"Spanish doubloons. We're rich lads. Rich. And if the Cap'n is right, there's a lot more here besides. You boys, keep digging. You lads, get this chest topside, and give the signal for the First Mate to bring up the carts. As soon as you can, load this up and get it down to the boats!"
Shortly after, the men in the first house found another chest, this one being full of jewelry, plate, goblets and candles, in a delightful mixture of gold and silver.
This was followed by three large sacks full of silver pieces of eight and other coins, and another three large chests full of coins, gold, silver or copper metal ingots, jewels, uncut sapphires, emeralds, and rubies, cutlery, candles, goblets, and other bits and pieces, including small statues and what looked like little crowns or tiaras.
Some of the pirates had been pillaging ships in the Caribbean for many years, but none had ever seen so much precious booty in the same stash before. It was almost too much to comprehend. In the whole history of mankind and seafaring, few would ever have seen a sight that came close to this, including the Kings and Queens of all Christendom!
Such was the weight and amount of the treasure, that they found it difficult to carry it up and out of the house. Two of the chests had to be partially emptied before they could be lifted, and their contents carried in swift relay by men running back and forward, up and down the streets to the bay.
Several times, unlucky inhabitants of Puerto Bello de la Cruz stumbled to their doorways to relieve themselves in the trees, and were met by cold steel and an unexpected death.
It took two hours for James Silver and his men to transport his share of the treasure from the house they found it in, into the boats, and back to the Sea Dancer. James Silver later boasted that they didn't spill a single coin, and managed to recover every piece of treasure without leaving a penny behind.
Captain Rob was not so fortunate.
He had found and located the treasure as quickly as Silver, unearthing exactly the same number of chests and sacks, but while transporting it back to the boats, one of the sacks had split open aboard a bouncing cart, and the coins had spilled all over the ground. The pirates had rushed around, filling their pockets and hats, and putting as much as possible back on the cart, but as the last of the coins were being recovered their luck ran out and the alarm was raised.
The sun was just tipping the horizon when some dogs started barking loudly, and then someone in the town spotted them, fired a musket shot and shouted a loud warning to everyone else. At first, there was little response, giving Captain Rob's team extra precious minutes in hurrying down the hill with the final cart to the shore, but then when a second musket shot rang out, men started appearing in doorways, and running into the streets, in various states of attire and drunkenness.
As the last cart trundled and bounced down the hill towards the boats which had been ferrying the treasure back and forward to the ships for the past hour, more coins began to spill out of the cart.
Captain Rob left the shore, running back up the main street with a group of reinforcements, and shouting at the men in front to leave the coins in the dirt and make good their escape.
His band of pirates, all carrying muskets, split into two groups. Under the command of Robert Grieves, a mate aboard the Eagle, one group took up position at the bottom of the other main street that led down amongst the houses to the harbor.
Luckily, some of Kidd's men coming fast down the other street, stopped and started scratching in the dirt to pick up the fallen coins from the cart. Others behind them fell over the ones in front, and soon the street was blocked, a mêlée of drunken pirates fighting over the spilt coins. It was a short reprieve. Other locals and pirates from Kidd's command were pouring down the other side streets, shouting and waving their cutlasses.
About ten pirates escorting the cart down the hill broke off and started engaging Kidd's men as they chased after them. The cart was now close to the beach, and at James Silver's beckoning, those carrying coins and any loot were immediately loaded into the boats with the coins from the cart.
As Captain Rob's men approached those involved in the skirmishing, he gave a command and his men stopped running and formed two lines across the width of the street. In a move which Captain Rob had practiced and honed with his men aboard ship during the months spent at sea, he had taught the rear line to lift their muskets and prepare to fire a volley into the oncoming enemy in front.
The line in front were kneeling awaiting the command to stand, raise muskets and fire, then step forward, kneel and reload.
Together, they would form a moving wall of musket fire that would advance up the street, issuing a cloud of musket fire that would stop the enemy dead in their advance and cut them down quickly.
As soon as they were ready and in place, Cap'n Rob shouted loudly, "On me, boys!" and those holding back the oncoming pirates in front, disengaged and ran quickly down the hill, behind the wall of muskets, and down to the boats.
"Fire!" Captain Rob gave the command, and a cloud of fire and smoke erupted from the muskets. The front row of Kidd's men fell to the ground.
"Advance...Kneel, ...Raise....FIRE!" Captain Robb shouted again, and another line of Kidd's men fell.
"Advance...," he shouted again, and again. Each time a line of pirates falling in quick succession.
Such military-like discipline was almost unheard of amongst pirate crews at this time, and the effect it had on the enemy pirates was devastating. They fell quickly, blocking the street, and making it difficult for those behind to clamber over them. The others soon stopped in their tracks and hesitated. As they stood, more men fell to the ground under another wall of musket fire.
This broke their resolve, and they turned and started to retreat back up the hill and into the side streets.
The men under Robert Grieves' command had also advanced up the hill along the street they had stationed themselves in, but a group of Kidd's men coming down a side street had managed to destabilize their line, and they were all soon embroiled in hand to hand fighting.
By this time the boats with the last of the coins and booty had left the shore and were almost back at the ships. Other empty boats had now returned to the beach, and Captain Rob shouted at James Silver to start loading the men back into the boats. At the bottom of the street he was covering, Captain Rob left a single line of men issuing musket fire, and took the rest up the other street to the rescue of those involved in hand to hand combat. Seeing what was happening, James Silver sent another twenty men from the beach up to help, and soon Kidd's men were being beaten and were in full retreat.
A number of Captain Rob's men had fallen, and in the lull between the fighting, a band of men were sent out to recover the dying and wounded, and whatever dead bodies they could.
Steadily the boats were loaded with men and they started rowing back out to the ships, the wounded being put aboard the Thistle and tended by Mr Bones, the physician.
Gun smoke, the smell of burnt powder, and smoke from some fires which had started in some of the houses, now filled the air.
As soon as the last of the men arrived on the beach, Captain Rob gave the order to deploy the howitzers. Next, he turned towards the ships and gave a signal to the gunners aboard the Sea Dancer.
Within seconds a volley of cannon fire landed amongst the houses on the shore. A second volley swiftly followed.
The effect of this was to create fear, confusion and turmoil amongst Kidd's men on shore, who were regrouping and preparing for another attack on Captain Rob's men.
As the cannon balls ripped through the dry wooden houses, they started fires where they landed.
When a third volley of cannon arrived, the town of Puerto Bello de la Cruz began to burn.
Amidst the fear and confusion, the inhabitants began to flee in two directions: either back into the town and then up towards the fort and into the woods beyond, seeking sanctuary in the hills and trees, or down towards the beach and shore line.
As another wave of Kidd's
pirates ran down towards the beach, the howitzers were fired, cutting down the front row of men en masse, the grape shot slicing through them, ripping open and disemboweling many of those caught in the blast. Those behind kept running in pure panic, and were soon killed by a second wave of howitzer fire, their gunners well trained and practiced in reloading their weapons fast and efficiently.
The raid had become a massacre, and the blood of Kidd's men was now running down the streets, congealing in the dirt or forming here and there into disgusting pools of red which now shimmered in the rising sun.
Captain Rob stood on the beach, watching dispassionately at the carnage he had created.
His mission, started many years before in a secret room in London, was now almost complete.
When the battle had started ashore, Captain Richard Wainright had led his men up the anchor lines of Kidd's ships in the harbor. They had met little resistance, all of which was dealt with quickly and ruthlessly. After looting the ship for water, grog, food and provisions, they had selected the largest vessel of all and started to move it towards the harbor mouth and into position.
On the other two ships, they pointed two of their cannons downwards, fired, and put large holes in their hulls. Both ships began to sink, but just to make sure, Wainright set them on fire before he abandoned them and headed back to the Thistle.
With the loss of only two men during the onboard skirmishes, his part of the mission had been a success.
Within an hour, and by the time the sun had fully dawned, the last of Captain Rob's men were climbing aboard.
Their haul of treasure had been split between the three ships: the booty from the Fort had been loaded onto the Eagle, the treasure retrieved by James Silver onto the Sea Dancer, and the rest onto the Royal Thistle.
On board the Sea Dancer, Captain Rob gave the signal, and the three ships under his command weighed anchor and headed towards the harbor mouth and the open sea. The Royal Thistle had waited just outside the harbor entrance, to pick up the last of Wainright's men who had rowed out in a pinnace, having successfully just sunk Kidd's last remaining ship in the mouth of the harbor.
Then with all the men aboard and accounted for, Captain Robb's fleet set sail around the island, planning to meet up with the Albatross and offer assistance in finding and retrieving the last of the booty which was hidden in the cave.
As they sailed away, the mission a complete success, Puerto Bello De La Cruz lay destroyed and burning.
Aboard his three vessels, Captain Rob McGregor now carried the greatest treasure ever assembled and afloat at the same time in the history of mankind.
Looking up at the sun, smiling, Captain Rob thanked God.
It could not have gone better.
Just then the sun slipped behind a bank of cloud, and it began to rain.
Chapter 6
The Sea Dancer
Sunday Morning
7.30 a.m.
Aboard the Sea Dancer, Captain Rob McGregor looked at the clouds gathering overhead and felt the first twinges of concern. The clouds were moving very fast, and gathering pace by the minute. A few hours ago the sky had been almost clear, and they had watched the sun rising into the sky, with the promise of a glorious day.
Captain Rob was well versed at reading the signs of nature to foretell what was to come: the movement of the sea, the color of the water and the sky or clouds, the size and shape of the clouds, how high up they were in the sky, how many different layers of cloud there were, the speed and directions the clouds were moving, the rain, snow, hailstones or sleet, mist, lightning or thunder. And there were other signs to watch for: what the birds or fish were doing, and how they were behaving. Even observing the rats on board gave clues as to the weather they should expect.
And the signs were not good. The weather was changing very fast for the worse. A storm was coming. A large storm.
Which presented a problem.
Ideally, Captain McGregor should take his fleet into a harbor, and shelter the storm out. However... he had just destroyed the nearest harbor and blocked its entrance! There was no going back there, even if they had been welcome.
In addition, the coastline all the way around the island was very rugged, made up mainly of cliffs or ragged rocks which would rip the hull out of any ship that got too close. Captain McGregor knew that if the waters got rough, he would have to take his ships out to deep water to avoid being pushed onto the rocks by the high seas.
With no way of knowing for how long the coming storm would last, Captain McGregor also knew that he had to get as far away from the island as possible, before Captain Kidd returned.
If Kidd had any sense, he would he reading the signs and heading into a friendly port close to wherever he was now: wherever that may be.
Captain Rob cursed under his breath. The day had gone so well until now! It had been perfect up till then. It could not have gone better.
He thought briefly about the huge fortune that they had taken from Kidd's lair and smiled. He had never seen the like of it in his life before. No one had. So great was the vast, vast fortune that it would probably take weeks to count!
He looked at the gold coin that he was fiddling with in his hands, a souvenir of the haul, and wondered briefly where Kidd had amassed such a large fortune from. What poor victims had lost their lives because of the gold, and how many?
Was the treasure all the work of Kidd's own pirating, or like Captain Rob had done today, had Kidd stolen it from another Captain who had done all the hard work for him? There was so much...how long would it have taken Kidd to gather it all? What ships had he captured? And from which countries?
So many questions. Questions that he may never find answers to.
Some rain splashed into his eyes, and he wiped it away.
Blinking, he turned his attention back to the storm and the immediate job at hand.
Any moment now, they should sight the Albatross.
When the Sea Dancer, the Thistle and the Eagle had sailed to Puerto Bello de la Cruz, Captain Rob had ordered the Albatross to follow Richard Tyler's map to the opposite side of the island and locate the cave where the final part of the treasure had been buried. Once there, and as soon as the tide permitted, they were to lower their boat and enter the cave, retrieve the treasure and transfer it back to the Albatross.
Low tide was an hour ago, so if things had gone well, the boats should be returning to the Albatross any time now, hopefully as full of treasure as they were themselves.
If things had gone well.
Richard Tyler did not believe that there were any pirates tasked with guarding the cave, on the basis that Kidd's plan was to draw no attention to it, and only a few pirate officers knew anything about the treasure being there at all.
So, in theory, it should be an easy matter for the Albatross to locate the booty, take it and leave.
In theory.
Captain Rob looked back up at the clouds, and the oncoming storm, and cursed again.
No plans ever went according to plan. Who could have predicted this?
"There!" James Silver shouted, gesticulating wildly at the headland they were approaching. From where they were, they could just make out the bowsprit and bow of the Albatross pulling away from the island.
Captain Rob tried raising his glass to look at the Albatross, but the rain made it impossible to see anything.
The wind was picking up behind them now, and they made good time in drawing nearer to the headland. As they drew closer however, they heard the sound of cannon fire, and saw flashes of light coming from the Albatross. They could also smell smoke.
As they watched, the Albatross emerged from the other side of the headland, and started turning slowly towards them. As they passed the headland, the cannon fire stopped, and they realised that it was the Albatross that had been fired upon from the land, and that it was now aflame and burning.
The Albatross was beginning to list to starboard, and was obviously taking on water.
Although the wind and the rain were beginning to pick up, they were now close enough to hear the shouts of the men aboard the sinking ship.
A boat was already in the water, and a second was being put over the side, but the ship was taking on water so quickly now, that those aboard the Sea Dancer could see the ship was doomed to sink before the boat would be launched.
"It's going down fast!" Silver shouted.
"Prepare to pick up those in the boat," Captain Rob ordered, scanning the cliffs ahead trying to see where the cannon fire had come from. He could see nothing, although for a moment he thought he could make out a movement on the land high above the cliffs which could have been either an animal or a man. In the driving rain it was now impossible to tell.
Captain Rob ordered for a message to be sent to the other ships telling them to head further away from the island and wait for the Sea Dancer to join them, but prepare their guns for battle in case Captain Kidd's ships were just about to emerge from around the headland. A boat was set down immediately and the message dispatched, the pirates in the boat rowing furiously to convey the order.
The sea was getting rougher and Captain Rob did not want to risk any of his ships being pushed closer to the rocks, or into range of any cannon that could be waiting for them to come round the headland. It would also be prudent not to sail past the headland and around the island, in case a trap was awaiting them,
As they drew closer Captain Rob ordered Richard Tyler to join him on the forecastle to advise him on the lay of the land and the coast, and where any cannon on the land could be positioned.
When Tyler joined James Silver and the Captain they stood together at the prow of the Sea Dancer and watched in despair as the Albatross disappeared from sight beneath the waves.
As the ship went down they could hear the death cries of the men who were still left on board: by the time the Sea Dancer would be close enough to pick up any survivors, most would have been washed onto the rocks and smashed to pieces.
Time Ship (Book One): A Time Travel Romantic Adventure: The ideal Beach Book for reading on Holiday! Page 5
