When CID stumbled upon Captain Jack Sparrow

Chapter 1

Shreya tilted her head back and soaked in the tropical sun rays, the UV's warming her skin. She had got a bit of a tan but that wasn't going to stop her from enjoying the sun and water on Caribbean lands.

Blue sunglasses covering her eyes, she adjusted the beach umbrella against the glare of the sun and retrieved the bottle of sunscreen from their bag and proceeded to slather it on her arms a.

'This is amazing! I could live here my entire life!' said Purvi who was lounging beside her.

Few members of the CID team were on a much deserved Caribbean Vacation for a week.

'Wanna join me for a swim?' asked Shreya.

'Nope I would prefer sitting here and admire the sea and inhale the salty air' said Purvi.

'Okay. I will be right back' said Shreya.

She sprinted ahead a bit and jumped into the sea. Cold water hit her body. It was so clear that she could see tiny fish swimming around her. Shreya relaxed a bit and dived under water. It was turning out to be one perfect vacation. She could hear excited voices from other people who were surfing or parasailing.

A quarter hour later, she made her way back to the shore, adjusting her swim suit. She saw few men watching her, their eyes filled with desire.

She approached the now relatively empty stretch of the beach where she spotted their chairs with a beach umbrella between them. Purvi was nowhere to be seen. Shreya put on her sunglasses and wrapped a towel around her.

She was about to go back to the hotel when she spotted a signboard - 'Surfboards and Rafts for Rent'

Her eyes sparkled with excitement. She ran towards the shop.

'Hello there! How can I help you?' the shop owner greeted her.

'Hi! I was wondering if I could get a Raft on rent' said Shreya.

'Yeah I have got it right here. Its $10 an hour' he said pointing to his right.

'Oh wow! Amazing! What are they made of? And do they hold in rough seas?' she asked.

'It's made up of Bamboo, wooden planks and reeds. It holds pretty well in stormy seas. But there is a likely possibility that you will fall off its flat surface' he said chuckling.

'Okay. I am all for it. Just give me a minute I'll be right back.' said Shreya grinning.

She ran into the changing room and changed into a pair of jeans and T-shirt. She had always wanted to roam the island alone on a raft. And she was definitely not going to let go of the opportunity. There was lot of time till lunch so she decided she would go right then.

She paid $20 and asked, 'Do you know any nearby islands where I can go?'

'There are quite a lot. There you go. You will get everything you need right here in this brochure' said the Shop owner.

'Do you know anything about Isla Cruces? I've heard it's really beautiful' said Shreya.

'It's beautiful all right but you would not want to go there all by yourself unless you are planning an escapade with your boyfriend' he said smirking at her.

A familiar face hovered in her mind's eye and she smiled.

'No. I am not planning an escapade. But why wouldn't I want to go there alone?' she asked.

'You see it's very lonely. Nobody lives there. And then we have heard all sorts of stories about it being haunted and stuff. Of course most of them would be fake but still nobody ventures out there alone' he said shrugging his shoulders.

'I see. How far is it from here?' she asked.

'About 6 - 7 nautical miles' he said.

'Okay. Thanks' said Shreya.

'Hey! You better not go there. There are lot of other place to hang out' he called after her.

'No. I am not going there. Don't worry' lied Shreya.

She had made up her mind. Isla Cruces was the only place she was going to visit. What could happen to her in broad daylight? She was a CID officer after all. She could take care of herself.

She set off not bothering to inform anyone. She decided she would tell them her adventures over lunch.

Her Raft sliced through the crystal blue water. Seagulls flew overhead and light breeze blew over her face. It was indeed a perfect sunny day. She waded through the sea waves. Isla Cruces was listed on the brochure and it was not too far.

Within some time, she had reached her destination. The sight was indeed captivating.

She pulled the raft onto the soft white sand. Palm trees swayed along with the wind and small tropical shrubs added colour to the surroundings. She was sure even hours would not be enough to satiate her desire to feast her eyes upon the surroundings.

A few feet ahead, she spotted a brown box.

'What's that?' Shreya wondered.

She made her way towards it leaving deep wet footprints in the sand behind her.

As she approached the mysterious box, she realised it was some kind of an antique chest. To her surprise, it was unlocked and the key was still fitted inside the lock.

Unable to contain her curiosity, she opened it very cautiously.

She gasped and for a moment she forgot breathing as she saw the contents of the Chest.

The Chest was filled with white sand and there laid a heart inside. It was a human heart. It was still beating as if it was alive.

'What the hell is a beating heart doing in a Chest on this lonely island?!' Shreya exclaimed.

She looked around the island as if to spot someone. But nobody was in sight.

'That's so weird! I have never seen anything like it in my life! I think I could tell others' thought Shreya.

She quickly dialled Purvi's number.

'Shreya! Where the hell are you? I was looking for you all over the beach!' said Purvi.

'I am at Isla Cruces!' exclaimed Shreya.

'Isla what?' asked Purvi.

'Never mind that you guys should get down here at once! You won't believe what I found! A heart! A beating heart! It was locked in a chest and it was buried into the sand! This place is not too far! It took just half an hour for me to wade my raft through the sea!' said Shreya breathlessly.

'What?! Gosh! Crime and mystery follow us everywhere we go! Can't they leave us alone at least when we are on holiday?' asked Purvi angrily.

'Can't help it' said Shreya laughing.

'How do we get to this Isla the... uh... whatever?' asked Purvi.

Shreya didn't reply to her question. There was complete silence from the other end.

'Hello? Shreya are you on the line? Helooooo?' Purvi demanded.

There was a moment of silence and then the call was disconnected.

Purvi tried calling her back but her cell phone was switched off.

'Uh-oh. Darn it! There goes the Caribbean vacation down the drain!' Purvi muttered.

'Daya sir!' She called running back to the hotel.

O-o-o-o

A shadow blocked the Caribbean sun and Shreya stopped talking on the phone abruptly. She turned and saw a very handsome man dressed in strange clothes watching her closely.

Shreya was surprised to see a living soul. The island had appeared quite lonely when she had arrived some time ago.

Shreya hid the heart in the sand hoping he hadn't noticed it.

The man smiled flashing his rum stained teeth.

'Ah! What brings such a charming young woman to this isolated place?' he asked.

Shreya couldn't speak. She stood there, still gawking at him.

The man had a bronze tinged skin and brown eyes. He wore a red coloured bandana on his forehead. A very shabby looking tri- corn hat sat atop his head. His hair was braided and dreadlocked and it had colourful beads on them.

Shreya could see his muscular chest under a white shirt which he wore along with a jacket and faded pants complete with sea boots.

She saw two naval Cutlasses against his side.

He held a bottle of Rum in one hand and a Compass in the other.

In spite of the weird clothes he was wearing, Shreya couldn't help noticing that he was extremely handsome.

'What's your name beautiful?' he asked.

'Who are you?' asked Shreya.

'Captain Jack Sparrow' said the man.

'Oh. Captain Jack Sparrow!' said Shreya.

'Yes!' said Jack proudly.

'I've never heard of you before' said Shreya.

'Then you must be some special kind of stupid!' snapped Jack.

'Shut up!' Shreya retorted. 'What do you want?'

'You.' said Jack smiling.

'Excuse me?' Shreya asked.

'Uh... What I want actually is with you and that's why I want you, savvy?' he asked consulting his Compass.

Shreya found Captain Jack Sparrow quite interesting. She wanted to find out more about this strange man. She couldn't stop throwing questions at him.

'I didn't see you when I came here!' said Shreya.

'I was drowned in Rum!' said Jack smacking his lips.

'And why are you wearing such strange clothes? Why aren't you dressed like normal people? It looks like you escaped from some fancy dress competition!' said Shreya giggling.

'Not funny missy! I am a Pirate and Captain of the Black Pearl. That's the dress for Pirates' said Jack.

'Gosh! Pirates! You are good at telling tales!' said Shreya laughing.

'I am not telling a tale missy!' said Jack.

'I had read somewhere that nobody lives on Isla Cruces. How did you survive on this island?' she asked.

'Stop talking Missy! I don't remember how I came here but I certainly survived drinking Rum. I was here to find the Dead Man's Chest! I found it all right but then I forgot where I had found it and love, thanks to you, for leading me to it. My Compass has been acting strange lately ever since that un - dead Monkey almost swallowed it!' said Jack.

'I don't understand you at all! What are you talking about? I guess you've had too much of Rum to drink!' said Shreya.

'Never mind love! Now kindly hand me that heart which you have got' said Jack.

Shreya's heart skipped a beat. So he had seen that heart after all. Darn it! Why was the CID team taking so long to reach? She couldn't hand it the heart to Jack Sparrow. What if he was the killer? What if he was a bad guy? All Shreya could think of right then was to keep Jack Sparrow engrossed in talking till the CID team arrived. She knew all of them would be able to overpower him quite easily.

'What? Which heart are you talking about?' asked Shreya trying to act dumb.

'I know you have hidden Davy Jones' heart in the sand! Will you be kind enough to hand it over to me or shall I help myself?' asked Jack.

'Who the hell is Davy Jones now?' Shreya wondered.

She grabbed the slimy heart from the sand and wrapped it in a dirty cloth.

'I don't think I can hand this to you Mr Sparrow. I found it first so I am going to keep it. Finders Keepers!' said Shreya.

'You really think you found it first? Do you think the Chest was kept with a key to unlock it so that you can find it?' asked Jack.

'How do I know whether you are telling the truth or not? How can I trust a Pirate?' asked Shreya.

'So you believe that I am a Pirate?' asked Jack.

Before Shreya could speak anything further, they heard a Splash.

The sea began swirling angrily. The clouds blocked the sun shining overhead. It felt as if the entire sea bed was shaking.

'What's happening?' Shreya whispered.

Something huge rose from beneath the churning waves.

'It's a mast!' Shreya exclaimed pointing a trembling finger at a huge ship which loomed in front of them.

'It's the Flying Dutchman' said Jack in a rather bored voice.

'The Flying Dutchman? What's that?' asked Shreya looking at him.

'It's a ghost ship which roams the seas searching for dead souls who are lost at the sea. It captures them so that they can serve the vessel. Once captured the crew is cursed and bound by oath to serve the Dutchman for one hundred years. The ship belongs to Captain Davy Jones whose heart happens to be in your hand right now!' said Jack smirking at Shreya who was listening to him with a horrified expression on her face.