The plans had been made and the die had been cast, the pirate fleet of Captain Bonnie descending upon the small Spanish outpost of Santa Maria del Sol. Jack Henry would lead the landing party and his single cannon against the rear gate of the fort. In the dark of the night, Jack and his landing party were set ashore three miles to the south of the fort. In addition to the landing party an assault force of 100 men were placed under his command.
The plan was simple enough, through the darkness of the night the Spaniard would guide the pirates through the thick swamp along a small path to the rear of the fort. The pirates would remain hidden in the swamp until first light and wait for the sound of cannons from the pirate fleet firing upon Santa Maria del Sol. Jack would fire the cannon at the rear of the fort hopefully splintering the gate. The assault force would storm through the gate and up the ramparts to seize the cannons of the fort. The landing party would follow in the event that the Spanish were able to survive the shock of the assault force.
Jack placed Captain Bonnie's man, Hanson in charge of the assault force. Hanson would spearhead the attack, and if all went well Jack would be rid of him. Thomas Jacobs, Captain Bonnie's other man insisted on guarding the Spaniard lest there be any treachery. Jacob's had bound the Spaniard with a noose about his neck. He took great delight of occasionally poking his prisoner with the sharp end of his sword to remind the poor man of his fate should he betray the pirates.
The path was hardly a path at all but more of a deer path through the swamps. The pirates struggled to pull the cannon through the wet ground of the swamp. Jack forced Hanson's men to pull the cannon through the swamp, for he did not want his men to be exhausted, the landing party would be fresh for the fight. Besides, it was clear to Jack that the attack party had been selected by Bonnie himself. Men who Bonnie did not wholly trust nor need, these pirates were expendable.
Through the night the pirates made their way through the swamp in complete silence, as the Spaniard nervously guide the men onward. Whenever he hesitated or halted in the darkness, he felt the sharp end of Thomas Jacob's sword along with a sharp jerk of the noose about his neck.
It was but a short distance that took the entire night to traverse, for the way was hard and the path not so wide. And yet as the first sign of the dawn filled the eastern sky the outline of the fort appeared across a clearing in the swamp.
The Spaniard, halted at the edge of the swamp and pointed toward the gate. He spoke not a word but only stared at the edge of Jacob's sword. A smile of relief came upon him, as for the first time that night his halting did not bring the sting of Jacob's sword.
Jack ordered Jacobs to gag the Spaniard and take him to the rear.
"And Jacobs, if he even sneezes, cut his throat."
Jack then set the pirates in battle array. The ground around the fort had been cleared for fifty yards round about. A fifty yard killing field that the assault force would have to cross before reaching the gate. A gate that if not blown asunder by his cannon would halt the attack ending in a disaster for all those in his command. The cannon he placed just beyond the clearing directly in front of the gate. The Spaniard had not lied the gate was not much more than a few boards poorly constructed more useful against a small war party of local tribesmen and not much for a six pound cannon at close range.
Hanson's assault team took up the left flank in four lines of battle. Each line would be sent in successive order so as not to cause any delay through the narrow gate. Jack's landing party would follow Hanson's men in good order, marching four abreast. While Hanson's men would rush forth and up the ramparts to capture the shore batteries, the landing party would march to the main square take position across from the garrison barracks, keeping the soldiers pinned down. The cannon would be moved up to the entrance of the gate to cover any retreat if necessary.
Thus the plan was made, and now in the early dawn the pirates awaited the sound of cannon fire. Jack surveyed his lines of battle one last time. In the corner of his eye he spied the young drummer boy from the village of Frisco kneeling at the edge of the landing party. Jack crept along the line the battle line over to the boy.
"Get to the rear, over by Jacob's and the Spaniard. If the assault on the gate goes awry, flee into the swamp. Ye were never here and ye know nothing of any pirates. Ye wait back there, ye wait for me to rise up and head for the gate. Then ye can follow me in and stay behind me the entire time. Ye understand me lad?"
The young boy from Frisco nodded his head and slowly made his way to the rear. Jack almost broke the silence with laughter when he noticed that the lad had tucked a knife and a small flintlock pistol in his waist band. Never a truer pirate thought Jack.
Jack nervously sighted the cannon for the sixth time as the light of the dawn became ever brighter, if it were any longer the Sun would betray the pirates. Jack pondered, had Captain Bonnie betrayed them all. Without any ships the pirates would have no means of escape, except the treasure ship that lay at harbor within the fort of Santa Maria del Sol. Whether Bonnie showed up or not Jack determined that the assault upon the fort would be made, either he would have the fort and the ship within or he would know the hangman's noose.
A morning chorus of songbirds began to break the silence of the dawn. Jack knew he could not wait much longer, the assault would by all means need to begin. He crawled along the edge of the the battle line toward Hanson, who also seemed to be a bit anxious by rising Sun.
"With or without Bonnie, we must begin the assault before anymore light gives away our position."
Hanson nodded in agreement.
"With or without Bonnie, we go in."
Jack scurried back to the cannon. He gave one last look upon his battle line, he sighted the gun and lit the fuse. The cannon belched forth fire and iron. As the smoke cleared the pirates beheld the fiery remains of the splintered gate, with the blacken remains of the two guards who moments earlier were bored by their service at the edge of the Spanish Empire.
"Now Hanson!" Jack cried out.
Hanson led his four lines of battle forward pouring into the fort. As the sound of alarm bells began to ring inside the fort, Jack turned towards his landing party.
"Up and to your posts, landing party forward!"
The men of Frisco rose up in perfect order, muskets with fixed bayonets at the ready. The landing party, four abreast marched forth across the killing field about the fort without a shot being fired upon them. The Spanish had been caught sleeping. the pirates had gained entry. Jack ordered the cannon forward to the gate, the attack had begun well despite the absence of Bonnie. The plans had been laid and the die had been cast.
As Jack moved forward, he turned back to see if the lad from Frisco was following behind. The lad stood still with a smoking pistol in his hand. The Spaniard was nowhere in sight. The slumped body of Thomas Jacob's lay at the boy's feet.
Jack ran towards the lad.
"What have ye done boy?"
"The day the press gang came to Frisco, my mother protested that I was too young to go to war. This man plunged his dagger into her throat. He laughed. He said he hated a mouthy woman. I reckon he will never laugh again."
Jack simply nodded. The lad from Frisco had done him a good service for he had freed him of one of Bonnie's men.
"Grab him, and we will leave his body in the field about the fort. Poor Jacobs, shot while attacking the fort."
As Jack and the lad pulled the dead body of Jacobs across the field the sound of cannon fire could be heard in the distance, Bonnie had arrived.
Jack and the lad rushed through the gate and quickly caught up with the landing party falling in line. No one had noticed they were even missing.
As the landing party entered the square, Jack saw Hanson charging across the ramparts towards the shore batteries his sword crashing about the panicked Spanish soldiers. None of those guns would fire upon the pirate ships now entering the harbor. All that remained were the few soldiers in the barracks across the main square.
As the door of the barracks flew open, the landing party stood in perfect line with muskets at the ready. The sight of an armed and trained company of men surprised the first few soldiers who turned around and shut the door behind them. The garrison had been trapped within their barracks.
The sounds of battle from the ramparts began to die down as Hanson's assault crushed any foolish enough to offer resistance.
Hanson called down to Jack.
"Bonnie is here and the ships have weighed anchor. We have won the day!"
From within the barracks Jack could hear but a single voice shouting in a berating manner. An officer's voice to be sure thought Jack.
"Landing party, remain at the ready!"
For a moment all in the fort became eerily silent. All eyes of the landing party were fixed upon the door of the barracks.
Suddenly the door burst open, and an officer with his sword drawn charged out with several soldiers shouting their battle cry.
"Santiago! Santiago!"
"Ready, steady, aim fire!"
The muskets of the landing party poured out a deadly fire upon the officer who slumped to the ground. Three of the soldiers who had followed him into the square. The remaining soldiers of Spain, observing the ramparts covered with the dead bodies of their comrades with the landing party with fixed bayonets before them, halted and turned their muskets upside down in a sign of surrender.
Jack had the landing party seize their muskets. He disarmed the entire garrison and had them locked in the barracks for their own safety.
The fort of Santa Maria del Sol had been taken and with it the treasure galleon full of Mexican silver.
For a brief moment Jack thought perhaps now would be the time to defend the fort against Bonnie and free himself of these pirates once and for all. Nay it would be folly, he could count on the loyalty of the landing party, but Hanson had lost too few men and by now Bonnie himself and his entire crew would be ashore.
Jack's freedom must wait for another day.