He snorted and rubbed his knuckle. She noticed and took his hand in hers. “You know it was a brave thing to do? The man was drunk and would have been brutal, even dangerous. We know of him. ’e is very bad to the girls.”
Then she noticed his disheveled appearance. “Dunkin, what happened to you? Your blouse it is torn.”
He tried desperately to change the subject. “What did you do with him?” he asked. “You didn’t have him killed, did you?”
Leilah shook her head. “No, but he would deserve it. Not all are like him, but he is bad. The two big men, Ibrahim and Mahomet, will carry him out and leave him in a street far from ’ere. He will wake up with a big headache.” She smiled and pressed his hand. “I shall repair this, your blouse too. You have been clumsy, no? I do this for you, do not go away.”
She came back with a hot damp cloth and some salve, which she applied tenderly to his superficial wound. It felt very good to have her fussing over him. He sighed and she looked up.
“You like it that I care for you?” she asked him. Her tone was soft.
“Er… yes, I most certainly do, Leilah. You are very kind.” Duncan was rapidly falling for this slip of a girl whom he hardly knew.
‘So now take off the blouse and the dress. I will sew it back.” He complied, but when he handed her the blouse she appeared to hesitate for a moment, then she said, “I do not have work to do tonight. Danush told me I must look after you. I mean ... yes, I must look after you. He said that. You must sleep here tonight.” She shook her head and frowned, as though making a decision while looking straight at him.
Duncan could feel his whole body getting very warm and his face going red underneath the flaking make-up.
“Um ...er, what d’you mean, Leilah?” he stammered.
She looked directly at him with her huge gray eyes and said firmly, “You will not be like a woman for tonight, Monsieur Dunkin. But... first we shall take off the make-up. You understand?”
“Er, yes, yes Leilah, I think I do,” he whispered, his heart beating a furious tattoo against his ribcage.
Chapter 27
Cutting out
The day after the citadel fell Sir Sidney Smith was alerted to the arrival of a French boat flying a white flag of truce making its way towards the Tigre .
He met the two green jacketed cavalry officers who arrived on deck with full honors. After the salutes and bow the officers introduced themselves as Captain Henri Landes of General Murat’s brigade and Captain Adelard.
Captain Landes spoke.“I have the honor of bringing letters to you Sir Sidney Smith from General Bonaparte.” he said and produced some packets with a flourish.
“I am equally honored to make your acquaintance,” Sir Sidney responded with a bow. “Please. Will you come to my cabin where we may talk in more comfort?”
The officer cast a sharp eye about him as t hough assessing the state of the ship and murmured something to his colleague who remained on deck, Captain Landes then followed Sir Sidney as he led the way below.
Sir Sidney offered his guest a sherry and then while Captain Landes sat quietly opposite him he read the letter.
When he was finished he remarked. “I have to congratulate his Excellency upon a great victory.”
The captain inclined his head. “The fortunes of war Sir. You are familiar with how fickle that can be...” his tone was dray.
“He mentions here about prisoner exchanges . Alas we have no French prisoners here in my squadron so I am regretfully unable to assist in that matter.” Sir Sidney stated. The embarrassment of the slaughter of the garrison in Abukir still fresh in his mind.
“It was just in case , you understand Sir Sidney?’ Captain Landes said. “We do not wish our own people to end up in a Turkish dungeon if we can do anything to avoid it.”
“Do you have any British prisoners?” Sir Sidney enquired. He was wondering if the boy Graham might have been captured along with captain Williams perhaps.
“There are a few merchant seamen in Alexandria whom we might release. I would have to investigate further.”
“The other item we wished to discuss was the evacuation of the sick and wounded. Your ships are blockading the city of Alexandria. General Bonaparte asks that in the interests of humanity you might allow vessels carrying these people to depart for France.”
Sir Sidney thought about it for a moment but then he said . “Yes that can be arranged. I reserve the right to inspect them of course. How long before you will have the ships prepared?”
“A matter of two weeks, Sir. We have men in Damietta and in Cairo who would have to be transported to Alexandria and from there to available ships. We would keep you informed of all the details.”
Sir Sidney nodded but he then stood up and said, “I wonder. Do you have any news of France these days?”
Captain Landes stared at him then shook his head with a rueful smile.
“No Sir Sidney. Your blockade is very effective. We are starved of news.”
“Then as a parting gesture of good will I would like you to have some of our news papers. They are old, several weeks I’m afraid ,but they would perhaps help.”
“Your courtesy is deeply appreciated, Sir Sidney.” Captain Lades bowed.
Captain Lades and Adelard clambered down to the boat which was to take them back to the French army clutching a bundle of old British newspapers.
Sir Sidney watched him go then turned to Lieutenant Bowles. “I hope I have managed to sow some alarm and despondency in the mind of General Bonaparte with those papers.”
“They will hardly cheer him up despite his victory here, what with all the chaos going on inFrance in his absence I suspect, Sir.” Lt Bowles remarked with a grin.
“If the newspapers are to be believed and are up to date he has some serious problems ahead of him despite the good fortune he had here. His country is facing not a few disasters thanks to the ineptitude of their revolutionary council.” Sir Sidney returned.
*****
The stench of the dead on the peninsula of Abukir was widespread and noxious. Even for the iron-nerved British this was too much. Sir Sidney ordered his ships to haul in anchor and they left the sea of the dead behind, sailing around the peninsula to resume the blockade of Alexandria.
The small flotilla of British ships appeared outside the New Harbor just after dawn of the next day. It announced itself with a light bombardment, which was returned with gusto by the alert French defenders. Sir Sydney, frustrated by the debacle at Abukir, wanted to let the garrison know that even if the Turks had been crushed the British still had teeth.
Alexandria woke with somewhat of a hangover, at least in certain districts. One being the Greek quarter which was never seriously inhibited about the use of wine and wherein was situated the Garden of Paradise. Neither the Greeks nor the French garrison paid much attention to the Islamic rules of no alcohol and nor for that matter did the Arab traders who smuggled it in on the backs of camels from places like Cairo or the very few merchant ships which evaded the blockade.
Today, however, the city awoke to find that its gates were once more closed and bolted; the bulk of the French army was on the move south and the British warships were blocking the harbor entrance. Some reinforcements had been retained in the city to boost the garrison. The Infantrie being among them. Thus the day started off badly and the city of Alexandria gave a collective groan of resignation. The British were back and determined, it seemed, to be a nuisance.
Sir Sidney for his part was planning a raid. In his stuffy main cabin he had gathered his senior officers, including the captains of his two capital ships. Captain Miller of the Theseus and Captain Troubridge of the Colloden had been rowed over, as had Captain Drummond of the HMS Bulldog, a bomb ketch, and Captain Oswald of the HMS Perseus, the other bomb ketch in the small squadron. The morning air had been full of the whistle of the bosun’s pipes as one captain after another had come aboard to the accompaniment of shouted commands and Marines stamping to attention a
nd presenting arms.
The remaining officers were the two Marines, Colonel Douglas and Major Bromley, and ship’s officers Lieutenants Canes and Bowles.
“Gentlemen,” said Sir Sidney, as he sipped his sherry, which was rapidly becoming depleted, and watched his officers, “I intend to burn some ships tonight.”
There were murmurs of approval from the gathering. “Are we going to send in fire ships, Sir?” someone asked.
“If we had them as with the Toulon incident then I would but we have none available so we will go in and make our own,” Sidney continued. “Boney might have given the Turks a black eye, but we are still in the match and I intend to demonstrate this. I want to destroy or badly damage the war ships he still has in the harbor and prevent any thoughts of sorties from taking hold in his mind.”
“As we know it today there are two ships of the line inside the harbor and quite a few smaller ships,” Lieutenant Canes said. “By the way, Sir, we have not yet heard from Captain Williams.”
“Have we heard anything at all about our lost midshipman, Mr Graham?” Sir Sidney enquired.
“Nothing, nothing at all I’m afraid, Sir,” Lt Bowles responded.
Sir Sidney frowned. “It’s a little unusual for Williams to not be in touch. But he’s a very resourceful man and I can only hope he is not in any danger. I am also sure that had he been captured the French would have taken pleasure in telling me that they had discovered a spy. No I think he must be safe...for the moment. But Mr Graham, where on earth could he be?”
*****
Midshipman Graham jerked awake to the distant boom of cannon. He listened to the closer boom as the harbor defenses replied with their own salvo. He was by this time out of bed and fumbling with his clothing.
Leilah turned over languidly in the bed and opened her eyes. “What you doing? Where you going, Dunkin?” she asked sleepily. Then she realized what he was doing and scrambled out of bed herself, quite forgetting her nakedness.
“No! No! You cannot leave, Dunkin. Not until Master Danush gives the permission,” she cried, holding onto his arm.
“But that is gun fire! The British are here and I have to leave!” Duncan exclaimed, but his eyes wandered to where they shouldn’t and he sounded regretful.
“Have you so soon forgotten the danger, and the danger we will be in if you are seen?” she demanded, well aware of the effect she was having on him. She slipped gracefully back into the bed and crooked a finger at him. “Come to me, my lover. I am not yet ready to let you go,” she purred.
Duncan groaned. “All right, Leilah.” He dipped his head in resignation and sat on the edge of the bed with a rueful grin. “But I’ve had enough of this. I want to get back to my ship.”
Leilah pouted. “You want to leave me? Just like that? Did I displease you, Dunkin?” she cooed.
He grinned ruefully and shook his head. “No, Leilah, it was memorable. But… I cannot stay here for much longer. I shall go mad!”
By this time the other girls had woken up to the ominous sound of guns and were gathering around the two of them. Their fearful chattering and little wails of anxiety were interrupted by the arrival of Kaylah, who walked in unannounced and shouted at them to all be quiet. The voices subsided and the girls turned their attention to him, then all at the same time they began to ask him what was going on, despite his attempts to calm them.
Finally he managed to call over to Duncan and Leilah, “You, Jasmine, get dressed quickly and come with me. The English wants to talk to you.”
Almost an hour later Duncan, in the form of a veiled Jasmine, accompanied Kaylah and Leilah to the room overlooking the garden. There Williams and Danush were seated on cushions enjoying a coffee while they waited.
Williams opened his eyes wide with surprise when Duncan came in with the other two. Alongside Leilah the auburn-haired “woman” looked a little stocky, but otherwise it was an excellent facsimile of a woman.
“Ah, there you are, Graham,” he said, trying to keep a straight face as the boy minced into the room. “We’ve been waiting for you. There is some news.”
“Good morning, Sirs,” Duncan said to them in his normal voice, speaking French. “What news is that, Sir?” he enquired of Williams.
“Sit with us and we can discuss this, Mister Graham,” Danush said with a smile of welcome, and he waved the others away. They tittered and departed, leaving the two men and Graham alone.
“Just as we hoped the fleet has arrived.”
“I heard the guns, Sir.”
“While you have been idling about in this den of iniquity, and no doubt dipping your wick in places where you shouldn’t, I’ve been checking the harbor,” Williams said in English, but then reverted to French for the benefit of Danush.
“I found to my surprise that there are actually some English prisoners working down at the harbor.”
Duncan blinked his kohl-darkened eyes with surprise.
“Yes, but more — or just as — importantly, I have located a vessel that might very well suit our needs.” Williams went on to explain that not far from the eastern entrance to the harbor there was a ketch that he thought could be handled by a very small crew.
“Would you be able to sail a boat like that if we can get our hands on it?” Williams asked him.
Duncan nodded. “Yes, Sir. I certainly could. It would be hard going for two men, but if we had some help we would be able to do it.”
“Then listen carefully, Duncan, because this is what we are going to do.”
*****
Monsieur Le Guennet, the city Chief of Police, was seated at his desk waving a light woven fan in front of him. It served to keep the ever-persistent flies away and to provide some relief from the overwhelming heat that had grown in proportion to the thunder clouds gathering in the west. He was concentrating on the night report, which was out of the ordinary.
One of the garrison officers had been assaulted and left unconscious in the street, where he had been found by one of the night patrols. This was not that unusual other than that officers didn’t usually fall drunk to the ground every night. More often than not it was the other ranks, but what was unusual was the excuse the officer gave for being there.
“Sergeant!” he called.
The door opened and Sergeant Fournier poked his head in. He looked as hot as his boss. “Oui, Mon Capitaine?” he enquired.
“This Captain Kermaret. What’s his story? Sounds like he was just too drunk to do anything but lie around in the street.”
Sergeant Fournier grinned. “He claimed that a woman struck him while he was at the Garden of Paradise and that was the last thing he could remember, Sir.”
Monsieur Le Guennet looked incredulous. “I wouldn’t have confessed to that even on my deathbed. Would you, Sergeant?”
The sergeant laughed and shook his head. “No, Sir, indeed I would not, but he was insistent so we took a statement. He had a huge bruise on his jaw. The surgeon pronounced it might even have been broken, which gives some credence to the story. But a woman, for goodness sake?” he shook his head again. “That was a powerful blow. It might even have been delivered with a club.”
Le Guennet nodded thoughtfully. “Now that I could believe. Was he robbed?”
“No, Sir. He had not been robbed,” the sergeant responded.
“That’s very unusual indeed. The mystery deepens. He said it happened at the Garden of Paradise?”
“Well, that is the last thing he remembers, Sir.”
Le Guennet got to his feet. I think we will pay the Garden a little visit later on. Right now I want some lunch and a rest. This heat is oppressive,” he told his sergeant.
How I hate it here, he thought to himself. His work was to ensure that the volatile inhabitants of the city kept the peace and he was quite ruthless about it. Executions without trial were the order of the day.
Madame Guillotine was kept busy lopping heads off rebellious fellaheen who never seemed to learn that the French were here to provide
law and order, whereas before they had been at the mercy of the whims of their rotten Turkish masters who had done whatever they pleased.
He sighed. The Garden of Paradise was owned and run by a Persian man named Danush, as he remembered. Le Guennet was not quite sure where his loyalties lay. The man put on good entertainment: rumor was that the belly dancer at the brothel was incredible. A visit might well be worthwhile, Le Guennet decided. Blonde or no blonde.
Chapter 28
An Unwelcome Visit
It was late afternoon and the house was very quiet. The entire city slumbered in the oppressive heat. Duncan was back in the girls’ room and had dragged his bundle out from Leilah’s cubicle, where he had stashed it the day before. He unwrapped the clothes and other items, exposing his sword and the pistol.
Seated on the bed, he began to clean the pistol and the sword. Leilah returned about an hour later and regarded the weapons with distaste. "Kaylah told me that you will leave soon, maybe today,” she said as she joined him. He looked at her and saw that her gray eyes looked sad. Her pretty mouth was pulled down at the corners.
“”I have to go back to the ship, Leilah. I have no place here.”
“I know,” she said, but there were tears in her eyes.
“What is the matter, you look sad,” he asked her and took her hand. It was small and delicate within his large paw.
“I have not made love to a man who has not paid me first before. It was… strange. I wanted to and now you are leaving me behind to go off to war,” she said in a tone that sounded wistful. But then her eyes flared. “Do you men always have to go to war? Do you like war?” she demanded, still holding his hand.
Midshipman Graham and the Battle of Abukir Page 20