Pan's Revenge (5 page)

“Go to hell, Hook,” I tell him in a low
voice.

I never thought to see the hurt look on his
face again that he had when Angel was leaving Neverland, but how he
looks at me now comes close. I don’t care. Spitting at the ground
before his feet, I glide up and fly away.

Zooming over
the lowlands and afterward over the jungle, I break out in a sweat
of rage and wrath. My molars crunch as they grind against each
other. The sweating is getting harder, my vision blurs. What the
heck, this has nothing to do with the angry storm brewing inside
me. I slow down, rub my thumb and forefinger across my eyes and
kneed the spot between them. When I try to focus again, there are
black dots in my vision grow wider.

My throat is tight and dry. It starts to
hurt. The pain spreads deeper. My limbs feel numb all of a sudden,
my back hurts and breathing troubles me like I’m gasping for air
under water.

Everything feels wrong and rubbery. Twisting
in the sky, I try to make out where the tree house is. I need to go
home. And fast.

My chest stings as I cough on a careful
descent. I have no idea where I am. Gliding too low over the tree
tops, I feel the brushes of twigs and leaves against my stomach.
Nausea rises from my gut, bringing with it a sour taste of bile.
“Tami?” I call in a slight panic. She’s the only one who can find
me up here. But wherever I am, I must be too far away from home
still, because there’s no reply.

Dismissing my usual carefree speed, I almost
crawl through the air now. The smells of the jungle sting my nose.
They literally bite their way up my nostrils. My teeth ache like I
took a punch to the jaw.

What the hell
is happening to me? “Tameeka? Loney! Stan!” My voice breaks.
Sinking lower, I can finally make out the highest tree in this
area. Home. It’s just a few hundred feet away. Fighting for air as
much as for each meter, I try to yell for the Lost Boys again. All
that comes out is a terrible croak.

Just a little
farther. Almost there. Then I fall, like there’s a gap in the air.
Smacking hard with my belly on a branch that stands out, all
remaining air is being pushed out of my lungs. I cling onto that
limb with the feeble strength left in me…but it’s not enough. My
body slides down on one side and finally even my fingers give out.
I have to let go.

As I plummet to the ground, I knock into more
branches, feeling like each impact is splitting my bones. The final
smack on the jungle floor breaks my back. The pain is excruciating.
I cry out.

Everything goes dark.

A MILKY WHITE
moon reflects on the silent surface of the sea. Standing on the
main deck of the Jolly Roger, I bend forward, fold my arms on the
railing and bury my face in them. A deep sigh escapes me and turns
into a moan before it’s over.
What the
hell was I thinking pointing a gun at my brother’s face? Sure, it
wasn’t the first time, but so much has happened the past few weeks.
It doesn’t feel right any longer. Quite the contrary, an
uncomfortable pressure rests on my nape.

“Cap’n? The crew wants to know where we’re
headed.”

Smee’s stern voice fails to make me
straighten from my bent over position. “Mermaid Lagoon,” I growl
into the fabric of my sleeves. “And then farther north.”

“You think we’ll finally find London
there?”

“No. But the gold.” Yeah, right. As if my
betrayal wasn’t complete yet, I’m also going to steal my treasure
back before we’re setting sail to find London.

I wonder if Peter knows what’s coming at him.
As from tonight on, he’ll age again. How must that feel for a boy
who wouldn’t grow up? How will I feel? And also the people in town?
They all will take a step forward in their existence…not that they
would notice any of it. Do the pirates feel it already?

Does Smee?

I push myself up and brace my hands on the
railing, glancing at my first mate over my shoulder. There’s no
visible change about his looks. But then it’s only been a few hours
since Peter tossed the pocket watch into the volcano.

Expecting a little too much, James Hook.
Behind closed lids, I roll my eyes at myself.

“
So it’s time
to take back what’s ours?” Smee says delightedly. I can’t begrudge
him this. We’ve all been waiting for so long for this day to come.
It really should make me a great deal happier. But it
doesn’t.

“Yes. The tide is out. We’ll have to take the
dinghies to the rocks and then empty the cave. Have the crew
prepared. I want this over before morning breaks.”

“Aye.” Anticipation is written all over
Smee’s face. He doesn’t have to know that we’re not going to spend
one doubloon of the treasure on celebrating like we’ve planned to
do all these goddamn years. As soon as the cargo hold is loaded,
we’re heading off farther north. It’s as good a direction to start
looking for Angel as any other.

Or maybe I misjudged Jack and he knows it
already? He strides away with a happy tune on his lips, making up a
fancy rhyme on the word London.

Little later we pass Mermaid Lagoon and soon
the rocky peaks Angel once mentioned in her sleep appear on the
horizon. Like the rotten teeth in Barnacle Breath’s mouth they
protrude from the dark water. With this part of the sea being
rockier than any other side of Neverland, there’s no chance we can
sail all the way to the treasure cave with the ship. The crew drops
anchor while we’re still in deep waters and prepare the only two
dinghies we have.

In the light of burning torches, the boats
take off toward the rocks. Smee is in one of them together with Fin
and Walefluke. Brant Skyler, Cheatin’ Wade Dawkins and Bull’s Eye
Ravi row the other. From the distance, I watch them land at the
rocky circle and climb the first peak. When the tiny yellow spot
that is the torch in Smee’s hand moves up and then moments later
down, I know there’s no cave there.

They try
three more peaks until one of the torches finally moves in a circle
in the air. The signal. My heart steps up. They found the
treasure’s den.

Soon the little fire dots at the horizon
disappear into the cave. My mouth dry like Potato Ralph’s cake, I
can’t wait for them to come back to the ship with the first load of
treasure. But it takes almost an hour until the men return.

Donning my hat and cape, I await them on the
main deck. When Smee climbs up the rope ladder and leaps on board,
he’s grinning like a drunken sailor in the arms of a lass. “Got you
something,” he says and gives me a shiny gold doubloon.

Slowly, I close my fingers around it, press
it to my chest and squeeze my eyes shut. “It’s been a while, little
treasure,” I murmur under my breath. Then I pocket the coin and
join in as everyone helps emptying the boats and carrying the gold
and gems into the bilge. On the next ride back to the cave, I join
Smee’s boat and help him row, so we get there faster.

Climbing the rocks is bothersome, but as soon
as I slide down on the rope the men set up into the cave and
breathe in the delicious scent of horded silver and gold, my
exhaustion is forgotten. I hunker down on top of the highest heap
of treasure and run my fingers though the cool coins. Sink me, I’ve
missed that! A smile creeps to my lips.

Puddles of
seawater cover the floor. Soft splashing sounds echo in the cave as
I walk about, inspecting each little piece of the bootie. A long
forgotten feeling of possession overtakes me. Then my gaze lands on
an open, empty little chest on the damp stone ground. My hand
inches up to the spot over my sternum. The key to this chest rested
there for decades, hidden only by the linen of my shirt.

A sting in my heart makes me clench my teeth.
Thoughts of Peter violently shove back into my mind, and it was
only a freaking half-hour since I could kick him out from there
anyway. Picking up the chest and stroking the lid, I silently pray
that my brother is all right.

In huge gunnysacks, the men haul the treasure
out through the trap door and carry them down to the boats. I stay
in the cave when they cart it back to the Jolly Roger. While I’m
alone in the damp grotto, I sit down on a chest full of diamonds
and other colorful gems and let my gaze wander about. Soon all this
will be gone from here, down to the last little heap of gold. It’ll
be back where it belongs—in my possession.

This
moment should mean everything to me. But it
fails to fully cheer me up. It’s not only my betrayal of Peter that
quenches my joy, but also the uncertainty about Angel. The spell is
over, the gate to leave Neverland should be open. But will we be
able to sail to London? Bre’Shun wants a rainbow. How can I ever
bring her one? Whatever it is she needs it for, a foreboding racks
me that I might fail on this journey if I ignore the fairy’s
request.

But I have to try.

The gold doubloon Smee gave me earlier is
still in my pocket. I pull it out and spin it through my fingers,
murmuring, “Heads, I’ll find her. Tails, I won’t.” I flip the coin
into the air. It twists a few times, glinting in the light of the
burning torch, until it lands in my palm again. The clap echoes in
the cave as I smack that hand onto the back of my other. Grinding
my teeth, I frown and will it to be heads.

Slowly lifting my hand, I tilt my head and
peek underneath. “Goddammit!”

The coin runs through my fingers again. Then
I snap it up. “Be heads!” Quickly, I lift my hand to see what I
got.

By
Davie Jones’ locker, this can’t be true!
A low growl erupts from my throat.

I go for a
third try, but this time with altered rules. Heads means I won’t
find Angelina McFarland, tails
says I
will. My lip threatens to pop between my teeth as the coin spins in
the air. I catch it and smack it on the back of my other hand.
Tails came up twice. It
has
to do so again. “Be. Tails.”
I move my hand away. “Damn little bastard!”

I fling the
coin against the rock face from where it rebounds and lands in a
water puddle. Kneading the spot between my eyes, I squint and
decide to go on this journey nevertheless.

Voices drift to me. The crew returned to move
the next load of gold. I buck up. Together we refill the gunnysacks
until not another single coin fits in there. Some hours later, the
entire treasure is gone from this place. The only thing that stays
behind is the empty chest. It waits in the corner for Peter to find
it when he comes here next time.

Grabbing the last torch from the clamp in the
wall, I wind the rope around my other hand and let the crew pull me
out of the grotto. The men close the trapdoor and place the stones
back on it before we leave.

Under the additional weight, the Jolly Roger
has sunken a few inches deeper into the water. She appears like a
lazy old lady, pleased to be loaded with a fine meal. I stroke my
hand over the railing once we’ve returned, feeling the cold of the
dawn creeping up at the back of my neck.

When I turn to walk into my quarters, I run
into a creature with hair as pale as her skin and mystic turquoise
eyes which pierce mine. “Hello, James,” she coos.

“Remona.” It’s a plain surprise to find her
on my ship—if not a shock, to tell the truth. Now I realize, the
cold I felt wasn’t the breaking morning after all, but her fingers
tapping my neck. “How did you get here?”

“I’m a fairy. How do you think?” She smiles
and shrugs. “I swam.”

I lift one
brow at her, calling her out on her lie since her milky white
dress, her skin and her hair are perfectly dry. At that moment,
however, a flush of water swishes out of her…body. It splashes on
deck, leaving her drenched from the top of her head to her bare
feet.

“See?” Remona grins like a sprightly child,
although she’s alleged to be older than the mountains of
Neverland.

“Fine. You swam here.” I still don’t believe
her. “Why did you come?”

“
Bre
sent
me. Said to give you these.” She
holds out her hand. In her open palm are three beans.

My brows knit together. “What’s that?”

“
They are
called
beckon
beans
.”

The vision of a tag with that name on it in
the fairies’ garden surfaces in my mind. My lips stay closed as I
tilt my head, prompting her to tell me more.

“If you eat one, it’ll lead you in the right
direction.”

“What direction?”

“No idea. Left, right, north-north-west…” A
smirk appears on her face.

I wonder why
Bre sent her sister. She must know how this woman loves to play
games and be cryptic—excessively so even for a fairy. Is it to
torture me even more? “I meant in the right direction to
where
?” I
drawl.

“Oh. Why didn’t you say so at the beginning?
They will lead you to Angelina McFarland of course.”

Of course.

“It’s our gift to you for releasing Neverland
from an annoying charm. Beckon beans work like a magnet. You think
it, they lead you there. Oh, little warning: think about Angelina
and not about a one-eye troll with bad breath when you eat one.”
Her face crumples into a knowing grimace. “You’ll know which way to
go then.”

I take the beans from her hand and close my
fingers around them so tightly, my palm begins to sweat. “You mean,
if I eat them, I’ll just know which course to take, right?”

“Right. It’s enough to eat one at a time,
though. The effect will wear off after a day.”

“Then why did Bre send me three?”

“Prevision.” She snaps the word like it’s the
most obvious thing in the world and like, in her eyes, I’m an
idiot. Then her voice takes on a tired edge. “Don’t forget about
the rainbow, Captain.” After that, she brushes past me and clumsily
climbs onto the railing. With an excited squeal, she takes a
dauntless jump and drops butt-first.