once it stood before him in nothing but a light breeze.

"You may undress me, too, Claire," Thomas told her as he pulled at the belt holding his sword's scabbard about his waist. She went to work on his clothes next, and in no time they were both naked and in the tub together. As he duplicated the erotic kiss she'd enjoyed with Bella earlier, Thomas told Claire, "How about you show me what you were saying about being the best whore on the island now."

She went to work on him, and Thomas very quickly understood that Claire was indeed going to be a night he wouldn't soon forget.

 

[AmyRoberts]

"With pleasure," Claire responded to Thomas's request that she do what she did so well.

She spent the first several minutes bathing him with a scented, soapy rag, ensuring that her hands found every inch of Thomas's body from the top of his head to the tips of his toes, somehow managing to do all of this in a half barrel tub without ever making the container feel crowded or uncomfortable.

Once he was suitably cleaned and warm both inside and out, Claire reached down into the water, took hold of the Thomas's rock hard erection, and positioned him at the soft folds of her entrance. She was on the flats of her feet, her knees flanking Thomas's rib cage while her hands grasped the tub's side as she ever so slowly lowering herself onto him, taking his cock into her an inch by an inch by an inch until finally she was sitting fully and firmly in his lap. Every bit of his shaft was surrounded by the warmth and wetness of her tight pussy as she flexed and relaxed her muscles to grip him tightly, then release him, then repeat.

She fucked him slowly and steadily, not hurrying, yet Claire still saw and heard the result of her skills when Thomas came after too short a time. She lowered her knees to the tub's bottom and moved in to lay her bosom against his chest as she again engaged him in an erotic kiss. She whispered before beginning a more energic fuck, "I'm not done with you yet, Captain."

And she wasn't. Claire worked a feverish pitch to drive him to orgasm once again, and after they'd left the tub, dried, and found the bed, she took position over Thomas with her pussy in his face and sucked on his cock for a near eternity until it was once again spasming, this time filling her mouth with his salty, thick cum.

 

[TimTimTyner]

The feel of Claire's hands upon his body was simply magical to Thomas. She caressed a bar of soap over every inch of his body and shampooed his hair with fingers slipping through the long, straight strands and massaging his scalp. The relaxing joy of it all very nearly made Thomas forget that she was a common whore whose true purpose for being here was to ride his cock and provide him with sexual release.

She did that, too, of course, telling him in between orgasms, "I'm not done with you yet, Captain.". After his head had ceased spinning with euphoria the second time, they stood and rinsed themselves off with clear, clear water. They dried each other off and went to the bed, and after a few minutes of kissing and caressing and groping at each others' bodies, Claire turned herself around until they were head to toes, toes to head with one another.

Thomas had had his cock sucked before, but it had never been like this. Initially, he attempted to pleasure her as well, lifting his mouth to her pussy and lapping at her pussy and clitoris. But what she was doing to him down yonder below his equator was simply overwhelming, and Thomas found himself dropping his head back and simply grasping her body in various places as her mouth and saliva wetted fingers worked together to please his sometimes clenching ball sack and the entire length of his once again stiffened shaft.

As Claire had imagined when he so quickly came the first time, it had been quite some time since Thomas's cock had found such pleasure anywhere but within his own curled fingers. In contrast to what she and Katie and others who knew him might believe, Thomas wasn't a very experienced man when it came to the ladies. His life had been too filled with work and duty to allow for downtime in which he could pursue the luxury of sexual interaction.

Thomas had gone to sea at just 12 years old, first as a seamen's apprentice in the Merchant Navy and later as a Midshipman in the Royal Navy. He'd spent an average of 320 days a year at sea, which was actually quite high considering that ships arriving in port to unload and load often spent days or weeks tied to a dock. Thomas had rarely waited for his ship to turn around while a merchant marine, though, often searching the port for a ship that was returning to the sea soon, thus limiting his shore leave. And later, as a Royal Navy Midshipman and later as an officer, he'd simply spent his time aboard ship whether docked or on the sea working and honing his craft.

Thomas had loved the sea from the first day he'd been upon it, despite the time he'd spent puking his guts up those first few days. He'd never expected to yearn for being on the ocean as he had, which had made it such a tragedy when he'd lost his commission and captaincy and faced a potential lifetime on land behind bars.

He could count how many women he'd had before Claire on two hands and still have fingers available for future playmates. And now, as she took her time pleasuring his cock and balls as no one ever had before, Thomas knew that there could have been twice as many and they would never have been half as good as was this Nassau whore.

Thomas groaned out yet a third orgasm, feeling his cock leaping inside Claire's mouth. And, he was done. He was spent. There simply wasn't anything left of him, and he let the tension in his body surrender to the euphoria; his legs and arms fell to the bedding, his rolled off to one side, and he groaned his last words for the night, "You ... are ... a ... Goddess, Claire."

 

[AmyRoberts]

(OOC -- Forgive the image below. It was the best we could do for the story we are trying to tell.)

The sun was falling onto Thomas's face through the gap of a broken vane in the balcony door when he awoke the next morning to find Katie sitting on the end of the bed, smiling to him. She offered out a hot mug of black tea as she said, "I hear you had a rather satisfying night, Captain."

She retrieved a thin, woolen robe and laid it on the bed. "Your clothes are being laundered and should be done shortly."

Katie gestured to the tub in which he'd found such pleasure the previous night. "A second bath is ready for you, though, I'm sad to say, you have no companion with whom to share it this morning as Claire is recovering from a hard nights work."

Katie smirked knowingly, then turned toward the door. "Your breakfast is on its way up now. I have gathered some men for you to review and either approve or disapprove as crew. Many of them await downstairs and others will be here soon. You asked for, what, eight? I have twice three times that number waiting or on their way, and since they are eating and drinking my food and rum at my cost, I would appreciate it if once your clothes have arrived, you get your tight ass downstairs and get to work."

Katie looked back from where she stood in the door and smiled playfully. "That was Claire's assessment, by the way. Of your ass. I wouldn't want you to think I'd taken any personal interest in it."

And as she left, she chuckled softly.

////////////////////​

When Thomas arrived, there were 22 men who had filled the otherwise empty tavern for their audition to become part of Thomas's crew. As she slowly strode between the tables at which they sat, Katie spoke of the individual accomplishments of those men who she knew well and named names of those she thought were the best choices for her new business partner. They ranged in age from 16 to 56 and came in every color available, from the whitest of whites to the blackest of blacks and all the variations in between. Some of them looked as though they'd just disembarked from a Royal Navy ship, all crisp and clean and bright eyed; others had the obvious look of having long been on the wrong side of maritime law.

"Carter, tell Captain Jack Black of your experience,"[/b] Katie said to one of the pirates as she passed behind him. Looking to Thomas with a smile as the man began speaking of his time in the Royal Navy, of his desertion from said organization, and of his 12 years working for three different pirates. She posed the same inquiry to others, including a man with a heavy French accent; he spoke about how he'd killed an officer who'd been abusing him for months, before jumping ship and swimming 6 miles back to shore, still wearing his boots. Katie looked to Thomas and asked, "Do any of these men fit your bill, Captain?"

She listened to Thomas's response, then informed him, "The eight men you thought you might need should likely be doubled, Captain."

Katie saw the reaction in his face and informed Thomas, "I have a ketch of the size you requested available in about 15 days time. It belongs to a business associate of mine who has fallen on hard times, and he wishes to sell it to me. However, I have another boat available to me at this very moment, but it is a bit larger than that for which you requested."

She signaled the barman, who -- with a bar wench -- retrieved several platters of food and drink which were distributed amongst the tables. She told the men to continue eating up as she gestured with a curling finger for Thomas to follow her.

"Will this do, Captain?" Katie asked after she'd led him to the port and gestured a hand to a topsail ketch anchored a hundred yards out from the dock. "She's called the Paulina, and she's ready to sail now."

Behind Katie, Joshua cleared his throat in a meaningful way. His boss glared back at him, then looked to Thomas with a guilty smile. Looking back to the boat, she began, "So, a little background might be in order. The Paulina's crew caught the Fever a while back. Many of them died at sea, about half the crew and most of the officers. More of them died here in port after they were refused the right to disembark. A launch was provided to the survivors, and they were loaded in it and taken to a small village on a little island off the shore of New Providence that was once a Leper colony.

"The boat has sat empty of crew for two weeks," Katie continued, "And I paid a half dozen men to empty the vessel of water, food, drink, clothing, bedding, and anything else that might carry the fever on it. It was all tossed to the bottom of the harbor or burned on a barge. None of those men have contracted the fever, and its been over a week since they finished their work."

Joshua began with a concerned tone, "The Paulina is still owned by--"

"Yes, yes, I know, Joshua," Katie interrupted. She looked to Thomas and informed him, "The boat is owned by Jonathan Phillips. My father."

Katie didn't know whether or not Thomas knew of her father and of the relationship the two of them shared. Jonathan Phillips had brought his family -- his wife, his three older sons, his only daughter Katie, and yet another son -- to New Providence when Katie herself was but 6 years old. He'd been granted over a thousand acres of prime farming land, as well as the right to conduct commerce using an already constructed dock and a number of buildings for which he'd paid a small percentage of their value.

Jonathan had turned out to be a lousy businessman, though, and his connections to the Crown and Noble Class hadn't been able to save him from nearly going bankrupt and losing everything he had. His three eldest sons had turned out to be no good in his efforts either: one had been killed in a duel over a woman; another had been killed in his lover's bed by his lover's sword wielding husband; the third had died from essentially drinking himself to death.

After his wife's death to a fever, Jonathan's saving grace was his only daughter and his youngest son. Katherine Phillips had had a nose for business from her early teens, and her father had allowed her to become more and more involved in the business as he slowly realized that she knew it better than he did. Gregory Phillips, Jonathan's only living son by this point, had loved boats and sailing and all things seamanship, and -- at 20 years of age -- he had relocated to Charlestown in the Carolina Colony where he managed the north end of much of the commerce that operated between Nassau and the Continent.

Between them, the two siblings had saved their father's company. But in doing so, they had also had to embrace the benefits of working with the pirates who not only roamed the Caribbean but who worked out of Nassau in great numbers.

She continued, "If your men were to board her in the dark of night and sail her away without an overabundance of attention from shore..."

Katie let the thought die there.

 

[TimTimTyner]

The sun scorching his face made Thomas squint and turn away. It was an initially rude awakening until he quickly recalled the night that had preceded this morn. He reached a hand out for the whore who had so pleased him for hours, only to find the bed empty. Or not.

"Good morning," he said as he sat up and carefully accepted the cup of tea being offered by his new business partner.

Katie greeted him, "I hear you had a rather satisfying night, Captain."

"I did rather enjoy it, yes," Thomas said. He took a cautious sip at the hot liquid, adding with a sincere tone, "I wish to thank you for that, Lady Kate, and for this."

He lifted the cup as she looked back to him. Katie spoke of his clothes, his bath, and his breakfast, then told him she had prospective crew members gathered downstairs. Then, with a smirk, she spoke of his tight ass and his need to get it downstairs to get to work, adding, "That was Claire's assessment, by the way. Of your ass. I wouldn't want you to think I'd taken any personal interest in it."

"I wouldn't mind, Katie," he said quickly before she got away. She chuckled softly, and he followed up after she'd left with, "I really wouldn't!"

////////////////////​

The men downstairs were pretty much as Thomas had expected. Pirates were often a very diverse bunch. Some were very professional, very skilled, very disciplined sailors who, like Thomas, had come to piracy because of a single, career ending event. Thomas had disobeyed orders and refused to attack an unarmed merchant ship that his superiors suspected of transporting munitions.

Thomas, however, had known that the vessel's passengers included at least two dozen women and children, and he'd considered the crime of killing them to be more horrendous than the potential deaths of his fellow servicemen that would have come from the gunpowder, rifles, and cannons that the ship was, in fact, carrying.

Others amongst the men Thomas interviewed had similar stories. Then again, some of the other were simply criminal types who also happened to have been sailors at one time or another. Thomas despised those types, and he typically refused to have them on his crew. But after Katie took him down to the port and showed him the ship she was making available to him, he feared that he would need the whole bunch of them and more.

"This is not a ketch to be crewed by eight men, my good Lady Kate," Thomas told her, adding, "Or even eighteen! To crew this monster, I'm going to need forty men, maybe more."

They spoke a bit more, then the big man who never seemed to be far from Katie cleared his throat and began to speak before his employer began, "So, a little background might be in order."

Honestly, Thomas knew absolutely nothing about the relationship between Katherine Phillips and her father, Jonathan. And honestly again, he cared absolutely nothing about how he was to get his ship, be it the Paulina or another. His only concern right now was that he had been planning on a small crew, a small ship, and a few small raids to keep him in coin and, thus, rum and whores. And Thomas had presumed from his conversation with Katie the night before that she had understood that as well.

Or, had she? She had spoken of helping him become the most successful pirate in Nassau or, as she'd put it, all of the Caribbean. And that wasn't done with a crew of eight on a 30 foot ketch.

Katie began, "If your men were to board her in the dark of night and sail her away without an overabundance of attention from shore--"

"Just what is this first target at which you are sending me like some rabid dog, Lady Kate?" Thomas asked with an accusatory tone. He nodded his chin toward the Paulina and unnecessarily told her what she already knew, "You don't give a boat like that to a wannabe pirate Captain you only met the day before unless you have an agenda as big as the Caribbean itself."

Thomas gave her a moment to contemplate an answer, then added, "And where is the rest of the crew you are going to stick me with?"

He could see in her face that he'd hit the nail on the head. "You are well aware of the fact that this vessel can't be sailed effectively with only twenty men. You have more men waiting in the wings to join my crew, without me interviewing them myself."

He turned and stepped up to within Katie's personal space as he said firmly, "This doesn't work unless we are honest and up front with one another, Katie."

 

[AmyRoberts]

"This is not a ketch to be crewed by eight men, my good Lady Kate," Thomas reacted to Katie's selection of the Paulina as his next Command.

As he went on, she hoped that he would not see through her secret plot, but then Thomas confronted her with, "Just what is this first target at which you are sending me like some rabid dog, Lady Kate?"

His subsequent accusation of her having a hidden agenda was right on the money. She was hesitant to tell him anymore than he needed to know, but then Thomas moved up close and said, "This doesn't work unless we are honest and up front with one another, Katie."

"Look over my right shoulder," she told him without turning and glancing herself. "She's called The Swift Journey. And in eight days time, she is scheduled to leave Nassau with the vast majority of my father's company's profits for the last year. A chest filled with gold and silver coins that I haven't been able to send to Charlestown in smaller amounts because my father insisted I keep it here where, ironically, it was safe from people such as yourself, pirates."

She looked to the ship she was giving to Thomas, then glanced back to him. "After you have stolen the Paulina and disappeared into the sea, the Captain of The Swift Journey will be concerned that it is in the hands of pirates, which it will be obviously. And he will be concerned that his ship and my father's chest of coins will be in jeopardy, which they will. And he will slip out in the dead of night two or three nights early, fearing that the reason the Paulina was stolen at this moment in time wasspecifically to set upon his ship and deprive him of my father's little treasure. Which, of course, is all so very true."

Katie took Thomas's elbow and turned him back toward the shore, walking very slowly as she continued, "When he leaves, he will come to me and he will tell me that he is altering his course, in case his own crew has let others -- such as Bella's whores -- know when they are leaving and what course they are taking, which of course they have, otherwise I wouldn't know what I know, would I?"

She looked up to Thomas with a smile, then continued, "But, the Captain won't trust that I can be trusted, so he will actually taking a third route to Charlestown, and it is there that I will signal you to find him, board him, and take the chest."

 

[TimTimTyner]

"Look over my right shoulder."

Thomas looked to a schooner anchored between the dock and the east shore of the harbor. It wasn't the largest of boats, about midsized for an armed merchant ship. But the key word in that description was armed. The Paulina had only three gun ports on each side of it, and while he hadn't seen them yet, Thomas assumed they were likely only 8 pounders at the most. They weren't intended for attacking other vessels but were instead designed for preventing exactly what Thomas had intended to do to such a boat as the Paulina with his previously requested and smaller ketch.

The Swift Journey, on the other had, had twice the gun ports, as well as two ports in the stern and one in the bow; the stern and bow positions likely had no cannons currently placed in them, but if an attack or defense from fore or aft was necessary, a gun could easily be rolled and blocked into place. In addition to this, the Swift Journey's guns were definitely at least eight pounders and, more likely, twelve pounders. A shot that large would go right through the hull of the Paulina and, if it hit the powder magazine, blow the ship into a million little shards of wood.

When she spoke of the information so easily gleaned from sailors by Bella's whores, Thomas smiled to Katie. "Loose lips sink ships, and tight lips on cocks make Captains wish they'd remained at the docks."

Katie went on to explain that the Captain of the Swift Journey would end up with the last of three viable routes to the Carolina Colony, which Thomas knew well from his own experience sailing these seas. But the question remaining for her to answer was, "Will you please explain to me why you are setting this rabid dog on your father's treasury, as opposed to some other merchant or, perhaps, even a competitor of his in the shipping business?"

He looked over his shoulder to the Swift Journey, assessing the ship and its capabilities, then pointed out, "And you didn't mention the additional crew members that you are going to foist upon me."

 

[AmyRoberts]

Katie laughed -- too hard for a lady -- at Thomas's lewd joke about cocks and ships. When he asked why she was sic'ing him on her father's ship and gold, Katie explained vaguely, "It's personal. Let's just leave it at this: you taking my father's gold without him knowing I sent you to do it, followed by you bringing it back to me, minus your 40%, will benefit me, will benefit you, and -- believe it or not -- will benefit my father in the end."

Katie wasn't going to explain to Thomas that the gold in the chest was insured, nor was she going to explain that while her father would be reimbursed by the London Agency through which he'd arranged the guarantee, the lost would be devastating to his long term business ventures. And that loss in credibility that her father would suffer was actually worth more to Katie in the long run than even the gold in the chest after which she was going to sic' Thomas and his crew.

Jonathan Phillips had been denying Katie and her brother, Gregory, the additional control they needed over the family business to take it in directions which would ultimately exclude the need to associate themselves with pirates. The profit from their dealings with pirates were high, nearly 40% of all Katie took in here in Nassau and another 15% of what her brother collected in Charlestown.

But it was a recipe for disaster as well. The English would one day reclaim control of Nassau and with it control over the Caribbean. Before that happened, Katie needed to go totally legit. And unfortunately, she couldn't do that without more gold and silver and the power it would buy her in the Bahamas and beyond. Essentially, she had to be a little bit bad for now if she wanted to be good later.

Thomas reminded her, "And you didn't mention the additional crew members that you are going to foist upon me."

"I have a dozen men who are the best at what they do," she began, telling Thomas, "Come with me. I'll introduce you to them."

////////////////////////​

Katie led Thomas to the stables where she kept a cart. The stable master hitched up one of the horse she kept for transporting goods around the island, then loaded some packages that had been delivered to the stables the previous day. They went into the interior, following the main road, then a side road, then a path that couldn't even be called a road at all.

They were met outside a small cabin by a pair of men with long guns. They were welcoming to Katie but obviously suspicious of Thomas, at least until the man in charge emerged from the house and Katie explained to him, "This is Captain Jack Black, and you'll be serving aboard his ship."

"Happy to meet you, Captain," the lead man say, introducing himself, "My name is Rogers Trent, but around here, they call me Lieutenant."

As his men unloaded the packages of food, drink, gunpowder, and shot, Trent led the visitors out behind the cabin to a cliff that overlooked the beach below. There were four men there already; two were cleaning long guns while the others napped in the morning sun.

"Men, I think our guests would like a demonstration," Trent told the others. He asked his employer, "Are we a go with the Paulina, Lady Kate? That is the elevation and angle with which we have been practicing."

Katie looked to Thomas for his response; he still hadn't fully agreed to her plan. She hoped that the demonstration ahead might convince him, though.

As the men loaded their long guns, Trent explained, "These are rifled long guns, Captain. They are accurate to within inches over a range of up to a hundred yards."

The riflemen rested their weapons' barrels upon stands, aimed toward man-sized targets down the slope at various distances, and fired. Without exception, they each hit, not just once or twice but three times each. Trent looked to Thomas and said with a proud smile, "You get us close enough to the Swift Journey, and we'll take out their officers, their lookouts, their helmsman, any gun crew members who peeks his head out looking for a target. We'll keep their heads down while you work on getting the Paulina close enough for your heathen pirates to board her and do their thing."

Katie was smiling as she asked Thomas, "So, what do you think about a few extra crewmen, Captain Jack Black?"

 

[TimTimTyner]

Thomas was at a loss to understand Katie's thinking based upon what she was willing to tell him. But for reasons he couldn't fully explain, he trusted her nonetheless. Still, he couldn't even begin to imagine that her plan would work, that the Paulina could seize the Swift Journey with its greater size, more powerful guns, and larger crew.

Then, she introduced Thomas to Rogers Trent, and he saw the skill with which their lead rounds swung the targets mounted all about the rocks below them. Katie asked, "So, what do you think about a few extra crewmen, Captain Jack Black?"

Thomas took the couple of steps between him and Trent and offered out his right hand. "Welcome aboard, Lieutenant."

The two men discussed in detail what Trent needed for his men to be the most efficient at what Katie had called their jobs. Thomas offered an elbow to his business partner, escorting her back toward the cart as they discussed other details, such as how she would signal the Paulina once the ship had departed Nassau ahead of the Swift Journey.

"I need to ask you a question, Lady Kate," Thomas said as he helped Katie up into the cart. As he joined her, he asked, "Why me? I'm sure you have other men, other ships, other crews that could take on this task. Why me?"

 

[AmyRoberts]

Katie watched almost with glee as Thomas offered his hand to Trent. If they pulled this off, her place in New Providence would almost surely be guaranteed to be all she'd ever wanted it to be. As she and Thomas returned to the cart, he asked, "Why me?"

As he gently flicked the reins and started the horse back down the path toward Nassau, Katie considered her answer. "Because I have no history with you, Thomas."

She looked to him for his reaction to both her statement and her use of his given name; she'd been calling him Captain before others to ensure they understood his place of authority over them. Katie had learned through her years of dealing with pirate captains that one of the greatest dangers they faced in their early days was a crew that did not respect them or, at the least, fear them. She could help Thomas with the former; the latter was up to him to decide upon himself.

Katie continued, "And I see something in you that I don't see in other Captains. I saw it the moment I sat with you. You have what it takes to succeed. In here."

She reached a hand across to Thomas's chest, patting it once. "All you need, all you needed, was what you didn't already have but do now. A boat. Men. And my support."

Katie smiled to him as she would often in the future. She patted his arm, saying, "You and I are going to do great things together, Thomas. Great things."

 

[TimTimTyner]

"Because I have no history with you, Thomas."

Thomas wasn't immediately certain what Katie meant by saying this in relation to why she'd chosen him for this plan. Over time, he would come to believe that because he hadn't had the opportunity to betray her yet -- let alone actually having done so -- that she would trust him now more than she actually knew that she could trust him.

Either way, Thomas was pleased with how Katie expressed her faith in his ability to pull this plan off. "You have what it takes to succeed," she told him, adding that all he'd needed was what she'd been able to provide him. "You and I are going to do great things together, Thomas. Great things."

<> <> <> <> <> <>​

Back in town, Thomas met with the wannabe pirates who were all by now drunk to one degree or another, despite having been gathered at The Dead Dolphin well before noon. He told them the good news: "You're all hired!" Of course, none of them knew yet that they'd been selected to steal a ship sitting isolated in the middle of the harbor because it had just recently been the victim of a deadly fever outbreak. They'd find that out tonight after dark when they were slipping away from the west beach in dinghies where there would be no prying eyes that might alert the town's Law.

For now, Thomas told them all to pack up their knapsacks, gather their weapons if they had any, and be back here for dinner at sundown. He'd gotten an advance from Katie and disbursed four shillings to each man to be left with their families if they had them or otherwise stuck deep in their pockets for future use. Once the men were all gone, Thomas went upstairs to Katie's office to discuss the provisioning of the boat.

"We obviously can't get everything we need aboard during the dark of one night," he pointed out, adding with confidence, "but I'm willing to bet that you have a plan for that."

She did, of course, and after he showed his approval for her ingenuity, Thomas excused himself and headed for the whore house to locate the best fuck he'd ever experienced. If he found Claire and she was available, he'd take her to his room for another couple of hours of mind blowing sex; Thomas had pocketed the balance of the purse of coins Katie had given him to pay the men. If she wasn't available, he would return to his room alone. Thomas wasn't really interested in a new experience at this moment.

 

[AmyRoberts]

"You're all hired!"

Katie listened from the second floor as Thomas announced the hiring of all who'd assembled, as well as the cheer that followed. She had faith in her selection of men, and on the return ride from the riflemen cabin, she'd reassured Thomas that the 22 he'd met could be depended upon, that she could have supplied him 50 men if they'd wanted to take an unnecessary chance of questionable sailors.

When Thomas asked about provisioning the ship, she again reassured him that all was well. "There is a boat in the harbor now, The Harpie. It belongs to my father's company but is under my direction. It is loaded with most of what you will need: food, water, rum, powder, shot, and more. It will leave tomorrow on the pretense of delivering those goods to Kingston but will meet you at sea instead. In addition, much of the rest of what you need is in a warehouse on the east end of the island, waiting for you to drop anchor off shore and ferry it out. Dinghy's are waiting, as are a half dozen trusted men to help load, men who would gladly join your crew as well, Captain."

Once Thomas had gone off to find the person who would tucker him out and then help him toward napping, Katie returned to her office's balcony to look out over the bay and onto the Paulina. The plan was risky, she knew that, and choosing a man she didn't know to lead it only increased that risk. But all that she'd been told about him via the info Belle's whores had heard from men who knew Thomas told her that he was still the best man for the job.

She turned to descend to the tavern floor for a drink but stopped at the top of the stairs, looking across to the corner of the establishment that included the room in which Thomas was surely boning Claire once again. Katie looked about the tavern floor for prying eyes, saw none, then took the landing around to that side of the building. She was hidden in shadows as she paused outside of Thomas's room, recognizing immediately the sounds of energetic fucking; Claire cried out consistently, in concert with the squeaking of the old brass bed, and after a long moment, Thomas could be heard moaning, then groaning, then grunting out his satisfaction.

"My Lady," a soft, female voice spoke from even deeper shadows, causing Katie to literally leap and spin at the unexpected arrival of the adjacent brothel's Madam. Belle apologized for frightening her employer, friend, and lover, then took Katie's hand, saying with a suggestive tone as she began leading the woman toward her own sleeping quarters, "You may imagine I am your Captain Jack Black, with my head between your legs and my mouth upon you if you wish. I do not mind."

/////////////////////​

The sun had descended to a point where its deepening colors penetrated the slats of the balcony's door and struck the lovers in the eyes. Belle rolled and lifted her naked body's upper half onto an elbow as she asked Katie, "Will you become Captain Jack's lover, mon doux?"

Katie didn't immediately respond but ultimately said with a soft voice, "Non."

Belle didn't believe her lover's denial, of course. Katie hadn't been with a man in more than three years, and she hadn't been in love with one since she was 16 years old, and that hadn't gone well at all; she'd been deflowered by the handsome son of a wealthy Nobleman -- a business associate of her father -- only to have the man leave her behind in Nassau when he returned to London and to the woman he'd been slated to marry for more than a decade.

"You should marry and have children," Belle said, even as she was leaning forward to take a pert nipple into her mouth and remind the Katie of who was responsible for the best sex of which she'd ever partaken. She moved closer, kissing the love of her life, then -- as she began sliding down into place to once again bring about ecstasy, euphoria, and joy to Lady Katherine Phillips -- Belle reminded her of what many had been saying for years, "You need a man to fully establish yourself as the new head of the Phillips Company. You cannot do this alone, as a woman, my love."

/////////////////////​

Freshly bathed and smelling of scented oils, Katie met Thomas at his usual table in the tavern, carrying another bottle of her favorite Port. She greeted him and waved to a tavern wench for a plate of dried pork and sliced fruit. They studied each other for a long moment, and Katie couldn't help but smile wide at him, her mind filled with so many thoughts, not the least of which was the fantasies she'd had of him as Belle ate at her pussy.

"I have horses waiting in the stables to take you to the harbor beach," she said unnecessarily, telling Thomas nothing she hadn't previously told him was arranged. "I would love to go with you, to see you and your men off, but I must make my presence known here. I have invited the Captain of the Swift Journey and some of his officers to dinner in my private dining room."

Katie couldn't help but laugh and blush at the thought of supping with the very men whose ship Thomas would soon be boarding and pillaging. The food arrived, and the pair of them snacked and spoke of the particulars of the task once again, ensuring that they each saw it unfolding as did the other and that nothing had been forgotten.

Joshua arrived at one point and inconspicuously dropped a second, much heavier purse of coins on the seat next to Thomas. Katie reminded her fellow conspirator, "You cannot come immediately back to Nassau. Kingston is nice this time of year. Or perhaps Montego Bay. That purse is to keep your men in rum and whores until you return to New Providence, and if you run out of coin, I'm sure you can find other means of paying your way. But my father's chest is not to be opened, and withdrawals are not to be taken from it."

They had spoken about this already, and Thomas had reassured Katie that he would abide by this demand. After Joshua departed and found a distant spot from which he could watch over his Lady and yet not eavesdrop on her conversation, Katie told Thomas, "Claire has told me that the two of you are well suited as lovers."

She hesitated to see if Thomas had anything to add on the topic. Then she told him, "I have told her that if our plan is successful and you bring my father's chest back to me, that I would allow her to become your woman. Only your woman. If that is something that interests you, Thomas."

Again she hesitated before adding, "You would have a room here, of course. I suggest the Blue Room, as it faces the east for the sunrise but is cool in the late day. The balcony catches the sunset four months of the year as well, which makes for a beautiful end of the day, should you be in Nassau and not out on the seas, earning a living. Your choice, of course."

Katie found the man Thomas had picked as his first mate signaling from the tavern's entrance, and she stood and offered him a hand. "Good luck, Captain. My man Joshua will signal you when the Swift Journey has departed the harbor, as well as let you know whether or not the vessel heads away from New Providence as I suspect."

 

[AmyRoberts]

"Don't stop!" Claire begged as Thomas pounded at her while she was on her knees and elbows in the middle of his bed. She'd heard him grunt out his orgasm seconds earlier, and she'd felt him sink his cock deep inside her to enjoy the ecstasy flooding through him as his balls emptied into her. But she wasn't there yet, though she was close, and if he would only just give her a moment more! She began moving her own body fore and aft, taking his still hard shaft in and out of her as she pleaded, "Please, Captain! Please! Please, don't stop. Don't stop."

Claire had known a lot of men; she was, after all, a whore. But, like Katie, she saw something in Thomas she had never seen in a man before: a way out. Little girls didn't grow up dreaming of becoming whores, of course; sometimes, shit just happened. Claire had confidence in Katie, and Katie had confidence in Thomas. Claire had never put her confidence -- let alone her hope -- in a man before, not since her father, who had abandoned Claire and the other eight members of her family when she herself was only 11 years old. And even though she'd only just met Thomas, Claire could feel that he was the best chance she might ever have of being more than she was now, a warm, wet hole in which men put their cocks to find their pleasure.

/////////////////////​

Claire awoke to the feel of a finger tickling the bottom of her bare foot. She found one of the tavern wenches smiling to her, whispering, "It's time."

After the other woman departed, Claire reached under the bedding to find the sleeping man's sleeping cock. She fondled it, and as it awoke, so did it's owner. She smiled to Thomas, then kissed him. "You made me very happy this day. I hope you do so again many times over many days to come. But, now, it's time to go, Captain. But, before you go..."

Kissing Thomas again, Claire slipped under the covers and found his cock with her mouth. She took her time, licking and sucking him, causing him to great pleasure, until finally she began swallowing most of his length again and again until he filled her mouth with cum. Swallowing his seed, Claire slipped naked out of the bed, looked to Thomas with a wide grin, and repeated with a giggle, "Now, it's time to go, Captain."

 

[TimTimTyner]

Earlier:

Thomas rammed his cock deep inside Claire as it began spurting forth his balls' contents with a loud groan of joy. He teetered behind her, his groin against her ass, his head spinning in euphoria. He would have remained like that, on his knees, his heart pounding, his chest swelling and shrinking with deep breaths of ecstasy and exertion, until finally he collapsed onto the bed next to his lover.

But Claire called out to Thomas, "Please, Captain! Please! Please, don't stop. Don't stop."

He enjoyed the pleasure pounding through him a bit longer, then clutched Claire's hips tightly and returned to pounding deep into her wetness. Thomas was determined to do for Claire what she had just done for him. As he thrusted again and again, he commanded, "Don't pretend with me, girl. Don't pretend for me!"

Thomas wasn't a selfish lover, and his ego wasn't immune to the boost it would receive knowing that he'd driven Claire to the same heights he'd just visited. But he knew whores and how they often faked their own pleasure in the hopes of gaining a few more coins from a man who was feeling virile and proud.

"I want the real you, Claire!" Thomas told her as he continued thrusting hard, fast, and deep. "Don't pretend with me. Don't pretend."

Eventually, Claire cried out, shook deeply, and collapsed into the bed. Thomas couldn't know whether she was faking or not. He could only hope that she was being honest with him. Just as Claire was thinking of his as a way out of prostitution, Thomas was thinking of her as more than just an occasional suck and fuck. He'd never had a long term life partner, and while a brothel whore might be the type he'd bring home to his mother -- was she still alive -- Thomas had a fair idea that it would take less to convince such a fallen angel to become his woman than some upstanding and proper woman.

Thomas's own pleasure had once again been rising. As Claire enjoyed the ecstasy washing over and through her, he continued to ram his cock into her until finally it was once again spewing wads of cum into her. This time, Thomas did fall forward to the bed, pulling the still heavily breathing whore to him. Together, they enjoyed the fruits of their labors, falling asleep, naked and exposed in the warmth of a beautiful Bahamian afternoon.

(OOC: Sorry, I can't finish at the moment. Appointment.)