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XVI.
Guthriedead
Season Two
Number Sixteen
Date Aired March 14th, 2015
Writer Jonathan E. Steinberg
Robert Levine
Director Steve Boyum
Previous XV.
Next XVII.
"It would seem these monsters are men..."
―Abigail Ashe

Captain Flint and Miranda prepare to enter Charles Town; Eleanor learns Max's intentions; Silver must deal with his co-conspirators; and Vane makes a deadly move.

Synopsis[]

The episode opens with Abigail Ashe hiding below deck of the Good Fortune as Ned Low's men are boarding. She is huddled under the stairs with Miranda, who whispers, "It's all right, you're all right, I'm here."

Seconds later, Low's men pull Miranda away screaming, as Low discovers Abigail.

Abigail awakes from her nightmare to Miranda's comforting touch, whispering the same words of comfort as she did in Abigail's dream.

She is currently aboard Flint's ship on her way back to Charles Town to the safety of her father, Lord Peter Ashe. She writes in her journal about how her preconceived notions about pirates have begun to change. Flint and Mrs. Barlow begin to discuss how well Abigail seems to be taking everything, and reminisce about the last time they saw her, when she was just five, hiding behind her mother's dress.

Back in Nassau, Featherstone arrives, somewhat vexed, at Rackham's brothel. He is upset that he must lie to his men about why they are clearing everything out of the hull of the Colonial Dawn. Rackham reminds him that he must keep it a secret if they are to ever achieve the goal of taking the Urca gold. Once Featherstone leaves, Max reveals that Anne Bonny has left Nassau. Rackham is clearly distraught over her departure.

Downstairs in the brothel, a young prostitute observes Featherstone arguing with Idelle. She leaves the brothel and goes to a house where Mrs. Mapleton has resided since being dismissed by Rackham. She tells Mapleton about what is going on at the brothel, with Featherstone having secret meetings with Max and Rackham. Mapleton pays her extra for her silence before sending her away.

Ep16-6

Mapleton then meets with Eleanor Guthrie, revealing that she has been hired by Eleanor to keep an eye on what Max is doing in the brothel. She tells Eleanor that Charlotte has disappeared, allegedly fleeing with Logan away from Nassau. Mapleton knows this cannot be true, as Charlotte entrusted Mapleton with her savings, which she still possesses. She tells Eleanor that she believes Max and Rackham are conspiring to send the Colonial Dawn to retrieve the gold whilst Flint is taking Abigail back to Charles Town.

Aboard Flint's ship, John Silver is giving the "goings-on" to the crew. He begins to tell a story about the horrors that he had seen when he had last visited Charles Town. He tells them about the gunboats that patrol the harbour and about an execution he witnessed of a pirate. Mr. Scott and Billy Bones are observing this when Bones reveals to Scott that Silver is just retelling a story from another pirate, surmising that it would be unwise to believe anything that Silver says. As Silver is finishing his story, he sees Nicholas snickering in the back of the crowd. Following his speech, Silver confronts Nicholas and Vincent below decks, demanding that they shut their mouths and not do anything that might give their scheme away. When Nicholas walks away, Silver tells Vincent that Nicholas has the potential to be a serious problem for them both.

Ep16-5

Elsewhere on the ship, Billy Bones tells Flint that De Groot thinks they can gain some speed by adjusting the sails, but since this is to be done at night, it is riskier than usual. Flint tells him to go ahead and do it. As Bones leaves, Abigail asks about him, since his demeanor is not like the other pirates on the crew. Flint tells Abigail that Bones's parents were Levellers from Kensington who spoke out about the impressment of men and boys into the Navy. One day, Bones had been handing out pamphlets supporting the abolition of impressment when he was, somewhat ironically, taken by a press gang. When he was rescued by Flint many years later, Bones killed the man who had captured him. However, he refused to go home because he did not think his father would approve of his becoming a murderer.

On the top deck, De Groot orders Nicholas to go up the main mast and release the sails. As he is up there, Vincent and Silver are below decks and Vincent reveals that he has taken care of the problem with Nicholas. He reveals that he has sabotaged the footing rope on the main mast, knowing that Nicholas was going to go up there, thus leading to Nicholas falling to his death. Silver is aghast and runs to the top deck just in time to see Nicholas fall and die.

Back in Nassau, Featherstone, Rackham, and Max are trying to figure out what they are going to do once they actually get the gold back to Nassau. They are brainstorming where they are going to hide it. The best Featherstone can do is suggest that they bury it in a hole. Rackham then comes up with the idea of storing the gold in the fortress.

In Eleanor's tavern, Frasier approaches Eleanor and tells her that the Colonial Dawn is most certainly emptying her hold, giving further credence to the theory Mrs. Mapleton had proposed. Frasier tells Eleanor about the damage that could be done were the gold ever to reach the shores of Nassau. He states that pirates with that much gold will only be more empowered than ever and that it would surely kill any hopes of reconciliation with England. Eleanor tells him that the only way to actually stop the plan is to have everyone killed, including Max and Rackham. She declares that is something that she absolutely will not do.

Back on Flint's ship, the men are sewing Nicholas into his burial bag. Silver confronts Vincent about his decision to murder Nicholas. Vincent tells Silver that earlier in the day Silver gave him a look that indicated that they should dispose of the problem. Silver denies ever giving such a look to Vincent. Later, the men above decks bury Nicholas at sea.

Ep16-10

Soon, Flint's ship arrives in Charles Town harbour. Below decks, Abigail speaks to Flint and Barlow. She tells them the reason why her father had changed from a reasonable man to such a hater of pirates. She states that it was the murder of Alfred Hamilton aboard the Maria Aleyne by Flint and his men that changed his view and that from then on he would dedicate his life to eradicating piracy from the New World. In light of this, Abigail requests that as soon as she is returned that Flint should turn around and sail away.

Up on the top deck, Flint tells Bones and Scott that he wants them to stay out of range of the patrol boats in the harbour. If they stay out of range it is a sign that they mean no harm. He also tells them that he does not want a single gun port to be opened, and no men are to carry weapons on deck. Flint then tells Barlow that he wishes her to stay aboard because he fears that Ashe will see her as someone who is aiding a pirate and hang her as well as him. Barlow then tells Flint that she is the reason Alfred Hamilton was killed because she is the one who uncovered that he was going to be a passenger on that ship. So she feels that she is as culpable of that sin as Flint is. Flint reconsiders and allows her to join him in going ashore.

Ep16-4

A man approaches in a small boat from the shore asking for Captain Vane. Flint responds that he is not Vane and that he has no demands, but that he is a request to see Peter Ashe. When he is rowed to shore, he is met by one of Ashe's subordinates, William Rhett. As Rhett is walking Flint and Barlow through the town, Flint is suddenly set upon by men who repeatedly kick him. Abigail intervenes and demands that they stop, explaining that Flint is an old friend of her father's. Once inside the governor's mansion, Abigail is reunited with her father. When Ashe walks into the room and stands in front of Flint and Mrs. Barlow, there is silence as he looks Flint in the eye. After a few moments a look of recognition comes across all their faces and Lord Ashe states: "welcome to Charles Town."

Ep16-1

Back in Nassau, Rackham and Featherstone stand outside the fortress knocking on the door. They hear no noise and can see vultures flying over head. When it becomes apparent that no one is inside, Rackham and his men batter the wall down. Inside they find the fort abandoned, save for the crucified corpse of Richard Guthrie. When Eleanor arrives to see the body, she is given a note from Charles Vane which was pinned to her father's corpse. The note states that Vane is no longer a slave but is a free man and that he wishes Nassau to remain free. He writes that Richard Guthrie was engaged in an effort to return Nassau to the King of England and that he therefore deserved to die a traitors death.

He says he was warned about Eleanor betraying him but had hoped they shared enough history for that not to happen. He further states that he will be tracking Flint's ship to Charles Town. While Flint's attention is elsewhere, he plans to take the Spanish Man O War because that is the price he asked to give up Abigail to Flint, but Eleanor stole the girl and he was never compensated. The episode ends with Vane and his crew lying in wait near the Spanish Man O War in the shallow marshes outside Charles Town.

Memorable Quotes[]

"It is astonishing how much damage a woman can do once you let her in the door."
―Rackham to Featherstone[src]
"It would seem these monsters are men...and it would seem these men fear their own monsters: an empire, a navy, a king. My father."
―Abigail Ashe in her journal[src]

Trivia[]

  • Anne Bonny does not appear in this episode.
  • Tyson and Howard are portrayed by uncredited extras, however they have been appearing since episode XI. and were introduced as part of Hornigold's crew.
  • In real life, William Rhett was a plantation owner and colonel in the Carolina Militia. He was most famous for catching the pirate Stede Bonnet in 1718. His house, completed in 1716, still stands in Charles Town.
  • At first glance it seems a mystery how Charles Vane and his men got to Charles Town given that they clearly did not use the Fancywhich is stated to still be anchored in the bay. If you look closely, small boats are seen in the background when they are revealed to be lying in wait in the marsh, although it would have been difficult if not impossible to successfully follow a large ship like Flint's with skiffs over the course of a 556 mile journey. 

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  • Boat Captain
  • Esther
  • Butcher

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  • Ned Low (flash-back)
  • Holmes (flash-back)
  • Alfred Hamilton (flash-back)

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