There were ships and boats of all shapes and sizes around them and people of various nationalities calling out to each other in unintelligible languages. Midori found it exciting to listen to them all and asked Jochem to identify their countries of origin for her if he could. Although she recognised the Europeans, she had never seen any Chinese, Indian or native Indonesian people before. Most of them wore light tropical clothing, even the Europeans.
‘The outfits are called sarongs,’ Jochem told her.
As it was the middle of December, the heat wasn’t as intense as during the summer months. Combined with the humidity it was still warm enough to be uncomfortable though, especially for the foreigners who weren’t used to such conditions.
‘Won’t be much longer now. We’ve nearly finished.’ Harding came up behind them and Midori turned to greet him.
‘Then what will happen?’
‘The men’ll be given leave to go ashore at last. They’ll want to celebrate Christmas, I expect.’
Midori nodded. Her mother had told her about this festival, but at Castle Shiroi they had followed the Japanese tradition and only celebrated New Year. ‘Is that possible here?’
‘Well, not like at home, but no doubt they’ll spend every penny they’ve earned in the grog shops and brothels …’ He stopped abruptly, and turned a bright shade of red. ‘Beggin’ your pardon, mistress, I shouldn’t be speakin’ of such things to a lady.’
Midori smiled. ‘Please don’t worry about it. But tell me, when will I be allowed on shore?’
‘That I don’t know.’ Harding scratched his bald pate. ‘You’d best ask the cap’n. I’ll fetch him for you.’ He scurried off and came back with Nico in tow.
‘Good morning.’ Nico gave her a brief smile, but seemed distracted. He kept glancing towards the last of the cargo being unloaded. ‘Harding tells me you have a question for me.’
‘I just wondered when I would be allowed to go into the town.’
‘I’m afraid you’ll have to wait until I can escort you and right now I have a lot of other things to do. Sorry.’
‘If I have Harding to guard me, I should be perfectly safe, don’t you think?’
‘Possibly, but I would prefer to take you myself as you’re my responsibility. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’d better be on my way.’
He bowed to her and left, leaving Midori to wonder at his insistence that he wanted to accompany her himself. ‘Is Batavia a dangerous city, Harding?’ she asked.
‘Well, no more’n any other, I suppose.’
‘So why can’t I go with you?’
Harding frowned. ‘Dunno, but I wouldn’t like to go against the cap’n’s orders, mistress.’
Midori sighed. ‘Very well, I’ll just have to wait and see then.’
The captain, however, remained occupied and, for the next few days, Midori waited impatiently for the promised outing. It seemed Nico was busy with disposing of his cargo and finding a new one, and this took up all his waking hours. She sought out the first mate, who was a particular friend of Nico’s, and left messages that she would like a word with the captain, but he never came to find her.
On the fourth morning, she temporarily forgot about wanting to go ashore when Harding came to fetch her, looking worried.
‘It’s the boy, he’s not well, mistress. I don’t know what to do. The ship’s surgeon has gone ashore and I’ve no experience of these things.’
‘Let me have a look at him.’
Harding took her to Jochem immediately and they found him in his hammock below deck, sweat running in little rivulets down his face and bare torso. Midori put a hand on the youth’s brow and almost flinched – he was burning up. ‘Oh dear, he’s caught a fever. Has anyone else been ill recently? Mijnheer de Jong hasn’t asked me to help him since we arrived here.’
‘Some of the other fellows had it a few days ago, but the surgeon said as how he could handle it hisself.’ Harding looked ever more worried now. ‘Though one of ’em died.’
‘I hope it won’t come to that, Harding. I think I know just the thing to cure this, but I need a special kind of herb. You’ll have to buy it for me in town.’
‘Me? But I won’t know what it looks like.’
Midori described the herb she was after, but it soon became clear to her Harding wouldn’t recognise it. He didn’t seem able to grasp the differences between the various plants she was talking about and she knew then she’d have to obtain it herself somehow.
‘Never mind,’ she told him soothingly, as he was looking more and more flustered. ‘I’ll go and speak to the captain to see if anyone else can do it. You stay here and sponge Jochem with cold water. Just keep doing that, over and over, until he cools down a little and see if you can’t make him drink something. He really must.’
The captain had gone ashore again, though, and there didn’t seem to be anyone else about who could be trusted to buy the right herbs. Feeling frustrated beyond belief, Midori finally decided to take matters into her own hands. She went in search of Harding again.
‘I’m sorry, but you’ll have to take me into the town. Can you find someone to keep sponging Jochem while we’re away?’
‘I suppose, but are you sure?’
‘It’s not as if we have a choice. We’ve got to save the boy.’
Harding nodded. ‘All right, I’ll find someone to look after him.’
‘Meet me on deck as soon as you can,’ Midori said and went to prepare for the visit to town. She made sure she had a sharp knife tucked inside her sleeve and enough silver for any purchases she might wish to make, before leaving her cabin.
Most of the men had gone ashore too, and it was eerily silent on deck. There was nothing to be heard except the soft slapping of waves against the hull and the screeching of sea birds. Everyone left behind either sat around desultorily gazing towards land, waiting for their turn to go ashore, or slept in whatever shade they could find.
While leaning over the railing earlier, Midori had noticed the ship’s boat was tied to the stern. ‘Can we take that?’ she asked Harding as he came up behind her.
‘Sure an’ we can.’ He indicated the rope ladder. ‘After you.’
Midori didn’t hesitate. She swung her legs over the side, climbed down as quickly as her clothing would allow and was soon seated in the boat. Harding followed, nimble despite his size. It didn’t take long to reach the shore, where Harding tied the boat up securely, then they set off towards what seemed to be the centre of town.
‘Stay close to me, mistress, or the cap’n will have my head.’
Chapter Thirteen
‘I’m very sorry to hear about de Leuw. He was a good man. I’ve known him for years.’ Antonio van Diemen, the Governor-General of Batavia, clapped Nico on the shoulder and squeezed it in silent sympathy. ‘But you did well to take over and I’m sure the directors will be very happy if you return safely with such a valuable cargo.’
‘Thank you, sir. I certainly hope so. But Captain de Leuw arranged it all before his untimely demise, so the credit should go to him really.’
‘Perhaps, but you’ll be the one to bring it back. That’ll count in your favour.’
Nico was offered a glass of wine and then the governor-general changed the subject. ‘Have you had a chance to look around here yet? There’s plenty of merchandise on offer.’ Van Diemen winked at him. ‘Trinkets for the ladies, they always go down well.’
Nico had never had anyone to buy gifts for during his travels, but nodded agreement in order to be polite. ‘Yes, I’m sure they do.’
‘Is there a special lady waiting for you? A wife or fiancée perhaps? If so, you’d best not be stingy.’ Van Diemen laughed. ‘Your homecoming will be much sweeter if you arrive with a gift in hand, in my experience.’
Nico forced a smile. ‘I’ll bear t
hat in mind, but no, I’m not married or betrothed yet.’
‘Well, if you’re hoping to win someone’s fair hand, here’s your chance. You’re in the very best place when it comes to purchasing gifts, I’d say.’
Nico hadn’t intended to buy anything, but he didn’t want to offend the governor-general when he was being so affable. He improvised quickly. ‘Actually, I was planning to take a walk this very afternoon to see what I could find. Would a length or two of silk be suitable, do you think, or perhaps some jewellery?’
‘Knowing the ladies, my friend, a bit of both would be welcome.’ Van Diemen smiled. ‘Their appetite for such things seems to be insatiable. Not to mention any accessories you can find. Fans are very popular, as are shawls; both always go down well with my female relatives.’
‘Oh, yes, in fact, I remember my aunt once saying … Godverdamme!’ Nico, who was standing near the window, had happened to glance out into the square, where a familiar figure was wandering around, taking in the sights with interest.
‘I beg your pardon? Your aunt said what?’ Mijnheer van Diemen was goggling at him and Nico held up his hands in defence.
‘No, sir, I wasn’t quoting my aunt, of course not, she never swears. It’s just that I’ve caught sight of M … er, one of my crewmembers out there.’ He pointed out of the window. ‘This young … varmint has specifically been told to stay on the ship and I don’t like my orders disobeyed.’
The governor-general’s facial expression relaxed. ‘No, of course not. I quite see your point.’ He nodded towards the square. ‘You’d better go after the culprit then, eh? Before he goes too far. Could get himself into a lot of trouble here.’
‘Yes, my thoughts exactly. Thank you, I’ll do just that.’ Nico bowed. ‘Thank you for granting me so much of your time. It was a pleasure to meet you, sir.’
‘Not at all, the pleasure was all mine.’ Van Diemen inclined his head in return. ‘I wish you a safe journey back to Amsterdam.’
Batavia was a delight and Midori wandered around aimlessly at first, simply taking it all in. Harding followed in her wake, keeping her firmly in his sights, but Midori didn’t pay him much attention. She was so intent on everything around her that for a while she forgot all about her purpose in coming.
Because the original town had been more or less razed to the ground when the Dutch took it over, she’d been told they had rebuilt it almost entirely in their style. Now she could see what that meant: namely, rows of sturdy, brick houses unlike any she had ever seen before. Most of them faced a grid of tree-lined canals, which apparently provided the main means of transporting goods. The houses had tiny windows and were fairly small and unostentatious. Nevertheless, they were a pleasing sight.
She reached a cobbled square where a much larger building stood. Someone had mentioned a town hall, and she assumed this must be it. A white building, two storeys high with a large entrance and painted shutters, it was impressive. A small bell tower on top of the entrance porch drew her eye and she stopped to admire it for a while, before continuing on her way.
‘That’s lovely, don’t you think?’ she said to Harding, who nodded but replied without much conviction.
‘Mmm, to be sure it is. Would you like to go find the shops now, mistress?’
‘Oh, yes, we mustn’t stay too long. Thank you for reminding me.’
Midori soon found the back streets of the town were not as nice as those close to the canals, but she hardly noticed because they had reached the merchant’s shops and stalls. First she sought out the herbs she needed for Jochem, and stored them in a small pouch she’d brought for that purpose. That done, she couldn’t resist a quick look at all the other merchandise on offer. After all, she might not have another opportunity to come here, so she had to seize her chance. There was every conceivable shade of silk, as well as leather goods, wooden artefacts, jewellery and much more.
The silver she had brought proved acceptable as payment, though a few of the merchants looked suspicious at first.
‘Can you speak their language?’ she asked Harding. Although it was possible to haggle without talking, she knew it would be faster if they could communicate.
‘Only a few words, but I’ll do my best,’ Harding replied. ‘Most of the people here speak Malay or Portuguese, which are the two more commonly used languages in this part of the world. I know a little of each. Some of ’em might speak Dutch, if we’re lucky.’
So engrossed did she become in trying to choose what she wanted to buy, that when she had finally completed her purchases, quite a long time had passed. Panic and guilt welled up inside her. Jochem – how could I have forgotten about him? She was supposed to be bringing back a cure for him, not dawdling here among the shops.
‘Thank you for being so patient, Harding,’ she said to the big man. ‘But now we really must be getting back. Let’s try and find the quickest route.’
‘Er, yes.’ He scratched his head. ‘That way p’rhaps?’ He pointed to the right. Midori wasn’t quite sure where they were either, so she was happy to follow his lead. But it soon became clear they should have paid more attention to where they were going.
‘I don’t think this is right, Harding,’ she said and stopped. Just as he was about to answer her, however, another crew member from the Zwarte Zwaan came walking towards them. ‘Oh, look, there’s one of your fellow Englishmen. Jessop, isn’t it? Let’s ask him the way.’
‘I don’t know, mistress, he’s one of Barker’s cohorts.’ Harding frowned, but Midori was desperate to get back to the ship now and took no notice.
‘Yes, but he’s alone, so we needn’t worry about that.’
When asked, Jessop – Midori didn’t remember whether he was Abe or Peter – seemed only too pleased to show them which direction to go and they followed him quickly. It wasn’t long before they found themselves in an even more insalubrious area than before, however. Midori started to feel uneasy and Harding muttered under his breath. Drunken sailors were wending their way along the narrow street, singing loudly and shouting to each other. Some were brawling and others simply slumped in a heap, dead to the world.
‘How much fer yer services?’ one of them yelled at her in English, but Midori ignored him and scurried on.
‘Are you sure this is the right way, Mr Jessop?’ she asked anxiously.
‘Yes, this is the best short cut. Don’t pay no attention to them, they’re all three sheets to the wind.’
Midori kept a firm grip on the knife inside her sleeve. She tried to look neither left nor right, preferring to keep her head down.
They turned a corner, and Jessop came to a sudden halt.
‘What’s the matter? Why have we stopped?’ Midori looked around her and noticed that Harding wasn’t behind her any longer. ‘Harding?’
They were in a tiny alley which appeared to be a dead end. Jessop opened his mouth to reply, a sullen look on his face, but without warning, a hand shot out of a doorway and grabbed Midori by the hand, yanking her inside. It happened so fast she didn’t have a chance to react and her knife never even made it out of her sleeve. An arm was firmly clamped around her from behind, pinning her arms to her sides. Although she tried every way she knew of breaking such a grip, it was no use.
‘Let me go, you scum!’ She kicked and wriggled for all she was worth. All she received in return was a blow to the side of her head, which made her senses swim, and a stream of what might have been abuse in an unintelligible language. Before she could do anything else, another blow to the head made everything go black.
‘Where the hell are you? Damned stubborn woman,’ Nico muttered to himself as he walked the streets, endlessly scanning the crowds for a sign of Midori. He wanted to throttle her for disobeying his orders, but he couldn’t find her anywhere.
As he hadn’t seen in which direction she was headed, he walked around in a huge ci
rcle, coming back to the town square several times. Whenever possible, he stopped to question the merchants selling goods he thought she might be interested in, but most of them only shrugged.
‘We have a lot of customers, sir, cannot remember each one. Would you like some silk, sir? Very good quality, the lady will like it, I guarantee.’
Nico swore under his breath and ground his teeth in frustration. ‘Why can’t she ever do as she’s told?’ he asked of no one in particular, although he knew this was unfair. Midori had done her best to remain inconspicuous on board his ship and had never intentionally caused any trouble. So why does she have to start now?
As if to emphasise the misery engulfing him, the heavens opened and torrential rain started to pour down. It doused the streets in seconds and bounced off the nearby roofs. Most of the town’s inhabitants scattered like cockroaches in a beam of light, and Nico hunched deeper into the collar of his shirt. It made no difference; the entire shirt was drenched in an instant. Nevertheless, he continued with his search.
When at last a merchant did appear to remember Midori, he was told she had passed that way at least an hour ago, after leaving instructions for her purchases to be delivered to the Zwarte Zwaan. The sun was going down and Nico’s hopes of finding her unharmed were growing increasingly dim.
Damnation! There has to be a way …
‘A few puffs of this, and she might be a bit more amenable.’
The disembodied voice dragged Midori back to awareness through a haze of pain, and a strong smell invaded her nostrils, teasing her senses. She recognised it, but didn’t immediately understand its significance. Lightning bolts shot through her head when she opened her eyes, but thankfully the place she found herself in was very dim, giving her eyes more of a chance to adjust.
‘She’s stirrin’.’
The Gilded Fan (Choc Lit) Page 12
