The Guardians of Island X (19 page)

“And then,” he continued, “as soon as I gave up, there you were. The spitting image of your mother. Except dirtier.” He reached out and tugged on a lock of her hair.

“Really?” Scarlet blinked hard.

“When you got angry the other day, I saw her right before me, in you. And I began to remember what we’d
been through and…I was terrified. I didn’t think I could handle the memories. But then…” He reached into his breast pocket and pulled out the wooden star. The one he’d carved for Scarlet many years ago. The one Sina had somehow saved and handed to Scarlet the day before. The one Scarlet had passed on to her father in hopes that he’d remember.

“I did,” he said simply.

Scarlet slipped her hand into his. “Come on.” She led him a short ways off, where Sina and Kapu stood watching. When he saw them, the admiral stopped and drew a breath.

“Thank you,” Scarlet said to them through words and thoughts. “We couldn’t have done that without you.”

Sina and Kapu nodded without taking their eyes off the King’s Man before them.

Finally, Sina spoke up. “I remember you,” she told Admiral McCray in her language.

For a moment he said nothing. Scarlet felt his hand tighten and wondered if it would be too much for him—if it might make him run away.

But finally he nodded. “I remember, too. You and Scarlet were inseparable.”

Scarlet’s jaw dropped. Not so much because of what he’d said—she had suspected that when Sina had slipped her the wooden star—but because of how he’d said it. In the Islander language.

She marveled at him for a moment, then turned to Sina. “Did you know we were friends?”

Sina bit her lip. “I wasn’t sure at first. You look
different now.” She pointed at Scarlet’s shirt and trousers, then grinned. “But you still play a mean game of
tapo
. So I figured it out.”

“Tapo,”
Admiral McCray murmured. “Looks like I have a lot to catch up on.”

Scarlet looked up at him. “But you’re going away…aren’t you?”

He laid a hand on her head. “It occurred to me, when I saw you and your crew in this place I’d forgotten all about, that the Old World doesn’t need me. If you’re here, and you’re here, too”—he nodded to Sina and Kapu—“then I need to make sure that they”—he nodded toward the trees, where his men were capturing pirates as they spoke—“don’t come anywhere near this place. That”—he smiled—“will be my new job.”

“A renegade King’s Man!” Scarlet exclaimed, wrapping her arms around his waist. “Infiltrating the enemies from within!” She couldn’t wait to tell the crew.

Jem and Uncle Finn soon returned with the plant samples and got to work stuffing them into the captives’ mouths. Lucas was just beginning to wake up and find himself cocooned in rope.

“Give ’em lots of that bromely-stuff,” Smitty crowed. “Let’s make sure they forget all about Island X. And about the Lost Souls!”

Uncle Finn shook his curly mane and said, “Unfortunately, I can’t guarantee they’ll forget everything forever. We haven’t tested this specimen adequately. But”—he pushed a big leaf into Captain Wallace’s mouth—“we’ll do our very best.”

“Now what?” Elmo yelled.

“I say we go to the
Hop
!” Scarlet said. “We’ll dump these swabs on the Island of Vengeful Vegetation and do a supply run in Jamestown while we’re out.”

“Finally!” Tim yelled. “A trip to the ship!”

“And I’ll move my men and the rest of the
Dark Ranger
pirates out of here,” said Admiral McCray.

“But you’ll be back?” Scarlet asked.

“Of course,” he answered. “As soon as I spread all kinds of rumors about the horrors on this island and the small but fierce creatures that live here.”

The Lost Souls laughed.

“We’ll stay and keep watch,” Sina said, and Kapu nodded.

“Actually,” Gil Jenkins spoke up, “I think I might stay. I’m thinking about planting a garden. For…you know…a bit of variety.”

Scarlet smiled at him. “Sounds like a perfect job. Sina and Kapu’ll teach you.” Then she turned to the rest of her crew. “To the
Hop
then, everyone?”

“To the
Hop
!”

Amulet:
an object worn, often as a piece of jewelry around the neck, to ward off evil

Blimey
: an expression of frustration or surprise as in, “Remember when you dropped the anchor on my foot? Blimey, that hurt!”

Broadsword
: a large, heavy sword with a broad blade

Buccaneer
: a pirate. The term
buccaneer
comes from a French word (
boucanier
) which means “barbecuer.” In the 1600s, buccaneers were humble men who sold barbecued meats to sailors passing through ports. Eventually they realized the opportunity passing them by and gave up their grills to make their fortunes by pillaging and plundering.

Careen
: Cleaning the ship’s hull involves beaching it, tilting it to one side, and scraping off the barnacles.

Castaway
: a person lucky enough to survive a shipwreck and wash ashore, hopefully not on the Island of Smelly Wild Pigs

Crow’s nest
: the lookout platform near the top of a mast, not the best place for pirates afraid of heights

Cutlass
: a short, curved sword with a single cutting edge, a pirate’s best friend

Doubloon
: a Spanish gold coin, similar to the chocolate variety, but less tasty

Drivelswigger
: a pirate who spends too much time reading about all things nautical

Flotsam
: floating debris or rubbish

Fo’c’sle
: the raised part of the upper deck at the front of a ship, also called the forecastle

Gun deck
: the deck on which the ship’s cannons are carried

Jack
-
tar
: a sailor

Keelhaul
: the worst possible punishment on board a ship. The offender’s hands are bound to a rope that runs underneath the ship, and he is thrown overboard and dragged from one end to the other.

Long drop
: the Lost Souls’ own term for the toilet

Mast
: a long pole that rises from the ship’s deck and supports the sails

Piece of eight
: a Spanish silver coin

Plank
: the piece of wood that hangs off the side of the ship, like a soon-to-be-dead-man’s diving board. Unlucky sailors must walk it to their doom.

Plunder
: to steal, or an act of thievery

Poop deck
: the highest deck at the stern of a ship. It has nothing to do with the long drop, by the way.

Port
: a sailor’s word for
left

Quarterdeck
: the rear part of the upper deck at the front of a ship

Quartermaster
: usually the second-in-command on a ship

Scalawag
: a rascal, rogue, scoundrel, or general mischief-maker

Schooner
: a ship with two or more masts. One explanation suggests that the name comes from the Scottish term “to scoon,” which means “to skim upon the surface.”

Scuttle
: a word used by the Lost Souls to describe something awful as in, “Hardtack for breakfast again? That scuttles!”

Sloop
: a small, single-mast ship

Spyglass
: a much more intriguing name for a small telescope

Starboard
: a sailor’s word for
right

Swain
: a short form of
boatswain,
meaning a sailor of the lowest rank, more of a servant

Once again, I’m so lucky to have so many amazing people to thank for their support in the making of this novel. To my editors, Lynne Missen and Pamela Bobowicz, and agent, Marie Campbell: Thank you for letting the Lost Souls live on a little longer. To Catherine Marjoribanks, Melissa Zilberberg, Sarah Howden, and the entire team at HarperCollins Canada. To Fiona Pook, the talented artist behind this book’s treasure map, and Tara MacDonald, creator of splendid teacher guides. To fabulous friends and colleagues who actually volunteer to read my unwieldy first drafts—namely, Ria Voros, John Mavin, Jana Fernandes, and Paul Colangelo. To Louise Delaney—always on call, red pen and words of encouragement at the ready. Thank you.

Rachelle Delaney lives in Vancouver, Canada, where she works as a writer, editor, and creative writing teacher. In 2010 she was named the top emerging writer in Canada by the Canadian Author’s Association.

“Water?”

“Check.”

“Map?”

“Check.”

“Empty pockets for filling with plunder?”

Jem Fitzgerald pulled his pockets inside out to show how empty they were. “Check. We’re ready, Captain.” He tucked his pockets back in his trousers. “We should get going.”

Scarlet McCray bit her lip. “Right…it’s just…” She looked up at the afternoon sky and watched a flock of green parrots flap by overhead. “I have a feeling I’m forgetting something.”

Jem sighed. The captain of the Lost Souls, he knew, was not forgetting anything. She just didn’t want to leave her beloved Island X. “Look, it’s only for a day—” he began.

“Don’t rush me, Fitz,” Scarlet snapped. “I just
know
I’m forgetting something.”

Jem rolled his eyes. “Okay, okay,” he muttered. “Take your time then.”

“I will, thanks,” she retorted, crouching to retie her bootlaces.

“Fine.” Jem folded his arms over his chest.

“Fine,” Scarlet said to her boot.

Jem took a deep breath and counted to ten. They’d only left Island X a few times since arriving there two months before. But each time they did, Scarlet would stall until the last possible moment. He always tried to hurry her up, but there was only so much prodding the captain of the Lost Souls would take. She’d already threatened to string Tim Sanders up by his toes earlier that day when he’d called her a slowpoke. Even when she was nowhere near her ship, the captain of the Ship of Lost Souls couldn’t help but act like a pirate.

Jem turned away and surveyed the lush, green clearing around them, which was slowly beginning to feel like home. Well, as much as a tropical island inhabited by smelly wild pigs, mischievous monkeys, and the odd poisonous tree
could
feel like home.

He shaded his eyes from the sun and squinted at the small but sturdy tree houses perched on the edge of the clearing. The sight of them made him stand up a little taller. As Head of the Housing Committee, he had directed the entire building project, bringing a touch of civilization to the wilds of Island X. Of course, it was nothing like his real home back in the Old World. Here, lanterns were lit by fireflies rather than flames, and everyone slept in hammocks instead of real beds. And though it was nice to hear the rain patter on their leafy rooftops at night, sturdy wooden beams would have been much more effective in keeping out curious, hungry animals. Every now and then, Jem would wake, certain he’d heard something other than birds and bugs in the trees around them. Something
big.
Something with
claws.
Something—