The Adventures of the Bare Banshee - Prologue

​            I was like the perfect model of a high-standing woman of the time. I kept my mouth shut, I did what I was told, and I minded my business, which essentially was just to find a husband. Father was so proud the day I got engaged. I think he even smiled. My life of utter bore was set to begin. Then Bill Johnston happened.

In retrospect, I’m sure he never planned on being a “pirate” himself. He was a perfectly normal man until the British accused him of being a spy in the War of 1812. That’s when he started the raids. They were nothing at first, just small attacks on supply boats and mail carriers just to irk the British, nowhere near serious enough to deem him a pirate. Somewhere in the span of his sixteen-year career, he decided it wasn’t enough. I was part of the first wave of kidnap victims. To this day, I’m still not sure what his intent was in taking me. Being the only woman out of a group of twenty men, I was sure his intentions weren’t pleasant, though he never laid a hand on me to prove otherwise. Although, if he had kept me around for longer than a week, I suppose it could have happened eventually. Instead, I was a bargaining chip, traded to a group of “real pirates” in exchange for safe passage.

​That is when I met Jonah.

***

​            “Look here at this winsome wench.” A burly man approached me, with orange hair and beard so full and curly it reminded me of a ginger cotton ball. I assumed he was the captain, though I’m not entirely sure what gave me that inkling. He stood tall above the rest of his crew, and could be considered intimidating if I didn’t keep thinking of him as a cotton ball. He placed a hand on my shoulder, and leaned in to whisper in my ear. “I’ll be looking forward to boarding you, lass.”

I wanted to hurl, as his breath gave off the warm stench of cabbage and rum, as if I needed any more reason not to take Captain Cotton Ball seriously. “With all due respect, sir, I would rather sleep with a kraken than you.”

​            There was a collective murmur at my insult. I tried hard to hide my smile, experiencing for the first time what it was like to actually speak up to a man. I met the captains eyes with determination, letting him know I wasn’t about to back down, especially not to a man that looked like him. He chuckled. “Seems we have a mouthy lass on our hands boys. Do you know what we do to lasses who try to be smart with us?”

​            “Based on the way you are speaking to me, sir, I would assume you've never had one aboard. Otherwise you would know this is not how you treat a lady. And it's clear you aren't big on impressing a lady either, as your personal hygiene could definitely use some work.” I couldn’t stop. Eighteen years of keeping my mouth shut was swept away in an instant. Did I care that I was surrounded by a crew of at least thirty low-life’s that had no morals to follow and could probably slit my throat faster than I could say “Parlay?” Not to mention, Captain Cotton Ball who was now looking at me like I was the best treasure he had ever laid eyes on.

​            He unsheathed his sword, and directed the blade between my breasts. He didn’t put any pressure there, though the sharpened edge was still enough to cause me discomfort. “Take off your clothes,” he demanded, his voice remaining surprisingly even.

​            “I wouldn’t take my clothes off for a gentleman, let alone a filthy pirate,” I spat, remaining motionless.  He smirked, as he dug the blade in a millimeter. I winced, feeling it prick the thinnest layer of skin, though still refused to make a move. His smile grew even more twisted, as he began to drag the blade down. When I looked to see why he lowered his sword, I realized exactly what he had been doing. There was a perfect slit down the entirety of my dress, exposing my naked body underneath. Bullocks. He ripped the remainder of my dress off, and handed me his sword.