830. Chapter 830

After Heartbreak Hotel

Episode 4.08

By

UCSBdad

Disclaimer: I'm down at the end of Lonely Street at the I Don't Own Castle Hotel. Rating: K Time: See above.

Author's note: This is a sequel to Chapters 785, 788 and 808.

Captain Kate Beckett, of the pirate ship Revenge, stood in the small church in the French Caribbean colony of Voulez Vous Couchez Avec Moi and looked over at her friend, the Governor of the island, Le Chevalier Montgomerie.

"Katherine, you are a most beautiful bride and I am proud to be walking you down the aisle to your betrothed, Dr. Castle."

Kate nervously ran her hands down her white lace gown, a gift from Le Chevalier Montgomery, and smiled at him. "I'm honored to have you escort me, but I can't help but think that my father should be doing this and my mother should have been helping me. But they are long dead, murdered by the evil Governor of Jamaica, William Bracken. And now my chances of bringing him to justice are gone forever. The papers that I had, proving his guilt were destroyed by him when I was taken prisoner.

Montgomerie gently took her hand. "Perhaps, child, you should forget about revenge and concentrate on your new life as Mrs. Castle?"

"I want to, more than anything. But I have more than my parents to avenge. Bracken's foul evil has destroyed lives all over the Caribbean. My ship is crewed by men whose freedom, livelihood and families were taken from them by Bracken. And now the King has made him Sir William Bracken."

Before either could say another word, the Wedding March began, being played by a creaky organ and a violin. Le Chevalier Montgomerie took Kate's arm and led her down the aisle. There, standing in front of the priest was her beloved, Doctor Richard Castle. To his side were his friends, Ryan, Esposito and LT. There was a space beside Richard for her, and then her bridesmaids, Alexis Castle, Jenny Ryan and L'Anie, the African queen they'd rescued from slavery.

The priest said the wedding mass slowly and with great emotion. But, as it was in Latin, neither Rick nor Kate had any idea what was said. At the appropriate places Le Chevalier Montgomerie whispered when it was time to say "I do.", and when it was time to exchange rings and finally when they could kiss. The congregation cheered as Montgomerie introduced them as Mr. and Mrs. Castle,

(Note that unlike some people, who shall remain nameless, I did not deprive you of a wedding.)

The next morning Kate awoke in her marital bed to find Rick dressed. "Stay there, my love. I just need to go outside and get some rainwater from the barrel for our morning ablutions." The newlyweds were staying in the Governor's mansion courtesy of Montgomerie, and the place actually had a bath. Castle stepped outside and as he did, Kate rolled out of bed, looking for her robe. Then she laughed. How silly. She thought. I'll be in the bath with my husband soon enough. Why dress?

She was thinking about the bath when she heard a thud and a male voice grunting. "Richard? Is there a problem?"

She ran outside to see the unconscious form of her husband being slung over a horse by a woman. She ran back in and got her pistol, but by the time she returned, the woman and her husband were gone.

Less than an hour later, Kate was dressed in sea boots with four inch heels, skin tight doeskin breeches, a silk shirt tied tightly across her midriff, exposing her toned and tan midriff and her gorgeous cleavage. Her chestnut hair was bound by a red silk scarf and atop that was a wide brimmed black hat with a red feather in the band.

"Captain Kate." Said Montgomerie. "I recognize the ship we are pursuing. It is the Sinverguenza, a formerly Spanish ship now commanded by one Kelly von Neiman. She is the offspring of an Irish trollop and a German mercenary. She is a very vicious woman."

"Vicious? You haven't seen me when my husband gets kidnapped." Kate growled. She raised her telescope to her eye. "I make her to be a fourteen gun brig. We have twice the guns she does and our weight of metal is three times hers." Kate suddenly swore. "But we can't fight her with our cannons. Rick could be killed. We'll have to board her." She turned to Javier and Kevin. "Prepare your boarders. I'll lead them myself."

"Senora, please, if you should die…."

"I won't, Javier." Kate turned to the drummer boys standing beside her. "Beat to quarters." As the drummers began, Kate saw Alexis come on deck, her rapier at her side and a brace of pistols tucked in her sash. "Alexis, you should go below. If you were to be hurt…"

"Kate, my father is over there. I'm going if you are."

Kate just nodded.

"Captain!" Cried the lookout. "They're taking in sail and slowing. They must mean to fight."

Kate put her spyglass back to her eye and what she saw chilled her to her marrow. The other ship was throwing bloody meat overboard and had attracted a horde of sharks. Standing with his hands tied behind him at the gangway was Rick with Kelly von Neiman beside him. As the ships came broadside to broadside, von Neiman called out. "Open fire or try to board me, and over he goes. The sharks will make short work of him."

Kate nodded and reluctantly ordered the ship to take in sail. The Sinverguenza sailed away.

"She's taking him to Bracken, damn his eyes." Said Ryan.

Epsosito nodded. "They will put him in el Hotel de Desamor, the name by which the unfortunates there call Bracken's prison."

"Then we'll just get him out." Kate said determinedly.

"Katherine, "Montgomerie said, "Bracken will know we are coming. It's a trap."

Kate nodded. "And so it is, but at least we know it's a trap."

"How will that help?" Esposito asked.

"I have a cunning plan." She said with a smile.

Later that night, the Revenge sailed into the harbor of Kingston Jamaica. Three ships were anchored in the harbor. Bracken's yacht, the Golden Odyssey, the Sinverguenza, and a merchant ship crammed to the gunnels with loot taken from ships of every nation in the Caribbean which was to go to London the next day to sell her stolen cargo and make Bracken even wealthier than he was

As the Revenge fired a broadside into the lightly built Golden Odyssey, people on shore could see he slender figure of a young woman standing on the quarterdeck, directing fire. Bracken's yacht, with no crew aboard, began to sink almost at once. From his mansion, Governor Bracken was mad with rage. "Send the troops to man the harbor batteries. I want that ship sunk and I want that bitch captured and hung by tomorrow."

"But, sir, "said Colonel Marks, the commander of the garrison, 'we need to…"

"You need to do as you're ordered." Screamed Bracken.

Meanwhile a lone figure dressed all in black scaled the wall of the prison and headed silently for the dungeon. As she watched, the soldiers on guard duty ran to the harbor to man the defenses. She heard one man yell that the Sinverguenza was ablaze. She smiled.

In the deepest part of the dungeon, she found her husband, bound and gagged, tied to a chair. As soon as she pulled he gag off, he spoke. "Kate, you must leave. It's a trap. Run."

"I know it's a trap." She turned and drew her rapier to face Kelly von Neiman, who now stood in the doorway between her and freedom, her own rapier in hand.

Von Neiman nodded towards Rick. "I assume it's his whelp that's commanding your ship? Making that idiot Bracken think it's you? Well, I'll just have to catch her later and stretch her neck as well."

"Easier said than done." Kate said with a smile. As she did so, von Neiman attacked, but Kate parried the blow. For several minutes they slowly fenced, working out the other's strategies, weaknesses and strengths. Then von Neiman attacked boldly, missing Kate's throat by a whisker. Kate slashed back opening a cut under the other woman's eye.

Von Neiman backed up and wiped the blood from her face. "For that, I'll leave your face so badly cut, he'll never look at you again."

She attacked and drove Kate steadily back until she was pressed against the wall of the dungeon. As von Neiman smiled at her upcoming victory, Kate drew a small pistol from her boot and shot von Neiman in the stomach. She clutched her stomach with one hand and staggered backwards.

"Did I mention that I cheat?" She asked, knocking the rapier from von Neiman's hand. Then she drove a yard of steel into von Neiman's heart and out her back. She fell to the floor, dead.

Kate used her sword to cut Rick's bonds. "We need to go. There's a small boat just down the beach."

Rick nodded. "Okay, but next time I plan the honeymoon. This one was terrible."

"Okay. But how about the bedroom of Le Chevalier Montgomerie's mansion?"