THIRTY-FOUR

THE NEXT FEW DAYS WERE SPENT WOODING AND WATERING AND PROVIsioning Rascal to be ready in all respects for sea. A long time at sea, for who knew what stores they would find on the far side of the world?

Cully purchased shot from the magazine ashore to augment what Rascal had on board. Fallon had insisted on extra grapeshot for close work in case it came to that. Beauty and Aja were ashore arranging for a water hoy to come alongside and a barge to bring out beef and biscuit, Aja learning yet another aspect of command.

Fallon had turned the problem of Little Eddy over in his mind for several days and, when a packet bound for Bermuda had called at English Harbor he had made up his mind. The packet would leave for home the next morning carrying mail and a few passengers. He intended Little Eddy to be among them. The thought of a grieving mother, and his own fears for the boy’s safety, had decided him. It didn’t occur to him that there was likely something else at play, as well.

Fallon had informed Little Eddy of his decision and the boy had seemed to understand, accepting his fate with surprising stoicism. Visser and Aja seemed a bit taken aback but accepted Fallon’s decision and even offered to escort the boy to the packet.

The next morning the sad little procession climbed through Rascal’s gangway and down into Fallon’s gig. It was a short row to the packet, which was bobbing idly at the quay. Beauty had asked Aja and Cully to go ashore for some last minute items from the chandlery once the packet was away. They carried a large duffel for the purpose which lay empty in the bottom of the gig.

Little Eddy waved goodbye to the ship with a brave face. The crew had all bade him farewell, sending him off with some gifts, a blanket and a tin of pudding, courtesy of the cook. All agreed he was a right shipmate. That was something to be proud of, thought Fallon, and hoped Little Eddy knew what he had earned in that praise.

Two days later, Rascal sailed out of English Harbor on the ebb and a light sea breeze. All the goodbyes had been said and, in truth, Fallon was anxious to be away. Elinore was stoic, for she had gathered herself and was resigned to his leaving and even his possible late return. There could be no knowing. She was on shore, waving, and Fallon could still smell her scent on his body, which would have made him smile if he was only leaving on an ordinary cruise. Admiral Davies was on the stern of Avenger and waved, as well. Who knew if they would ever see each other again? And then Kinis fired a single gun, which seemed to underscore the dangerousness of the cruise to Fallon, as if it needed underscoring.

Right, let’s get this done, Fallon said to himself. The longer he stayed in port the longer he would be worried about the unknown. He thought of one of Ezra Somers’ favorite Shakespeare quotes, something to the effect that a coward dies a thousand deaths, a brave man only one. It was time to be a brave man.

The course would take them northeast, making long boards against the trade winds until they could break free of them. The crew seemed delighted to be at sea and their humor was infectious, for they had all heard tales of the hidden delights of Algiers, veiled women with flashing black eyes and harems of concubines. It might all be fantasy, they knew, or it might not.

Barclay was on deck more often than not and clumsily attempted several noon sights for the first three days before clouds rolled in. Of course, he had every confidence in his dead reckoning and, beyond that, his instincts. But he was learning to use his stump and his good arm together, working as a team, and even his humor made an appearance at times.

So it was a happy ship that sailed into the Atlantic. All except for Caleb Visser, who often stood by himself at the windward railing looking apprehensively out to sea. Perhaps he was thinking of his own fantasy, of finding his father and bringing him home, of a life and a business they used to share, thought Fallon. His gold was below, the ransom he would need to buy his father’s freedom—but who knew how it would go?

Odds were, not how they thought.

Later that evening at dinner, Beauty and Fallon discussed the broad outlines of a strategy based on what little information they knew, most from Sir William’s account of the harbor fortifications in Algiers.

“Under no circumstances do I want Rascal under the harbor guns,” said Fallon. “We would have virtually no leverage in the event the negotiation doesn’t go well and we need to leave, perhaps quickly.”

“What about the little fact that we’re British citizens?” asked Beauty.

“Well, that should protect us, but Sir William’s account made me uneasy on the point,” said Fallon. “Any news of our capture would take months to get to London, I’m afraid. Diplomats would get involved, protests made and communiques sent back and forth. It might take months or even a year to settle it. Meanwhile, you’re in a harem.”

Beauty jumped at that, and Fallon burst out laughing.

“You do have a robe, I collect?” he asked, still laughing. “If not, they can—”

“Fuck that,” said Beauty, in her own inimitable way. And Fallon threw back his head and laughed some more.

A knock on the door.

“Come,” said Fallon, still chuckling at his own joke. But his smile evaporated as Aja stepped into the cabin, followed by a small boy with a grin on his face.

Little Eddy was back aboard.

“Well, I guess it was meant to be, Beauty,” said Fallon as they stood together at the binnacle the next morning. Little Eddy was in a circle of ship’s boys with Cully, who was walking them through their duties in the event the ship went into battle.

“Yes,” said Barclay, who was standing within earshot. “It’s God’s way of telling you you’re not God.”

“Only an insignificant captain, Mr. Barclay?” said Fallon with a smile.

“Your words, sir. Your words,” said Barclay as he tut-tutted off.

“I wonder how he did it, Beauty?” asked Fallon. “You and Aja got him on the packet and it weighed almost as soon as he went aboard.” He thought back over that morning, seeing in his mind Cully and Aja and Little Eddy climb down into the gig, the empty duffel lying on the floorboards, everyone with their heads down.

When they’d left, Beauty had asked to review the approaches to Algiers with Fallon below decks though he had already gone over what he knew in some detail. Consequently, he was not on deck when the gig returned from shore and the large duffel was hauled aboard Rascal.

The duffel.

It was a large duffel, he recalled, plenty big enough for a small boy to curl up inside. But that meant –

Beauty coughed under Fallon’s gaze and left to check on some task of other that needed checking on, and Aja was nowhere to be seen.