"I see. And you are all right? You are not hurt anywhere?" His look was concerned as it travelled down from my sticky face to my dusty boots.
"A bit bruised, that's all. I've twisted my ankle. It got caught in the stirrup, but it's hardly anything really." I was feeling a bit sick, and to my horror, I could feel tears pricking at my eyes. Oh God, please don't let me cry in front of him, he would think I was a real baby!
"Let me take a look." Dropping down to one knee, Paul knelt in the dirt at my feet. "Is it this one?"
"Yes. But it's nothing, honestly." I tried hard not to wince as he removed my riding boot with surprisingly gentle fingers. "Ow! That hurt!"
"It will swell, so better you keep your boot off. Come on, young Alex. We’d better try to get you up on your horse. You cannot walk and I'm not carrying you!"
Transferring Cobweb's reins to my left hand, he turned and placing his hands around my waist, lifted me up onto Cobweb's back. As he did so, something happened to me. Whether it was the result of my fall or the sultry heat of the late afternoon, but whatever it was, I felt a strange feeling pass through me which left me trembling and breathless. Panicking, I snatched my hand away from his shoulder, jerking my horse's head. I was confused and self-conscious, knowing my cheeks were turning a bright and horrible embarrassing red.
To my horror and shame, I realised I was attracted to Paul. Tumbled thoughts were whirling around in my head. How could I be aroused by a young man of twenty-something? I was as bad as Emma – worse, and I was only thirteen.
"It's all right, you can let go," I muttered between my teeth.
It was Paul's turn to look disconcerted. Shrugging, he dropped his hands to his sides, moving away from me.
"I can see myself home." Gathering up the reins, I put my good foot into the one remaining stirrup and urged Cobweb to walk on. I didn't look back, and it was only later I realised I hadn't even thanked him for his help. I was a spoilt and precocious brat.
Slowly, Cobweb and I meandered along the track. I was sunk deep in misery and self-pity and nearly missed the movement through the trees on my right. Peering across the tall grasses, I looked beyond to where the rubber tree plantation began. The figures of two men were flitting from tree trunk to tree trunk, keeping to the deepening early evening shadows. Their movements appeared furtive to me for some reason, and even from the distance between us, I was certain I had never seen them on our land before. They were dressed as native Malaysian workers, but I prided myself on knowing every one of our workers by name; these were strangers.
I drew back on Cobweb's reins and sat there unmoving. A feeling of unease stole over me, and I glanced back to where I had left Paul. Remembering Fizzy's lecture about guerrillas and the Kenyan Mau Mau, I began to shake from head to foot. I took another look behind me and…
There was no one there. The orange-red, lateritic, earthen track stood empty. Puzzled at his disappearance, I looked towards the rubber trees on my right; their ranks stood sentinel, deep and gloomy. I could hear the chattering siamang high in the tree canopy and crickets whirring in the nearby undergrowth. Again, I looked at the track and trees in turn. Both were empty; I was alone except for the gibbons overhead and with my muzzy and aching head, I was left wondering whether I had dreamt the whole thing.
Chapter 12
…"You are so silly, Alex. You might have hurt yourself very badly."
"But Mother, I'm only a bit bruised. Besides, Cobweb never moves more than at a snail's pace. He can only manage a slow canter."
"All the same--" She paused, eying the cold compress Hermione was applying to my ankle which was feeling a lot better, "it could have been a very nasty fall, and I can't believe your sisters either. Fancy leaving you all on your own, anything could have happened, wild animals…" She trailed off at a loss for words.
I glanced over to Hermione now standing behind Mother. She gave me a grin and a tiny shake of her head. There was no getting away from it; I was Mother's favourite child, and despite her usual lethargy towards her offspring, if anything had happened to me, Emma and Fizzy would have been in deep trouble.
"Anyway, Paul found me and helped me remount." I felt my face growing hot as I shamefully remembered his hard hands around my waist and lifting me high up into the saddle. What was happening to me? If anyone guessed my thoughts I would be shamed. Kebun Pertama didn't need a scandal.
"Can I go now? My ankle feels much better for the compress - truly it does, and I have to change for dinner."
"Off you go then, darling. Please remember to wear one of your new shirts and your best trousers tonight as we have guests."
Nodding, I slid off the chaise-longue, suddenly feeling quite desperate to escape from the cloying female attentiveness. Bother, dinner guests again! I would much prefer just the family at home tonight. I wondered if I could cry off and get out of it somehow.
~~~~~
"Are you sure you can't manage to come down even for a short while?"
Feigning grogginess, I opened my eyes taking in the soft blonde hair piled neatly on the top of her head. Her dress was a pale turquoise, full-skirted and edged with hundreds of seed pearls. As usual, she had doused herself with her favourite Chanel scent. My mother looked and smelt gorgeous.
"Sorry Mother, this headache came on so suddenly, and I feel very sick. I'm sure if I rest quietly here in the dark, it will soon go away."
"Well if you're sure," she murmured, smoothing down the coverlet at the bottom of the bed. "I don't suppose you feel like anything to eat either."
"No thank you. If I do later then I can always get something from the pantry."
Her heels were already clacking away over the hard Malaccan wood flooring; I was forgotten for the time being. Mother had better things to think about. Feeling pleased I had got out of a probably tedious and dreary evening; I lay there going over the day's events in my mind.
On my return home that afternoon, my sisters had at first been concerned over my tumble, but seeing only minor injuries, soon lost any feelings of guilt. Emma laughed at my clumsiness, and Felicity told me not to be such a baby and to grow up. After all, I was a teenager and should act like a man. Sisters! Despite our closeness, they were maddening at times.
Paul Tan puzzled me. What had he been doing this afternoon on that part of the estate? Of course, he had a perfect right to go anywhere in his capacity as foreman manager, but it was still strange. And just who were the two men I had seen moving furtively through the trees? Had Paul met with them? If so, why?
My mind began to work overtime. The path was some way off the main hub of the plantation. Hardly anyone visited it outside work except for we three when we went riding and swimming. It was a quiet and secluded place. To get there on foot was a bit of a trek, especially in the heat and humidity.
If Paul had arranged to meet the men for whatever reason, then it was surely a secret meeting. They must be planning something - but what?
Paul seemed so honest and straightforward. After our initial, awkward time together, we now got on well. I never forgot he was Father's employee, and I don't believe he did either. He was very proper towards me as befitted a member of the plantation owner's family, and if he did sometimes appear to have a bit of a chip on his shoulder, I put it down to his youth and nationality. It can't have been easy to work for the 'old colonials', despite the change from Malaya to the federated states of Malaysia and Father's fair treatment of his workers. Father may have been a bully, but he never cheated his men as far as I knew.
My thoughts flashed back to Felicity and her rather pompous 'little history lecture' that afternoon. What if Paul or the two men or all of them were agents working for Sukarno? Sitting up, I threw off the single sheet in excitement. Could we have rebels on our land? I went hot and cold all over.
Hunting under my bed for my sandals, I could think of nothing else. I was going out. I had no plan, and I didn't know what I was looking for, but I believed something would soon materialise if only I knew where to b
egin. Here was an adventure!
~~~~~~
Moving through the house was easier than I thought. Downstairs, I was met by a blaze of lights, soft background music and voices competing amid the chink of knife and fork against plate and glass. They were all obviously sitting down to dinner.
Tiptoeing down the hall, I peeked into the drawing-room, found it empty, and crept inside. The overhead fans where whirling the thick air around, and the fine linen drapes at the French windows were drawn back against the walls allowing a breath of scented night air to steal into the room.
Hardly believing my luck in meeting no one, I slipped through the open doorway into the grounds beyond. I was immediately swallowed into the dark of the night, the blackness enveloping me and making me invisible. I felt invincible; nobody knew I was outside creeping around the estate. My feet crunched on the gravelled path, and wanting to remain undiscovered, I stepped onto the grass and made my way towards the stables. A warm smell of horse sweat, dung and hay greeted me, and I swear Cobweb knew my step by his soft nicker of welcome.
"Hello boy. I'm sorry I've brought you nothing to eat. Here, have some oats." Reaching down into the bran tub, I fished out a good handful which he took, snuffling against my hand with gratitude.
I didn't know what I was doing there at all. I only knew I had wanted to get out of the house in order to think. I briefly had some half-cocked idea about saddling Cobweb and riding back down the track towards the pool, but on seeing how completely black the night was, I realised how insane and foolhardy my idea was. I wasn't a complete idiot, and what was I likely to achieve?
Laying my face against Cobweb's velvet nose, I considered my options which were few! I was now confused. What was I really doing out here? The afternoon had unnerved me, and even now I didn't understand my feelings. I had felt such strange thoughts, feelings which were surely taboo and yet….
A soft noise outside alerted my senses. In alarm, I looked towards the direction of the sound. Someone was there. Hardly daring to breathe, I crept towards the doorway keeping well into the shadows. I was unlikely to meet any of my family or guests and thought the sound was probably from a servant of the household or a meeting between lovers. Stopping where I was behind a stable door, I waited.
A sliver of a sickle moon had appeared through the fine lining of clouds and cast a faint shadow on the walls and ground. As I stood hidden, barely breathing with excitement, a shadow fell across the threshold followed by another larger and squatter one. I counted three figures as they entered the brick and wooden building in silence.
Instinct kept me in my hiding place, something inside telling me to keep quiet and absolutely still. There was a murmur of voices. I recognised the Malay tongue, and for the first time in my life, I thanked my father on insisting I learnt Malay from a native teacher.
I somehow knew Paul would be one of the shadows. I listened as he spoke first. "Have you brought them?"
A rougher, older sounding voice answered him abruptly. "Of course, as we were ordered. We have the shipment except for two of the cases." I did not recognise the man by his speech.
"Aieyah! And why is that? You knew what the commander wanted. Why have you not fulfilled your contract and obeyed him?" The tension sounded in Paul's voice by the raising of an octave.
"We did, but we had a few problems on the way here. We lost them at Port Kelang." The older man sounded truculent and bad-tempered, his voice barely above a growl as if angered by Paul's questioning.
"Ah! How so?"
A third, more nasally voice joined the conversation. "The boat was swamped in the surf at Kelang, and we lost them in the thick mud. We were lucky to bring any in at all. It was a dangerous and difficult crossing. It's all right for you, sitting here nice and comfortable in this rich man's house. You have no danger to worry about. Think about us in a rough sea and storm. We were all sick as Pi dogs. And you complain about a couple of missing cases. Pah!"
"Hush! Your voice carries in the night air. I understand your difficulties." Paul's softer voice broke in on the other's angry outburst.
"Difficulties! I should say. Where's the money?"
"Here." There was a pause and a rustle.
"Wait a moment. We want to see it." A sudden flare from a match lit the darkened stall. I nearly forgot myself and clamped my mouth shut to stop an involuntarily gasp of surprise. I peered round. I had nothing to worry about, for I was hidden in an empty stall off to one side, and all three men were busy gazing at a bundle of bank notes in Paul's hand.
"You can't count it here, there's no time to waste. The family's busy at dinner, but they'll finish shortly and may come out for a wander or a smoke. You mustn't get caught on this land. Look, you'll have to trust me, it's all there. What about the missing cases? I'll have to answer to my commander and he'll be furious."
"Pretty boy, you'll have to whistle for those. Perhaps in the next delivery, we'll put in a few extra. Right now we want the lot. We've earned it. Now pass it over."
The voice was the one belonging to the older man. He sounded as belligerent and dangerous as the other. Despite not knowing what mischief Paul might be mixed up in (and it sounded like he was), I felt afraid for him. I wanted him to pay up for whatever they had brought and for them to leave. Shivering with fear, I waited, praying they would go soon.
"I will give you the money, but first I need help in shifting them up into the roof space above. They'll be heavy. Bring the horses in, and we'll remove the cases from their backs."
With alarm, I realised why the stall I was hiding in was empty. The horses outside had been used to carry whatever was in the cases. My empty stall was soon to be filled with its usual resident. These men were rough and probably highly dangerous. I was in great danger of discovery, and I didn't want to dwell on their reaction if they found me. My mouth was dry with fear as I wondered what to do. Shrinking against the wall, I thought fast. I needed to either get out or find a better hiding place. I edged round the wall, feeling my way. Luckily my footsteps were muffled in the straw. Straw! I remembered the stall had a stack of straw bales at one end. In blind panic, I stumbled towards them and relieved, threw myself behind. I lay there, panting, almost sobbing in relief but knowing I could not utter a sound…
Chapter 13
Diana sat up in excitement. Things were moving in this story! It was obvious surely. Paul was working with the Indonesians against the Malaysian government. Why else would there have been the subterfuge in meeting the rough men from across the Straits of Malacca? Diana knew her geography of the country, having studied the atlas before leaving home in Cyprus. She felt pretty sure Kelang was on the west coast, and the trip across the sea would have been a relatively short one. It should have been easy by boat, even in rough weather.
Another thing: hadn't Alex said Paul was of mixed blood, Chinese and Malay? He was a perfect candidate, young and feisty and full of ideals. They were often the easiest targets.
Alex was a strange child. He seemed to be very muddled and confused; Diana was starting to think he was a bit spooky. He was always spying and eavesdropping on people. Perhaps it was the way his mother and Hermione had brought him up. It couldn't have been easy for him once they had arrived back in Malaya. His bullying father didn't help matters either.
She had to tell Steve what she had found out…
~~~~~
…"Rise and shine sleepyhead. How are you feeling this morning?"
Prising open my eyes, I found Emma standing by the window as she threw back the curtains with relish. With the sunlight streaming in, I guessed it was way past my usual early breakfast time.
Without answering, I sat up and leaned on one elbow studying her.
She turned to me with a cheeky grin. "Well you look okay, I must say. I reckon you were shamming and up to your old tricks of skipping boring old dinners." She tossed her hair back with a laugh. "Fizzy and I are going riding sometime today, and we'll stay for a swim. Want to come?"
"I don't know. Can
I decide later?" It was far too early for me to think straight. I was exhausted after last night's escapade, and needed time on my own.
"Of course you can. I just wanted to let you know. Now are you going to get up or lie in bed all morning, lazy bones?"
"Oh go away! You're far too noisy and I'm still tired." I lay back down, closing my eyes. "I'll come down a bit later."
"Alex, you really are boring at times you know."
Not opening my eyes, I rudely stuck my tongue out at her. When I heard the door bang shut, I knew I was alone. Sitting up again, I pushed back the tousled sheet and climbed from my bed. Silly girl, if she only but knew! Of course I had no plans to stay in bed all morning; I had a stable loft to explore. By the time Paul and the other two had left, it was getting late and my parents' guests would soon have been leaving for home. I ran the risk of someone discovering my empty bed and raising the alarm at my disappearance. It wouldn't have done for anyone to discover me hiding in the stable; Paul would soon have got to hear, and I would have been well and truly rumbled. So heeding the urgency to get back into the house and my bed, I had no time to find out what Paul had hidden there.
Dressing hurriedly in a clean cotton shirt and fawn-coloured shorts, I ran down the stairs. I thought I would grab a quick breakfast of cereal and toast before Mother or Father found me.
Entering the kitchen, I found Paul already there looking relaxed, drinking tea and chatting to the cook.
"Young Alex, at last! I thought I was going to have to supervise the rubber grading by myself this morning." Placing his cup into the sink, he turned towards the door. "Come on, we must get started. Your father, Tuan, is in a strange mood today. It will be better if he does not find us here drinking tea."
Dismayed at missing my breakfast and dinner, I grabbed a hand of the tiny sweet bananas I adored and followed him out outside. He walked at a brisk pace from the house, toward the curing shed, and with my own much shorter legs, I had trouble keeping up. He too seemed in an odd mood, as we usually chatted about the day ahead. Today though, he appeared preoccupied and short tempered, and I wondered if it was to do with last night.
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