asked.
âYou have to come quick!â I said. âRotten Tooth is going to turn one of our friends into shark bait!â
I grabbed the captainâs hand and led him onto the main deck. Jack was standing on the plank, and Rotten Tooth was ordering him to march. The whole crew was gathered around to watch.
âHold it!â Captain Stinky Beard yelled out, and everyone turned to look. He walked over to the plank and demanded to know what was going on.
âArrr! These pollywogs caught a spy stealing supplies and now they want to save him!â Rotten Tooth said. âI told ye they were too softhearted to be pirates!â
Captain Stinky Beard scratched his beard. âHmm,â he muttered. âThe pirate code does say all spies must walk the plank.â
âBut Iâm not a spy!â Jack pleaded.
âAye! Heâs not a spy at all!â Inna said.
âAye!â Aaron said. âHeâs a landlubber we met on Kingâs Island.â
âA landlubber?â Captain Stinky Beard said with a gasp.
âYep!â Jack said. âI didnât mean to cause any trouble. I just wanted to see what it was like to be a real pirate kid.â
âAye! Itâs a true fact,â I said.
Rotten Tooth groaned. âArrr! Donât trust him, Capân. Heâs a spy, plain as day!â
Captain Stinky Beard flashed Rotten Tooth a mean look. âStow it,â he said. âIf ye had listened to our little shipmates in the first place, ye would have found the boy before we left port. Now we have to figure out what to do with him.â
âPlease donât make him walk the plank, sir!â we begged.
âNo, no!â said Captain Stinky Beard. âIâll not have any kids walking the plank on me ship. He either stays or goes home.â
Rotten Tooth leaned in close to Jack. âArrr! Iâm guessing youâre going to tell us how youâll be wanting to stay here and go to Pirate School,â he said.
But Jack shook his head. âNo, thanks!â he said. âI just want to go home. Pirate life is too dirty. Plus, the food is terrible !â
âAll right, then, home it is,â Captain Stinky Beard said. âAll hands, man the sails. Full reverse back to Kingâs Island!â
Jack was saved!
âHIP! HIP! HOORAY!â we shouted. Jack shouted it the loudest. Then he came over and thanked us for saving him.
âArrr! Thatâs what best mates do,â I said.
Then Jack thanked the capân.
Captain Stinky Beard patted him on the head. Then one by one, the crew returned to their duties. And when Captain Stinky Beard returned to his quarters, Rotten Tooth returned to being mean.
âYe sprogs better stay out of my sight!â he yelled. He was steamed that we had gone straight to the captain. âYe will be getting extra rotten lessons for this!â
When Rotten Tooth left, Jack apologized for getting us into trouble. âI hope youâre not mad at me,â he said.
âAre you kidding?â Aaron said. âA swell adventure is always worth getting into a little trouble.â
âAYE!â the rest of us agreed.
Slowly the ship started to turn around and sail back to Kingâs Island. Jack promised us that when we got to port, heâd show us around. âIf itâs okay with your captain,â he said.
âI think it might be, as long as we ask him really nice,â I said. âOur capân is always fair.â
âAye,â my friends agreed.
I kept my eye on the horizon. I couldnât wait to get there and explore that place again. And this time, the only thing weâd have to shop for would be Innaâs shiny bracelet.