The Threat in the West Indies (The Merriman Chronicles Book 4)

by Roger Burnage

  Chapter 30 - The End of another Traitor

  Meanwhile Meyberg was riding as fast as he could to a plantation where he hoped to find a place to hide, but his horse stumbled in the darkness and fell, breaking its neck, trapping Meyberg’s leg beneath its body and try though he might to escape he was held firmly. Daylight was beginning to steal over the sky when a running man approached him. “Help me, please help me,” he called. The man stopped and moved closer until Meyberg recognised him. It was Beadle, panting for breath.

  “What are you doing here?” gasped Meyberg, grimacing in pain. “Same as you I expect, trying to escape, your office was raided and I only just managed to get away,” said Beadle. “I was going to go to the plantation you sent me to with your letters. I know you weren't an honest man so I thought I could hide there. Oh, and Robinson is dead, they caught him.”

  “That's where I was going until this wretched nag fell on me. If you can help me we could go on together. They know me there and I can speak for you.” After much struggling and heaving Meyberg's leg was freed and they set off together, slowly because Meyberg had a severe limp.

  At the Egerton plantation it was a scene of feverish activity, slaves were loading furniture and bundles of goods on to mule drawn wagons and Egerton and his wife were chivvying them on. A smaller carriage was loaded with various boxes, clothing and weapons whilst Isabelle was there screaming at the slaves to work faster. She saw Beadle and Meyberg at once as they approached and called to her husband. He turned and saw them. “What are you two doing here? We are leaving and there's no room for you.” “Please Sir, I've served you well for many years and my friend too, can't we go?” begged Meyberg. “No, and that is final. I already knew that your place was raided. God knows what will be found there to tell people what we do, nor can I leave you here to talk if captured.”

  He called two rough looking men to him and said “take these two away; I don't want to see them again.” He drew his hand across his throat significantly as the men grabbed Meyberg and Beadle and started to drag them away behind some trees. “Where are you taking us?” screamed Beadle, “I can help you.” “Shut your mouth, you'll soon see,” snarled one of them. Meyberg, limping painfully offered no resistance, he seemed to have accepted his fate and said quietly “They're going to kill us you fool, it's obvious.” “No, you can't,” screamed Beadle struggling like a mad thing, “You can't, you can't.” The men took no notice and dragged them behind the trees and threw them to the ground. A few moments later Egerton heard two pistol shots and the two men reappeared, one of them casually wiping his knife on a handful of grass.

  “That will have to do,” shouted Egerton to the slaves, “we have to go.” He and his wife climbed into the carriage and set off down a different road followed by the lumbering wagons.

  Chapter 31 - Documents and more Documents

  While his men were ashore Merriman was in a fever of impatience to know what had happened. He had implicit trust in his officers but something unexpected could always happen. He paced his cabin but with the low headroom it was uncomfortable and he was forced on deck. He walked up and down until he realised that his image of the calm and confident Captain was in danger of being lost. He stood, looking ashore when Mr. Grahame appeared beside him. There was only the duty watch on deck and they were pretending not to notice him but they might wonder.

  Merriman turned to him saying “A lovely night Sir, mild up here but my cabin's too hot.........” He was interrupted by the faint sound of shots and a little later the muffled sound of a volley of musketry. “Lieutenant Laing, my gig, with the crew armed. I must see what is going on.” Laing bellowed orders and Merriman's boat crew arrived on deck, some of them still pulling on their shirts. The boat, tied up astern, was quickly pulled alongside and with the bos'n Owen bawling orders the crew practically fell in followed more slowly by Merriman with all the dignity he could muster.

  The boat nearly flew over the water and pulled up alongside some weed covered stone steps. “Three of you come with me, the rest of you stay here.” he said. On the quayside he paused with three armed men behind him. One of them was Owen who silently handed him his sword. Hardly had they moved from the quayside then the main party of marines and seamen appeared burdened with sacks, boxes and sheets tied up round something. Lieutenants Andrews and St John led them, carrying lanterns and stopped so abruptly that the men behind bumped into one another and some bundles fell onto the cobbles.

  Andrews touched his hat and reported. “Sir, the plan almost succeeded, we were shot at, no harm done, we fired back and got one of them. He died but told us he was a lawyer name of Johnson. The other man fled but we raided the man Meyberg's place but he also fled before we could stop him.” “Have we any casualties Mr. Andrews?” asked Merriman. “Only one Sir, a marine with a pistol ball in his shoulder. We brought all the papers and records and accounting books we could find.” he said indicating the load carried by the sweating marines and seamen. “We left a guard on the place Sir because we found a lot of expensive goods there.”

  “Well done you men, take a rest, Owen, take the gig back with the wounded marine and fetch the cutter to carry us all and these bundles back to the ship.” While they waited the officers related more of what had happened. “I broke into a big desk, at least marine Jones Two did, and I put everything in it into a separate bundle. Might be the most important of the lot Sir,” said Andrews.

  “It may be so, but with everything back on board we can investigate it all in the morning. I see some soldiers coming to find out what is happening, I'll deal with them now and they can report back to their officers.”

  On board Aphrodite the bundles were put in various secure places and the men dismissed. Mr. Grahame was all agog to know what had happened and once in Merriman's cabin he was given a brief account. “All sounds very successful James, but as you say we can look at these books and papers in daylight tomorrow.”

  Chapter 32 - Important Information Found

  Aboard Aphrodite, Merriman and Grahame with Andrews and St John were spreading papers and books all over the cabin sole which was covered by a black and white chequered canvas. St James was on his knees looking through a pile of account books but, as he said “Only records of financial dealings with the names of his customers Sir. Perhaps the Governor's secretary can sort out the names. There's another book here listing all the people he has lent money to but it all seems innocuous Sir.” “Right, there is nothing much here in all these papers either,” said Merriman, “Let us pile all of them in that corner and we can concentrate on the stuff David got out of Meyberg's locked desk.”

  The contents of the desk revealed a lot. Most of it concerned dealings with Egerton, goods bought and sold and copies of incriminating letters between the two men. There was no doubt that Egerton was the man they were after and they sat back in satisfaction. “We've got him James.” said Grahame, but Merriman replied, “We have the proof but we haven't got the man Sir.” They sat in silence for some minutes, thinking before Merriman shot to his feet and said “Egerton must have been warned by now and will want to escape. Are any of the ships in the harbour his?”

  “Yes, there are three I think,” said Andrews scrabbling about among the papers, “Here we are, a large trading vessel called The Enterprise and two of his own fleet of small warships are here, I've seen them, The trader is more like an East Indiaman and probably pierced for cannon, and the other two are Adventure and Avenger. I've seen them Sir, all together on the other side of the harbour.”

  “Good” said Merriman, I shall go and tell the Admiral what we have found and you Mr. Andrews can go and see the Colonel, my compliments, tell him everything and will he set a guard on Meyberg's house to let our marines come back here. Mr. Grahame, would you go and see Sir George, take all those papers and documents to him. Tell him about the stolen goods, he will have to deal with them. I'll detail a petty officer and some men to carry all this stuff to the boat and up to the Governor's offices for you. And
would you take your uncle ashore with you as I think there will be some fighting to be done? Any questions Gentlemen? No? Then let us begin.”

  Very quickly the cutter delivered them and the bundles further along the quayside and each set off to see the various people as Merriman had ordered. Aboard the Flagship he was immediately shown in to see the Admiral who listened keenly to all he was told. “It seems you have done well Mr. Merriman. Do you think Egerton will try to escape by sea in his own ship?” “I'm certain of it Sir, he has nowhere else here he can go. The papers and books we found incriminate him without a shadow of a doubt so what else can he do? And he has three ships here now on the other side of the harbour.”

  “Has he by Jove, can you see them from here?” “From the deck Sir, but not from your cabin.” They both surveyed the ships by telescope, the trader was seen to be loading and all three seemed to be preparing to sail. The Admiral was not slow to make up his mind, “If they get too far away we shall loose them. You will take your ship and stop them or at least follow them and I'll give the Captains of our two frigates orders to follow you as rapidly as they can. Now be off with you.”

  Chapter 33 - The chase is on

  As he was rowed back to his ship Merriman could see the signal flags fluttering on the Flagship and almost immediately boats left the two frigates taking the two Captains to the Admiral. He realised also that men were almost running aloft on both and looking back at the signal flags he saw the command 'Prepare to sail' flying. He arrived back to his own ship just as the cutter bearing his officers and the marines did. They backed water to allow him on board first with the bos'n's whistles loud and a depleted marine guard standing there under command of a corporal and the First Lieutenant waiting to greet him. “Mr. Laing, we must leave at once, all hands prepare for leaving harbour.” Laing bellowed orders and it was all bustle, the anchor party mustered on the fo’c’sle, groups of men gathering below each mast to be checked off by their petty officers before hastening aloft and out onto the yards. Others hauled the boats alongside to be lifted into their places on deck and yet more men manning the capstan to raise the anchor. Merriman smiled in satisfaction, all appeared to be chaos but he knew that everybody knew his place and order was soon restored with everybody looking towards him for orders. He looked round, saw Lieutenant Andrews but no Mr. Grahame. “Mr. Andrews, where is Mr. Grahame?” “He told me to go without him Sir, said it would take hours before all the papers were sorted by himself and the Governor's secretaries and clerks.”

  “We'll have to leave him then.” He turned to Lieutenant Laing and nodded. It was all Laing needed, he shouted the order to the waiting men and everything happened at once. The men at the windlass began to bring the ship up to her anchor and other men started hoisting the headsails. As soon as the anchor cable was up and down, indicating that the anchor was clear the officer there, Lieutenant Gorman, signaled back to the quarter deck where Laing bellowed the order “Haul in fores'l sheets, quickly now you lazy fools.” Indeed as the anchor ceased to grip, the ship's head began to turn the wrong way and it was only the speedy action with the jib sheets that swung it back to be sheeted in on the other tack. “Tops'ls now Mr. Laing,” said Merriman and at the order, the Topmen already aloft loosed the gaskets and as the sail was quickly sheeted home and Aphrodite slowly headed for the harbour entrance.

  Chapter 33 - The Chase and Death at Sea

  “Egerton's ships are away Sir,” reported the Master, “They must have started as soon as the Admiral's signals were hoisted; they will beat us out to the open sea.” It was even so, the big Indiaman was away ahead of the two smaller ships. “Thank you Mr. Cuthbert I can see that. They left wagons full of stuff on the quayside so they were in great haste to get away. Now Master, I'll have all the sail she will carry, including the stuns'ls. We have to catch those ships.”

  Aphrodite was one of the new breed of sloops with three masts instead of the more usual two and flush decked. The fore and main masts were rigged with large square sails and the mizzen mast with fore and aft sails. She was really a small version of a frigate with a single row of gun ports hiding her armament. She was well coppered below and when Merriman first saw her last year he had said - ”By God, she'll be a flyer this one” - and a flyer she certainly was. The wind was on her starboard quarter as they left harbour, but it gradually veered forward to blow from just abaft the main mast on her starboard side, the ship's best point of sailing.

  Looking aft Merriman could see the two frigates setting more sail and being fast ships should soon catch up. Nevertheless, Aphrodite was gaining on the three ships ahead, slowly but appreciably as Merriman ordered the ship to quarters for action with all guns loaded and run out. Again there was a scene of controlled chaos as partitions were dismantled, furniture and sea chests taken below, the chests put together in the orlop to form a rough operating table for the surgeon's grisly work. The gun crews closed up and the little powder monkeys appeared from below with the first charges for the guns. The sound of the marine drummer boy's repetitive tattoo never failed to stir Merriman and he walked up and down his small quarterdeck with almost a smile on his face.

  Mr. Cuthbert, the elderly master was busy streaming the log and taking sights of the frigates behind and the ships in front. “I've never seen this ship move so fast before Sir, she's catching up and the frigates are only reducing our lead very slowly.”

  Merriman beckoned the First Lieutenant and the Marine Lieutenant St. James to join him with the Master near the big ship's wheel. “Now Gentlemen this is what I propose to do if this wind holds. We shall be up with that small sloop within perhaps fifteen minutes, a full broadside as we pass and then I'll leave her for a frigate whilst we press on. I want to pass the corvette as soon as I can; the Indiaman is the one we must stop. When we reach the corvette I'll have Mr. Salmon put a few shots into her stern to try and damage her rudder, but I don't want to pass too close to it, and as we do, only one or two broadsides Mr. Laing if you please. And have the stuns'ls and courses off as soon as we get closer, but be ready to set them again as soon as we are past.”

  “Aye-aye Sir” both repeated before Cuthbert went back to his post by the wheel and Laing summoned all the warrant officers concerned to tell them what the orders were and what they had to do. In the event the small sloop veered away as Aphrodite approached and turned towards the coast in a bid to escape the expected gunfire. “Mr. Laing,” shouted Merriman, “don't waste a full broadside on that one, six cannon will be enough as they bear.”

  “Aye-aye Sir,” Laing replied and passed the order to Lieutenant Gorman at his station in command of the larboard battery. Gorman in turn passed the order to his gun captains and as Aphrodite passed the sloop the six guns fired almost together. Splashes showed where four of them missed but two hit the stern with no apparent damage apart from a shower of splinters. Merriman walked forward to the two big twenty five pounder bowchasers on the fo’c’sle where Midshipman Oakley was in command. He said to Oakley and the two gun captains “As soon as that next ship is in range, open fire, I will slow down as we approach to give you more time but I want to see at least three shots from each of you if not more, but don't rush, be sure of your aim and try to hit her rudder.” Back to the quarterdeck he went, confident that the experienced men wouldn't let Oakley make a mess of it.

  Hardly had he reached the quarterdeck when the two cannon fired almost as one. One ball splashed into the sea astern of the corvette and the other, perhaps due to a slightly bigger powder charge, fell close alongside, good shooting for the first ranging shot. The months of training was bearing fruit as the crews had both guns ready to shoot again in only minutes. They fired again, but not together as before as each captain carefully judged his own time to shoot. There was no big sea running and the ship was very steady making an ideal gun platform. This time both shots hit the corvette, one smashing into the stern just above her name Adventure and the other made a hole in the aft sail.

  “Reduce sail Mr. Laing.�
� With the main course reefed and the topsails reefed also the ship slowed down as the corvette replied by running up her colours, the French flag. That raised a series of jeers and catcalls from Aphrodite's crew as Merriman gestured to Midshipman Shrigley. The boy was ready and instantly the ensign was hauled aloft. “I'm glad to see their flag Mr. Cuthbert, makes this a real fight as we are at war with France after all,” said Merriman, “They can't claim to be American privateers.” The bowchasers spoke again for the third time, this time both together and both the balls hit, one bringing the mizzen gaff down with a crash and the other smashed into the stern. “Bear well away from her Mr. Cuthbert and have all the reefs shaken out. Mr. Laing, a full broadside as we pass if you please.”

  As Aphrodite passed the corvette both ships opened fire. They were fairly evenly matched in terms of size and of number of guns but Merriman knew that the men at each of his guns would get two shots away to one of the French. The ship became a bedlam of smashing wood, lethal splinters flying across the deck and bringing men down to lie on the deck, some screaming and writhing in agony and some just lying there dead. Another broadside ripped into the corvette before a reply came, only perhaps less than half of her guns this time. Then as Aphrodite passed clear the gun smoke cleared and the full extent of the damage was seen. The corvette's main topmast was down and in falling it had tangled with the foremast. Shattered holes along the gundeck showed overturned guns and bodies everywhere with trails of blood and gore running out of the scuppers. She was finished as a fighting ship and Merriman left her to the frigates which had managed to come nearer.