The Beast and Boat
The tavern door flew open like a cannon blast.
The Captain stormed in, boots pounding the wood flooring, Bonny right behind him.
“Crew!” the Captain roared. “Up! We’ve work to do!”
Elias, Luca, and Finn jolted from their seats, reaching for blades they didn’t have.Bonny spun around to her stunned boss.
“I’m leaving,” she said, grabbing her coat off the hook.
“What do you mean, leaving? When will you be back?” Bonney scoffed, grabbing her bag without even turning. “Oh, you must be joking. You were lucky to have me in the first place with the money you pay, I should’ve walked out months ago. I ran this place better than you ever did, and don’t pretend you didn’t know it.” She paused at the door, smirking. “A woman like me knows her value. Keep your bar, keep your complaints, and keep telling yourself you’ll find someone better. See ya.”
Before he could speak, she was out the door, trailing behind the Captain and his crew.
Outside, Bonny led them toward her car a beat-up red hatchback.
The Captain froze mid-stride.
He pointed. “We won’t be messin’ with that beast, Bonny.”
“It’s mine,” she said. “And it moves.”
The Captain stepped forward cautiously, eyes narrowing. “I know not how to sail such a contraption.”
Bonny grinned. “I will sail her, Captain.”
He scowled. “Bonny, I lead my crew. I steer the ship.”
She pulled him aside, quiet but fierce.
“Captain, I’ve got money saved. I can get us to a place where we can buy a boat. Not a galleon, but a real vessel something to get you back on the sea.”
The Captain crossed his arms.
“You’re buying me a ship?”
“Don’t stretch it,” she said. “I can afford a boat. But only if we trust this beast to get us there.”
The Captain turned to his crew. “Load the beast,” he growled.
Bonny climbed into the driver’s seat. The Captain, muttering under his breath, sat beside her then instantly leapt out again.
“Bonny! What’s that rumble? It growls like it wants to eat me!”
“That’s the engine,” she said, rolling her eyes. “Get in. We need to go.”
He hesitated then climbed back in, gripping the door like a lifeline.
Moments later, as they turned onto the road, the Captain shot upright, smashed open the sunroof, and stood with his head high in the wind.
“Bonny!” he bellowed. “I must see the path with my own eyes! Sail faster!”
“You’ll get us arrested!” she shouted.
“I need to be on my feet!”
They weaved through narrow backstreets until the boatyard appeared row after row of small vessels under the early sun.
Bonny parked. The Captain jumped out like he’d been set free.
He stared back at her car.
“Magic and trickery,” he muttered. “Not for me.”
He turned to the yard. “Now my ship.”
Bonny coughed. “Boat,” she corrected. “I can only afford a boat.”
“Aye,” he said, straightening. “Boat it is, then!”
He marched into the sales cabin and slammed his hand on the counter.
“We shall buy your finest boat, sir!”
The salesman blinked. “What’s your budget?”
The Captain turned to Bonny, dead serious.
“What’s a budget?”
She stepped forward. “It’s alright, Captain. Let me handle this.”
Outside, Elias and Finn had stayed behind.Finn moved slowly, pacing between the hulking supports that cradled boats on dry land. Every now and then, he’d test the weight of the iron braces or shift a beam with one hand wordless, but clearly showing off the quiet strength he carried like second nature.Elias, by contrast, was a man on a mission. He stalked the yard with sharp eyes, pausing at each vessel like a hawk choosing its prey. He wasn’t just looking for a boat he was hunting for the right one.
Soon, Bonny found what she could afford: a solid motor yacht. Not flashy, but seaworthy.
Double bedroom. Two singles. Lounge. Galley kitchen. Open deck.
She handed over her card.
The Captain stepped aboard, examining every board, every rail. He didn’t say much until he turned back to Bonny, his face unreadable.
“Tis small,” he said.
“It’s enough,” she replied. “And she floats.”
He gave a slow nod, then barked at the crew:
“Men aboard!”
They climbed aboard their new vessel, and Bonny turned the key.
The engine rumbled. The dock slipped away.
They were back at sea.
The Captain stood at the bow, wind in his face.
“Bonny,” he said, eyes on the horizon.
“Yes, Captain?”
“Years ago, I buried a cache south coast of England. Weapons. Coins. Enough to arm a rebellion or bribe a king. We’ll find that island… and take back what’s mine.”
Bonny smiled.
“Aye,” she said. “Let’s go find your bounty.”
The Dog, the Chest, and the Fire Between Them
Bonny leaned close to the Captain as they watched the coastline roll by.
“What do you remember about the island?” she asked.
The Captain stared ahead, jaw tight.
“It was a stormy night,” he said. “I was sailin’ hard for England’s coast, but the sea was wild, angry. Waves lash’d the hull like whips. We had to anchor fast or lose her. Then I saw it. White cliffs. Rocks jutting like the teeth of some slumberin’ beast. I turned her just in time, dropped anchor on the far side, near thick woods. We buried the bounty deep, beneath moonlight and madness.”
Bonny laughed.
“What’s so funny?” the Captain asked.
“I know that island,” she said. “I can take you there.”
His eyes snapped to hers. She nodded toward the horizon.
“Follow the coast. When you see it, I’ll know.”
Hours passed in silence until the Captain suddenly pointed.
“There! That’s it! I remember!”
Bonny grinned. “Aye, Captain. That’s the one. The wooded side’s called Fort Victoria. If the forest’s where you buried it, that’s where we go.”
The Captain turned slowly, his gaze softer now. “You, Bonny… you’re wise beyond your years. You’ve courage… fire. Your spirit pleases me greatly.”
The Captain turned. Drop the anchor this is the place. Bonny lets go ..“Not yet. We wait. When the sun falls, we go.”
Bonny frowned. “And I suppose we means you and your men again?”
“This is no place for a woman.”
Bonny slammed her hand down on the table between them. “What?! Who found the island, Captain? Who got you a boat? Me. You want to find your treasure I’m coming. Got that?”
He stared at her, unmoving, as the silence between them thickened like fog.
Then, he walked out onto the deck, the sea licking the sides of the boat in a slow rhythm. The crew said nothing. Even the wind seemed to hush.
Time passed minutes stretching into something longer, heavier.
Finally, his voice rang out. “Bonny.”
She stepped forward, slower this time. Arms crossed. Chin high.
“Come,” he said.
She stopped, not quite near him.
“Look at me.”
She looked.
He placed his hands gently on her shoulders. “You’re right,” he said. “Your spirit is strong. I’ve misjudged you. I’ve been alone a long time, Bonny. Too long. But not anymore.”
He paused.
“From now on, we stand side by side.”
He pulled her into his chest. For a long moment, neither of them said a word.
Then Bonny stepped back, steady now. “Glad we understand each other. Now… let’s gather what we need.”
They landed just as the moon rose behind the trees.
The forest was thick a tangle of ancient branches and heavy earth. The air smelled of moss and time.
Bonny gathered fallen branches strong ones and stripped bark with the blade she kept on her hip.
Elias brought dry grass and twigs. Luca soaked a rag in boat fuel and handed it to her.
She wrapped the fabric tight, tied it with strips from her shirt, and lit it from her lighter.
The torch flared bright.
“Hold it high,” the Captain said. “Let fire light the way.”
Bonny did.
They moved in single file. Torch first. Captain second. The rest at their backs.
The forest swallowed them trees closing in like beasts watching from the dark.
Leaves rustled beneath their boots. Shadows shifted like something alive.
Somewhere far off, an owl called once then it was silent.
“I remember nothin’,” the Captain grumbled, frustration thick in his throat. “Too many years. Too much change.”
“Think,” Bonny urged. “How far from the shore? What direction? Was there a tree? A boulder?”
“None I can name.”
Then
“Captain!” Finn hissed. “Footsteps!”
They stopped cold.
Torches stayed lit their glow flickering across the bark of nearby trees.
The crew crouched low, pressing into the undergrowth, but not one flame was extinguished.
The sound came slow deliberate.
Crunch.
Pause.
Crunch.
The Captain’s hand went to his blade. Bonny gripped her torch tighter.
The steps grew louder just one set. But heavy. Steady.
The underbrush cracked and then a shape stepped into the torchlight.
A man.
Middle aged. Raincoat open. A leash in one hand.
“Evenin’,” he said.
Everyone froze.
Even Harvey, the retriever trotting beside him, seemed confused.
He stared at Bonny with her blazing branch. At the Captain, half-shadowed, tall and worn like time itself.
The man blinked.
“Well… this is a bit theatrical,” he said. “What’s going on here? Filming something, are we?”
No one answered.
Then Harvey barked. Not just a bark a tug.
Straight at the Captain’s boot.
“Oi! Harvey, no!”
The dog yanked, sniffed, turned in circles. Bonny stepped back. The Captain didn’t move.
The man chuckled nervously, tugging the leash. “Sorry about him. He’s usually well-behaved.”
He turned to go but Harvey froze. Walked forward.
Sniffed again then sat down.
Right over a patch of earth not five feet from the Captain.
Whined.
Sniffed harder. Scratched once. Laid flat.
“Harvey?” the man called. “Come on now.”
Harvey stayed.
Laid there, tail still, nose pressed to the dirt, whining like a ghost had passed through the soil.
Eventually the man came back, scooped him up awkwardly.
“Sorry again,” he said. “We’ll be off.”
They watched him vanish through the trees.
The Captain turned back to the forest. “Right. Let’s dig over”
“WAIT!” Bonny shouted. “The dog.”
“The sea is no place for dogs,” he muttered.
“No,” she snapped. “Listen. The dog tugged at your boot because he knew your scent. But then he lay right here. He found something. Something tied to you.”
The Captain hesitated.
Bonny stood firm.
“Dig here.”
He scowled but gave the order.
The crew dropped to their knees. Elias and Finn scraped the dirt with branches, Luca used his belt buckle to scoop soil.
The digging was fast but the earth was packed tight.
After several minutes, the Captain wiped sweat from his brow.
“No luck,” he muttered. “We move on.”
Bonny spun. “No! Keep digging!”
He grabbed her arm, pulling her aside.
“I make the orders, Bonny. I know best. You understand me?”
Bonny’s voice dropped. “I’m sorry. You’re right. I just…”
“CAPTAIN!” Finn shouted. “It’s here!”
They rushed over. Torchlight danced across the earth.
Wood.
The corner of a chest.
“It’s here!” the Captain roared. “Dig her out!”
Minutes passed. The lid was uncovered. Old. Heavy. Iron-bound. The Captain wiped the soil away with reverence take it to the boat ill open it on the deck.
Back at the Boat with a grunt, he pried it open.
Inside: pistols. Knives. Gunpowder. Gold. Goblets.
A bottle of rum glinted in the moonlight.
He reached for it.
“Don’t drink that,” Bonny warned. “It’s ancient.”
“It’s aged,” the Captain grinned. “Like me.”
He pulled the cork and drank.
His eyes watered, but he smiled.
“It bites. But it warms me bones.”
Bonny took a sip and nearly coughed out her lungs.The crew laughed. The moon rose higher.
The Captain sent the crew back. Elias to the spare room. Finn and Luca to the floor.
Later, on the back deck, Bonny and the Captain stood side by side. The sea shimmered silver beneath the moon.
“You’re a fine woman, Bonny,” he said quietly. “A fine woman.”
She turned. Smiled. Took the bottle. Swigged deep.
Then leaned in, whispering against his ear.
“I was right about the dog.”
He turned to face her. Their eyes met. Her breath warm on his cheek.
“That you were, Miss Bonny. That you were.”
She leaned closer.
Their lips touched.
The Captain tensed then pulled away.
“More rum!” he barked.
Bonny blinked.
Then grinned.
She poured him a goblet. He drank.
She stepped forward again firm, fearless.
Wrapped her arms around his neck.
And kissed him full under the moon.
