Wild Waters by Rob Kidd

pointed at him.
    “I say,” he said, “that’s not very friendly, is it?”
    “Jack!” Carolina cried. “You’re alive!”
    “Oh, fabulous,” Barbossa muttered.
    “Don’t sound so surprised,” Jack said with a bow, flourishing his hat. “I’m remarkably hard to kill. Which is not an invitation to try,” he added quickly.
    Diego sheathed his sword and offered his hand to help Jack jump over Samuel’s prone body. Jack peered down at Samuel with an alarmed expression. “Had a bit too much rum, has he?” he said in a loud whisper to Diego.
    “Actually, I defeated him,” Marcella announced smugly.
    “Blimey, and I thought she couldn’t get any more insufferable,” Jack said, rolling his eyes. “Hang on…why is that one all tied up?” He waved his hand at Sarah.
    Diego told Jack the whole story as they tied up the rest of Samuel’s pirates. But when Jack tried to tell his own story, nobody believed him.
    “A hideous man-beast?” Jean said. “With black fur? Jack, are you sure you didn’t have a bit too much rum?”
    “Not in the least,” Jack said, drawing himself up tall. “Well, only a jot. Barely a swig. My monstrous friend quite liked it, too, and I couldn’t let him drink alone, could I? I think it might have been banana flavored.” He hiccupped and looked thoughtful. “Yes, definitely banana flavored.”
    “A likely story,” Barbossa sneered. “Battling monsters in the basement while we’re up here doing all the hard work.”
    “See here!” Jack cried, looking injured. “If you don’t believe me, just wait until you see old Benedict lying down there in the kitchens. He still hasn’t woken up, can you believe it? I had to waste my fabulous dramatic exit line on an unconscious man. But I was running out of fruit, so it was really time to go before old beastie got restless again.”
    “You’re sure it was Benedict Huntington?” Carolina asked. “Here? How did he knew we’d be here?”
    Jack frowned. “That is a good question,” he said, scratching his head. “Do you want to hear it?”
    “Hear what?” said Diego.
    “My dramatic exit line!” Jack cried. “Aren’t you listening? Never fear, Huntington, for you will always look back and remember this remarkable day as that exact day when you very nearly captured the most famous of pirates, Jack Sparrow!”
    He flung out his arms dramatically and paused as if waiting for applause. After a moment, when nothing happened, he dropped his arms and looked at his friends appraisingly.
    “No?” he said. “Too much? Still needs work, doesn’t it? I had a feeling it did.”
    Barbossa rolled his eyes and stomped off down the stairs to gather the rest of their crew.
    Jack hopped over to Jocard, who was removing an old rusty-looking tobacco cutter from Samuel’s belt. It looked worthless, but Jack knew it was Samuel’s special piece of eight. It was what identified him as a Pirate Lord.
    “It suits you, mate,” Jack said, clapping Jocard on the back.
    “Jack,” Jocard said, standing up. “So glad you finally showed up to help.”
    “Well, I do what I can,” Jack said modestly. “I guess this means you’re Pirate Lord of the Atlantic Ocean now.”
    Jocard straightened his shoulders, and a broad smile slowly spread across his face. “I gather I am.”
    Jack waved his hands around. “So all this—this huge fort, all this treasure, all these lovely beasties—it’s all yours.”
    Jocard shook his head. “No, that is not what I want. I just got my freedom, Jack Sparrow. I don’t want to lose it again so soon by trapping myself inside cold stone walls. I want to be out on the seas on my ship, living like a true pirate. Speaking of which—men, signal the Ranger ! We’re taking the short route back to Libertalia!”
    His pirates cheered heartily. No one wanted to spend another night with the Madagascar rain-forest mosquitoes.
    “Finally another Pirate Lord who sees things the way I do!” Jack said, shaking Jocard’s