After the death of his parents, Russell tried to find his grandfather to share this sad news with him, but no matter how much he searched for him, his grandfather was nowhere to be found. When Russell returned home, he was completely shocked by what had happened. He couldn't believe that his parents had died so unexpectedly and tragically, and his grandfather had simply disappeared without a trace. For several days after the funeral, he just sat in his room, did not communicate with anyone and did not eat anything.

***

The librarian Russell worked for was concerned about the boy's absence.

"Is he really all right?", - he thought, sitting at his workplace.

The man worked with the guy for almost 3 years, so he became attached to him. He decided to close the library for a while and go check on Russell. When he got to his house, the door was open, but there was no one inside. He came several times a day for two weeks, but the boy was never at home. No one has seen him since that moment.

***

The sun has already begun to touch the horizon, and the sky over the heads of the inhabitants of the island has turned dark orange. A light breeze was blowing from the sea. There was a ship in the port of the city, on the mast of which hung a black flag with a skull.

Benjamin Hatch, the captain of the crew, stood at the stern, looking at the port town, which seemed to him lonely and lifeless. He came from a noble house that was far away from here, but he spent his whole life at sea. Ben was known for his cunning and quick mind, which helped him get out of the most difficult situations. He was very cruel to his rivals, but treated his team like a family. His favorite drink is rum and lemon.

"Look, Captain!", - the first mate by the name of Johnny Black interrupted his thoughts, whose voice was ringing, but at the same time rude, - "There are a couple of merchants standing on the dock over there. I think we can go to them and buy everything we need."

"Hmm...", - the captain continued to look at the port town, and then answered his subordinate without even looking back at him, - "Let's go!"

Captain Hatch and Johnny Black approached the merchants who were focused on their wares, but as soon as they heard the pirates' footsteps, they turned around and met them with looks full of suspicion and distrust.

Johnny took the first step, approaching the merchants with a smile, - "Good afternoon, gentlemen. You probably know who we are and why we are here?", - he asked.

"Of course, we know that you are pirates. Moreover, you are quite famous crew. I assume that you want to buy food, water and God knows what else from us.", - one of the merchants replied.

"You're really smart, gentleman. And, of course, we are ready to pay for your goods. But before we start haggling, I'd like to know what you have in stock?", - Black said.

The merchants began to list their goods and prices, and Black listened attentively and wrote everything down in a small notebook that he always carried with him.

"Well, gentlemen, I think we can come to an agreement.", - Black said when the merchants had finished listing their goods, - "We are ready to buy from you everything you have offered at the price you have named. But only on the condition that you add a few more products that we assume you can offer."

"Which products exactly do you want to add to the list?", - one of the merchants asked.

"Gunpowder and cannonballs.", - Black said sharply.

The merchants looked at each other, thought for a moment, and then nodded.

"Good. We agree. But keep in mind that it will not be cheap.", - said one of the merchants.

Black held out his hand to the merchant and smiled broadly. He understood that under normal conditions, no one in their right mind would agree to trade with pirates, so he decided not to bring down prices, but Johnny was still able to add to the shopping list gunpowder, which was necessary for cannons and pistols, as well as cores for ship guns, which could definitely be used.

All this action was observed by a man in a dressing gown, who was standing far enough away from these people, but at the same time he saw them well and heard them clearly.