On the next day, I went to the port to wait for Dirk. A part of me told myself he wouldn't show up at all. It wasn't impossible that Bosch would leave without me since I didn't know a thing about him yet. What if he was the one plotting against me? Could Dirk be a disguised Navy officer? God, the possibilities freaked me out! I know what you're thinking... yes, I do have trust issues. I wasn't even trusting my friends a lot anymore after the Navy had ambushed me in Tortuga. Of course, there was a chance they just happened to run into Dirk and me on the island, but I didn't believe in coincidences very much. Probably someone had told the British we were there. To make things worse, the snitch could be from either Ocean Storm or Dirk's vessel. A traitor among my crew... could that be? No, it was too insane to be true. Perhaps I was too paranoid, I didn't know. The only thing I knew for sure was that the British hadn't accidentally found Bosch and me. I observed the sunrise as I imagined what could've been taking place without my knowledge inside my own ship. Dirk approached me from behind.

I chuckled, "I thought you wouldn't show up."

"I'm a man of my word. Of course, I'd come!" Dirk frowned as if what I'd said didn't make any sense. "Especially after what happened yesterday between the damn Navy and us."

"Makes sense. So, now that we'll work together, we should know more about each other..." I walked closer to him while raising a brow. "What happened after our fight in that merchant ship?"

Dirk sighed and looked away, seemingly trying to remember something. I pressed my lips together, afraid that he'd say something impolite since I was the one who had almost killed him. Besides, I couldn't know for sure if he was part of the Navy's scheme... Who knew? Maybe that Brit had tried to kill Bosch just for show! I was overly suspicious, I know, but one can never be too careful.

"My quartermaster and I had been leading a mutiny before you threw me off the fluyt. We couldn't take the work conditions anymore," Dirk turned to me and bit his lower lip for a second. "That's why I told you that day I wanted to be a pirate on my own terms."

Dirk already had a plan in motion! That was why he didn't want to join me...

"Got it. How did you survive the..." I gulped once he glared at me. "You know what I mean."

"I swam to the vessel and screamed as loud as I could. My quartermaster saw me and threw some boarding axes. I caught them fast and climbed back to the ship."

I scowled while rubbing my chin. Something in that story didn't sound right. I remembered that Lacroix had taken everyone who surrendered to uncle Ruben, so how wasn't Dirk found? What about the rest? That was so weird...

"Once I arrived, we hid with thirty other sailors in their room. We only left when your crew was gone," Bosch continued, appearing to have read my mind. "The fluyt wasn't that damaged, so we kept it until we stole a nice galleon a few days later. We still sail in that galleon and its name is White Shark."

"That was a good strategy. I'm impressed," I nodded and smiled. "I've never met someone who managed to escape pirates so efficiently."

"Thank you," Dirk blushed and gazed downward for an instant. "Honestly, you... sort of... inspired me to take that action."

I raised and curved my brows. Had I actually inspired Bosch? What the hell did that even mean? All I did was inviting the redhead to join me and then I threw him into the sea... I couldn't see how that was an inspiration. My curiosity to find out why he'd said that was huge.

"Am I going crazy, or did you just say I inspired you?" I tilted my head to the side while laughing. "I'll need to hear that again!"

Dirk scowled and pursed his lips, "It was nothing! I'm not going to say that twice!"

I put my hands up in surrender while raising my brows, "Easy, hothead! I'm just surprised. It's the first time someone who hates me says something like that."

"Hate is a pretty strong word. I'm just not fond of you," Bosch sighed and decreased his tone of voice. "Well, I started disliking you less after you apologized... Anyway, it doesn't matter. We must put up with each other now that we're allies."

I grinned sarcastically, "You do know how to make a woman feel special."

Dirk swallowed hard and his ears got red. I put a hand on my mouth to hide my laugh. Don't judge me, I couldn't help myself!

"Everything changed when your crew left. The captain, quartermaster and boatswain were dead, so a vote took place," Dirk cleared his throat, glanced away and then back at me. "I became captain and Arjen quartermaster that day."

I nodded as I tried to imagine what had happened at the fluyt. It had never crossed my mind that Bosch and another guy took over as leaders after leaving with my uncle. The way Dirk had become captain was unusual, just like mine... well, except that my process was much crazier.

"That was a fascinating story, Dirk. Thank you for sharing it with me."

"No problem. Now it's time for the big question..." the redhead walked closer to me while rubbing his chin and tilting his head slightly downward. "How did you end up as captain?"

I chuckled, "It's a long story. Besides, you wouldn't believe me if I told you."

"Try me," Dirk raised both brows. "Come on! I really want to know."

I won't tell Dirk anything now. I want him to be curious about me.

I grinned mischievously, "I'll tell you when we arrive at our next destination. Deal?"

Dirk rolled his eyes and huffed. He seemed pretty annoyed that I hadn't agreed to tell that story when he wanted me to. It was fun teasing Bosch, so what else would I do? He was the most adorable angry pirate ever!

"Whatever. You can stall, but I'll hear that story from you sooner or later," he pressed his lips together. "By the way, I think we should sail to Port Royal."

My eyes widened and I put a hand on my waist, "Do you read minds? Because that's exactly what I thought!"

Dirk nodded, "That's just perfect! Taking our first decision together was much easier than I'd anticipated."

"I have to say the same," I laughed while shaking my head in denial. "I guess we won't struggle to find common ground after all."

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves," Bosch narrowed his eyes at me. "See you in Jamaica."

I waved goodbye as I watched him leave. Before Dirk boarded his galleon, he quickly gazed at me as if he wanted to see whether I was still there. I soon boarded Ocean Storm. Laurens, Maartje and Sven stood up from the main deck floor once they saw me. The three smiled as they walked fast towards me, appearing to be relieved with my arrival. Francis ran and licked my legs, barking excitedly.

"Hello, everyone. Captain's back," I caressed my dog's head as he got closer and licked my hands. "Hey, Francis! I hope you didn't cause too much trouble while I was gone."

Laurens breathed fast as his eyes bulged, "Where the hell were you last night, Storm?! We were so worried!"

"The short version is I got attacked by the crazy redhead who survived my attack a few months ago, he turned out to be Captain Bosch, we almost died in a Royal Navy ambush and formed an alliance," I held a laugh as Laurens gawked. "Don't worry, I'll give you more details after we sail."

"At least there's something good amidst this mess," Sven raised his brows as he slightly decreased his tone of voice. "Captain Bosch is one of the most powerful pirates ever, so becoming his ally is definitely not bad."

"I agree with Sven. That was a great decision," Laurens smiled broadly, appearing to be proud of me. "It must've been hard to convince a guy you almost killed to become your ally."

"Actually, the Navy did the work for me," I let out a quick laugh. "Bosch realized we had a common enemy, so there was no reason for him to keep trying to harm me."

"What matters is that you're safe and sound," Maartje scowled and her eyes widened. "But you should've taken us with you when Bosch found you in that tavern!"

I gulped as I realized my cousin was partially right. My first thought was asking my friends for help that night, but I didn't want to drag them into my mess. Dirk's rage was my fault, so why would I make them part of my problem? After all, I'd brought that on myself.

"We can discuss the details later, Maartje. For now, I need you to undock us and set our sails," I approached her and she crossed her arms. "From now on, Bosch and I will decide our course together."

Maartje called her assistants and quickly weighted up the anchor. My cousin pursed her lips as she climbed the shrouds, apparently ready to argue with me. Laurens cocked his head, seemingly confused with my cousin's attitude.

"Everyone must return to their respective workplaces," I sighed while wondering how long my alliance with Dirk would last. "Ashton, set course to Port Royal once Ocean Storm is undocked."

Sven nodded, "I'll head to the gun deck now, Captain."

"I'm so glad you're fine, Eva! You have no idea how relieved I felt when you showed up this morning!" Laurens smiled gently and sighed. "When you ran from that crazy man, I thought you'd never come back..."

"Tell me about it. At least he wasn't as bad as he seemed," I looked at the redhead through my spyglass with a lopsided smile on my lips. "Our alliance with Dirk Bosch might be a good thing after all."

I controlled myself not to laugh once I saw Dirk was also observing me through his spyglass. Bosch quickly put the instrument away as if he wanted to hide what he was doing. Why in the world would he do that? The angry captain became more interesting at each moment that passed by.

Maartje approached me while pressing her lips together, "May I have a word in private with you, Captain?"

At that exact instant, Ocean Storm left the port. I frowned as my hair fluttered. Laurens and I looked at each other for a moment. He appeared to be as confused as I. My cousin was acting pretty weirdly that morning. Although I had a bad feeling about that conversation, I nodded at Laurens and he quickly left. Francis approached me as if he worried about my safety. I suddenly felt dizzy and nauseous, wondering what Maartje wanted to talk about.

"I'll now speak as your cousin and friend, not as your boatswain," Maartje clenched her teeth while increasing her tone of voice. "Facing Bosch on your own, if I may say so, was a terrible choice! He has a really bad reputation!"

"Listen, I just didn't want to drag you into my mess," I huffed and bit my lower lip. "I'm the one who threw Dirk into the ocean, so I brought this on myself. I had to deal with that on my own."

"Says who? With all due respect, a captain should never leave the crew out like that. Especially in such a risky situation!" Maartje's eyes widened as she breathed quicker. "You could've died yesterday, you know?"

I took a step forward while scowling, "I would never put your, Sven's or Laurens' life at risk because of a problem that I created! That's simply unacceptable!"

Maartje walked from one side to another as her anger apparently increased. She rubbed between the brows and forced her eyes shut for a moment. I shook my head in denial. Why was she so worried? We had faced delicate situations before and my cousin had never acted like that.

"Father would've never done something like that!" Maartje's chin trembled as if she was about to cry. "He always told me everything because we were a team!"

I can't believe she said that! Why mention my bloody uncle?

"What?! For God's sake, Maartje!" I bared my teeth as I felt the rage burning me inside. "Have you forgotten he hid my true story from you?"

"That was different!" my cousin frowned and downturned her lip corners. "Dad included his crew in every decision, even the tiniest ones! I know he wouldn't have faced a dangerous enemy and much less the Navy on his own!"

"I had no idea the damn Navy would show up!" I shook my head in denial and laughed nervously. "Besides, I'm more than capable of beating someone in a fight."

Dirk almost killed me, but let's leave this detail out for now.

"I don't care! Bosch is known to be violent and explosive! You got hurt and that could've been avoided if you'd let us help," Maartje pointed at my wounds while grinding her teeth. "My father would be so disappointed if he knew you took such an unnecessary risk!"

Anger washed over me. I pursed my lips and glared at my cousin. I thought I would go crazy for a moment. She shouldn't have said that uncle Ruben, an assassin obsessed with revenge, would be disappointed in me... God, that was too infuriating to be true!

"Your father was mad for vengeance, a liar, and a murderer!" I scowled and my eyes bulged. "He confessed that he killed my father in Curaçao with Dr. Bakker's help! Remember that before trying to convince me that uncle Ruben is some kind of saint!"

Maartje's legs trembled so much that she almost fell. The most surprising part was that she appeared to believe me. Tears ran down her face as she sat by the mainmast. I bit my lower lip and looked downward since I was too hard on my cousin. Why had I told her that? She didn't have to know! If regret could kill, I'd have died at that very moment.

"This can't be true! My dad is a killer?" Maartje sobbed while rubbing her eyes. "Why didn't you tell me this before? How could you hide something like that?"

"Because I didn't want you to see your father the way I saw mine," I swallowed hard and let out a pronounced sigh. "I never looked at dad the same way again after finding out what he'd done to my real mother in Amsterdam."

When my cousin opened her mouth, apparently ready to say something, I heard a blast. Maartje stood up quickly, breathing fast as she glanced from side to side. When I looked through the spyglass, I couldn't believe it.

It's them again!

"I'm sorry to interrupt, but we need to take action quickly!" Laurens approached Maartje and me with his eyes widened. "The British found us!"

I put a hand on my head and huffed, "Great! You've just made my day."

Another explosion took place, but it was aimed at Dirk's vessel instead. Bosch talked loudly to his crew, appearing to be as shocked as me. Although I couldn't see my ally clearly due to the distance between our ships, I felt that he was worried. I gulped as the enemy vessels got closer. Three British men-of-war against two galleons... what could possibly go wrong? Honestly, I didn't want to find out.

****

aesthetic

I chose Michael Fassbender to be our adorably angry Dirk Bosch. I think he would make a perfect Dirk if "Ocean Storm" becomes a movie one day because he's a great actor and he's exactly how I imagined Dirk. The only thing is that Bosch has green eyes while Michael has blue ones, but I still think they're really similar. In this aesthetic, I put three of Dirk's most remarkable characteristics and some emojis that relate to him. I hope you all liked it! Let me know if you also imagined Michael as Dirk.

I dedicate this chapter to my wonderful friend