Pirates of the Caribbean 03 The Pirate Chase by Rob Kidd Read Free Book Online Page A

could the parchment make it any worse?" Smiling hopefully, Jack gestured toward the coffin."I agree with Arabella," Tumen said, stepping back to put distance between him and Jack. "The Sword has hurt many people. It should not hurt anymore ."
    "Don't look at me." Jean clutched Constance tighter. "I don't care one way or the other about the Sword, but messing with that dead body in there? Yuck! Not for me."To Jack's surprise, Fitzwilliam stepped forward. "Jack is right. We must obtain the parchment. “Everyone stared at him. Jack was the first to find his voice. "Although I am of course surprised and delighted to hear you making sense for once, Fitzy--what on earth has brought you around to my side?"
    "Let us consider this closely," Fitzwilliam said, speaking to everyone but Jack. "If LeftFoot Louis knew the parchment was here, chances are that others do as well. Anyone who later finds this parchment will then come after the Sword--and after those who possess it. In other words, they will come after us. But if this grave is dug up again in the future, and if those who do it do not find the parchment because we have taken it, they will think the stories to be untrue. They will not come after the Sword, they will not come after us, and we will remain safe. At the very least, this parchment must be retrieved and safely hidden."Arabella wasn't convinced. She was wringing her hands together, nervous and uneasy. "We could drop the Sword off the side of the Barnacle. In fact, we should. Let it fall to the bottom of the sea, where it belongs.""Oh, yes, 'where it belongs'--with Davy Jones, the Sirens and the merfolk, and who knows what else?" Jack said. "We know now the sea is no safer a place than the land."The crew nodded in agreement.Jack decided it might be time to add his perspective, too. "Besides, after all we've been through--Bell, aren't you just a little curious?" She raised an eyebrow, studying him. "All those sailors' tales you've listened to. All the legends you drank in while the pirates were gulp ing their ale at the Faithfull Bride. Don't you want to know if they're true? Aren't you ready to see for yourself? And, think for a moment, all of you, of the type of freedom such power would bestow upon us."Arabella hesitated--and then she and Jack shared a deliciously happy smile. "Well then, I gather it's as good a day as any to become a grave robber," she said.After a moment, Jean and Tumen nodded their consent as well.It took both Fitzwilliam and Jack to remove the rest of the coffin lid. The iron hinges had rusted right off, though most of the wood was still heavy and strong. Finally, Fitzwilliam put his shoulder into it, and the lid swung all the way back. Francois's skeleton was dressed in regal clothing. His dusty gray skull grinned at the crew. Tumen shuddered, an d Fitzwilliam winced from the mo u ldy smell. Even Jack didn't like the look of the thing. And there, in the pocket of the skeleton's elegant waistcoat; Jack found the parchm ent they'd been seeking.
     
    CHAPTER NINE
     
    "What have we here?" Jack whispered, leaning over Francois's remains. Carefully, he tugged the parchment from the skeleton's coat. The sheet fluttered free, and Arabella quickly pushed the lid of the coffin shut again."The parchment," Jean whispered. "It unlocks the godlike power of the Sword?"
    "So they say." Jack grinned."Now you have the parchment. Do you have godlike power already?" Tumen asked. Jack considered this for a moment. "Don't think so." He put his hand on the Sword. "No tingling, no humming, nothing special." He looked up at the sunny sky and made a swirling gesture with his hand as if he were trying to stir up clouds, but no rain began to fall. "Nope. Definitely not godlike."
    "Perhaps merely possessing the parchment is not enough," Fitzwilliam pointed out. "Perhaps there is some sort of magic spell or incantation written upon it."
    "Of course there's an incantation written upon it. I was just waiting to see how long it