The cannon fire barely exchanged at all, before it suddenly fell silent.

Taylor watched in apprehension, slowly beginning to hear a whistle on the breeze. It was far too quiet to do more than guess that it was happening. She had not a clue to the messages being exchanged, but the ships were talking.

Looking to the man she still daren’t trust, but was throwing her lot in with all the same, she saw a lot more comprehension than her own. Though, not any thought to share what that might be.

Benny kept dead silent, mouth pressed together, as his vision drifted between the ships, to her, and back again. Rolling his mouth as he considered his options.

A man claiming to have treasure, eyeing two ships, and weighing how she might fit into some puzzle, was a cursed thought in Taylor’s mind. She didn’t think she could draw her knife without the man seeing the motion, and he seemed the wild type to beat upon you until long after you were dead.

Even as Taylor continued to weigh her thoughts and possibilities, both the ships on the water let down a boat, sending ashore two men each. She watched them with a forbidding feeling in her gut, especially when all four instantly started to make for the hill, and the fort.

She hadn’t even noticed the damnable thing, and now strangers and those who had tried to kill her, were coming directly here?

“You didn’t tell them, did you?”

Benny shook his head, “No. Nor would any know to come here, lest he already knowin’ it be here. They be pirates. Finn’s pirates.”

“Pirates, and… Redcoats?” She stared in confusion at those creeping up the road in the direction of her new hovel. “You got a cannon?”

“I ain’t shootin’ at ’em.” Benny scoffed, “They got a ship. They want what I be havin’. So we be talkin’, all civilised like. When did you decide to lose ya humanity? Shootin’ be before speakin’?”

“Well, one of them knows my loins. Didn’t stop him trying to shoot me.” Taylor growled angrily, “You see that one on the right? That hobbling? That’s Edward cursed Vernon.”

All the colour drained from Benny’s face, as he looked out at a figure that had so often been the focus of his nightmares.

A moment later, Taylor was sprinting to keep up with the man, as he gathered in materials, and began to clean and load a cannon just a floor lower. It sighted out over the path that led up the hill, but looked old and Taylor wasn’t certain it could even fire.

She winced, “Ben… What if this… Doesn’t work? What’ll Vernon do?”

“We’re dead if we don’t, deader if we do and fail.” The man growled and shook his head, “We have strength and labour, but as both fail, it is cut off and we fly away.”

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She didn’t entirely understand that, but Benny wasn’t entire sane, either. She couldn’t blame him after all of this.

Benny finished loading the cannon, and rolled it forward into its slot. “So do not fear, for I am with you.”

“Do not be dismayed, for I am your God.” He continued as he angled the nose down, eyeing off the approach and the horizon, doing some sort of count.

Benny must have fired the cannon before, to be so sure of its drift and aim. “I will strengthen you, and help you.”

The man nodded slowly, and lit a short fuse at the base of it. Giving no warning to her. “I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”

Taylor ducked backwards and clamped her hands to her ears, just a moment before the deafening roar sounded out. The cannon lurched backwards hard enough to snap the rope holding it in place, propelled backwards and into the brick wall - cracking it with a shake that made the floor lift and tumble.

She fell to her knees, a rapid intake of air, and waited for the ground to fall away from them.

Benny cackled and clapped excitedly, “Got ’em! I got ’em! I got the…”

He suddenly turned and sprinted away, face white. He didn’t say anything, just completely disappeared from view. Taylor stumbled over to the view, and looked out to see Vernon dusting off his hat and sticking it back on.

She took a deep breath, and then sighed very slowly, “Damn.”

----------------------------------------

Alone, with a busted cannon, and nothing more than a knife, Taylor decided to fall back onto herself. She lowered the drawbridge as the group of four approached, and then headed down to meet them.

She stood at the end of the drawbridge, hand on hip, and her shirt intentionally a little bit askew. “Halt! Who be going by?”

“Bloody hell, Taylor!” Vernon snapped, “You damnably do know how ta give a man a real heart ache! I already got that, no need to be plantin’ ma in the ground, as well.”

One of the uniformed lads held up a hand, “I have no knowledge of this relation, nor do I wish of it. I am Inspector Dance, and I am glad to find you alive, Mr. Hawkins.”

“Miss will do.” She reassured the man and gave a small smile, “I admit, I am rather surprised to see you, sir. I had not thought I would, unless I returned home. But the Nightingale is long gone. Nothing to tie me there.”

Dance nodded, “True enough. However, when I got word that your ship had taken on board… That man… I felt it prudent to inform my overseers.”

Taylor glanced over at Vernon and sighed, “I suppose I must horrify your superiors more, as I have quite the soft spot for that man, in particular.”

“We be negotiating.” Edward said, eyeing off the soldiers, “They take half. Nobody more need die.”

“Like the sailor I… I saw you kill.” Taylor said accusingly.

Edward shrugged sadly, “The others wouldn’t have had it another way. If I were to stand too tall, lass… My footsteps wouldn’t fall a half-dozen more afore Israel take the hat.”

“He’d see me buried.” She nodded tiredly, and then shrugged, “But… Map or none… I’m afraid I cannot help you gentlemen. It seems these islands are not so uninhabited as we thought. The man who fired on you? That wasn’t me. That was Benny Gunn.”

Vernon stared at her for a moment, and then laughed, “Oh, God hates me. I just know it. That stupid little prick survived? Here of all places? He couldn’t survive in his own damn bunk!”

Dance shook his head, “I don’t know the name… But I assume he must have moved the treasure. In that case… I do expect our rather tenuous truce to fall apart.”

“Were we not to lie.” Vernon smiled slowly.

The soldier winced, “Yes. Were we not to lie, to put it that crassly. We need you, Taylor. We need you to resolve it all, by finding it. This cesspit and I can attempt to keep the others in line, until you do.”

“A day. They won’t give much more ’an a day.” Vernon said grimly.

Taylor gave a nervous laugh, “I suppose you’ll distract them by tearing apart this fort, looking for the map. Here, hide it somewhere decent, would you? Delay them.”

She passed the map over to Dance, and then stretched and looked around. “I’m not a hunter. I don’t think I can find Benny, not if he doesn’t want it.”

“He’ll find you.” Vernon replied confidently.