MOLLY'S TALE.......by Terri

Molly leaned back in her chair. "I'm surprised, Rhys dear, that you haven't told any one the story--especially your little strumpet there." Rose started to open her mouth and El shot her a look. Cool it, the look said.
Molly reached over and stroked John's neck. "Oh, yes...I remember it like it was yesterday. The mighty Morgans of Conwy. Oh very high and mighty!! Owned half the countryside. Big landowners..Right, Rhys?" John just sat there. He didn't want to agree with her but then he didn't want to upset this obviously hostile woman. No, it wouldn't do to upset her and be left on a desert island with the other three.

Molly continued. "I was the servant's daughter. My mother was their charwoman. Morgans were a nice family bu they just kind of looked...right through you. Like you weren't really there. Except Rhys. I was a couple years younger than him. He was 14, I was 12. Rhys used to go to the cliffs of Conwy and sketch. He let me go with him. Rhys is a wonderful artist. His father didn't understand him. Rhys had a very wild streak in him..but it was tempered by a romantic streak. Isnt' that right, Rhys?"
Jerry jumped in. "Why don't YOU tell the story, Captain Molly? I am sure you can tell us about Rhys--things he wouldn't tell us himself." John shot Jerry a grateful look.

Molly leaned over and rubbed her hand up and down John's arm. "Do you mind, darling?"
John just shrugged and Molly continued.
"Rhys loved to sail. He had a small skiff he used to run up and down the coast. If I was finished with my chores, I would meet him there. The sketches he drew were wonderful. If you look at that wall over there, there is a sketch that Rhys drew of Cornwall when we were there last." John looked at it and stared hard. Something looked familiar...

Molly continued her story. "Rhys was a very passionate young man. Well, I don't need to tell you what happened...Rhys became my first lover. I was 14, he was 16. We used to meet in the caves of Caernarfon. This went on for a few years...wasn't it wonderful, Rhys? Do you want to tell your friends about the big blowup with your father or shall I?"
El rescued John. "YOU tell it..Rhys would be too prejudiced."
Molly smiled. "You are so right! Lord Owain Morgan wanted his son Rhys to take over the estates. But Rhys was wild and reckless..he had wanderlust and adventure in his veins. At the age of eighteen, he managed to procure from the British government 'letters of marque'--legal permission to plunder and loot and rob Spanish ships. Rhys' father was livid! Rhys ran away that night..and asked me to go with him."

Eleanor supplied, "And you did...but I thought it was against the Code to bring a woman on board."
Molly answered, "Yes, it was. But Rhys here was captain of the ship. The Renegade which we are on. Oh, Rhys and I had a high old time...the crew accepted me as one of them and knew I was off-limits because Rhys was the captain and I was his woman. Even though I was only 16. I can't even remember how many ships we destroyed. Rhys blew them up and left no trace of them. Reckless, like I said. He was a pirate's pirate. We kept it up for about six years. Then...Cornwall." Molly's face grew dark.
"What about Cornwall?" Jerry asked.
Molly shot John a look. "That's when it all started to unravel." She banged her fist on the table and the dishes jumped and rattled. Rosamond jumped a mile.
Molly pointed at Rosamond. "That's what happened. HER!"
Eleanor tried to soothe Molly. "Please. YOU tell us your side of the story, Captain Molly!"
Molly put her hand possessively on John. "Rhys had the habit of not declaring all his booty to the government. So he hid a lot of the treasure. The crew liked and respected Rhys so they kept their mouths shut. On pain of death. Because Rhys also had a wild temper. Rhys used to hide his treasure in the caves on the estate of her father." Molly pointed to Rosamond again. "The esteemable and proper--VERY proper!--Earl of Cornwall, Timothy Rawlins Stafford. Renowned to have two of the 'fairest daughters' in all of the duchy. We had problems with the ship and needed to dry-dock it for two months. I remember the date. November and December, 1609. Rhys still liked to go on the cliffs and sketch. I knew it was the time he liked to be by himself so I left him alone then. Fat lot of good it did me! I never should have let him out of my sight, the black-hearted knave!"

Eleanor was beginning to be fascinated by the story. Jerry tried to keep John out of it. Rosamond was getting more skittish by the moment. Eleanor said, "Whatever do you mean? Pay no attention to them.."she pointed to Rose and John. "...tell me what happened!"
Rose looked at Eleanor like she couldn't believe what she was saying. But under the table, El gave her a little pat and then a pinch. Rose kept her mouth shut.

"It turns out that SHE was on the cliffs, too. She used to go up to the cliffs and write. Poetry. She was up there writing and a shadow fell over her. She looked up and saw that it was...a pirate! Well, little miss Lady of the Manor turned to flee and she tripped over a tree root. Rhys caught her in time to keep her from falling off the side of the cliff. Damn Rhys, he should have let her fall! She was terrified and Rhys calmed her down, rubbed her ankle. They ended up talking and they started meeting up on the cliffs. Unbeknownst to me just what was going on. What can I say? Rhys was Welsh and he had the gift of sweet-talking. Before she knew it, Rhys had sweet-talked her out of her bodice and pantelets. Oh, yes! Don't deny it!" She glared at Rosamond.

"They would spend many an hour in the caves. Talking, he said. HA! I knew Rhys well enough. It was nice and cozy, seeing it was the winter. By January the Renegade was ready to sail. We got a few days out of port and then Rhys dumped the news on me. We were to go on one more run. The Spanish galleon Santa Lucia was due back from the Aztecs reportedly laden with gold and silver bars. Rhys wanted one more plunder under his belt and then he was returning to Cornwall. I asked him---and I remember it well--'why Cornwall? We just left there.' He said it was over. I said, 'The plundering and the pirating?' and he said, no, he was sorry, he had fallen in love while he was in Cornwall and wanted to return to HER. That we were over. Him and me. Us. I asked him what happened to the ring he always wore. He ignored the question. Right then and there I knew--he gave it to HER. To his Megaera. It became oh so clear to me. He had been with HER all those days I had left him to his sketching. So I formulated a plan. I turned the crew against him. We mutinied. And since we were almost to the Caribbean, we dumped Rhys on a desert island. Marooned him. And they made ME their captain. Because I was more ruthless and smarter than the rest of them."
The three of them sat there with their mouths open. Rosamond found her voice. "How could you just maroon the man you loved."
Molly looked at her like she was daft. "You little simpleton! If I couldn't have him, I sure as hell was not going to let YOU have him!

Molly sneered. "Oh, we left Rhys with company--we gave him a pistol with one shot in it. The last I saw of Rhys Morgan was him standing on a beach fading into the distance. And I never looked back! Until now. I have to tell you, Rhys, I never thought you'd get off that island. A passing dolphin rescue you?"
John just ignored her. Molly stood up. "Dinner party is over. Mr...what is your name?"
"Jerry. Jerry Palmer."
"OK--Palmer, you sleep in the second mate's quarters outside on the port side. You two harlots will sleep in the stateroom on the starboard side. Smead will show you where."
She turned to Smead. "And you come right back here, Smead. I mean it!" As the four of them started to leave, Captain Molly said to John, "And just where do you think YOU'RE going, Rhys?"


*****************

MOOSE HITS THE MOTHERLODE.............by Coralynn

When Moose returns from his lunch and enters his computer room, a wall of heat hits him. "Dang! I forgot to unplug the space heater! Marilyn would really yell at me for this! Well, tomorrow sometime the furnace will be fixed and I won't need it anymore, or at least that's the plan," he says as he opens the door to the room to let some of the frigid air from the rest of the house come in and take away some of the overpowering heat.

"Now, where was I? Oh yes, those smudged letters...." he picks up the most powerful magnifying glass he has and, holding one of them under the light, begins to see the words.

Dear Lydia, I hope you can read this. I am weeping so hard that my tears are falling on the paper as I write.
John is missing! John, my favorite, the one who is the most like Rhys! The one who is gentle and caring......oh, I am bereft! I just received a letter from Daniel, who writes so seldom that you know it has to be bad news. In the letter he told me that John's wife, Elizabeth, ran off with the local minister to someplace called Rhode Island. Then John disappeared. No one knows if he still lives, and some are wondering if he could have committed suicide in his grief over his wife's defection. Daniel said they didn't have a good marriage, but then what does Daniel know about marriage? From the infrequent letters I have received from John over the years, Daniel seems to be more interested in other men's wives.
Both boys inherited the Morgan eyes, you know, those grey-green eyes that no one in our family possesses? But John also inherited his father's better qualitites, whereas Daniel only got the more unfortunate ones.
I was planning to sail for America next spring, to visit, if not to stay. Now that trip is cancelled. I don't think I could bear to be in the place my dear son John lived without him being there.
I will be visiting you soon, dear Lydia, hoping it will help me with my grief. You have been a solace and comfort to me throughout the years. Love from your sister, Meggie.

"WOW!" Moose looks for a date on the letter, but in her grief she had not written one down. "Now I'm getting another chapter in the story! That poor woman, how much more heartache can she take? Now I know I have to write her story. But what will the ending be?"


BUT WHEN ARE THEY?.....by Terri

Roger paced the stateroom. Bethia sat on the edge of the bed, alternating between silence and sniffling. Roger put his arms around her. "I'm sure they are all right, Bethia."
Bethia started to cry again. "They just have to be! John Gwinnett was and is my oldest and dearest friend and he didn't have many good things happen to him once he arrived in America. His marriage to Elizabeth was a disaster and I can't tell you how many time he had been mistaken for Daniel by many an irate father or husband. Where he got that wild streak is anyone's guess."
Roger tried to keep Bethia's mind occupied. "Celeste will find them.. I'm sure it's just a harmless little time travel they got involved in."
Bethia wailed, "It's never been harmless! It's always been a disaster! John got an arrow shot at him, Rose got beat up by her mother and Henry, John got shot, they almost got incinerated in Pompeii.."
Roger frowned, "OK, scrap the 'harmless' bit. Celeste said she would call.." *RING*

Roger quickly picked up the phone. "Hello?"
"Roger, it's Celeste. I tried the crystal ball. I'm afraid I haven't been too successful. I saw enough to let you know one thing. I am pretty sure they are on a pirate ship."
"But..where? How?"
Celeste sighed. "I'm not sure. I can't even get the most important part...WHEN. But they are OK. For now. I am trying to zero in on a captain's log to tell me where and when. Then William or I or one of us will get them."
Bethia asked, "Why can't whoever used the coin use it to get them back?"
Celeste sighed, "Wish I knew the answer. I'm sure there is a logical explanation for it. What I don't know. I'll continue to monitor the crystal ball and check in with you in about two hours." CLICK!


THE LAST LETTER...................by Coralynn

Moose reaches for the third letter; the last one in the pile. He looks at the postmark on the envelope, but it's so worn that he can't see the year. He gently removes the letter, which this time is two pages instead of one, and sees the date Oct, 30, 1668.
"That would make her eighty years old!" he says excitedly to the room, and holds this letter under the highest setting he has on his lamp. Holding the magnifying glass, he reads:

Lydia dear,
It was so thoughtful of you to attend James' funeral. You'll never know how much it meant to me.
I was surprised when he went first......I expected to go before him, as I have been in ill health for a number of years, as you know. But the good Lord took him suddently, a blessing for him.
He was a good man, and treated me well. I think we struck a good bargain: I helped him raise his motherless son, and he helped me raise my fatherless boys. There may not have ever been any passion between us, but we had a mutual respect.
Do you know what I did just last night? Don't laugh, dear sister, but I walked out on the cliffs, slowly now that moving is so painful, but I walked out there just the same, and scanned the horizon for a boat. You know which one.
When I got back to the house and came inside, I hung up my shawl and sat in front of the fireplace, nodding off from time to time. I love this old chair of mine.....I've spent years sitting in it looking dreamily into the flames.
But last night, oh I hesitate to tell you this for fear you'll think I'm old and doddering and losing my mind, but Lydia, this is what happened.....I saw him.
I saw him standing in the room holding out his hand for me. He was the same.......no changes.....young and vigorous and had a smile that I have longed to see all these years.
I began to rise, but he motioned that I should remain seated, so I did. He slowly walked to where he was standing right in front of me and said, "Soon, my love. soon." then disappeared.
I know it was his ghost. He has come for me at last. He knows my days are short and is waiting for me to join him in the hereafter.
If I told this to anyone but you, they would say I was demented, but Lydia, you know my heart, and you know my mind. Rhys is waiting to take me home.
Love, your sister, Meggie."

Moose wipes the tears from his cheeks and sits down, stunned. "I guess this is the end of the story," he murmurs, then reaches for another tissue as the tears refuse to stop.

Moose doesn't hear the gentle tapping on his computer room door at first, but when it gets louder, looks up and sees Marilyn standing there, peering in.
"OH! Marilyn, I didn't hear you come in!"
"Just wondered how you were, living in this arctic wasteland you call a house," she kids him, "and I thought you might like a hot chocolate. Let me put this down, it's burning my hand."
"Thanks! I can use this. Guess what? I think I've found most of the pieces of the story I want to write." He gestures toward the wooden box and the contents he has spread out on his counter.
She sits on the other chair in the room and scootches it over to where she can see the contents better. "These look like very very old letters," she comments, pulling one off the counter, examining it closely.
"They are! And they pretty much tell the story of Megaera and Rhys. I found out his last name is Morgan, too. But James, the man she married when she thought she was going to be an unwed mother, his last name is nowhere in any of these letters or diaries."
"That's strange," she comments as she continues to read. "But you sure have some dynamite stuff here! Good thing this woman unloaded her feelings to her sister. Now, was her sister your x-gr/grandmother?"
"Yes. I phoned up my sister in California, and she gave me the name, though she wasn't any too pleased at being woken up at 6 am. She also sent me this gedcom about four years ago and some of the family groups are on it. But, no last name for James."
Marilyn concentrates on the computer screen, seeing the names of Megaera's twin boys, John and Daniel, and thinks, These guys could be the John and Daniel I know. Nawwwww, what are the chances? But the dates are about right. Moose hasn't been told of our time traveling, so he'll never connect this with the Gwinett twins, and I could be all wet about this, but somehow it seems eerily right.

She then reads the second letter that Megarea wrote her sister, her eyes growing round with the realization that this story fits John and Daniel like a glove. Even the name of John's first wife is there, and, she remembers hearing that Elizabeth did run off with the local minister, and to Rhode Island. The circumstantial evidence is piling up!

She knows that John and the others are on a cruise right now, and unavailable to coroborate any of this, and wonders if it would be wise to even show it to them were they home. This information totally changes the paternity of John and Daniel, which would be a shock to them. And what purpose would it serve to tell them?


__________________.......by Terri

"What do you mean, not so fast?" John looked at Molly in amazement.
Rosamond turned around quickly. Molly nodded at Smead. She said, "Get her out of here."
Smead grabbed Rosamond's arm and tried to lead her to the door. Rosamond retorted, "Get your meathooks off me, you big toad!" To Molly she said, "If you think I am leaving my husband with you, you're out of your mind!"
Molly sneered, "There's not a whole lot you can do about it. Unless you want to walk the plank. And since we are in the middle of nowhere, either you sink or you are an exceptionally strong swimmer because Jamaica is about 500 miles northwest of here."
John said, "I'll be alright, Rose darling. You go with El. Look out for each other."
"But John.."
Molly laughed unpleasantly. "Oh, you two are good. Real good. Keeping up the fake names and trying to make me think you aren't really Rhys and Megaera."
John tried his best to keep his tone even. "Look! Obviously I look like this Rhys Morgan who left you for this woman Megaera. But I'm not. I'll show you."
John pulled down his shirt. "See this?"
Molly said indifferently. "A scar. So what?"
John said, "This was a scar from a pistol. Now, did Rhys have a scar like that?"
Molly said, "No."
John said with satisfaction. "So there! I AM NOT RHYS MORGAN!"
Molly looked at it again. "That is a scar from the last six months. Now, Rhys, I marooned you a few months ago. We haven't had any contact so I don't know how you got that. For all I know you could have gotten that in Tortuga. You are pretty wild when you get into port."
Smead shoved Rosamond out the door and shut it behind them.

Rosamond tried not to cry. She turned to Smead. "Mr. Sneed..."
"Smead."
"Mr. Smead, why is she doing this? That is my husband John Gwinnett and I am his wife. We aren't from around here. We live in--in Somersetshire, England. We've never even been to Cornwall."
Smead shook his head. "Ye not be foolin' me nor the cap'n, Missy. That 'ere is Rhys Morgan as I live and breathe. And ye'll be the baggage he left the cap'n for. She din' take it kindly when ol' Rhys gave her the ol' heave-ho."
Smead opened the door and shoved Rosamond into the quarters where Eleanor already was. There were two swinging hammocks, a dresser with a dirty and cracked mirror and a basin and pitcher. That was all.
Rosamond looked around. Eleanor already was on a hammock. Eleanor looked at Rosamond and gestured to the other hammock. Rosamond picked up the basin and looked at the scum in it. Eleanor said, "Yeah, I know...to quote Bette Davis: 'What a dump'!"
Rose burst into tears. Eleanor got off the hammock and put her arms around her. She held Rosamond like she was a small child. "Hush, honey! We'll get out of it. We always do."
Rose sobbed, "But John is in there..with her! I don't know what she is capable of, El. But it can't be any good!"
Eleanor stroked Rose's hair and said, "You poor kid. You get all the bad breaks, don't you?"
Rose cried all the more. "El--do you think this is bad karma for what I did with Henry? Taking your place?"
Eleanor said, "No, Rose, it's not. If we were still at each other's throats I would say 'yes'. But we made our peace a long time ago. There's no bad blood between us. You are just about the best friend I've ever had!"

Molly walked around her table and got out her maps. She spread them out.
"Alright, Rhys. It's time to get down to brass tacks." Molly gestured to a chair.
"Please. Have a seat."
John just stood there. Molly yelled, "SIT!"
John still stood. Molly sighed, "Stubborn as always, Rhys. I never could make you do anything you didn't want to. NOW! I have something that will be of immense interest to you."
John walked over. Molly pointed. "Here. This is where we are. In the Atlantic..right..there! Here is Kingston as you well know...and over here is where the Spanish ship Santa Rosa is right now. Reportedly to be laden with gold the likes of which neither of us have ever seen before. I---we---shall be intercepting it by tomorrow afternoon. There will be enough gold that we don't ever have to plunder any more ships."
John said, "You know what they say. You can never have too much. You'll get the itch again. And will rob and steal and kill and plunder."
Molly laughed. "And you will be right along beside me..loving every minute of it! Face it, Rhys. Pirating is in your blood. As it is in mine."

John sat down for a minute, studying the maps. There's no way out of this, he thought. I have to play this hand out...
He looked up at Molly and grinned. "You are right, Molly. You know me only too well. I can't do this anymore. I can't deny it. The pirate blood is calling out to me."
Molly smiled triumphantly. "Think you learned your lesson, Rhys?"
John said, "Yes. I have. I can't pretend anymore."
Molly said, "So want to tell me what happened in the interim between the time I left you on the desert island and then you showed up on The Bristol Queen? And who is the tart? She said her name is not Megaera, it's Rosamond."
John laughed. "I was rescued. You left me on that God-forsaken island. I was rescued by some rum-runners. They used that island to store their cache. I was there for a total of two days. But in those two days I did a lot of thinking. I decided to go straight. Obviously I couldn't return to my father. He pretty well disowned me. So I left for Cornwall. I returned to that wench Megaera. Megaera was not the heiress she pretended to be. She didn't have nearly the amount of money she led me to believe. I am sorry to report that Megaera had an 'unfortunate accident'. Pity, really."
Molly smiled deviously. " An unfortunate accident, huh?"
John sighed. "Yes. I'm afraid she lost her footing on the cliffs. Poor dear. She never saw it coming. So I moved on to London. Had letters of introduction into society. I assumed the identity of a man who emigrated to America. John Gwinnett. It's amazing what nice stationary can do for you. I went to an estate sale. There I bought a velvet cloak, some suede breeches, some silk shirts. I looked the part. You would have been proud of me, Molly!"

Molly laid an arm on his. "Rhys, you devious son of a gun! Would you like some rum?"
John threw his head back and laughed. "Molly, my girl, that is the best idea you have had yet! Come! Let's get ripped!"
Molly uncorked a bottle. She poured each of them a generous splash. "Welcome to the Caribbean, love!"

Molly sat close to him, running her fingers through his hair. John kept saying to himself, ACT! This is the most important part you have ever had to play in your life!
Molly said, "What, though, of this Rosamond? Where did you meet her? And most important yet, what is she to you? Did you marry her?"
John snorted with derision. "Of course not! She tells everyone we are married because in her mind we are. You know how those society types are. If she admitted we weren't, it would make it a mortal sin to her! No, I met her at the King's Ball. I managed to forge an invitation and with my letter of introduction previously shown to the Duke of Lancaster, I was ushered into high society."
Molly's jealousy reared its ugly head. "And why did you feel it was so necessary to take up with that expensive piece of baggage, Rhys? She's so totally not your type. So prim and proper. Looks like she'd break. Where were you headed for anyways on The Bristol Queen?"
John leaned back. "Anymore of this rum, Molly, my girl?"
Molly stood up. "I'll get it. Drink up, matey!"
As she turned, John dumped the rum into a spittoon that was next to his chair.
Molly came back with a bottle and uncorked it. She filled their glasses up again. John continued his well-spun story. Which was pretty good, seeing he was flying by the seat of his pants.
"Ah, that! Miss de Clifford's father owns a sugar plantation on Barbados. Lots of land. Very prosperous...and very wealthy! Like I said, I met her in season in London. We, er, struck up a friendship and I thought, hey, there's money to be taken. A lot cleaner than plundering, that I can tell you."

Molly asked, "So how much did you 'plunder' from said fair damsel, Rhys, my love?"
John leaned back and pretended to take a long sip from his cup. "Oh, let's just say, it's a start. If...and I say IF...I..we...decide to get out of this business, I have enough squirreled away from her to buy a nice sugar plantation in Barbados and buy her father out. Of course, he'll never connect me with his precious daughter. She'll be living in a sheik's tent."
Molly laughed unpleasantly. "IF she manages to avoid the plank. Because if she doesn't show me the proper respect, that is where I just might send her. To Davy Jones' locker. She can become fish food. And I will gladly suffer the loss that selling her may have brought in."
John laughed and he tried to make it as unpleasant as possible. "Nay, don't send her to Davy Jones' locker. Her talents can be used better elsewhere."
Molly sat up and leaned back. She said darkly, "And what would that be, Rhys?"
John, as Rhys, said, "Let's just say, good little girls make some mighty wild women!"

Jerry sat in his second mate's room and wondered what to do. Whatever comes down, we have to protect the girls. And if we ever get as far as the Barbary Coast and it DOES come down to selling them off, maybe I can be the one who offers to take them into port. That way, I can figure out a way to hide them away and then tell that deranged female Captain Bligh that I sold them to the top Arab and they brought a pretty price. I'll steal some money to cover it. Can't be too hard to roll a nomad. We used to pull some stuff for beer money in college. But that was in my youthful days.

Rosamond pulled back from Eleanor and laughed through her tears. "I'd sell my soul for a tissue!" She sniffed. "Eleanor, why can't we ever manage to have a nice vacation? We were having so much fun with Roger and Bethia...ROGER AND BETHIA!! They must be beside themselves with worry. It's not good for Bethia in her condition to get upset."
"Don't worry, she has the best person with her. Rose, the moon is up. We'd better get some sleep. If that is possible."
Rosamond took a hammock. In the quiet, Rose asked, "Eleanor, do you think we will ever get out of this?"
Eleanor yawned, "We always do, Rose. We always do."

"Pssst! Pssst!"
"El! Do you hear that? The boat--ship--has sprung a leak!"
El got out of her hammock. "Don't be silly, Rose. It's Jerry."
El tried the door. It wouldn't open. "Jerry!" she whispered. "I can't open the door. They locked us in here."
Jerry whispered, "Go to the porthole. I'll go over there. But for Pete's sake, honey, don't let anyone hear you!"
Eleanor walked over to the porthole and opened it slightly. Jerry whispered, "Can you hear me now?"
El whispered back, "Yes."
Jerry said, "I don't know what is going on. John is still in there with Madame Captain. Emphasis on 'mad'. Don't worry, I'm working on a plan." Rose tiptoed to the window. "Jerry--he's not back yet? He's still holed up with that cutthroat?"
Jerry whispered back. "Hang in there, girls. I'll keep an eye on John. Now get some sleep!"

John walked over to the cabinet and pulled out another bottle of rum. "Another one, Molly?"
Molly sloshed her rum. "Why not, my co-captain! Fill it up!"
John pretended to have trouble with the cork. He bent down and picked up a knife. While he was down there, he dumped his rum into a bucket. "Ah..and here it is, my little commandante!" He filled Molly's cup to the rim.
Molly patted the seat next to her. "We need to get to bed early because tomorrow is a big day. We need to plan the sacking of the Santa Rosa and then onward to the Barbary Coast!"
She entwined her hands around John's neck and pulled him close to her. She started to kiss him on the ear. "Oh, Rhys..I missed you! You know I didn't want to leave you on that island. But you left me no choice. I would rather have seen you dead and dried up like a raisin that with that...that..Megaera! And now that you have taken everything you can from the Rose person...well, I can ALMOST forgive you for the other stuff."
Molly stood up. "And now, my beloved..let's get to bed!"
Molly stood up and swayed. She passed out on the floor like a sack of flour. John picked her up and laid her on the bed. He looked at her sleeping, snoring form.
How am I going to pull this off? Somehow she has to think that we are back together and that Rose is out of my life..."
John sighed and kicked off his boots. Poor Rosamond! How can I possibly get word to her that this is all an act? Those girls are being watched like hawks where I am concerned. Well, if I must..I must.

John gingerly removed Molly's dress. She laid there in her bodice and pantelets.
John pushed her not too gently to the other side of the bed and covered her up. He laid down on top of the bed and folded his arms under the back of his head.
What a mess! How could I be so stupid as to have that time travel coin with me? He looked over at Molly. A beautiful woman, how can she be so ugly inside? Somehow I have to be out of this bed before she wakes up. I can't help what she thinks in the morning..

John slept fitfully through the night. He made sure he stayed way far away from Molly. She snored like a buzzsaw due to the rum she had consumed. He woke up in the middle of the night and sat up, running his fingers through his hair. His sleep was disjointed and disturbed. What makes her--and everyone else---think I am this Rhys Morgan? Is he a doppleganger from years ago? Maybe a distant relation? But the Gwinnetts were not from Wales, they were from Somerset. Mother and Father have been on my mind so much lately. Why is that? Probably because I am now married with a family of my own. I would have loved Mother to know Rosamond. I think she would have loved her. Katherine and Isabel would have too--Cecily would be a different story probably. I remember how she used to follow Daniel and me around. Always into trouble and climbing trees. Not surprising she married Phillip. John fell back into the pillows. Father--he was upset when Daniel and I told him we wanted to strike out in the New World. Told us there was land for us in Dorset if we wanted it. That he would set us up. But no New World. Mother was almost hysterical. She said she couldn't bear for us to leave, that we were all she had left. Don't know what THAT was supposed to mean, she had Charles. She treated Charles like he was one of her own. May as well have been, Charles was almost three when she married Father.

And she was close to the girls. Guess it was just a 'mother' thing. John gazed at the sketch that was on the wall. He got out of bed and looked at it. Cornwall. The cliffs. They looked so familiar...I remember them, I think, from visiting Aunt Lydia and Uncle Edward. I remember asking Mother once why we never visit Grandfather Stafford. She never answered me...but I remember those cliffs. Especially the one jutting out. John sighed and laid back on the bed, pushing Molly over to the edge. Serve her right if she fell out of bed.
John began to doze off again. Within an hour, he woke out of a sound sleep and sat up suddenly. Why didn't I think of this before? Surely there must be something around here! He walked over to the armoire that Molly had. He looked quickly at Molly and began to work fast, lest she woke up. He flung it open and started to go through the dresser drawers. Finally under the shirts that no doubtedly belonged to Rhys Morgan, John's hand closed around something hard and flat.
He drew it out. In his hand he held a small painting. It was what they called a 'miniature'. He walked over to the candle and held it before the flame for more light.
What John saw made his blood run cold.
It was the face of Rhys Morgan, all right.
It was also the face of John Gwinnett.


COMPARING NOTES...............by Coralynn

Celeste is surprised when he hears the door open and Marilyn call her name, breathlessly running into the kitchen. She answers, "I'm in here, Marilyn," and sees the other woman, flush with excitement, exclaim, "I found out the strangest stuff, Celeste! Too bad John isn't here......because I think this is about him!"
"Well, we could certainly use some information about him right now.......he and Rose, and Eleanor and Jerry seem to have disappeared from the cruise they were on. Beth and Roger phoned a while ago and said they couldn't be found anywhere."
"Really? Did they go time traveling?"
"Not on purpose, I'm sure, but it amazes me how easily some of you bop between timeframes accidentally. I think that's what must have happened."
"Do you have any idea where they are?" Marilyn looks worried.
"We think they're on a Pirate Ship, but so far I haven't been able to make out the name of the ship. My crystal ball isn't as clear as it should be right now. I wonder if meteor showers are messing it up. The hardest part is trying to find out the when of it all."
"This is giving me chills!" Marilyn's eyes are round and startled, "Because the information I have involves pirates, too. Here's what Moose found in an old wooden box in his attic........the diary of Megaera Stafford, with a parchment and three letters she wrote her sister, who was Moose's x-gr/grandmother, about 400 years ago."
"What has this to do with John?"
"It seems Megaera married a man named James because Rhys, her pirate lover, never came back for her as he promised. She found out she was pregnant and married James to keep from scandal. James' last name is never mentioned, but...........in the letters she wrote her sister over the years, she mentioned that Rhys' children were twin boys, John and Daniel. Then, in a later letter, she said the twins had emigrated to America. Then........she said that she'd gotten a letter from Daniel, saying that John's wife, Elizabeth, ran off with the local preacher, and that no one was able to find John and wondered if he might have committed suicide. Does any of this strike a bell.....?"
"This is eerie! It fits our John and Daniel like a glove. But their mother's name was Julia, wasn't it?"
"Right. Julia Megaera."
"Let's see what we can get in the crystal ball, Marilyn. With this new information, maybe I can get better results."
They walk into Celeste's room. She uncovers the crystal ball and warms it up with her hands. Marilyn sits quietly, waiting.
Celeste gazes into the globe and murmurs, "Megaera, I summon thee," several times.
The face of a lovely dark haired woman appears in the ball. She looks confused and they hear her say, "Who calls me?"
"It is a friend, dear. Your son John appears to be in some danger and we wanted to make sure we contacted you, in case you know anything that may help us."
"John is in danger?!" the woman becomes aggitated.
"We think he may have gone time traveling and ended up on a Pirate ship."
"With Rhys?" the woman asks.
"I don't know. Since you aren't bogged down with a physical body right now, could you investigate for us?"
"I will. Please summon me again in an hour because I'm going to John, wherever he is, right now."
"Would you do me a huge favor, dear? Could you find out the date where he is and also the name of the ship?"
"Yes," she says as her image disappears.


_________________....by Terri

John looked closely at the picture. Same eyes...same hair.
Same..expression? Is it possible to capture the essence of a person so perfectly? Rhys Morgan looked quite raffish. But with almost an aristocratic look. What was it Captain Molly said? He came from a well-to-do family in Wales. John could not help staring at the picture. If I didn't know better, I'd swear it was...me! Or Daniel. That explains why they think I am Captain Rhys Morgan.
Molly stirred. John looked over at her. Got to work fast. He rummaged around in the drawer some more. He found a wooden box with the initials R.J.M. burned into it. John opened it. Inside he found a sketch pad and some charcoal. Some quills and some ink. John opened it up. India ink. He tucked the box under his arm. The miniature he slid into his breeches. He opened up a smaller drawer. Inside was a straight razor and soap. Looks like Rhys wasn't one of those really dirty disgusting pirates. John thought derisively, he must have been a privateer. A government license to plunder and pillage with no repercussions. In the drawer was a leather pouch. John shook it.
In his hand the contents poured out. A pair of gold...what, cufflinks? Or what passed for them at that time. A gold ring. Delicate. Small. John went over to the candle again. He turned it around in his hand. Looks like it could have been a wedding band. He looked inside of it to see if there was any inscription. No, nothing. Wonder if he purchased...Purchased? No, stole is more like it. Wonder if he stole this with the intention of going back to Cornwall to propose to his Megaera. In the pouch were also assorted pieces of women's jewelry.

He didn't have time to look any further. Molly woke up and said drowsily, "Rhys, what are you doing?"
John thought quickly. "Just looking for my sketch box. I found it."
Molly looked out the porthole window. "Ahh..daylight! You are up bright and early!"
John poured water out of the pitcher and into a basin. He was stalling for time. "Yes, isn't today the day we intercept the Santa Rosa? I've been meaning to ask, where did you get your information?"
Molly stretched out and patted the spot next to her. John pretended he didn't see.
"The Renegade was in Kingston a week ago. I have..sources. They told me that the Santa Rosa was to sail on February 10th. That was five days ago. I know the route that it will take back to Spain. According to my calculations, our paths should cross in about three hours. Then the fun begins! Just like old times, Rhys. You and me."

Rosamond woke up and jumped off the hammock. "Eleanor, wake up! WAKE UP!"
Eleanor said sleepily, "Go away, Rosamond. Go back to Henry, you like him so much.."
Rose shook her. "You're dreaming! Wake up! We are on the pirate ship. Remember?"
Eleanor raised her head and wrapped the blanket around her. "Ohhhh yeah, that's right."
Rosamond poured the water out of the pitcher. "Ugh! They actually expect us to use this? Smell it! SALT WATER! And the soap! It--it's brown, El, BROWN! It's laundry soap! THAT will strip the oils off our faces!"
Eleanor pulled herself out of the hammock. "Maybe we won't look so good to the Arabs then."
Rosamond said, "Haven't you seen the newscasts? Those women are wrapped in towels and blankets. All we will get is a little screen to look out of.We'll look like Disney characters! WE'LL LOOK LIKE BEE KEEPERS!"
There was a knock on the door. "GO AWAY!" Eleanor yelled.
The knock was more insistent. "It's me. The second mate!"
El said, "Oh. Jerry." She tried the door but it was still locked. "Can't open, Jerry."
Jerry said through the door, "I'll get the key. You are requested to go to the captain's quarters for breakfast. Me too."

Within fifteen minutes, Jerry came back with the key. "Ah, you girls are a sight for sore eyes! Even if you do look a little rough around the edges."
Rose looked down at her homespun dress. "Guess Madame is wanting us to save our evening dresses for the auction block."
Jerry took their clothes in. "Where did you get those?"
Eleanor said, "Before we went to bed, or hammock, Smead threw them in and demanded our good stuff. I swear, if he so much as scuffs my suede shoes, I'll have his guts for garters."
Jerry offered his arm to each of them. "Now, rememberl--and this is especially for you, Rosamond--don't aggravate, excite, exasperate or piss off this woman."
Rosamond looked around. "Jerry, isn't John coming? Didn't you get him up or is he already up?"
Jerry looked at her trying to keep his expression blank. Rose stopped and stood still. "Are you trying to tell me that he spent the night in that viper pit?"
Jerry said, "No, I'm trying NOT to tell you that he spent the night in that viper pit."

Rosamond was in a state of shock. Jerry led the women to the captain's quarters and knocked on the door. "Come in!"
John sat at the table looking freshly shaved and rested. Rosamond shot him an inquiring look. Molly sat next to him, her hand resting on his arm. John forced himself to ignore Rose's questioning and hurtful look. If I look at her, I'll crumble. Got to play this hand dealt to me.
Molly was unusually congenial. "Ah..the second mate. Jerry, is it? And the two strumpets! Who will soon be known as merchandise! Please! May as well sit down and breakfast with us!"
Rosamond said in a quivering voice, "John?"
John forced a steely look. "Sorry, Rosamond. You've got it wrong. I am not John Gwinnett. Never was."
Rosamond looked bewildered. "Wh-what are you talking about? You are John Gwinnett. You are my husband."
John laughed unpleasantly. "Oh! That! I had better explain it to your empty little head! When I met you, I was not really John Gwinnett. I was and still am Rhys Morgan. I lied to you all that time we were together, Rose."

He turned to Molly. "You should have seen it. I emigrated to America. I assumed this man John Gwinnett's identity. OH! And get this! I actually pretended to hunt and farm! I tried to go straight. I even settled in a little settlement called Southold. Right on the water. That was so hard, settling there right on the ocean. And pretending the pirate's blood was not calling out to me!"
Eleanor was shocked. "But what of your twin brother? What of Daniel?"
John threw his head back and laughed. "Daniel! Ah, that is something that even Molly doesn't know! Yes, I do have a twin. He's a renegade, too. His real name is Dafydd. Actually, he's worse than me. He took another name when he sailed the high seas. Can't remember what it was. But we joined up and tried to go straight. He had an even harder time going straight than I did. I think he still did some smuggling in Southold."
Rosamond sat there like her whole world had just caved in. "Y-you're not really John Gwinnett? Your name is Rhys Morgan and you are a pirate?"
John sneered. "That's right, my dear! You are really Rosamond Morgan. A pirate's wife!" Then he leaned forward. "But then again, my dear, you married a man who technically does not exist. Or maybe he does...which in this case means that you married a man who did not know he married you...oh, who can figure it out?"
Rose's head was swimming. "But---but what of Julie?"
John said, "What of her?"
Molly turned to John. "Rhys? Who is this Julie?"
John shrugged. "Oh. Julie. She just happened to be a little something that I sired. Well, Rose---I guess you have a little bastard on your hands! As seeing you didn't really marry ME!"

At that moment, John jumped. Molly laid her hand on him. "Rhys, darling! What is wrong?"
John sat down. "Dunno. Felt like someone was walking on my grave, I guess. I felt a presence and something like a person's hand on my shoulder. It squeezed. Must have been a pulled shoulder muscle. Like a muscle spasm."
Suddenly the door to the quarters slammed open. Molly got up to close it.
"Must be a strong wind from the south blowing up. That means the Santa Rosa will be here quicker than I figured."
Rose turned to John with despair on her face. "B-but all that time..you told me you were from Somerset. You-you're Welsh?"
John leaned back. "Doesn't matter, does it, my dear. I shall be rid of you very shortly. Within the hour, we shall plunder and pillage and burn the Santa Rosa. Molly? I say..take no prisoners!"
They clinked their glasses together.
Rosamond sat with her head bowed, tears starting to stream down her face. Molly said imperiously, "Oh, don't look so depressed, wench! I could have told you it was coming. Especially after the wonderful night Rhys and I shared!"
Rosamond's head shot up. Jerry and Eleanor looked at each other. Eleanor could stand it no more. She stood up.
"John--Rhys--whatever your name is----you are one class act."
John said, "Why, thank you, Eleanor."
Eleanor said coldly, "Yes. One first class bastard."
Jerry put his hand on her arm to calm her down. "Get your hands off me, Jerry."
Eleanor hoisted Rosamond up. "Come on, Rose. Let's get ready for the Arabs. They have GOT to be better company than what we have just encountered!"
Molly threw Jerry the keys. "Fine by me. Second mate Jerry? Lock them up!"









ESCAPE!!.........by Terri

John felt his stomach drop to his feet. Oh, Rose, if we ever get out of this, I'll make it up to you. Molly looked out the port window. "I don't believe it! It's the Santa Rosa! And she's an hour early!" Molly called her pirate minions out, ordering them full sail ahead. They came alongside the Santa Rosa.
She shouted excitedly, "Rhys, darling! Ready to take the gold and leave no souls alive?"
Before John could answer, the Renegade fired her cannons on the Santa Rosa.
Holes were being shot in the Spanish galleon. Molly shouted out commands. Pirates flooded the deck of the galleon. Treasure was being thrown back onto the Renegade as the pirates looted and killed and burned. It was utter chaos.
Jerry ran by, trying to look like part of it without getting involved. John grabbed him by the arm as he ran by. John said breathlessly, "Are the women allright?"
Jerry pulled his arm back. "What do you care, RHYS??"
Treasure was being dumped at John's feet. Molly was running around shouting orders. Suddenly, John looked down. Wedged in between the deck and the side of the boat something glittered. Something familiar.
John reached quickly down and grabbed it. It was a coin. The letter 'J' was emblazoned on it.

"I cant' believe it!" he said to himself. He ran back to the quarters and in less than thirty seconds, grabbed the box with R.J.M. on it. He felt his breeches, the miniature was still there. He ran at full speed and grabbed Jerry's arm.
"Jerry! I have the coin. We need to grab the girls and GET OUT OF HERE LIKE NOW BEFORE WE ARE ALL KILLED!" Jerry hesitated a fraction of a second and then yelled, "Let's go!"
Jerry and John ran to the women's quarters and threw their bodies against the door.
The women screamed inside, thinking the Spanish were retaliating or the pirates were coming to help themselves to the girls in all the confusion. The door splintered. Jerry grabbed Eleanor and John grabbed Rose.
"NO TIME FOR EXPLANATIONS. JUST TRUST ME!" John shouted at Rosamond.
The four of them ran up on deck. The men had hold of the girls and then they touched each other's arm.
John yelled, "THE CRUISE! FEBRUARY 15, 2004--NOW!"

The air swirled and glowed. Molly looked up from her plundering and yelled, "RHYS! RHYS MORGAN....!"

The four of them opened their eyes and found they were standing alone on the deck of the cruise ship. The moon shone down over the waters. They stood there totally exhausted and spent. John looked down on the deck. There at his feet lay a chest full of treasure. He bent down to examine it. To Jerry, he said, "My foot must have kicked it just as we were zapped out of there..."
But he never got to finish his sentence. Because Rosamond had punched his lights out.


A-OK!!........by Coralynn

Celeste and Marilyn sit by the crystal ball, waiting.
"She should have gotten back to us by now!" Celeste complains, "It's been over an hour. Where is she?"
"Well, dead, for one thing, Celeste. Isn't that her spirit form we saw before?"
"Yes. She does well at materializing, so come on, Megaera, materialize!"
The same face then appears in the globe, smiling.
"So what did you find out?" Celeste asks.
"He's fine. You were right, he was on a pirate ship, but he and his friends got away. Now I can go back to studying anthropology at the University."
"You have a university in the spirit world?" Celeste is curious.
"Absolutely! You want something, all you have to do is say so and there it is! This is an incredible place. I may come back someday as a professor, you know, so I have to brush up on my studies."
"I have to hand it to you, Megaera, you don't just sit around playing a harp!"
"Actually, I've learned how to play one of those, too, as well as the piano, the guitar, the dulcimer, the violin...."
"Well, my friend, you have been one huge help to us. Thank you."
"Thank you for letting me help out, but let me tell you, that John is one resourceful man. Takes after his father, Rhys Morgan."
"We just found out about his true father," Celeste begins, but the face then fades out.
She turns to Marilyn, "Are you totally amazed?"
"Yes! A University?"
Celeste laughs, stands and puts her arm around the other woman, "Gives us something to look forward to, doesn't it?"
The phone rings. "Hello?"
Bethia's voice comes over the line loud and clear, "Oh Celeste! They're back!"


TO HELL & BACK.......by Terri

Rose wearily flopped face-down on the bed. John sat next to her and stroked her hair.
"I'm so sorry, darling. So sorry. I had to do it. She was totally insistent that I was this Rhys Morgan who left her for another woman. She was even talking about making you and Eleanor walk the plank. I had to stop her. I had to make her think I WAS Rhys Morgan and that I was abjectly sorry for what I had done. There was no other way. And as far as the other....she was so drunk she passed out. I had to make her believe we were a couple again."
Rose rolled over and looked at John. "I am so drained I can't think straight."
John said, "I'll get a nice hot bubble bath for you so you can just soak in the tub. That will help you sleep, Rose."
She nodded like a robot. John got up and started the hot water and poured in the bubblebath. He grabbed her by her arm and pulled her up. He handed her a terrycloth robe and said, "Go. Soak until the water gets cold. I'll get the steward to bring us a brandy so it can help us both to sleep."
Rose went into the bathroom and shut the door. She slid into the hot water and put an inflatable pillow behind her head, wishing desperately that she was back in Westchester county.

John pulled the miniature out of his breeches. He studied it. Better light than by a candle. If I didn't know better, I would swear it was me. He looked at the face. Hard to tell what color his eyes are..but shaped like mine. The hair is long and light brown. Tied back. Same nose as mine. Maybe a distant relative of mine? Daniel would think it was amusing to be related to a pirate..a swashbuckler! I'll keep this to myself for a while.
He got up and said through the closed door, "Rose? Are you alright?"
Rose's muffled reply was, "Yes."
There was a knock at the door and John opened it and got the brandy from the steward. He poured it into the two snifters to let it breathe. John next turned his attention to the sketchbox. He ran his fingers over the box. Pine. He outlined the initials. R.J.M...Rhys Morgan..Rhys..what?..Morgan.
He took out a sketchpad and thumbed through it. Cliffs. Must be Cornwall...here's a sketch of a ship..what detail! The man had talent! What's this? Looks like some pages are ripped out...
He picked up the charcoal, trying to imagine the man who last held these in his hands. John couldn't explain it, but he felt some kind of mystical connection with this Rhys Morgan. Wonder if he knew Mother's family...
John picked up the gold ring. It's the only thing of that jewelry I could throw in there before Molly woke up...
He looked at the box. It looked bigger on the outside than on the inside....he looked closely. Well, I'll be! A false bottom! And there appears to be parchment here..


CLUE...........by Coralynn

John carefully pulls the parchment away from where it is wedged in the bottom of the drawer. He holds it under the lamp as he unfolds it, then, to his surprise, finds the words are legible.

Dearest Rhys,
I await your return every day. When will you be coming back for me? My father is watching me like a hawk, though I don't think I have given him reason to do so. Being a Stafford, he is a very suspicious person, and my long absences from the house have alerted him that all is not as he thinks normal.
I need you desperately. I have news, big news that I hope will please you. I dare not write it down, for fear my father will find the place within the cave where we leave our missives.
When you find this, please come to me right away. I have my things packed in a container, hidden beneath my bed. It will take me all of five minutes to retrieve it, then you and I can be off to start our new life together.
Yours, J. Megaera, "Meggie."

John's forehead creases, "J?" he says aloud, "Stafford?"
He sits on the bed and tries to put the pieces together, "My mother's family was named Stafford. Could this be someone from her family? Could this be.......no, not possible. My mother's name was Julia. But......heaven help me, the "J" on her signature......no, not possible. What was my mother's middle name, it began with an "M"......this is eerie. What is going on here?"


________________.....by Terri

John heard Rosamond opening up the bathroom door and quickly shoved the parchment into the secret compartment. "Feeling better, hon?" he asked.
Rosamond pulled the blankets down on the bed. "I'd have to be dead to feel better."
John slid the box under the bed discreetly. "I'm taking a quick shower. I think a good night's sleep will do us both a world of good."
He headed for the shower and in ten minutes he was back out again. He slid under the covers. "Rose?"
"Hmmmmm?"
"Rose, do we need to talk?"
Rosamond said sleepily, "Not really. At least not tonight."
"Rose?"
"zzzzzzzzzz..."
Guess not, John said to himself.

John tossed and turned. He slept fitfully. Finally he woke suddenly and bolted upright. He was drenched in sweat. He fell back against the pillows. What does all it mean? Is there a puzzle here? J. Megaera...Julia Megaera? But there has been a Megaera in every generation...maybe the 'J' stands for something else...Johanna? Joan? Didn't mother have an aunt named Jocasta? That must be it...
John tried to go back to sleep but it eluded him. He put the pillow over his head.
Rosamond continued to sleep soundly. John looked over at her. Sometimes John could not believe his good fortune that Rosamond loved HIM. And our Julie looks just like her. Except for that little indentation in her ear..I seem to remember Mother had that, too. But she's got my nose and mouth.
John reflected back on his parents. How devoted they were to their children. How I wish I could have been there when the girls got married. I wish Mother and Father could have been there when Rose and I got married. She would be shocked that we had a child before we got married, though. Mother was always so---proper! That church record must have the wrong date down. It's been known to happen. Yes, that must be it. Mother and Father would never let their emotions get the better of them, would they? I can always picture Mother sitting in the garden and looking out towards the sea.
She used to tell such wonderful stories of the cliffs of Cornwall. I remember one day--I must have been about eight--I saw her sitting in the garden looking over the sea and she was crying really hard. I asked her what was wrong and she said she was just homesick. She gave me a big hug and said I was her special gift. Mother and Cecily were coming to visit in the spring before Cecily married Philip. Sometime maybe Rose and I can go back in time and visit her and Father. Father...what a wonderful man! Very..solid. Although I know Daniel drove him to distraction.
Suddenly the last few days came crashing down on John. He felt tears spring to his eyes and felt an overwhelming sense of loneliness. He put his arms around Rosamond, thankful he had someone to love and finally fell asleep.

The next morning, the six of them met for breakfast. Captain Nelsen stopped by. "Ahh....there you are! I have missed your delightful company at my table. But since you are on vacation, I would assume it is not unusual for some of you to be dining in your stateroom to get away from it all."
Roger and Bethia leaned over and whispered, "OK, tell us the whole story now. The WHOLE story--sparing nothing."
They told their tale, one picking up the tale where the other had left off. Bethia sat back and said, "Whew! I know you couldn't make that up even if you tried."
Roger said, "What do you make of this mistaken identity, John?"
John shrugged. "Obviously we must look a bit alike."
Eleanor was indignant. "A bit? They must be dead ringers for each other. Not all those people could be wrong. Wonder if there are any pictures of Rhys Morgan."
John was quick to answer. "Eleanor, there was no photography then and the average pirate did NOT go areound posing for portraits! I just think there must have been something that reminded them of Rhys. No big deal."
Rose said, "But, John..."
John stood up. "I said no big deal, Rose. Let's drop the subject." Rose laid her hand on John and pulled him back down. "OK, don't get in a snitfit. We are spending our last day in Kingston. What do you all want to do?"
Jerry said, "Who wants to go shopping?"
All three of the women's hands shot up. Jerry said to the other two, "I think they like the idea, guys!"
Eleanor said, "You guys are pretty quick to acquiesce. What do you have up your sleeves?"
Jerry and Roger looked at each other and grinned. "There's a dynamite golf course not more than six miles from Kingston. John? You up for it?"
John stirred his coffee. "Hmmm? Oh. Oh, yeah. I'll go."
Rose looked worriedly over at John. "Are you OK?"
John smiled a little too brightly. "Yes, I am fine. Guess I am just homesick for the children. I'll be glad to get back home."

The ship docked in Kingston. The girls packed their beachbags with sunglasses, sunscreen and Visas. Within fifteen minutes of docking, they were gone.
Roger knocked on John's door.
"Ready to go play golf, pal?"
John said, "I'm sorry, Roger. You guys go without me. I am really tired and don't think I could give it my best so I'll bow out. Besides, I am in the middle of a John Grisham and I think I'll just lie on the deck and soak up the sun and read. It's rare that I get the time to just relax. Unlike Rosamond, I don't have to be doing something every second of the day. Just go! I'll be fine!"
Roger patted his shoulder. "I guess you do need some down-time. OK, Jerry and I'll check it out and let you know if it is worth coming back."
John closed the door. He pulled the sketch box out and traced the initials again. He took the miniature out of the box and studied Rhys Morgan's face. He whispered to the portrait, "Just who are you, Rhys Morgan?"
John put the miniature back and went upstairs to the deck. He tried to read but was unable to concentrate. He tried to sleep on the deck chair but it eluded him.
He went back to his room and pulled out a brochure entitled, "What to Do in Kingston". He read the history..wait! It said it used to be Port Royal. Didn't that crazy Molly say that was where she had sources on the route of the Santa Rosa? I'll bet the Renegade docked here frequently. He saw an article on the National Maritime Museum. John was intrigued. The brochure said it has all sorts of marine exhibits...ho, what's this? A pirate wing?
John took out the miniature of Rhys Morgan and studied it. He shook his head and put it in his pocket. Rhys, old buddy....I think we are going on a field trip!


NEW BEST FRIENDS..............by Coralynn

It's early morning, and Celeste has been having odd dreams all night. She awakens, looks at her clock-radio and sees 4:48 a.m. Too early. She turns over and tries to get to sleep again, but realizes it's futile.
Pulling on her robe, she tiptoes out into the kitchen and starts the coffee pot. She sits waiting for the coffee to finish dripping, wondering why she's having such weird dreams. There are cliffs and ships so far out in the distance you can just barely tell they're there, and the sound of babies crying, all in an atmosphere of sadness.
"That's certainly not from my lifetime!" she tells herself, "So whose lifetime is this that's encroaching on my sleep? Could it be that Megaera woman who Marilyn and I think is John's mother?"
She fills her cup and returns to her room, slipping the cloth from atop the crystal ball as she takes a seat next to it. She casually comments, "Megaera, could you please send a happier time in your life into my dreams? You are bringing me down, woman!"
Surprisingly, the face of the lovely brunette appears as it did the day before.
"I apologize for disturbing you," she says sincerely, "What is your name?"
"It's Celeste."
"What a pretty name!"
"I rather fancy it myself."
"Sounds like it could be about music or stars or...."
"And yours is Megaera?"
"Yes. Julia Megaera Stafford."
"And you're John Gwinett's mother, also Daniel's, right?"
"Yes. John is my pride and joy. Daniel is just one of those things that happens to families every few geneartions."
"Tell me about it!" Celeste laughs, "I have a brother who is such a black sheep he's invisible in the dark."
"I had a great uncle like that," Megaera chuckles, "He was famous for saying terrible things to children and scaring them. You could always tell where he was by the people running away, screaming."
"My brother has a shirt with the words on the back that read "Bomb Squad. If you see me running, try to keep up."
Megaera laughs, "I can't top that one!"
"Well, dear, now that I know you better, I will try not to feel your sadness so keenly. You do have some joy in your life."
"Well, yes, I had Rhys Morgan, who I loved beyond belief. We're together now, but when we were alive, it was pretty tragic. Then I have John, who looks so much like his father they could pass for one another."
"He's a good man, Meg. May I call you Meg?"
"Yes, please do. John is a good man. It makes me happy that he has found such wonderful friends. I think his wife, Rosamond, is very good for him, too. Their daughter Julie is the most precious little one I have ever seen."
"I know, isn't she? She's trying to talk now, too. Of course we're not sure what she's saying, but she smiles at us so sweetly, and we think it must be something wonderful and wise."
"She has my little ear irregularity," Megaera mentions.
"Yes! John has it, too!" Celeste agrees.
"Daniel, on the other hand, does not."
"Daniel is not my favorite person," Celeste admits, "but those are the breaks, you take the good with the bad, not that I'm saying Daniel is 'bad,' mind you....."
"He can be very bad, Celeste, don't appologize. He used to take one bite of his porridge and throw the rest on the floor...."
"But don't all babies do that?"
"He was twelve, Celeste, twelve!"
"Oh my, I see your point, but tell me, what recipe did you use for porridge back then?" Celeste inquires.
"Well, let's see.......I haven't thought of that in quite a long time. I'll have to get my recipe box and read it out to you next time we speak. We don't exactly eat here in spirit, but we do feel flavors. Hard to explain, but that's what it feels like to me. We never get hungry, and, not having solid bodies, stay very thin and....."
"I'm looking forward to that!" Celeste says enthusiastically, "Did you have a weight loss regime when you had a solid body?"
"No. I was always quite thin. My husband, James, however, became corpulent in his later years."
"You know, Meg, I'm in charge of cooking for William, and sometimes even Henry, two of the most overweight individuals in the world. Now, William has lost about 80 pounds, but all he has to do is look at a slice of apple pie and his body expands."
"It's a problem, I agree. You just do your best, Celeste. Ohhhhhh, gotta run now, my French class is starting up in a minute."
"You're taking French?"
"Yes, and Russian, and Italian, and Portugese. Now, let's not be strangers! Talk to you soon!" and her face fades away.
Celeste drinks the last swallow of her coffee and thinks, "She is a most pleasant person. Next time maybe we can talk about fashion."


Captain's Log--Stardate 1610......by Terri

John grabbed a pen and paper and wrote the following:

Rose, darling--if you come back before I do, I decided not to go golfing and and I was going to rest up and read my book. Just relax and take it easy. But I got bored and did a little exploring of Kingston on my own. I'll be back before 5:00.
I love you. John

He taped the note to the bathroom mirror, checked his pocket once again for Rhys' miniature and walked off the ship and onto the dock. He consulted his map. This is easy, only five blocks down. Right on the wharf. Maritime Museum of Kingston. Within five minutes John was there. He paid his admission and entered into the museum. He picked up a map and brochure and gave a cursory run-through of the maritime museum. Then he drew a deep breath and headed for the pirate wing.
Walking down the hall and following the signs, he entered an enormous series of rooms. In the middle was a replica of a pirate ship. He gazed up at it. The curator of the museum came over and stood next to him. "Quite impressive, isn't it?" he said.
John could only nod and stare at it.
"That's a replica of the Grey Ghost. A pirate ship that roamed these waters in the 1600's. Have you ever been to our museum before?" John still stared and shook his head. He said softly, "No. Not here." The curator extended his hand. "My name is Ron Madison. I've been the curator here for the last six years. We have all sorts of exhibits. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask."
"Thank you. I appreciate it."

John walked through the various exhibits of weapons. There were cutlasses, flintlocks, daggers, scabbarded swords. There were also things like cat o' nine tails.
He gazed at the parchments under glass. He walked over to one display and stopped cold. He stared at it.
"Mr. Madison? Could you please come over here?"
"Please. Call me Ron."
John said, "My name is John. That---that log there. Could you tell me where it came from?"
Ron looked at it. "Oh, that. That, John, is the captain's log from the Renegade. A pirate's ship that prowled these waters in the very early 1600's. It was found in the cellar of a castle in Wales."
John stared at it. "What can you tell me about it?"
Ron explained, "It was a captain's log on the Renegade, as I explained. It was captained by a notorious pirate in these parts. Captain Rhys Morgan."
John felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up. A shiver ran down his spine. He tried to keep his voice casual. "Must have been a blackard."
Ron sighed. "You have no idea. We have been able to piece together some of his exploits. He is the great uncle of THE Captain Morgan..the one on the spiced rum bottle! That log there...it is strange. It has a time-lapse."
"A time-lapse?"
Ron nodded. "There were entries when the ship was not at sea. It was drydocked in Cornwall in the winter of 1609-1610. Something with a leak and some barnacles that needed scraped off. It sailed again in January 1610. Those were the dates in the log. The log suddenly stopped on..let's see...January 19, 1610. Then it resumed again in...October 22, 1611. That is a lapse of, let's see.."
John answered, "Twenty-two months."
Ron said, "Yes. That's right."
John turned to face Ron. "Any thoughts on that? Was the ship drydocked again somewhere else?"
Ron frowned in thought. "Not that I was aware of....in fact, from what I remember, Rhys Morgan sort of disappeared off the face of the earth. Resurfaced again and was back to his usual tricks. With more ferocity and ruthlessness than ever before. Sure would have liked to have been a fly on the wall as to what Rhys Morgan was up to in those months. John said, "Anyone have a clue?"
Ron shook his head. "No. Except that at one time he was linked professionally--and romantically--with a Molly McCormack."
John asked, "Any idea why he became more ruthless than before?"
Ron stood with his hands in his pocket. "Tale as old as time, man."
"What's that?"
Ron said, "Love gone bad. Legend--and mind you it's only legend, these things most never hold water--story goes that he was in love with a Cornish lass. Promised to marry her when he came back from his ventures and by the time he did, she was gone. Legend has it she threw herself over the cliffs of Cornwall waiting for him. Sort of a Romeo and Juliet sort of thing. But I myself don't give any credence to it."
John stood there trying to take it all in. "Has anyone ever seen a picture of Rhys Morgan?"
Ron shook his head. "Pirates did not sit for portraits. But legend has it he was a devastatingly handsome son of a gun."
John extended his hand to Ron Madison. "I appreciate the talk, Ron. More than you know."
Ron shook his hand. "Anytime. Glad to have met you, John."

John walked out into the bright sunshine. He was no less closer to finding out about Rhys Morgan. If anything, he had more disquieting questions than before. He took the miniature out and asked softy, "What are you trying to tell me, Rhys?"
He put it in his pocket again and decided he'd better buy Rosamond a piece of jewelry. Something really nice. It was the least he could do. He headed for a jewelry shop and went in, determined to make amends with his wife...and give himself a respite from the puzzle pieces that were making his head spin.


A LONG TRIP'S JOURNEY INTO NIGHT.....by Terri

"John! There you are! The girls and I just got back...are you OK?"
John smiled wanly. "Yes, hon, I'm OK. Just a little worn out from this week."
"Where did you go?" Rose asked.
"I went to the Maritime Museum just to get out."
"Was it educational?"
"Oh yeah. In ways you never expected."

Rose came out of the bathroom wrapped in her terrycloth robe. "Shower is nice and hot. I saved you some hot water."
She came over and sat next to John on the bed and put her arms around him. "I am sorry for punching you after the...the incident. I had no right to."
John held her tightly. "I can't blame you. We were all under a lot of stress..."
"JOHN! You are squeezing the breath out of me! Quit hugging me so tight! I'm not going anywhere!" she laughed.
John said somberly, "It's just that I love you so much, Rose. I always will. No matter what happens."
"John, now you are frightening me. You-you don't have a fatal disease and this is your way of telling me you're dying, is it?"
John laughed. "No. Of course not! We are eternal, remember?" Rose laughed too. "Right. I keep forgetting! Now, go take your shower and loosen up!"

John turned the shower on. Rose came in and leaned against the sink. "Bethia, Eleanor and I have a surprise for you guys tonight. On seeing it's our last night on the ship."
"What's that, honey?" John said from behind the shower curtain.
"John, if I told you, it would ruin the surprise! I'm afraid you will just have to wait."
John groaned. "Haven't we had enough surprises on this cruise?"
Rose said, "This is a nice one. A good surprise!" and she quietly closed the bathroom door after her.

John got out of the shower and wrapped himself in his robe. "I can't begin to tell you how good that made me feel. Rose, why aren't you getting dressed for dinner?"
Rose laughed. "Because..well, you'll see! Now just put on some jeans and a T-shirt!"
"For dinner?"
"For dinner. Don't argue. Just do it!"

Rose grabbed John's hand. "Where are we going?" he asked.
"To the upper deck!"
They climbed the stairs to the open deck on the very top. In an alcove near the bow, on the floor, sat Bethia and Roger, Eleanor and Jerry. "What is this?"
Rose said proudly. "It was Bethia's idea! The three of us put our heads together and turned on the charm to the steward and arranged to have the top deck to ourselves.
We arranged for the chef to prepare a picnic dinner for us. Complete with champagne, chicken, assorted side dishes...cheesecake for dessert."
John grinned. "This is great! You girls are a marvel!"
Jerry laughed. "They sure are! My only regret is that El won't marry me..."
El held up her hand. "We went through that already, Jerry!"
Jerry laughed again and said, "I know. I just like to tease you, Ellie...sorry! Eleanor!"
Roger took a champagne bottle and peeled the cork with a pocket knife. He popped the cork and poured champagne in each person's glass. Then he raised his glass. They all did the same. He said, "Here's to a celebration of good friends and good times. A celebration of..well, of life!"
Bethia sighed happily. "I'm even happy with my club soda!"
The girls opened up the basket and took out all the picnic food. Rosamond looked up in the sky. "Just look at all those stars. Been there for eons. Can you imagine what they have seen!"
John was quiet. Rose said quietly to him, "John? Sweetheart? Are you alright? You seem..pensive."
John tried to snap himself out of it. "I guess I just can't wait to go home and see the kids. Now! Gentlemen? Should we...now?"
The girls looked quizzically at each other. The guys grinned and drew out small wrapped gifts for the girls. They clapped delightedly, even Eleanor.
Roger said, "We bought these the other day. Something to remember this trip by!"
Rose laughed. "Like we need jewelry for that!"
Rose got a ring, Eleanor got a bracelet and Bethia got a necklace. They were ecstatic.
Bethia said, "And now for you guys!" They brought out their gifts for the men. Small but thoughtful gifts...including macanudo cigars. Eleanor said, "Smoke them now. Because no one smokes after this!" Rose also said, "Now that the champagne is gone, how about some spiced rum? I brought a bottle of Captain Morgan!"
John's head shot up. "What!?"
Rose said, "I found some Captain Morgan and I don't see what....oh. OH! Oh, John, I'm so sorry.."
John tried to smile sincerely. "It's OK, darling. We all know that I am NOT this Rhys Morgan. Have you heard anything so absurd in your life?" He laughed weakly.
Eleanor sipped her rum. "Wonder what he was like?"
Rose leaned back against John and entwined her hand in his. "Bet he was a hunk."
John tried not to smile to himself.
El said, "Bet he was cruel and ruthless and fierce and a total DUDE!"
Jerry laughed and said, "Bet he was....DANIEL!"
They all laughed. "What an experience, though. I wanted to drop-kick that Molly," Eleanor said.
Rose said dreamily. "Must have been a heck of a romantic story...this Rhys Morgan and his lady love. What was her name? Maggie? Margaret?"
John said quietly, "Megaera. Her name was Megaera."
Rose said, "Megaera. What a beautiful name! When we have another girl, John, we shall name her Megaera! I insist!"
John said softly, "For sure, sweetheart."
For the next few hours, the six of them sat on the deck and made small talk and gazed at the stars, moonbeams dancing on the deck. Finally at midnight, Jerry stood up and pulled Eleanor to her feet. "What a perfect ending to an almost perfect trip!"
Roger said, "At least it wasn't boring!"
Rose turned to John. "Ready to turn in, John?"
"Sure."
They all said goodnight and headed for their separate staterooms.
Rose said, "I'll be right back, John. I need to make arrangements with El for tomorrow. She has the plane tickets. I'll only be three minutes. Five tops."
"OK, hon. See you in the room."
Rose pulled Eleanor aside and said, "Eleanor, I am concerned about John. He seems too preoccupied since the pirate fiasco. He's in a place I can't touch, a place I can't go to. We have no secrets, El, but I think something is bothering him and I can't help him."
El gave her a hug. "He'll be OK. I just think the whole Captain Morgan thing upset him. Can you imagine everyone thinking you are a pirate and that you look like him? I mean, it's not like it's his father or anything like that! He'll be fine once he gets home. You know what a kick-butt father he is..he just misses the day to day family life."
Rose smiled at Eleanor. "You are so level headed, El! Of course! That's it! And sometime next month we should be in our own house. You always make me feel better! I love you! See you in the morning!"

Rosamond slipped into the stateroom. "John? In bed already?"
"Yes, I'm just tired. That's all."
Rose changed into her night gown and slipped under the covers. "Thank you for the ring, darling. And thank you for that emerald bracelet you bought me in Kingston. I didn't want to show it to the girls...not yet!"
John put his arm around her and said, "It's just something to try to make up for the hell I put you through with that Molly. I wanted you to know..nothing happened between Molly and me. I couldn't do that to us."
Rose said, "I know, John. And I am so in love with you."
John turned out the light. After a minute.... "Rose?"
"Hmmm?"
"What if I wasn't me? What if I was someone else? Would you still love me?"
Rose laughed softly. "Now what kind of question is that?"
"Nothing, really."
Rose reached over to him. "I would love you forever and ever, John Gwinnett! No matter who you are!"
John kissed her and said, "I love you, too, darling."
And they made up for the last two days.

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