Punishment

Chapter One: Something's Amiss

I saw in his eyes, in those first confusing moments when the lost bullet sought refuge in my side, a blur of emotions: fear, regret, concern, love, tenderness. When I realized what had happened, I could look only at him but not to say, "This is what you get." I looked at him for protection, just as he has looked at me a thousand times when they've carried him down to my table.

And he gave it.

But delirium consumed me and I lost the ability to calculate what my dearest friend was feeling by the hour. Something in my foggy brain triggered when his voice whispered deeply beside me—nothing more.

The Galapagos and back again: I recovered, as did each of our sore prides and feelings. Music returned to the Great Cabin (much to Killick's disapproval) and for my part, Captain Jack Aubrey seemed as light-humored and skilled as a leader than ever before.

"He hid it from you, I suppose," Tom Pullings tells me now. "But even after you recovered, which brought him no end of relief, I assure you, something was amiss. The Captain seemed...unsure..." Tom chooses to say, frightening me in the pit of my stomach. Hesitant—unsure—not Jack. Never Jack.