by John Molloy
“What will it be Henry”?
“I’ll have a beer.”
Wollf clicked his fingers to get the attention of the Indian barman in his immaculate white coat and bow tie.
“A double scotch with ice and a pint of beer.”
He led Henry to a table at a window out of earshot of the rest of the clientele.
“I’ve been briefed on this case and to say the least, it’s a most unusual and dangerous situation you find yourself in. I heard about the episode last night and that can only point to Lord Welland. I doubt the other three are suspicious of you. But if the killer among them had found out about your true identity, he wouldn’t have employed some local desperados to kill you. Unfortunately for you Henry, he’d try to kill you himself.
“What you’ve just said is all true and I believe the sooner we can start eliminating some of the four suspects the easier it will be for me to protect myself.”
“These are my own very sentiments, but just where to start? I’ll let you decide that Henry.”
“I have written a report detailing all I have found out about the suspects to date. Unfortunately, so far I’ve only had a chance to search the belongings of Conrad and Sweeney, but the results make for interesting reading. He reached into his pocket and handed the report to Wolff, who spent a few minutes skim reading the document.
“Henry, I’ll study this more thoroughly later and if there is anything of note I’ll have you informed at your next port which I believe will be a short stop in Colombo, Ceylon. We’ve been tailing Sean Sweeney and he seems to spend a lot of time with the young street children. What significance there is in that, I dare not guess, but it seems rather odd behavior for a sailor on shore leave. Oswyn Welland is out of our jurisdiction at present, so we will concentrate on Tukola. Fokir has been assigned to him as you know from last night, so you will be assigned to your room mate. What I would like is a search of the two cabins; Welland’s and Tukola’s. What are your ideas on how we should approach that?”
“I’ll need a pass key as they lock their doors when going ashore and the only ones with these keys are the chief steward and the chief officer.”
“Could you get a couple of minutes in either of those cabins? As far as I can remember the key board is usually just above the desk in both cabins, that is, I mean usual for most ships. I spent four years on an armed merchant ship during the war when the Royal Navy was stretched, we did escort duty across the Indian Ocean. But that’s enough of those nerve racking and treacherous years, I prefer to forget them. Have you got the key to your cabin?”
Henry rooted round in his pocket and came up with a key. He handed it to Wollf.
“Thanks Henry, as you will have noticed, all the cabin keys on your ship are the same; by that I mean the same shape.”
He took a small note pad out of his back pocket and placed it on the table he slid out a small pencil from the spine.
“Allow me,” he said as he took the key and placed it on a page and drew around it and handed it back to Henry. “There, I’ll get a copy of the key made. It won’t actually open any doors, but it’ll look the same. So you can take the master key, replace it with the replica and then nip into whichever of the two cabins that present an opportunity.”
“Good thinking, but what if the need arises to use the key while I have the real one?”
“The chance of having to use a master key so seldom arises as to be of little concern. But if it did, they’d use the one which wasn’t changed and wonder what happened to the dud to become a dud.”
“I see your reasoning, and it’s so cheeky and simple to make work.”
Wollf clicked his fingers and the waiter came to the table. “Same again, it’s such a hot day you’ll need the extra liquid inside you when you leave here!”
The waiter returned with the drinks and Wollf wouldn’t allow Henry to pay. “I get decent expenses old boy; this one is on Her Majesty. I’ll stay on the good old Highland Cream as I haven’t to venture out into the afternoon heat. I’m meeting an acquaintance here from the Pakistani Diplomatic Corps; a bit of bother brewing on the border of Kashmir and we might be able to nip it in the bud if we can work something out between the Indians and Pakistanis -nothing but trouble since we handed the ‘jewel in the crown’ over to them.”
Wollf looked at his watch. ”My goodness, how time flies! I have to meet my man in ten minutes, so Henry, if you can get any more shore leave I will arrange through Fokir to meet you one evening before you sail.”
“Thank you for your help Wollf. I hope to have some news about the searches when we meet again.”
Wollf stood up and smilingly said to Henry, “I’m off to meet my man in the restaurant, but I wouldn’t be in such a hurry to leave the hotel if I were you. It’s a hundred and five in the shade out there. Wait until the furnace has cooled before you venture out. You know about mad dogs and Englishmen? Well believe me, it is true.”
Henry watched him leave and he put his hand up to the waiter, “same again please.” He stretched his legs and felt the effects of the alcohol slowly unwinding and relaxing him. He felt in his pocket and knew he must not forget to post the two letters. In the one to Vera he thanked her for the advice about his safety but refrained from telling her of his experience of the night before as he didn’t want to unduly worry her. Vincent’s envelope included a letter to be forwarded to Denis.
He closed his eyes and his mind wandered back and forth through his life since Shirley’s murder. In fleeting seconds his life went by in vignette snaps and suddenly he was in the arms of the beautiful Nilima. Her perfect scented body carried him entwined through an ethereal ghost like silver mist where dreams were real and happiness prevailed. Then suddenly an ogre appeared in his mind’s eye; its hideous features mocking and snarling. Henry sat up and was surprised to find his hand shaking when he lifted the glass. He had no appetite for the rest of his drink and decided to leave.
Walking among the throngs of brightly dressed people was a novel experience, he marveled at the colorful clothing, especially the saris worn by the women and some more refined men wore ‘Nehru style’ long high buttoned coats and somehow seemed cool in the sweltering heat. He found a post office and couldn’t believe his eyes when he stamped his letters and dropped them into a British round mailbox with the royal insignia standing out on the cast metal. I love my Britishness he thought. He wandered aimlessly through the streets buying small trinkets and souvenirs from street traders. He ate a hot curry in a restaurant crowded with bustling businessmen rushing a late meal before departing for home. After walking for over an hour through the dusty shades of a marmalade sunset bedecked with crimson and rose-red clouds, he realized he was lost in the maze of backstreets. He hailed a rickshaw asked to be taken to The Blue Orchid.
Gary Conrad was drinking at a table with the second steward and an ordinary seaman, Henry nodded in their direction and went on to the bar counter. He ordered a pint and then looked around to see if there were any more crew members in the bar. He knew Fokir was tailing Tukola; he would have liked to meet him tonight, but he could be anywhere, he mused.
“Are you joining us?”
He turned round and Conrad was ordering drinks.
“I might not be staying too long. I’ve had a long day ashore.”
“Well suit yourself; we’re waiting for the girls. I’m going to stick with Harini tonight.”
Henry sat sipping his pint. He observed the customers coming and going, it was just past nine when Tukola arrived. He was on his own and didn’t take up Conrad’s invitation to join them. He glanced at Henry without acknowledging him, ordered his drink and went to sit on his own. Ten minutes went by before the girls arrived, Harini went straight to Conrad, and he beamed with delight giving her a big welcoming kiss. Two more girls joined their company, there were a lot more young girls tonight and Henry wondered if Nilima would come out into the bar. He would have been disappointed if she did; he thought of her as being special. He watched Tuk
ola as a young girl sat with him, he seemed to tolerate her with a nonchalant manner. The bar was filling up and you could hardly see the customers at the far end with the thick cigarette smoke. Henry went to the lavatory and when he came out he looked around and seeing he wasn’t being observed he went through the door down the long hallway. He heard voices in the room he had been in with Nilima. He waited a minute before knocking. The door opened a bit and an eye peeped out at him, then it swung open and the ‘matron’ reached out a hand.
“Henry!”
She showed him into the room and to his delight he saw Fokir sitting drinking tea.
“Good to see you Henry. I came to leave a message for you. I cannot stay long as my man Tukola is in the bar, was he still there when you left”?
“Yes, he has a young girl for company.”
“Good, hopefully he’ll stay a while.”
Fokir gestured to the matron and she excused herself and left. “Did you have a useful meeting with our canine friend?”
“Yes, very and he gave me a plan of how to do a cabin search. How would you be fixed to organize it if I had the key?”
He handed Henry an envelope. “The duplicate key, I was going to leave it with the matron. It would be no problem when you have the key; you phone the contact number and say one word: ‘Kingdom’ and I will be on board, or another man dressed in native dress wearing a red turban, at nine thirty. When do you think you can get the key?”
Fokir poured a cup of tea for Henry.
“Enjoy some real tea. Your English brands cannot compare to this. We take it with no milk or sugar.”
Henry sipped the light green brew and was amazed at the fragrance and delicate taste. “Yes Fokir, this is something special. I hope to get the master key tomorrow. I should have some opportunity when the chief officer is on deck supervising the discharge of cargo. If I do, I can phone from the harbor office on the dock I’m sure they will allow me use the phone.”
“Yes, you can make an excuse you are phoning the ship’s agents, and if all goes to plan I can get another to tail Tukola and come in person for the search. Will you know if the cabins are unoccupied? Especially the deck apprentices. There are three suspects now with Oswyn away. You will have to be sure Tukola and his roommate is also ashore.”
“I’ll do a check around before you arrive on board so we can make this as quick and smooth as possible.”
Fokir stood up. ”I must go, I can’t risk losing my quarry, hope to see you tomorrow night.”
Henry sat sipping tea and he could hear Gary’s voice out in the hallway. He was making his way to one of the bedrooms with Harini. ‘Well at least he’s out of harm’s way for the moment,’ Henry thought.
He finished his tea and stood up to leave when he heard the sweet melodious voice of Nilima outside. She opened the door a little and peeped in. Her shy inquiring look turned to a huge smile when she saw Henry
“You come back to see me Henry. I glad very much you do.”
With her hands outstretched she walked into Henry’s arms. He noticed a pink tint blushing up from her neck onto her cheeks, and like a blushing bride, she pressed her face into his chest.
“You are more beautiful than a flowering rose.”
He held her at arm’s length to admire her refreshing beauty and was intoxicated by the tender love of her innocent sensuous eyes. His heart was racing as he carried her to the soft cushioned bed. Beneath her light flimsy robe she was naked and she lay in silent urgency as he dropped his last garment to the floor. To Henry, the hour that followed was akin to dying and being reborn and the secrets of human intimacy were revealed in glorious wonder. They lay together exhausted and entwined, her long black silky hair spread over a pink linen cushion like a raven’s wing. Their bodies were glistening with perspiration; their senses beguiled by the scent of incense and perfumed candles.
Reluctantly, he raised himself and thought he better get back to watching his suspect, Conrad back in the bar.
Nilima took a linen cloth from a drawer and dried Henry tenderly before he dressed.
“You come see me again Henry?”
“Yes maybe, not tomorrow night but the next night.”
He took a necklace of polished colored stones out of his pocket and fastened it round her neck.
“A small present for a wonderful and beautiful girl.”
She cooed with delight and ran to a mirror to admire it. Henry laid some rupees on the table and left.
As he walked into the bar he could see Conrad through the thick smoke sitting at a table near the end of the bar with his two crew mates. He looked for Tukola but he wasn’t anywhere to be seen. After ordering a pint and quenching his thirst with a couple of good swills, he went to Conrad and his mates and asked if he could to join them.
“Where have you been this last couple of hours?” Conrad enquired.
“Went for a bit of a stroll, the heat and smoke in here gave me a headache.”
“Sure it wasn’t a hairy snatch that nearly smothered you?”
“Well if it was, it would be a nice way to go!”
The second steward agreed and lifting his glass he said, “I’ll drink to that.”
The other seaman finished his drink and pushed back his chair.
“I don’t know about you lads but I’m heading back for a bit of shut eye.”
“I’ll join you,” Conrad said as he drained his glass.
They all headed back together and when they alighted from the rickshaw they were met by some young girls soliciting along the dark road leading back to the dock. They were taking their customers to the bales of jute or going on board the ships docked nearby. Gary Conrad chatted to one of them but decided he’d had enough sex for one night.
“Nice little tart. I know where to go if I don’t feel like going all the way uptown.”
“Yeah,” agreed the ordinary seaman, “If I had my own cabin I could have her all night. Couldn’t ride her with that other fellow in the bunk above me.”
“Ah forget it,” said the second steward, “you can have a knee trembler and go back to your bunk. No point bringing them on board for the night.”
“You’re right,” said Henry, “there’s no privacy on board ships, unless you’re an officer.”
The two forward holds were discharged the next day and they had started loading the bales of jute; it wouldn’t be long until all the grain was discharged and loading would only take a couple of more days. Henry concluded as he went out on deck and looked down the after holds observing the natives filling the grain into large bags then loading them onto slings to be hoisted up and onto the quay wall, they were almost to the bottom of the hold.
He went back to the pantry for ‘smoko’ and brought coffee and sandwiches to the chief officer’s cabin. Luckily for Henry, the chief officer was not around - this was the opportunity he’d been waiting for. Reaching in his pocket, he quickly switched the dummy key for the master key hanging on the key board. Job done, he thought as he closed the cabin door behind him.
Henry had an hour break in the afternoon and went ashore to the harbor office. The clerk, after pocketing the rupee notes handed him by Henry, showed him to the telephone with a huge smile and a courteous gesture. The call was quick and the code word acknowledged. The clerk was surprised at the swiftness of the call. ”You not get call through?”
“Yes, thank you very much. I didn’t have very much to say just, a short message, much obliged.”
He strolled around the dock taking stock of the area and noting how dangerous it could be if some would be attacker wanted to hide and wait for his quarry, he knew now what an easy target he was and how lucky he’d been. He could easily be lying in the city morgue now awaiting burial in some local cemetery. He came on discarded condoms in a covered area behind a warehouse where bales of jute were laid together to form what looked like a giant bed. It was obviously that this was where the prostitutes were plying their trade. The lighting in this area was non-existent. He never reali
zed they were working this close to the ships. Probably a lot of them actually go on board the ships, he thought, even though the watchman on the Rangoon was under strict orders not to allow any women on board. It was obvious how easy it was for a killer to take advantage of young women under these circumstances. It was frightening to see how vulnerable they were.
He was back on board for afternoon smoko and glanced up at the key board in the chief officer’s cabin, smirking a little to himself at how slick a job he’d done. The ship’s agent was in his cabin so he asked Henry to bring tea for him. He had his ear cocked for any snippets of information about when they’d be sailing and to what port. The loading of jute was going well in the forward holds and they would start loading jute in the after holds in the morning. All told, about two more days should see them on their way. When he went to collect the tea cups he turned to the chief officer who was writing at his desk.
“Where are we bound from here, sir?”
“Funny you should ask that; we’ve just got orders we’re bound for Melbourne, Australia, so you spread the word to the crew and I’ll give you the forwarding address to hang on the notice board in the crew’s quarters.”
He handed Henry a typed sheet of paper with the Australian address on it for the crew members to send to their loved ones so they’d have mail in their next port. Henry announced the news in the crew’s recreation room. Vera he knew would know and he could expect a letter from her and maybe Vincent who would also know.
Gary Conrad was finishing a letter to someone when Henry stepped into the cabin.
“Here’s our forwarding address, it’s Melbourne.”
“Great, I can post this later. Are you going ashore Henry?”
“I’m a bit fed up with that Blue Orchid joint. I might try someplace else. I suppose you’ll go to The Blue Orchid again?”