"Governor?"
Elizabeth's father stood over a table alongside Admiral Norrington and two other guards, all hovering over the table, looking at a big map. The governor spotted me by the stairs.
"Oh god, Felice! What a relief," he sighed. He looked tired. I couldn't imagine what he was going through, not knowing where and how Elizabeth was doing, his only daughter. "and please, call me Weatherby." I shot him a faint smile. He walked up closer to give me a big hug. He put his arms around me, patting me on the back. He was hurting, and he still managed to comfort me too. As he pulled away, he spotted the small cut in my forehead, that had by now stopped bleeding. "Felice? Are you hurt?"
"Oh, no no don't worry. I just got knocked out in all the chaos. Nothing to worry about."
"If you say so."
"I heard about Elizabeth" Her father looked down at the map again.
"Yes, it's a tragedy, but don't worry, Admiral Norrington will bring her back to us" he insisted. I wondered if my father would be like this if I went missing. I wondered if he would become like this, a wreck.
"Yeah, I hope so," I said. "Uh, I came here to ask you something"
"What is it, dear Felice" Weatherby replied softly.
"I don't seem to find my family. I spent the night at Eliza-" I corrected myself. "-your house."
"Well-" he nodded one of the guards towards me. "He can take you to your family" The guard looked at me with big eyes. Or more exactly, looked at my silk rope. I crossed my arms, as an attempt to cover myself. Norrington walked behind me, taking his jacket of.
"Don't worry, miss Bonny. I will do anything in my power to bring Elizabeth back in no time" he implied, as he covered me with his jacket. I wrapped it around myself and made sure to thank him.
"Thank you, Admiral." But I knew that when he said 'everything in my power', it wasn't enough.
The guard and I walked in silence, with him 5 meters ahead of me. I purposely walked detained to make room between us, so I was sure it wouldn't become awkward. Small talk wasn't necessary. He made a point of not wanting to small chat either. My family was staying in a big house on the other side of the town. In other words, as far away the ocean as possible. Nothing that surprised me. When we arrived, he turned around and left without saying anything. I didn't blame him. I wasn't fond of talking either. I was tired. And I had the biggest headache. My stomach growled. And hungry. I didn't remember when, and what was the last time I ate something other than the air and my own spit. I could tell it was Antonio who arranged for us to stay here. The stairs were hatched out in marble, and both the house and the garden surrounding it was big and clean. I imagined the servants of this house cut the grass with scissors and rulers every day. I walked up the stairs and opened the door.
"Ehm, hello?" The doors squealed. "Dad?" After a while, the doors leading to another room opened, and Felipe stuck his head out. I forgot how disgusted I felt every time I saw his face with its perfect white teeth and stupidly perfect hair. Every staw of hair was combed unto the right place. He walked towards me.
"Felice! Do you know how worried we have been!" he scolded. I just stood there, in my rope. Elizabeth's rope, and the admiral's coat. He put his arms around me and pressed me into his chest. I didn't especially like Felip, but I had to admit that t's good to know at least someone had missed me.
"I'm sorry. I fell asleep at Elizabeth's" He took my arm and dragged me into the room. The room was big. And of course, luxurious. A big fireplace, with stylish chairs, that looked quite uncounterable, placed around it. His mom the queen, my dad, and Agnes sat around it.
"Felice!" My father exclaimed, he got up from his chair and slung his arms around me. His big arms covered my body. Suddenly, I felt like I had traveled back in time, to when my mother was alive, and my father wasn't brainwashed. I felt warm and safe. Like nothing could hurt me. But then I flew back to reality, and I understood that real life was nothing like that.
It didn't seem like Agnes or Felipe's mother cared to see me, and my little sister wasn't even here. Agnes did, however, seem furious with me. After explaining the cut in på forehead, and how Elizabeth was taken, I told them all I wanted was just to sleep for a while. Of course, Felipe assisted to show me "our" room, where he could keep me with "company". I didn't want his company. But before he could lay his hands on me, Agnes dragged me outside the room. Seemed like I had to deal with the devil before dealing with Satan. She closed the big doors behind her as quietly as possible. For a while she just stood there, facing away from me. I didn't know what I feared the most, her silence on her yelling. Then, she swung around, her eyes staring be down until my feet were glued to the floor and my heart was up my throat. I truly despised this woman, but even though everything I felt for her, the fare was the strongest. When I was younger, she used to lock me in my room for days, with minimal food and water, telling my dad I had the flu, and he blindly believed her, over and over again. Other times, she burned me with the fire iron. Straight up poked me with it. I still had the scares. But that wasn't what I fared the most. Her eyes on me were the worst.
"Do you have any idea how embarrassing all of this has been?" she hissed. She blotted her teeth, giving me a feeling she could rip out my throat with her bare teeth any minute. My mouth got dry, so I just stood there, looking at her.
"I had to make thousands of excuses for you" she continued half yelling, half whispering. "If Antonio wasn't so intrigued by you, he would've blown off this whole marriage" I looked down at the floor. How generous of him, I thought to myself with full sarcasm.
"Next time you pull off a stunt like that, you will pay. Remember that girl". She stormed off, and I stood there alone. My feet were still planted to the ground, not obeying my commands to move.
Girl.
That's what she called me. She continually reminded me of that. That I still was an insignificant, undeveloped girl that stood no match to her. I wondered why she would give a girl away in marriage.