LOIRE SPENT THE NIGHT OFF THE ENTRANCE TO ST. GEORGE’S HARBOR, Aja not wanting to dare the channel on a black, moonless night. The ship was safe and secure and the breeze was light as the ship sailed back and forth. Aja stayed on deck, putting the ship about every hour to keep station and to look at the stars until they winked goodbye in the morning. The weight of the world was off his young shoulders, for he’d gotten the ship to Bermuda, albeit twice, and tomorrow would see Loire finally delivered.
At first light, with the sun coming up behind the ship, Aja crept into the channel. By the time Loire’s anchor was down and her sails were furled and his gig was lowered, Aja could see Caleb Visser standing at the end of the dock. The American took off his hat and bowed, and Aja took that as a good sign that his spirits had improved.
But the news was better than that, far better as he soon learned. Upon climbing to the dock he was embraced in a big bear hug by Visser, who squeezed the very breath out of him and exclaimed that they’d found the gold.
“Mr. Caleb, sir,” said Aja, once he’d gotten his breath back, “it is a wonderful thing to find your gold. I believe it is a miracle.”
“Yes, indeed it is,” said Visser. “But I was on my way to have breakfast with Ezra and Elinore when I saw you sailing in, and they will be delighted to see you and learn of your prize. I trust Nicholas and Beauty are well? Excellent, then pray come have a bite and tell us all about how you took that ship!”
They walked up the dock and down the small road to Somers’ house, which sat on a hill facing the harbor perfectly placed to catch the sea breeze. Elinore met them at the door, welcoming Aja with open arms and questions about Fallon and Beauty. Assured that all was wonderfully well, she led them into the dining room where Somers sat drinking coffee. After Aja received another welcome and the same questions about Fallon and Beauty and, after an extra place was quickly set, the little group sat down to breakfast.
Aja related the events since Rascal left Bermuda for Grand Turk, the battle scene between Ceres and Loire, and the taking of Loire without a terrible price due to Fallon’s decisiveness and Beauty’s ship handling. He omitted anything to do with his own role; he had learned from Fallon how to give a report that gave credit to others.
“So you went to Hamilton and learned that drunken fool of a prize agent had been booted back to England, I take it?” asked Somers between mouthfuls of egg and fresh biscuit. “He was a thief, too, as I’ve just heard. We’ve been getting cheated for years.”
“What’s to be done with Loire, then?” asked Elinore.
“Damned if I know,” said Somers, chewing contentedly. “Aja, what kind of condition did Rascal leave Loire in? She obviously got you here.”
“Yes, Mr. Ezra, sir,” replied Aja. “There are no holes below the water-line and the crew spliced the rigging, though much of it should really be replaced. The ships’ boats need re-building, the railings still need some repair, the deck is gouged, the stern windows were blown out and there are shot holes we haven’t gotten to. But I think she is a fine sailer, though the sails are old. I think she has bugs in the hold, however. The men would not sleep below decks.”
Caleb Visser laughed loudly and the others joined him, for French ships seemed to often have cockroaches and bed bugs. The ship would need to be cleaned from stem to stern and probably smoked to kill them all.
The breakfast topic then moved on to cod fishing and days and nights spent on the Grand Banks in all weathers, for Visser had many stories of storms, tangled nets, and clashes with other fishermen, particularly Portuguese, who had fished the banks since, well, since cod. Visser was a good storyteller, with an easy charm and humility that kept his little audience enthralled, for they knew very little about fishing and even less about fishing the banks.
As the dishes were cleared at last, Somers brought the conversation back around to Loire, for it was obvious he had been turning the problem of what to do with her over in the back of his mind even as he listened to Visser.
“Obviously, we must get Loire to a prize agent to be bought into the service,” he said. “Lieutenant Woodson was very good in suggesting she ship be appraised by a British agent; I hope his trust doesn’t get him in trouble with his superiors. That said, I want to get Loire in the best condition possible for everyone’s sake. I am thinking of sending her to English Harbor and the prize agent there. He will have to sort out shares but I daresay he will do the best he can. At any rate, it could be a long time before there’s a new agent in Hamilton.”
The incentive was obviously there to make Loire as fine a ship as possible so she would appraise for the highest possible price. Aja pictured the ship in his mind and the work to be done. He was still thinking when Elinore joined the conversation.
“That seems like a very sensible plan, father,” said Elinore. “Assuming the ship is repaired, where will you get a captain and crew to sail Loire to Antigua?”
It was a good question, for most of Bermuda’s men were already at sea, or preparing to go to sea, or on their way back from sea. Somers squinted his eyes in thought.
“Mr. Ezra, sir,” said Aja excitedly. “I believe the crew and I could make the ship very good again within two weeks. And, Mr. Ezra, we could sail it to English Harbor for you.” Aja smiled in his winning way, obviously anxious for a second command.
“Well,” said Somers, thinking the thing over. “Nico will probably beat you back here, although you could take one of the trading packets back from English Harbor without any difficulty, so you shouldn’t be gone too long. And I guess Rascal isn’t going anywhere for a while once she’s back, so I don’t think Nico would mind.”
Visser had been sitting with his head down for a few moments listening to the conversation. Elinore watched him, wondering what he was thinking. Suddenly, she found out.
“Do you think,” Visser said raising his head and looking at Somers, “that I would have a chance to find a ship in English Harbor that could take me across the Atlantic? A better chance than here, I mean.”
The question was logical, but startled the room. So intent had everyone been with finding Caleb Visser’s gold that no one had really thought of what inevitably came next: getting to the Mediterranean with it.
“Well, I would think so, yes,” answered Somers. “I am not aware of any ships from Bermuda trading with Southern Europe. But I believe the West Indies sends ships there with tobacco and sugar. The customs agent in English Harbor would certainly know more.”
“Then may I accompany Aja?” said Visser, a hopeful expression on his face.
And Somers couldn’t think of a reason why not, though no one really wanted to see Caleb Visser go.