by Wendy Bayne
Gabriel smiled at her and took up the narrative, “We were discovered hiding in the hold before they sunk the ship and were brought before the captain. The man who had found us was able to convince him that we would be of more value to him alive since there was little in the way of plunder on the ship. I told them that the man they were looking for had died of fever and had been buried at sea. The ship logs confirmed that there had been a death, but the captain had neglected to enter a name, it was a lazy clerical error that saved us. Even though his employer had wanted no witnesses, the pirate captain was not averse to making a bit of personal profit. He sold Charity and I as indentured servants to the Tarlsons, an English couple who owned a small coffee plantation on Bermuda. Our sale had not stipulated our relationship to each other, so we told the Tarlsons that we were engaged and had planned to marry once our indenture was over. We had hoped to escape from them and to find my family but as it turned out that was not so easy. We were surrounded by jungle and had no money plus we were more than a thousand miles away from my family’s planation in Cuba. Mrs Tarlson as it turned out was a woman of strong moral convictions and insisted that she could not condone us living in sin, so we were married. I decided then to try and enlist their aid and told them our story. Unfortunately, neither she nor her husband believed us. I think they were afraid to let us go and lose their investment. It was obvious that they didn’t trust their slaves and they looked on us as added protection, so we lived in the main house with them as privileged servants. The Tarlsons were rather isolated and had few visitors and in a very short time they began to treat us almost like family. They promised us that in seven years we would earn our freedom and would then give us enough money to buy passage to wherever we wanted to go, but I still wanted to try and escape. I had made plans to do so but within a few months we discovered that Charity was with child and I couldn’t leave her, she gave birth to our twin sons as an indentured servant to my eternal shame.”
He sighed, and I noted that his hands were shaking with suppressed rage perhaps from self-loathing. He took an offered glass of brandy from the Earl and drank it off, then started again, “Then,” his voice choked with emotion, but he continued, “then one day when I was in the fields overseeing the workers, the Clarkes came with a band of raiders. They killed the Tarlsons and all the house slaves. When I heard the shots, I raced back but the only weapon I had on me was a machete and a knife. Charity met me halfway telling me to run. But she couldn’t leave our boys, they were only two years old. It was impossible for me to save them, but I promised to come back for them in the night. When I returned she and the boys were already in the hands of the Clarkes and being held captive in the big house and surrounded by the raiding party.”
Gabriel became overwrought, so Charity took up their story, “It became clear that the Clarkes were looking for someone. Their employer Lord Burley had found out that the captain had sold two survivors, one of them fitting Gabriel’s description, they were hunting for him. They told me they knew he was there because he had been seen in town with Mr Tarlson, the description matched that of Gabriel de Bearne. I knew if they suspected me of being Gabriel’s wife my life and those of our children would be forfeit. So, I lied to them about who I was. I had never been off the plantation and none of the neighbours knew me, so I pretended to be the widowed daughter of the Tarlsons who had come out from England with my sons to live with them. I told them that the girl who had been with Gabriel had died. They didn’t believe me and I was beaten for information about Gabriel. They even threatened our boys but all I told them was he had been in the fields and must have run off when he saw they had come. Search parties were sent out looking for him. The remaining slaves that hadn’t run away were terrified, but they didn’t give me up.” She chuckled. "They were more afraid of me because my twins were considered bad medicine; they thought I was a witch.
“Then one day Ramsey Clarke came back from town with a letter telling them to stay put that someone would be arriving to take charge. So along with their son the Clarkes took up residence waiting for this person to arrive. It had been over a week and the other raiders were getting restless talking about taking their share of the plunder from the Clarkes and leaving. But before they could Ramsey and his father killed the ring leaders in their sleep. The next day the others took whatever they could carry and ran. Finally, Randall Browne and his brother Julian arrived. They were very upset that the Clarkes had not found Gabriel. The Clarkes wanted to kill me and the boys but Randall said no, that he thought Gabriel would come after me. The Brownes suspected that I wasn’t who I said I was, so they ordered the Clarkes to sell up and establish themselves along the coast as a respectable family with property. I was to remain their hostage as an enticement for Gabriel to come out of hiding. The Brownes had a property picked out for them where smuggled goods and contraband could be off-loaded and hidden from the authorities but where they could keep an eye and an ear out for Gabriel as well.”
After they left the Clarkes took it into their heads to pass themselves off as landed gentry they could pass well enough in the hills as gentle folk but closer to town it would be obvious that they were hardly quality, they needed me to teach them how to behave. Following Browne’s instructions, they sold the plantation along with all the slaves and settled on the coast where they established a horse stud. They knew horses and did well but the market for horses is small in the Indies and the Clarkes liked to live well beyond their means." She reached out to Gabriel taking his hand in a tight grip and sighed.
Gabriel picked up the story, “I did run, but not far. I was hiding in the jungle. I followed the Clarkes to the coast, but I had no means to earn money, so I joined the crew of a smuggler’s vessel that plied the coastal waters between the Indies and America. At the time, I had no idea that the ship was one of Burley’s but thankfully no one knew who I really was, but they instinctively knew that I was not of their class, it wasn’t held against me so long as I worked hard. Thankfully my time spent associating with rough characters in Spain gaming and whoring stood me well with my fellow crewmen.” He coughed and looked embarrassed. “I was able to fit in with them for the most part, but it was difficult to bow to another’s authority, that was never my strong suit.”
He leaned back and crossed his legs looking more confident now. “The irony was not wasted on me when I discovered who owned the ship and so for almost four years I kept track of Charity and the boys as best I could. Our meetings were few and short. I had no means to care for them, so it was better that they stayed with the Clarkes where she and the boys at least would live in a better style than I could provide.” He rubbed a hand through his hair and sighed as if in telling the story he was releasing all the anxiety he had built up over the years. I should have tried to locate my family, but I was on a British ship and things were not shall we say easy between England and either the Dutch or Spanish settlements in the area.
"Then last year the storms came battering the coasts, they were devastating to many including Burley. He lost a great deal of money with his shipping, both legal and illegal. Our vessel the Horseman encountered a hurricane off the coast of Hispaniola, we lost the captain, first mate and many of the senior crew. Nevertheless, we limped into a Spanish port of call where I assumed command mainly because I spoke the language. If I hadn’t taken command the Spanish would have seized the vessel and arrested the crew. But by the sheer force of personality alone I saved the ship and crew. We made repairs quickly then set about increasing our fortunes under my leadership.
“As it happened many of the ships we plundered belonged to Burley, it was more by accident then design but it made me rich if not happy.” He laughed heartily for a bit. "At the time, it was bittersweet to know I was improving my fortune at the expense of an enemy. It was only by a quirk of fate that I had slipped through Burley’s fingers. My first thought once I was my own man had been to contact my family in the Indies, but I was unsure of what kind of reception I would receive. I’m not the e
ldest son and I had caused considerable trouble both socially and politically for my parents and uncle. I was still unsure if it had been Uncle Francisco who had arranged for my abduction to dispose of an embarrassing nephew on behalf of the family. After all, it had been my uncle’s idea to send me to the Indies.
“When I finally returned to spirit Charity and our sons away, I found that they were gone. The story in town was that Clarkes’ money had been running low so to escape their creditors they had sold up and headed for England with Charity and our sons. But in fact, Lord Burley while not happy with their failure in the Indies had another use for them in England. I found out through associates of Browne’s that he had no love for Turner and that Charity was to be used in some scheme to get close to him. It seemed that you were making things difficult for his Lordship’s endeavours in England and France. But Browne wasn’t about to stop there, he intended to exploit any advantage he could, including your father, Mrs Turner. He knew about the General’s weakness for playing cards with the French officers during the war and there were unsavoury rumours about him when he was in India. But his fraternizing with the French would have been considered a treasonous act by many and could ruin a man like your father and his family with him. So, Browne wanted Charity to get close to Turner either as his wife or mistress, he didn’t care which, but he intended to ensure her cooperation by holding our sons hostage.” He paused to see if my mother had reacted to this revelation; she did not. “Your husband was immune to her charms, so they decided to look elsewhere among the influential and men of power. My love made it difficult for them though by telling potential beaus that she was not a virgin. Naturally no man of the beau monde wanted a scandal attached to them, so they did not pursue my wife. But Burley and the Clarkes had already separated Charity from the boys when they had first arrived in England and she had no idea where they were.”
He clenched his fists, glared down at the carpet as if it had offended him. “I approached the Browne’s factor in the Indies when I heard that they needed a new captain to make the Atlantic crossing. The previous captain had met with an unfortunate accident on the docks and had his leg crushed. Once I arrived in England I found Charity here in London and I reluctantly agreed that she needed to stay and play her part, hoping to find out the location of our sons.” There was a coldness in his eyes that made me shiver but then he came back to himself and the look vanished as suddenly as it had appeared. “I sailed in and out of Poole as captain of the Brownes’ most successful smuggler mainly because of my talent for languages and my beard.” He gave a self-satisfied smirk. “The Brownes never knew who I really was.”
He stretched and held out his glass for a refill, after taking a sip he continued, “The only respite I ever had was stopping occasionally at the old estate outside of Poole that I believe Johnson now owns. The young girl that lives there with her parents is a kind soul, she would listen to my ramblings with a sympathetic ear.” He sighed then chuckled. “And her mother was an excellent cook but had an acid tongue. You may not be aware, Johnson, but I was on the ship anchored off Poole the night when most of my crew didn’t return from their altercation with you. I heard about what happened from the few that did return, and I must say that you have some most unusual friends.”
His tone suddenly changed from bemused to angry. “I came looking for the others when they were overdue and found the gypsies burying the bulk of my crew in the bog. They wouldn’t tell me a thing other than my men and my business associates had a fatal disagreement with the wrong people. I was surprised to find that even gold wouldn’t buy me your names. That kind of loyalty is rare, Johnson.” He turned and looked at Miles, unaware that Miles could not see him. “For the most part, my crew were good men just trying to survive in a cruel world. But I don’t hold you or Turner responsible for their deaths; that is on Burley’s head.”
He took up Charity’s hand to kiss it again. “After that I made my way to London and watched you for a time, it was difficult to speak to Charity except in crowded reception rooms and the notes we contrived to leave in the park. It wasn’t long before the Clarkes moved to Oxford and I could no longer meet with her privately, but she had discovered that the boys had been moved by Julian and his intent was to bring them to Paris. It was then that Charity ran away with me to follow Browne. But that nuisance Ramsey came after us and he alerted Browne to my probable identity.” He clenched his fist again and slammed it on his knee. “They still have my boys somewhere in Paris.”
Aunt Emilie with her kind heart asked, “Why would they bring the boys to Paris?”
Gabriel shrugged. “To ransom them to my uncle perhaps or to lure me out into the open? They are a very suspicious family and believe everyone is as dishonest as they are. I did manage to discover that my uncle isn’t working with Burley, in fact, he is living here in exile. Still I felt that I couldn’t go to him and put him and my family at risk. It would be a terrible scandal for all concerned if I were to reappear after all these years…a pirate and a smuggler. Besides I need my anonymity to find my sons.” He stopped and looked around the room, my father and Uncle Samuel had still not joined us, and I was puzzled as to their absence.
The Marquis was scratching his head then ventured to say, “That’s an interesting story, monsieur, but it still does not tell us why you shot Julian Browne.”
Charity looked him in the eye saying one word, “Revenge.” She bowed her head and, in a whisper, said, “I heard Julian talking to a mousey looking man at the Embassy party who said that the Spaniard’s brats would have to be disposed of, because you people were getting too close. Browne told him that he’d have Ramsey take care of it that night but first he had a bit of unfinished business with Miss Turner. The other man was not happy about it and said that his Lordship would be most displeased. But Julian told him that he had more important things to worry about than his father’s displeasure.” She sobbed as she continued, “They knew that the boys were Gabriel’s children…and they were going to kill them!” She sobbed but continued, “I had to stop him before he spoke to Ramsey!” She was visibly distressed, but Gabriel put his arm around her and glared at us, daring anyone to challenge their story. It was clear that they both were under considerable stress.
There was a knock at the door signalling the arrival of the refreshments and with them came my father’s valet Robert Dawson. He looked nervous and never more so than when he saw Gabriel. But he turned to my mother and Aunt Emilie who was seated beside her, “Begging you pardon, ladies, but Mr Turner and Mr Hughes will not be able to join you as they’ve been called away on urgent business.” Mother thanked him as did Aunt Emilie. Robert made to leave the room and as he moved towards the door, Mother asked, “Robert, do you happen to know who called them away and to where?”
Robert gulped and nodded. “Yes, ma’am, I do. My Uncle Jibben sent him a message and asked to meet them in the town’s marketplace.”
Mother leaned forward. “Really! What is he doing here and what does he my want with my husband?”
Robert gulped and took a step forward. “He’s here with a couple of my cousins on a bit of business to arrange marriage contracts with the local Roma. But he said that he had come across someone’s personal property while in Paris that he hoped Mr Turner and Mr Hughes would take off his hands and see it returned to its rightful owner. He also has some information about a person of interest and needed to speak to them.” He shifted his gaze to Gabriel who bristled at the look and seemed ready to accost Robert.
Mother pursed her lips. “Robert, what do you think your uncle meant?”
Robert had inched his way still closer to the door. “Well, ma’am, my uncle’s surprises generally have strings attached if you get my meaning and as you well know he never gives information away for free, so Mr Turner took a heavy purse with him.” He paused and then took a step back into the room. “The master will be fine, ma’am, he has certainly sussed out the way to deal with the Roma and besides my uncle actually likes him. Don’t
worry, ma’am, my uncle would never hurt him…except maybe in the pocket.” Mother smiled and thanked him. Robert quickly left with one last glance back at Gabriel, only this time with a slight smile and a nod.
Mother huffed and looked at the assembled company. “It appears we’re are on our own once again, Emilie. Gentlemen, perhaps you’d like something stronger than tea, Mr, ah, I’m sorry but I cannot continue just calling you Gabriel.”
He smiled and nodded, “De Bearne, madam, Gabriel Antonio Tomas Eduardo de Bearne.”
“Thank you, Mr de Bearne, oh excuse me but do you have a title that I should be aware of?”
“No, madam, just money.” He chuckled. “My father was a younger son, but a very successful younger son. He has a talent for making money that he passed onto his sons, even a reprobate like me, though my methods in recent years have been rather unorthodox.”
With this the Marquis perked up, “De Bearne you say? I believe I might know your father. He and my father once discussed investing in a business venture in England before the war.”
Gabriel smiled and nodded. “Papa has always longed to establish himself in England as well as in the America. But it’s a risky venture and he is far too cautious. The English can brew spirits such as this whisky and ale with great skill. But their wines, well, they really cannot produce a decent vintage, not enough sun and too much rain. Even you must agree that God created Spain, France and Italy for making wine.” All the gentlemen agreed.
The conversation dissolved into talk of wine and England, it was clear that many of us were homesick. But much to my surprise no one had broached the topic of what to do about Charity; after all, she had murdered Julian Browne and I was loath to bring it up myself.
Aunt Emilie and Mother had moved to sit with Charity and I could tell they were talking about children just from the look of wistful longing in Emilie’s eyes. I was starting to feel out of place, so I walked over to look out the windows at the garden below. I picked up a book of water colours thumbing through it then finally I just stood there holding onto the open book lost in my own thoughts looking out at the view but not really seeing anything. The garden had changed since our arrival. The blossoms were gone, and the trees were now in full leaf. Autumn was upon us. I heard rather than saw my Aunt Mary and Uncle Arthur leave without saying goodbye. A brief time later I saw Mrs Baxter, Patrick and her father Mr Hillsborough arrive in their delivery cart with a load of dairy products. With them were two small dark-haired boys who were helping to unload the cart. They were so similar in appearance that at first, I thought it was only one boy racing back and forth to the kitchen door. Then one of the boys looked up at me, Gabriel’s face was perfectly etched on those cherubic features. I gasped and dropped the book, everyone’s head turned to me as I stood rooted to my spot. I could only point at the window, so Dr Jefferson and Gabriel came to my side and looked down. Suddenly Gabriel was pounding on the window next to me almost shattering it, then he turned and raced from the room with the doctor hard on his heels. Patrick looked up and seeing me waved then pointed at the two boys laughing. Charity came to the window and when she saw the boys, she reached out to touch the glass then promptly fainted. The Earl and Marquis came to her assistance, carrying her to the settee. My mother and Aunt Emilie attended to her as I stooped to retrieve the book I had dropped. I looked out the window once again, this time to see Gabriel running across the lawn calling out to the two little boys who were racing towards him.