A Wave Of Pirates 11) Hope

I opened my eyes and smiled as I saw Brandy's beautiful face. She smiled back at me and laughed.

Her long brown hair fell over the both of us as the sun shined brightly in the sky.

I wouldn't have dreamed of a more beautiful sight. I reached up to stroke her face with my hand.

But suddenly there was a loud gunshot from somewhere nearby. Brandy's dark blue eyes widened in fear and pain.

My heart beat rapidly in my chest as her features began to change.

Her face grew pale and her lips turned more blue than the sky. She fell from over me and I saw someone standing in her place.

All I could see was their silhouette. He had a silver revolver in his hand and it was pointed directly at me.

I shut my eyes and grit my teeth... waiting for him to fire.

Waiting... waiting... Just shoot already!

But then I heard voices. Very faint as if distant. Then they slowly became louder and louder. Until I could hear them loud and clear.

"He's not a bad guy, alright," Someone shouted. "He saved my life!"

I opened my eyes and saw nothing but white.

Heaven? No, it couldn't be this dull.

I looked to my right and saw Henry, and the boy in pajamas, Edward.

Jack was standing across from Henry as he guarded Edward. There were others behind Henry as if they were all on his side.

"If he stays here, I'll kill him myself." Jack snapped. He was gripping a pistol in his right hand.

I sat up quickly. "What the hell is going on?"

Everyone turned quickly to me as my voice startled them.

I felt a pain in my stomach from my previous injuries as I climbed to my feet. I looked down and noticed that I wasn't wearing a shirt. My stomach had been bandaged with some cloths and tape.

I looked back up at Jack as he shook his head.

"Someone's finally awake after a good day's sleep." He said with a smirk. There were dark circles under his eyes and his hair was wild and dishevled.

"No offense, friend, but you look like you could use some." I said with a chuckle. My stomach throbbed when I laughed but it wasn't too bad. "What's the problem here?"

Jack pointed his gun pass Henry and at Edward. "He's the problem."

"He doesn't want the kid to stay... alive." Henry said.

I glanced at Edward and he lowered his eyes.

I turned back to Jack. "He's staying. And you're not going to touch him."

Jack snickered. "Who made you in charge?"

"Seriously, Jack." I said. "This isn't you. You're not a cold-blooded killer. We killed to protect ourselves, okay. He did nothing to harm us."

Jack stepped toward me. "Did that guy outside knock the sense out of you? These guys robbed and killed most of us. Look what they did to Brandy! And Kevin! Are you kidding me, Matt?"

"Jack!" I shouted and he stopped talking. "Jack please. He didn't do it. His family did. He's just a damn kid. Go get some sleep, or just lie down for a while. Then come talk to me and tell me how you feel. Right now you sound too wild."

He snickered. "I have reason to be." He shook his head. "Fine, I'll get out of your face. But we killed that boy's family. He may want to come for us soon. You'll get what's coming to you."

He turned and headed up the stairs.

"Is that a threat, Jack?" I shouted after him. "Is it?"

I noticed Lily seated by the stairs with her hands clasped in her lap. For the first time I noticed that Brandy was lying right next to where I was lying. Right on some sleeping bags and I hadn't even noticed.

I ignored Jack and stooped down beside Brandy. Her skin was still pale and not much had changed with her appearance. She still looked the same as she did earlier.

"Where's Krishna?" I asked Lily. She looked back at me, confused. "The girl that's been keeping an eye on Brandy."

"She's upstairs." She whispered.

I nodded and started up the stairs. I glanced back down at Edward and Henry. They were talking to each other as the other guys all started leaving.

I looked down at Lily who still had her hands clasped tightly in her lap. I know that this all has to be a bit too much for her. Seeing her good friend lying injured on the floor, and seeing Jack going completely nuts.

I finally jogged up to the top of the stairs and turned right. The bedroom door was still open and I saw Mike sitting on the bed beside Kelly, the girl he was dating.

His eyes appeared to be bloodshot and his skin was as pale as Brandy's. He turned to me as I entered the room.

"Matt, I'm so sorry." He said with sadness. "It's my fault Brandy got hurt. It should've been me instead of her."

I shook my head. "Don't say that. She risked her life to save her good friend, so don't go saying it should've been you. You're alive and don't you make your life seem like a waste after she saved you."

He nodded and didn't say anything else. He just lowered his head and stared down at the floor.

I looked around the room and noticed that there wasn't any others in the room. They must be in the other room. Just us and the pirate girl Lindsay.

I walked over to her and she looked up at me.

"Do you... need anything?" I asked with hesitation.

She didn't answer at first so I started to turn away. "Yes. I need you to let me go. I know you got your friend back. So... let me out of here."

I sighed. She was right, it wasn't worth holding her here anymore. But she would be wandering around outside without a ship.

"You can't leave just yet." I said to her. "I'll let you go soon."

She spat at me and gritted her teeth angrily. I shook my head and turned away.

Krishna entered the room with a cup of water in her hand. She handed it to me.

"Uh... thanks." I said and drank the water.

"How are you feeling?" She asked.

"I'm feeling a little better," I told her as I glanced down at my stomach. "Are you the one who bandaged me?"

For some reason she blushed. "Yes. I didn't have much to use but I managed. You should really be more careful."

I sighed. "That's impossible in these situations. How's Brandy doing?"

"Her condition is still the same. It's a bit frightening though." She said with a frown. "We still have to get her to a hospital."

I nodded. "We will. We'll use... the boat! It's still out back."

I rushed pass her and out of the room. I ran downstairs and started to go to the kitchen window but I stopped. There was no way I could take that risk.

What if Billy was right there, waiting to get his hands on me?

I shook my head and went over to the fridge. It was full of food and fruits but I wasn't in the mood to eat.

If we had kept our cell phones, maybe we could've called for help...

Wait... they never took my phone. They never got a chance to rob me, Lily, Jack, and Brandy.

I patted my pockets but I didn't feel my cell phone. I think I had lost it somewhere outside.

Why hadn't I thought of my phone in the first place? We could've been called for help.

Lily. She should still have hers.

I went back into the living room and saw Lily still sitting in the chair near Brandy.

"Lily, where's your phone?" I asked her as she looked up at me. "They never took ours. We can call for help on that."

She shook her head. "We can't."

"Why not? Is the battery dead?"

"No... We get no service on this island, Matt. Don't you think I've tried calling for help already?"

My heart sink. Now we had nothing to get us any help.

I frowned. "What about the radio? How were we able to get the stations..."

I stopped as I found the answer on my own. We had used CDs for music, so there really was no service.

So... we were back to square one.