Windmera-Desperation

by Claudy Conn

  The color of wild purple crocus was everywhere, and even in the dusky light she could just make them out as they trotted along. Life was taking her away from everything she loved. How was she going to escape? How?

  She needed to find a way to escape. Could she manage to slide off the horse…run, and maybe someone would come along before they recaptured her? Maybe if she slid off, she could scream? No, how could she get the gag out with her wrists tied behind her back? Oh, faith, what was she to do?

  She shifted in her seat in front of the lad, and he said, “I know what ye are thinking. Ye want to run, but I’d have to chase ye, and Colin…well, he would be none too kind. Don’t do it…lest ye see someone coming along. Then mayhap ye’ll have a chance.”

  So, he wouldn’t stop her if help was nearby. Hope trickled into her heart, but no one came along, and after thirty minutes of slow trotting, they reached the cove.

  “Colin ordered the men to moor the sloop down in that cove…there.” Bunky indicated with his chin. “They be waiting for our signal.”

  Bunky slid off his horse and helped Heather down, steadying her as she faltered. She was frantic. This couldn’t really be happening…could it?

  She frantically looked about, checking her surroundings for some way she might escape. She saw Colin wave a lantern. No doubt to his men. Once she was on the vessel with them, she would be done. Life would be over. Oh Godwin…Godwin?

  Bunky confirmed her worst fear. “He is signaling to the men to come for us with the small boat.”

  She closed her eyes and Bunky clucked his tongue. “I’m sorry, miss…if I could help ye, I would.”

  Colin came over, handed the lantern to Bunky and took Heather’s arm. “Right now, little missy, I want no trouble from you. So come along.” He dragged her as Heather put up a fight. He stopped suddenly and rounded on her. “Stop. I don’t want to hit you. In fact, a part of me knows I am crossing a line with this job. But I took payment and gave my word. That is the end of it. Don’t you think I know you want to flee, so I’m not going to rough you up any more than I must. Understand? But I’ll not take much more of your struggling. What is the point, woman? What is the point?”

  Heather saw the boat in the shallow water and a tear fell down her cheek. A large burly man called out, “Whot is this, Captain? I don’t hold with gagging a lady.”

  “Never mind what you hold with. She comes with us,” Colin took command. He turned to Heather and said on a hard note, “Up with you, miss. Into the boat.”

  She would not comply, so he picked her up on a heavy sigh and lifted her within the skiff. He heard his men grumbling and shouted, “Enough! The woman comes with us onto the sloop and we make enough to keep us for a month. We have the two hundred from the Ravensbury woman, and quite a bit more when we sell her to the Pink Chateau Brothel.”

  “Now and then, it ain’t about the money,” a slim seaman complained loudly. “I don’t hold with abducting ladies. She looks no more than a slip of one, too…goes against m’grain.”

  He was joined by a chorus of objections.

  Heather’s hopes rose and quickly sank when Colin said, “Shut up, the lot of you, and start rowing.”

  They grumbled, but row they did.

  Bunky sat beside her and called out to his captain, “Colin…can I ungag her? She looks right uncomfortable, she does.”

  “Why not? I don’t suppose anyone will hear her out here, but if she makes any trouble…” Colin answered, leaving the implication on the air.

  “Bunky,” Heather whispered as soon as the gag was off. “I understand you and the men here are only following orders. If you could find a way to let me escape when we land in France? Just don’t let him give me to a…a…”

  “Aye, miss, I know, that is the worst of all this business. We’ll just have to wait and see,” Bunky said. “Now stop yer whispering or he’ll gag ye again, he will.”

  As they got closer to the sloop, Heather saw its sails shivering in the wind. Bunky had tied her cloak tightly around herself, as her wrists were still tethered.

  Hope was quickly fading. She had actually believed that Godwin would come to her rescue…or that someone along the route would see her and call a halt to her abduction, but those things had not occurred. She was doomed, and suddenly Heather knew this beyond all else. She was being taken away and sold to a brothel. She felt sick.

  Colin had not relieved her of the small amount of money her uncle had given her. She had that deep inside her inner dress pocket, but she knew someone yet might do just that if they suspected she had any money. She had no other hiding place.

  Everything seemed to happen as though she were walking through a nightmare she could not wake up from.

  In quick succession, Heather was taken on board and stowed at the bow of the sloop. The only good thing she could think of was the kind treatment of the various seamen on board. Each one treated her gently, and it was obvious the abduction was just being barely tolerated.

  One of the men draped a blanket around her and whispered, “Sorry, miss…that oi am.”

  She wasn’t naïve about smugglers. Each one of these men had a hungry family back in Devonshire, waiting on their return, waiting for the money they would receive from their efforts. She understood that in these difficult times, smuggling was just an avenue to survive. She hoped they would not allow her to be sold…yet there was money in that as well. What was she to do?

  Bunky had silently and decidedly appointed himself her caregiver and whenever he had a moment from his duties on board, he saw to her comfort, offered her a piece of stale bread, a piece of cheese, and a slice of an apple. She had no doubt he was sharing his own rations with her. He untied her hands at her back and said, “Colin says I can untie yer wrists so ye can eat. He says to tell ye that ye shouldn’t think of jumping overboard, we are too far out for ye to make it back to shore.”

  She knew she had to stay strong if she was going to escape, so she ate the bread and cheese and thanked him.

  She worked her ankles and was determined to stay limber. She had to maintain her strength, she told herself, strength and an opportunity to escape was all she would need. It was the only hope she still held.

  Bunky returned from his job at the rigging and sat beside her a moment. “Lookee…I’ve been thinking, miss, that well…if I could, I would help, and mayhap I can somehow if only…”

  She interrupted him, “I know. ‘Tis a job, like the hangman, you are only doing your job.” She knew this was cruel after all the kindness he had displayed towards her.

  His face took on a stricken look and even in the dim light, she saw his cheeks darken. “Ye ain’t going to the gallows.”

  She interrupted him again, “No. No, far worse…you are allowing your captain to sell me to a place where they will sell my body against my will.” She lowered her head.

  “No, miss, ye must let me finish…I don’t mean to let that happen if I can stop it,” Bunky said.

  “Bunky, you don’t have any way to stop him. I know that,” Heather said, and sighed.

  Heather thought of Godwin, who she would never see again. She thought of her baby. What fate lay ahead? Her heart took in the enormity of what she was about to suffer.

  He hung his head and when he looked at her again, he saw the tears fall silently down her cheeks. “Lord love ye, miss…I have never been so miserable…that is the truth.”

  She believed him, but would he really be able to help her?

  “Ye call no attention to yerself. Ye sit there brave and quiet instead of wailing away. Never mind. France is still hours away and I will think of something.”

  “Yes, France and the Reign of Terror,” she said, suddenly brightening. Englishmen were forever secretly crossing the channel to head for Paris and save the French aristocracy from Madame Guillotine. The tales of their bravery were legendary.

  “Aye, we been dealing with it, we have. The revenuers been scouring the seas because of it, going after any boat crossing they
can find.” He eyed her. “Ye might get lucky if they stop and search us.”

  “Oh, Bunky, if only that could happen without you getting into trouble,” Heather whispered.

  “Aye, there would be hell to pay,” he said, and rubbed his chin. “Colin won’t be taken easily.”

  The time passed slowly as they sailed under the cover of darkness into French waters. Bunky returned to his chores and after a time she saw him again. He plopped down heavily beside her and said, “We’ll be pulling into St. Pol-de-Léon early morning, miss.” He shook his head. “Careful we have to be. The Frogs…revolutionaries, don’t like the English any more than they do the gentry.”

  Heather saw Colin approaching. He had an odd look on his face as he studied her and Bunky sitting beside one another. In fact, as he got closer, she saw his eyes narrow and became worried for her new friend.

  “Look at you two. Fancy her, do you, Bunky? Well…forget it, her sort will break your heart. I know. So unless you mean to take her here in front of all the crew, best leave her be and forget her now.”

  Bunky shook his head and his voice sounded agonized. “Colin, don’t.”

  Colin laughed and moved off. A few of the crew members looked at Bunky and one said, “Sad times. Don’t hold with this, don’t let him get on ye, lad.” This seaman couldn’t or wouldn’t look at Heather as he added, “Tell the lass none of us are happy about this.”

  “It’s good ye keep her company, lad,” another crew member said, and glared at Colin’s retreating form.

  Colin evidently heard his men at his back and shook his head as he stomped off.

  Heather leaned into Bunky and said, “Do you think I could have some water, Bunky? My throat is parched.”

  He jumped up and she watched the lad stumble as he rushed off towards the water barrel. He filled a mug and she saw him stop short as he looked out onto the bustling docks with its traffic of wagons, carriages, and pedestrians.

  She sighed, and watched as everyone got busy docking, and wished there was some way she could get off the sloop, make a run for it, and vanish into the crowd.

  The day was grey, and there was a promise of rain as market peddlers hawked their wares, servants rushed about buying supplies, and if matters hadn’t been so dire, Heather would have smiled at all the bickering and haggling over goods taking place.

  Bunky, however, seemed riveted in place as he stared into the horde of people. Heather frowned, wondering what he saw and then following his line of vision, she realized. He was staring at a young woman, probably not much older than she was herself. Heather’s heart sank when she realized what the girl was. There could be no doubt. The girl was a harlot, obviously on the prowl for a customer. It was early morning and Heather thought it an odd time for the poor woman to be looking for a customer.

  A passing seaman stopped to give the woman a grin and pat her on the rump. She slid closer to him and drew his hand into her bodice, but what struck Heather was the look of horror on Bunky’s face. He went white.

  She saw him watching the woman with dread as she led off her client towards a nearby inn. He swallowed hard and came to Heather, shoving the mug of water at her and saying, “That’s it, I can’t and won’t be a party to this. I can’t let him sell ye off to sech a fate. Bless and preserve me, for I can’t do it.”

  She sipped at the water, getting her thoughts together. She trusted the young man, but would he be capable of getting her away? “Bunky…how can you stop him?”

  “All I know is I promise ye and the Almighty I’ll get ye away. I know two or three of the men who will look the other way when we make our move, aye, they will. They don’t hold with this and…I’ll get ye off and away.”

  “Bunky, he’ll know. You won’t be able to free me and remain with him and the crew.” Heather was concerned for the lad.

  He shrugged, and shook his head. “Lookee at that. Ye are in a terrible fix and ye are worried about me? No. I don’t mean to let Colin do this to ye, I don’t. If this is the kind of business he means to foist on us, I’m thinking I don’t want to stay in his employ—that I don’t. Lookee, this is what I’m thinking. Colin will be off any minute now. His first concern is getting a shipment to sell to the land runners. They’ll be waiting on it, ye see. They is the ones that take the brandy overland to the largest taverns. Some take the brandy to London if they have a mind. So he’ll be busy for a bit. He won’t take ye to that…that place ‘til evening as we sail through cover of darkness, ye see. So I’m thinking he can’t very well tie and gag ye on the open street in daylight, can he? No, so he’ll do it at night with a hood pulled low over yer head. That’s what I’m thinking. So we’ll wait and make our move then. So then it is settled, we wait ‘til then and by the Divine Power, we’ll make a run for it.”

  “But…” Heather started.

  “Hush, now. I’ll tell the men to start hollering after me. That will keep them from getting into trouble with Colin, and it will draw a crowd. The crew won’t follow us, I know they won’t. I can tell. They’ll send Colin in another direction. They be good blokes. Smugglers, aye, but good men all the same.”

  “Where will we go?” Heather asked, excited now.

  “I don’t know, miss. But we’ll figure it out,” Bunky said, and sighed as he sat back against the bulwarks.

  Colin returned to the sloop with the dusk, and he was in very good spirits. He preened over the purchase of brandy he had concluded and shot a leering eye towards Heather and Bunky. Heather was sure he was well into his cups as he slurred and swaggered.

  “Eh, lad, I don’t want you pining over this mort. I can see you fancy her. So what I think is you need to get her out of your system. Fair enough,” Colin said, and took a long swig of the brandy he had been sampling a good part of the afternoon.

  “What are ye saying, Colin?” Bunky played along.

  “I’m saying if you want her, take her,” Colin answered.

  “Aye, sure I want her and I know she likes me,” Bunky said, touching Heather’s hand as though to reassure her. “But what can I do about it with all the crew gawking at us?”

  Colin laughed. “Why should that matter? Right then, you’re young, so I’ll allow your shyness, but you need to get over that. Learn to take what you want when you want.”

  “Well…this time…?” Bunky hemmed.

  “Very well, very well, go ahead, take her down dockside, in the tall grass…she knows what it’s all about. She is no virgin, so…go ahead, pleasure yourself,” Colin said, and snickered.

  Heather was astounded. Colin was offering them a way to escape. Yes, he was drunk, but even so, he wasn’t stupid. What was he doing?

  Bunky was on his feet and helping her up by holding her upper arm. Colin stepped up to the two of them and said, “Hold on now, why don’t you just take her to the brothel and tell them I said that part of our selling price is you being her first customer. Then you could take her in comfort and for a good hour, as we don’t set sail for another two hours. How is that?” Colin put up his hand. “But tie her wrists again. I know you’d like her to use her hands…but not this time, lad.”

  Bunky’s fists clenched at his sides. He had never realized how truly low his captain had sunk over time. However, he did as he was told, turning Heather as she quietly stood, and fixing her wrists lightly with the rope. When this was done, he looked at his captain and said, “I’m not a fool, Colin. I’m young, a stripling, aye, but not dumb. And as to the rest, I won’t be sent about like that. I don’t hold with brothels and I don’t mean to take her there.”

  Colin broke out laughing. “Go on then, lay with her in the weeds, doesn’t matter to me, but when you are done, bring her to me, and I’ll take her to the brothel so you won’t have to. How is that?” his voice trailed off as he watched one of his men cackling to a passing woman, and moved off to shout at him to get back to work.

  “Hush now, miss,” Bunky said as he led her off the boat. “We have to make it seem we are headed for the weeds. Coli
n is good and bosky he is, or he wouldn’t let us do this.”

  “Then what?”

  “We make a run for it, that’s what,” Bunky said, and grinned wide. He helped her off the boat, and pulled her along. She was shivering and he stopped a moment to tie her cloak tightly about her.

  They used the cover of darkness to duck first into the tall grass, rush across the paved avenue, and take a dirt footpath towards the upper street that ran parallel and overlooked the harbor docks.

  Out of breath, Bunky and Heather paused before they rushed into an alley between the two streets and leaned against the side of a wood building.

  The odor of urine permeated the air and Bunky grimaced. “We have to move fast, we do, before some drunk comes this way.”

  They hurried towards a more populated part of town. Everywhere Heather looked she saw bawdy women and rough looking seamen. One in particular cursed in French and took out his member to relieve himself in the street while the woman he was with laughed raucously.

  Heather didn’t have time to dwell on the fact that she was in the worst environment she had ever encountered as the thought skipped through her brain. Just what were they going to do? How would they hide amongst such a crowd? They were so different and stood out in such a crowd. “Bunky, hold my hand, we have to look like lovers out for a bit of fun and adventure, nothing more.”

  “Aye, ye be in the right of it,” he said, and clasped her fingers.

  She knew they were racing against time with no clear destination. “Where are we going? We have to have a plan.”

  “First, let me undo your wrists.” He moved her cloak aside and that done, he clucked his tongue. “As to plans, only have one. We stay out of sight and don’t get caught. We’ll figure out the rest after Colin sets sail. He won’t delay his sailing. He can’t, not with all that brandy they are loading on board. All we need to do is lay low until morning. I have some money, not much, but mayhap I can offer my services if they take us both.”

  “I have enough, I think, for the two of us to buy passage home,” Heather said.