The other midshipman by then was looking crushed to be a shore stallion, resentful of being denied the chance to live such a grand life. ’Is that all you need from me?" Alan asked with a wave. "Yes… quite.’
’Then I shall take my leave of you. I'd like a brace of hands to help with my chest, if you don't mind.’
’Certainly!" the other said through pursed lips.
It was a delight to climb through the entry port and doff his hat to Lieutenant Railsford, to see all the familiar faces back aboard, to see his chest safely swayed up with a stay-tackle and thump to the deck without spilling gold or jingling. ’Welcome back aboard, Mister Lewrie," Railsford said pleasantly. "How was your first real command?’
‘Hectic, sir. I don't believe I slept a wink," he confessed. ’Good training for you. We're going north as eyes for the Fleet. Hood himself received me. Already knew from Admiral Graves that something was up and was getting ready to sail for New York, but our news was welcome, nonetheless.’
’Did we get all our people back, sir?" Alan asked as they went aft. ’Yes, fortunately. We shall need them.’
’And Commander Treghues?’
‘Recovering. Once he was lucid, I explained what good service you had rendered, but…" Railsford shrugged. ’At least he allowed me to rejoin," Alan said quietly. "After Hood learned it was you discovered those secret papers, he had little choice. I wrote the report before Dome would allow him to deal with ship's business.’
’God bless you, Mister Railsford," Alan said with feeling, and wanting to watch the progress of his valuables below but forced to stay on deck. ’Now, what about the gold?’
‘What?" Lewrie almost jumped out of his skin. ’That French War Commissary officer, remember?" Railsford said. "Before he died he revealed that the prize's master had thousands in gold hidden in his cabins somewhere, for Rochambeau and Lafayette.’
’In the cabins?" Alan was about to faint in terror. "But I slept there. I mean-’
‘It was well hidden. Even the late colonel knew not where," Railsford went on. "Bribe money to certain well-placed rebel political leaders, he said, to give France influence enough to ask for one of the southern coastal colonies should the rebels succeed in their aims. Reward for all their help.’
’My word, what a dirty business," Alan declared, finding his wits at last. "I can see them taking British Rorida, but-’
‘And you slept soundly and did not suspect a thing! It might have been right underneath your head!" Or other bodily parts, Alan thought. "How much? Did the man say before he passed over?’
‘He did not have an accurate count, but he believed it to be greater than fifty thousand pounds. And I'll lay you any odds you want that the Admiralty Court will have her tom down to a pile of timbers until they find it. Just think what our share will be, even diluted by the other ships in sight when we took the prize!’
‘God, that is wonderful news, Mister Railsford!" Alan laughed, in intense relief, wiping his sweaty face. "I cannot tell you how good.. ‘. ’Are you well, Mister Lewrie? Touch of Yellow Jack again?’
‘Oh, no, sir. Just about done in with exhaustion, though. I tried to do too much, I think. ’
‘Couldn't bear to leave your first quarterdeck, eh?" Railsford smiled kindly. "Should have let Toliver handle her, he's a good mate. Can't do it all yourself, and you have to trust your people, or you'll wear and wonk yourself sick.’
’Aye, sir, I've learned a good lesson from it. ’
‘Best get below and have a bite while you can, then. We're to sail in the Forenoon, all the way to New York to join Admiral Grave's fleet, and God knows where after that.’
’I shall do that, sir, and I thank you!" God bless blind shitten luck, Providence, and all the saints, including the Welsh ones, he rejoiced with a glee and sense of relief as intense as any he had ever experienced. I'm safe! Safe and rich! God help me, I'll never do such a thing again, I swear on what little honor I might have left! "Anchor's hove short, sir. Up an' down.’
Alan stood by the larboard gangway ready to swarm aloft with his topmen and make sail. All the Fleet was hove short, waiting for the signal to hoist anchors and be off, all eyes on Barfleur for word from the flag.
Treghues, the bosun and Mr. Monk were pacing about the ship, making a last-minute inspection to see that all was in order. Treghues glared at him briefly. ’Our bad penny has turned up again, I see," the captain said. "But a most lucky penny, sir," Monk said with a grin. "All that gold he brought safe to us.’
’Umm, perhaps." Treghues softened slightly. After all, his eighth of a reputed Ј50,000 would restore any family's fortune of itself. He did not fully relent, however; Lewrie was too large a sinner in his cold grey eyes for that, and Alan knew he would still get rid of him at the first opportunity to preserve the purity of his ship's officers, and his Navy.
Monk gave him a friendly tap on the arm as he went past, once the captain could not see, and the taciturn bosun actually smiled at him, and Alan knew that he had friends aboard still.
And, he told himself, they were off on a great adventure. On the gun deck the Marines and strongest men stood ready by the capstan bars. The ship's boys waited with their nippers to pass the lighter messenger from the capstan to the bower cable. Below, hands were ready to handle the cable as it came in, into the cable tier to dry, and stink up the ship. Landsmen and waisters waited in their subdivisions by the jears to raise the tops'l and royal yards, by the halyards for the heads'ls, by the sheets to draw down the leaches of the sails as they were freed.
There was a single bark in the outer roads from Barjleur, the signal gun to get underway, and a signal pendant went up her mast. ’Heave on the capstan," Treghues ordered. "Hands aloft and make sail. Drive 'em bosun, the flag's watching.’
’Hands aloft. Trice up and layout.’
Music came from the boy band and the fiddlers, not just in Desperate but from every ship in the Fleet. The men breasted on the capstan bars and the pawls clanked as the bower cable came in. ’Anchor's free!" The pawls began to rattle like a drum roll, and the men ran the cable up, and the nipper-boys were a blur of activity to keep up as the smelly thigh-thick line came in. ’Loose tops'ls! Tops'ls, jibs an' spanker!" The entire bay thundered with the sound of canvas being whipped by the wind. Desperate began to payoff the breeze, the halyards and the jears sighing through the blocks aloft. While the sails were hauled down, all about her little sloops of war, frigates of the 5th Rate, cruisers and line-of-battle ships began to move and stir, gathering way and avoiding each other with easy skill, all aiming for Cape Shirley and beginning to take up cruising dispositions. Thousands of men, hundreds of guns, all bound in search of desperate battle. ’Hands to the weather braces! Haul away handsomely! Thus!" Desperate leaned to the wind and began to drive along under full control. Once past the Cape she hoisted t'gallants and the men laid out on the yards to cast off the brails so she could take her position ahead of the fleet as one of the first eyes that would see the enemy. She went hard to weather for her offing, leading other frigates, leading the liners of the 3rd and 2nd Rate. ’Lay in from the yards! Another pull on the fore weather braces! Now belay every inch of that!" Lewrie idled on the main topmast cap as the rest of his hands laid in and began to slide down the stays for the deck. He looked aft to the west as the Fleet rounded the Cape in columns and beat to windward in the frigate's wake.
In a moment he would descend to face once more Commander Treghues' pious disapproval, Forrester's enmity and the mind-dulling routine of a ship of war. But for this brief pause, he could watch all those proud ships form columns, columns of the mightiest, most intricate and demanding creations that mankind had ever had the wit to build.
He did not know what this Fleet would face on its way north to the American Colonies, but he could not picture anything other than victory. There was a possibility that he would not survive, but he had faced risks enough before to know that life was full of chance.
He felt certain that he would
see action, more action than he could ever have imagined when reading about naval battles as a child, and he was more curious than fearful as to what it might be like to see two gigantic flotillas trading broadsides.
He knew that he was on his way to a sight that, if he survived it, he would remember all the days of his life, a chance for fame, honor and glory, amid all the horrors of a sea fight.
Do I really hate this so much anymore? he wondered. Dull as it can be, some people think I'm good at the Navy. If all my other plans go for naught, I could make a career of it, I think. No, anything I've ever really liked or wanted, I've lost. I can't admit to any want of this, or it's gone, too. But I know my place here, and there's some who've told me I do have a place. Maybe just until the war's ended, and then I can concentrate on something more rewarding, something not as depriving. But I'll go with fame and honor, and not when they tell me, darn me if I won't.
"Starboard watch below! All hands prepare for Divisions!" Lewrie swung out and grabbed a stay for his descent.
He reclaimed his discarded hat from the larboard gangway from one of his topmen, and stood by the rail drinking in the view of the island so green, and the many bright azure colors of the ocean.
Is this life really so bad? he wondered, shaking his head at his own rise of sentiment. But would I have seen anything like this in London? Would I ever have learned anything back home half as fascinating as this? Well, I may not be a real tarpaulin man yet, but damme if they ain't made some kind of sailor out of me! He felt a surge of pride in himself. He felt a tweak: of pride in his Service. And he realized that for the moment, he felt content and happy with himself and his station in life.
But then, being Alan Lewrie, he wasn't so sure that life would let him hold any such sentiment for very long.
FB2 document info
Document ID: fbd-ac6c80-ffa6-8f4e-41a8-1a19-2f01-e1a10e
Document version: 1
Document creation date: 04.01.2012
Created using: Fiction Book Designer software
Document authors :
Samaritan
Source URLs :
About
This file was generated by Lord KiRon's FB2EPUB converter version 1.1.5.0.
(This book might contain copyrighted material, author of the converter bears no responsibility for it's usage)
Этот файл создан при помощи конвертера FB2EPUB версии 1.1.5.0 написанного Lord KiRon.
(Эта книга может содержать материал который защищен авторским правом, автор конвертера не несет ответственности за его использование)
http://www.fb2epub.net
https://code.google.com/p/fb2epub/
The King`s Coat l-1 Page 38
