Page 75 of Enchanted By a Pirate
"I'll help you!"
She dove to the fingers that were disappearing under the surface of the water when a large wave rolled over her and dragged her into the depths. She spun around and saw a hand again, but it didn't belong to a little girl but to a woman with a shimmering red fishtail. She had glistening golden hair and laughed as if it were merely a game. The woman swam toward her and tried to grab her to pull her deeper into the endless darkness when a loud splash broke the silence and a large hand wrapped around her. This hand pulled her upward. The woman with the fish tail called to her, wanting to play with her, to take her with her. But the hand held her in an iron grip as whoever it belonged to threatened the fish woman, who then looked angry and swam away.
The next moment, she was out of the water. She wanted to breathe when she was seized by a cough.
"Slowly, slowly, madam," a dark voice said. Did it belong to the hand?
"Shall we take her, Captain?"
"No, I'll take care of her."
"Is it really a fairy?"
"Aye, and the siren almost had her."
She listened, but she didn't understand what the men were saying. Her body was numb. She couldn't even move her little finger. While the man holding her climbed upward, she didn't move.
"Is she dead?"
"No, I feel her heartbeat."
After she was gently turned onto her side, someone pushed on her back several times until a gush of water escaped her mouth, and she coughed loudly. Dazed, she tried to sit up, but everything was spinning. Where was she? She tried with all her might to open her eyes and when she finally succeeded, she peered into a pair of dark eyes that looked at her with concern.
"Are you okay, little fairy?"
The voice was rough and dark, yet it enveloped her wet body like a cozy, warm blanket. She nodded slowly.
The man gently ran his finger over her head. "Rest, little fairy, you're safe now."
"Where… where am I?"
"On the Fortuna."
Her heart beat faster. She couldn’t tell if it was from fear or excitement, because this man was looking at her in a way that no one had ever looked at her before. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed the flags blowing in the wind and was startled. They were black with a white skull on them.
"Is this… a pirate ship?"
"Aye, madam, and I am the captain. My name is Christopher O'Brien, but please call me Chris."
Her pulse quickened again, but since the man treated her gently, she didn't feel threatened. The warnings of the other fairies faded and instead, she listened to her heart as it whispered to her what had just happened. The pirate captain had saved her life.
"She should call him Chris, did you hear that?" Men laughed in the background, but that didn't seem to bother the captain. He didn't take his eyes off her, watching her worriedly, and her heart beat a little faster again.
"Are you in any pain?"
"No, I…" With difficulty, she stood up. He tried to stop her, but she waved him away. "I want to sit. Only my wings…" She glanced sadly over her shoulder. They were sopping wet and drooped from her back. They felt heavy and ice cold. "Surely, they'll return to…?"
"Aye, don't worry. I bet once you let them dry in the sun you'll be able to fly around again, little fairy."
When she smiled up at him, something fluttered in her stomach.
"I'll show you where you can rest until you feel better." He hurried across the ship toward the prow, giving her the opportunity to examine the Fortuna. Some men on board peered at her curiously. Their clothes were torn and frayed in places and their faces tanned, but they didn't actually seem as scary as the pirates she had imagined. One of them kept looking at his pocket watch and another winked at her before disappearing below deck.
They arrived at the prow, where a few ropes were hanging between the railing and a rope was stretched from the railing to the forward mast. He placed a piece of canvas over it. "Look, you can lie in this makeshift hammock. Rest until you regain your strength."
Grateful, she collapsed onto the canvas, still barely able to do more than sit and look around. He crouched in front of her and she looked up at him questioningly. "Why are you helping me?"
"Why shouldn't I?"
