Malspire (21 page)

The rebel stirred from his drunken sleep and I cursed under my breath as all I wanted was to slip in and riffle through the officer’s pockets. It was a long shot but there was always a chance that he had a code book with him. Now I was forced to do it the hard way. Darl saw me moving towards him with a bludgeon in my hand. Harl had provided the club, which I had kept inside my breaches. The officer was alarmed and about to shout out when I struck him hard on the head with a nasty crack.

“For the Empire,” I whispered through gritted teeth as the club knocked the naked man out cold, and probably dead by the sound of the blow.

Without pause, I stepped to the window and opened it. Leaning out and looking down into the back alley, I saw Harl and Jodlin appear from the shadows. I took the officer under the arms and manhandled him to the window, then using all my strength, heaved him over the edge to fall to the men below. Where was the girl? She would be back at any moment. Then I gathered up the clothing on the floor and threw them out as well. I took one last glance around the room for anything else that might belong to the officer. Finding nothing, I closed the shutters and window again, put a golden head on the side table and left. Just then the whore returned from the lady’s room. She saw me in the hall and smiled a drunken but seductive smile. I bowed drunkenly again and bade her a good night.

Casually making my way down the stairs, I went to the reception room where a night guard consulted a book. He then took payment and returned my clothing. With a racing heart I left the house, playing the drunk as I negotiated the steps. On reaching the corner of the building, I looked round, and then waved to the darkness of the alley. Harl and Jodlin appeared carrying a large barrel.

“Let’s go,” I whispered.

They followed me back to the main road, and then down to the harbour. There where guards wandering the walks and I was forced to continue my drunken act to distract them while the two seamen shuffled past with the conspicuous barrel. At one point I was threatened with a cell for being so drunk, but I quickly wriggled my way out of it by dropping some copper heads on the ground.

“Clumsy me!” I slurred picking one up again and forgetting the rest. The guards certainly noticed the coins and let me wonder off in my drunken zigzag walk while they gathered them up.

Eventually we made it back to the ship. The barrel was taken into the captain’s cabin where I opened it up to extract the clothing. The officer was dead from the blow or the fall, but he would have had to die anyway for the plan to work now. No time to waste on regrets. Instead I put the officer’s clothing on. Now I was a rebel officer with the final and most dangerous part of the plan ahead.

Chapter Nine

“Mister Olvan!”

“Captain?”

“The ship we want is a battleship called The War Lion.”

Olvan had spent time during the day making notes of the ships in the harbour and their positions. Consulting the sheet of paper, running his finger down the list, he said, “Pier three, sir. The War Lion. One of those big piers on the other side of the harbour, Captain. The bigger ships are at anchor over that side. I presume the water is deeper.”

“At anchor?”

“Yes, Captain. The piers obviously can’t take the big ships, but I noted where the launches landed, and for The War Lion, it’s pier three.”

“The ladies, Harl?”

“Ready and waiting. I paid them well. They should still be there, Captain,” said Harl.

“Go and take them to the inn we saw on the corner of the road. Tell them to wait for a senior officer by the name of Obringer.”

“Aye, Sir.”

“Wait! Is the sailing boat ready?”

“Ready to go, Captain,” said Harl.

Everything was ready, with blank sheets of paper on my desk and a quill made ready to copy the code book. Nothing more to prepare.

“You know you’re going to get yourself killed?” This was the doctor who was sitting in the corner.

“Might do, doctor, but that’s my choice. You lot have your orders.” I now spoke to the rest of the men in the cabin which included the engineer, the marine sergeant, Olvan, Jodlin, Willan and Harl who was about to leave.

“If I’m caught, you get the hells out of here. Run this ship like you’ve got the Tempest of Depths at your heals!” referring to a well-known fable about a sea monster. "Mister Olvan, you are to report the fact that the Water Horse was here to the Secret Servants." I then took the signet ring from the dead officer and placed it on my finger. With that they wished me luck.

A few lamps lit the harbour. Flies buzzed and moths fluttered in the dim pools of light. A dog sniffed around the wooden planking at the waterfront looking for scraps of food and rats amongst the crates, rubbish and piled ropes. There was a certain quality to the air that hinted of morning, but it was still dark and there should be enough time.

The great ships lit up the waters and in the distance. I could see more ships at anchor outside the harbour. A panicked flight would never work. The plan had to succeed or not only my life would be forfeit, but the life of my crew too. Perhaps I was taking too much risk with them? Perhaps this was a vain attempt at glory. The doctor's words came to mind. Was I trying to prove something to myself? Too late now. I had to go through with this. We had come too far and faced too many dangers to stop now. Every step had led to more danger, and every step made retreat the harder. The goal was so close, and with luck we would all be back at sea by daybreak. With luck.

I made my way by a back road to the main street again, and came down it with a drunken stagger, singing a song about a mermaid who had a hairy chest. It was one of the favourites amongst seamen but he I never understood the words. It had stuck in my head though, and now I was putting it to good use. When reaching the inn on the corner, I found the two ladies waiting for me in the shadows.

“Ah!” I said, with a drunken leer. “Come my pretties.”

“We was told to wait here for an officer,” said the smaller one.

“That’s me! Senior Officer Darl Obringer at your service.” Bowing far too low, I nearly fell. The girls took me by the arms and giggled. They relaxed now that their client was here and seemed relatively harmless.

“I promised the lads a gift!” I blurted. I was loud and made a pair of guards stare, but they saw nothing suspicious in a drunk officer with two ladies of the night.

“Come. Pier two. No! three! Pier three.”

The women led the way with me in hand. I started complimenting the girls, and fumbled for some coins which I pressed into their hands. We laughed. This was turning into a profitable evening for the two women Harl had found earlier in the evening in one of the cheaper houses. On reaching the pier, we made our way over to a smaller launch where two sailors got ready to take the officer back to his ship. I had my hat low over my face, and sank my head into my coat, singing and slurring.

“The War Lion!”

“Sir!” said one of the sailors as the ladies stepped aboard, and I clumsily fell onto one of the benches.

As expected the seamen had their eyes on the ladies and took no notice at all of myself. I fell silent, and allowed the ladies to flirt and giggle with the men who pulled on the oars. After five minutes we reached the wall of timber that was The War Lion.

“Wait here,” I slurred to the two seamen in the launch as the ladies and I stepped onto the steps that led up the side of the ship. “Up you go pretties. Get up there and tell them a senior officer is coming up. Show them how friendly you can be!” I winked at them, pressing more coin into their hands. They made their way up the steps with me following a little way behind. At the top I saw from the shadows of my hat that the girls had taken a sentry each. As I had expected, two marines were on guard at the steps, and when they saw me coming up they stood to attention with the girls clinging onto them.

“Sir!” said one of them.

“As’y were lads,” I reached the top and wobbled, slurred every word and made them as lazy as possible. “Toll’you I’d bring a gift!” I was betting the officers were not too familiar with the crew, and it seemed to be working. Either the men could not see me in the darkness or they did not know their officer’s faces too well. Either way, the sailors were more interested in the ladies than a drunk officer.

“Sir?”

“Girls! Girls. You deserve’em. Stuck here on this’ol tub.”

The two guards looked at one-another, then looked at the ladies.

“Go on!” I encouraged them. “Don'worry. I’ll stand guard for a bit. Oh yes. Use a cabin. Our secret.”

“Which cabin?”

“That man Obringer’s still in town. Use his.”

“What?” said one of the girls and I realised my mistake. Before she could point out that I was meant to be Obringer, I quickly push more coin into their hands and said, “Show them a good time ladies. They deserve it. Hurry now.”

There was doubt in the marine’s eyes. They could be hanged for deserting their post. “It’s a bloody order! Get your man sausages out and giv’em some air. An order!”

The girls giggled and the guards relented, hardly believing their luck. They took the women over to a door in the aft super structure, and then went down a passageway, and I followed them to the door and saw which cabin they entered. Once they were gone, I went into the same passageway and began looking around. It was dark with only a single lantern so I took it off the wall, and began to check the doors. Some of them where blank, while others had names on them. Making my way to some steps, I wondered if a lectrocoder would be on an upper deck. I reasoned that the captain would want to be close to the lectrocode officer as he was on the Sea Huntress and so I climbed them and sure enough, after another few doors, found one which had the words, Lectrocoder carved into a wooden panel.

Easing the door open, the room inside was pitch black, but the lantern revealed a cabin with a desk, a cot and the mysterious lectrocoder device on a substantial table, fixed to the wood by clamps and bolts. It had copper piping, and was humming and slightly glowing from its complex innards. In the bed was a young man, sleeping soundly. The desk had draws which I now hoped contained the book. It wasn’t on the desk, and there seemed no other place for it. Putting the lantern on the desk, I tried to open the drawer. It was locked!

“Damn turd in hells,” I muttered, and tugged again.

“Can I help you, sir?”

Spinning around, I saw the bleary eyed Lectrocode Officer looking up from his pillow.

“Where is the code book?”

“Book, sir? Who are you?”

The man got up. He slept in a long pair of white cottons. He rubbed his eyes. Round his neck, on a silver chain was a small key.

“The book. That’s an order!” I growled.

“I don’t know you, sir. I would have to ask…”

There was a commotion on deck. Someone was shouting: “Guards! Where are you?”

I leaped on the young officer, drawing the gutting knife I had concealed inside Obringer’s coat. Grabbing the man by the neck, I forced him down onto the bed then held the knife to the man’s groin.

“The book!” My voice sounded like a malevolent hiss in my ears, but it was born of panic.

The officer was young, hardly a man, probably no older than sixteen or seventeen. His eyes were wide with terror, and seemed petrified into silence by the blade pressing against his balls.

“The book!” I repeated, very conscious of the commotion going on down on deck. Men were running and shouting. The girls were protesting loudly now.

I did not wanted it to be like this, but I had planned for it. I had hoped to copy the book there on the ship without being found out, and then simply vanish, but it was not to be.

Slowly the Lectrocode Officer raised a hand to point at the draw in the desk. Looking at the terrified boy, I wished I did not have to do this. I hesitated. There were tears in the boy’s eyes. There was more movement on the ship. Men were waking to investigate the noise. I had to get off the ship, and fast.

“Sorry.” I quickly brought the knife up and thrust it deep and hard into the boy’s heart. Forcing my other hand over the young officer’s mouth, the boy struggled for mere seconds before the life left his eyes. Wiping the blade on the bedclothes, I then ripped the key from the dead officer’s neck and opened the draw. There I found the small black book. It was surprisingly heavy with lead weights sewn into the spine, designed to sink it should it be thrown overboard. Now for the final act, and then get the hells of this ship. I did not look back at the boy. I couldn’t, feeling awful for killing such an innocent, but it had to be done.

The passageway was empty. I had to be quick. Soon an officer or guard would probably go to Obringer’s cabin. I made my way down the steps and could clearly hear another officer berating the two marines outside. Somewhere a door slammed. Quick as a marlin, I darted into The Senior Officer's cabin. It was a good size with a trunk, cot, desk and some chairs. A small porthole looked out over the night time harbour. On the desk was a writing box, a lantern and some papers. Putting my own lantern down, I quickly looked through the papers and found a letter home which was yet to be sealed. It had Darl Obringer’s signature at the bottom. Opening the writing box, I took a blank sheet of paper and a pen, then, dipping the pen in the box’s inkwell wrote:

“No longer can I live with this treachery! No longer will I suffer the dishonour. Long live the Emperor!” This was all there was time for. It would have to do. I signed it as best I could, “Senior Officer Darl Obringer.” Then, taking a stick of red wax I opened the lantern and melted the end which I placed on the note to leave a hot lump into which I plunged the signet ring I had taken from the officer.

Now to get off this ship. Originally I had hoped to be in and out before the guards where done with the ladies and just take the launch back, but that would never work now. It was nearing morning, and the sun was probably no more than half an hour away. I had to hurry.

It was too far to swim with the clothes that had to be returned as part of the plan. I could probably get a hundred yards or so, but they would surely drag me down after that. It had to be a boat. Harl had offered to stand ready with a boat if needed but it would have looked too suspicious to have a launch hovering around the naval ship, so I rejected that idea, but regretted that now. Harl could have hidden in some shadows further off. It would have been a risk worth taking. Perhaps the seamen in the launch where still being questioned? They would head back at some point to await others who wished to return to the ship. It was my best and probably only chance.

I headed back into the ship to find another way out. Climbing the steps again, I had to duck back into a door-well as a guard passed on his nightly rounds further down the passage. When it was clear I continued. I found more steps leading up and came to another door. Opening it, I found myself on the deck of the aftcastle, but two men stood at one end looking down at the officer who was still berating the poor guards. I thanked my lucky stars when I heard the officer tell the boat men to get back to their duties, and the two guards to expect an enquiry in the morning. The boatmen were still there.

Creeping away from the men towards the back of the vessel, I looked down at the massive paddle wheel housing and black waters of the harbour. It was a long drop, and I was sure I would never survive it should I jump. Also they were sure to hear me hit the water and come to investigate. Climbing over the taffrail, I started my descent. I was aiming for a chain that emerged from further down the hull to the side of the wheels. If I could reach that, I could then use it to reach the water. The chain was a rear anchor chain, thick and it angled down into the black waters.

Must hurry. The launch would soon be gone and I would be left in the cold and dark waters where I would soon tire and sink to the bottom and a watery grave. Thankfully, there were plenty of hand holds in the fine carvings that adorned such a grand ship which helped me descend the wall of wood. As I climbed, I also edged my way over to the chain and was now above it. It was all taking too long! Then, in my hurry to get down, I lost my grip on a ledge, and fell. Panicking, I scramble to find a hold, but none came to hand so I tumbled. With a bone crunching jar, I fell, back first onto the massive chain. Like a cat, I span round and again scrambled for a grip, finding one and hung for a second from the chain with one hand. The drop had both hurt and winded me. I hoped I had not been heard. My grip was already tiring and slipping. I was not a strong man, but with a grunt of effort, managed to reach up and take the chain with both hands.