Walls of Ash

by Amber Newberry

  “Can we all agree?” There was a chorus of yes, and I saw Li explaining to Leo.

  We were talking for a while when the Captain walked up to us. I was surprised that Julian made no mention of being already acquainted with him as well, but I suspected that it was not as much of a coincidence as the Hammonds being onboard. He was introduced as Captain Marcato. He was tall, towering over even Julian, with broad shoulders and olive complexion. When he spoke, he did not hide his Italian accent. Captain Marcato was also not a man of decorum, because before the introductions were even finished he was talking to Li and me, who he seemed far more interested in than those he already knew.

  “Signoras, you are enjoying the sea?” he asked in his thick Italian accent.

  “We are fortunate to have favorable weather, today.” He used big, exaggerated hand gestures when he spoke, making the most menial conversation seem terribly important.

  “Oh yes, it has been pleasantly calm, so far,” Li said, happily.

  “Not to worry, though. Should the water become rough, you will be safe on the The Corragioso. She is built to handle just about anything and what she can’t, I do not put her through,” he said.

  “That’s very comforting,” I replied looking significantly at Li, hoping that this would calm her fears a little more.

  We were on deck for a long time mixing with the people who were muddling about. I felt free of the bounds of my past the farther away we got from home.

  * * *

  When we went back down to our rooms, I called for Fleur. After a moment, I stepped over to the door that led to her and Bernadine’s small room and opened the door. Fleur sat on the edge of the bed, and Bernadine lay beneath the blankets with a cloth on her forehead.

  “Oh Lady Tamsin! I’m so sorry! She’s been taken ill. Seasick, I think.” Fleur stood as she spoke, Bernadine grumbling behind her.

  “That’s all right, Fleur. I just wanted to ask after you both, but I can see that Bernadine is in a terrible state. Can I help?” I asked.

  “Ma’am, there ain’t nothin’ anyone on this ship can do. I’ll be waitin’ it out fer the good Lard to make me better.” Bernadine said.

  Julian came up behind me and leaned against the doorframe.

  “I know that it probably doesn’t feel it, but you might go up on deck for some cool air. That always does the trick for me,” he said.

  “Would they allow us on deck? It’s not improper?” asked Fleur sincerely.

  “Of course not!” I said. “If someone gives you any trouble, just tell them you were given permission.”

  Bernadine began to rise, Fleur helped her from the covers, and they slowly walked toward the door. As they passed by me, I looked at Fleur.

  “Fleur, that special permission... it's good for this entire trip.” I smiled at her.

  “Yes, Ma’am.” She smiled back, and I could see that despite having to take care of Bernadine, she was excited for the voyage and to be able to stand up on deck and look out on the sea.

  * * *

  We were all settling into life on the boat. Li was passed her fear and even when the waves became large, rocking the boat hard and rolling the things in our rooms from wall to wall, she only panicked for a minute until Leo calmed her. It was over within an hour and the rest of our journey to the first port was pleasant, indeed. Bernadine recovered her sea legs within a few days, and Fleur and I were both relieved. She did not care to spend much time up on deck, though, because seeing no land made her feel lost. I wondered if it was wise of me to bring her, but I didn’t think it would be a good idea to separate her from her niece, who was a surprisingly adventurous person.

  I sometimes asked Fleur to stroll with me on deck. One afternoon, we climbed the stairs and the air was wonderful, definitely the warmest day we experienced at sea, so far. We were talking about Portugal, where we would be stopping for a while within the week. Captain Marcato came up to us.

  “Ah, Signora Hilbourne, how radiant you look!” he said with his dramatic Italian accent, taking my hand. Fleur blushed even though it was my hand he was holding.

  “The weather is wonderful today, don’t you think?” I asked.

  “Yes, I’m sure it will stay this way all the way to Portugal. How lucky we are!” he said and then turned to Fleur, who seemed just tiny standing before the Captain. He took her hand and kissed it, making her cheeks even more red.

  “Will you introduce me to your friend?” the Captain asked.

  “Of course, how terrible of me. This is Fleur... She is a close friend.” I’m sure it was easy to see that she was my ladies maid, but he did not comment on it, and he did not seem like the kind of man who would notice a person’s station based on their clothing, or even care. He walked with us for a long while, until one of the crew came to him and asked for his assistance, so he excused himself and tilted his hat to us.

  When I looked at Fleur, she was flushed, and I realized that she did not have many interactions with men. Bernadine was unnecessarily protective of her, just as she was with me. I smiled inwardly thinking of how bright red Fleur was when he kissed her hand. She was sweet and so innocent, it was no wonder she reacted that way, having been brought up by a woman who watched both her mother and half-sister sharing their beds with many unsavory men. Bernadine only wanted better for Fleur, and I did not blame her.

  * * *

  Portugal was a remarkable and exotic place. As the boat approached the port of Lisbon, Li, Leo, Julian and I stood leaning on the rail of the deck. There were many white buildings with colorful roofs dotting the hills. Julian told us of the recent political turmoil surrounding the King of Portugal, who was in Brazil with the royal family. The people were demanding that he be returned to his throne. The Captain told us that it would still be safe for us in Lisbon, where we would spend the next few weeks.

  The Hammonds offered us rooms in their mansion, which was a small way out of town. Julian told me that the Hammonds had a home in every port along the way to Asia, because they never knew how long they would be spending in each place before moving on to their next destination. We graciously accepted their offer, and Rex told us that we would be far more comfortable than at the inn we originally planned to stay in while there.

  We alighted from the boat, Fleur and Bernadine in tow. The streets were filled with bustling people dressed in brightly colored clothes. We passed through a market where Julian told us to mind our things, but the people there seemed so lovely calling out greetings to us all in Portuguese.

  There was a group of small children who followed us for a long time. A thin little girl came up to me, walking backwards, she looked up into my face and spoke.

  “Seu cabelo está pegando fogo!” she said, and I heard Julian’s laugh beside me, and I turned to look at him as the girl ran off.

  “What are you laughing about?” I asked.

  “She said that your hair is on fire.” Julian was giggling as he said it. I threw my head back as well, but it appeared that no one else noticed because the market was so loud to walk through. I did not know he spoke the language of Portugal, and I wondered what else about him I was unaware of.

  A man came up to us then, holding a beautiful green fabric with gold flowers embroidered into it. He was speaking loudly and fast, and Julian asked him a question, I gathered it was the price. The man holding the fabric nodded to me as he spoke and Julian smiled. I was frustrated that he was not translating for me. I saw that Li was in a similar situation with Leo and Rex on either side of her, but it was with an old woman, and she held a bright blue fabric with silver birds scattered all over it. Rex appeared to be doing most of the talking, and Li looked up to see my face and we exchanged a smile. She had forgotten her fears and was enjoying the bustling city of Lisbon in spite of herself.

  Julian went back and forth with the man a moment longer, then he finally handed the man a small bag of coin to which the man bowed several times, handing over the beautiful fabric.

  “For you,” he said, and
he went to pass it back to Fleur but she and Bernadine were nowhere to be seen. We somehow managed to lose them in the crowd. I immediately became worried. Julian called to the rest of our group walking ahead and they came back. We stood together skimming the faces that rushed by but we could not see them.

  “Stay here.” Julian handed me the bolt of fabric and walked away with Leo, leaving us with the Hammonds.

  “Not to worry, they’ll be sure to find your girl straight away,” Rupert said, comforting me. Li’s eyes were darting around, and I could see that she was growing nervous without Leo by her side, so I put my arm through hers while we looked around for Bernadine and Fleur. It was only a few minutes later when Li patted my hand and pointed into the crowd.

  “There! It’s Captain Marcato, and he has both Fleur and Bernadine with him!” The relief must have shown in my face as I saw the Captain, standing taller than anyone else in the crowd.

  “You see! I told you they’d turn up,” said Rupert.

  “I believe you lost something?” the Captain said as he came closer. Fleur was smiling but Bernadine seemed flustered.

  “The Captain found us no sooner than we realized we were lost. It was such luck!” said Fleur, looking up at him, blocking the sun with her hand.

  “That is lucky! I cannot thank you enough for bringing them back to us. I don’t know what I would do without them,” I said graciously.

  “I can see the importance of having such a companion,” he said looking down at Fleur. Bernadine cut into the conversation.

  “Thank yeh, Sir, but I think that’s all the assistance we’ll be needin’.”

  “Mrs. Sharp!” I said in shock at Bernadine’s rudeness. It was the first time since I was a little girl that I called her by her family name. She looked wounded by the anger in my voice.

  “Apologies, Cap’n. I meant no harm. This place ‘as me all out of sorts,” she said, frowning.

  “Not at all, Signora,” said Marcato, but his dislike for her was apparent in his reply. He then looked back to Fleur.

  “I’ve had far worse from my own mother.” That got a smile from her, Li and me.

  “If you are all set, I have business to attend to,” he said, tipping his hat as he always did before parting.

  “Of course. Thank you so much for your assistance,” I said, and Rex and Rupert nodded to the Captain before he left.

  I handed off the fabric to Bernadine, giving her a look that an angry, but amused mother might give a child she just scolded, then I put my free arm through Fleur’s as we continued on.

  “You know, I do believe you have an admirer,” I said. Fleur blushed and looked at the ground, but not before I saw a smile touch her lips.

  CHAPTER 20

  Our time in Portugal was exciting, to say the least. Fleur was visited nearly every day by the Captain, to Bernadine’s dismay. The Hammonds’ mansion was colorful and beautifully decorated with many fine objects from all over the world. Their housekeeper was Portuguese, and she spoke only a little English so Julian did most of the talking to her, but Bernadine and Fleur seemed to get on well enough with her even through the language barrier.

  The evenings were much more relaxed than they were at Hilbourne. We did not dress for dinner often and the meals usually consisted of things that I had never seen or heard of, so each appearance at the dinner table was an adventure in itself. The men also never separated from the women after the meal. Instead, we all moved into a large room with high ceilings that Rupert called ‘the arcade’ to enjoy loud and often hilarious conversation and ridiculous word games. I was certain Aunt Emmaline would be appalled.

  One night, we had the Captain to dinner. The group was louder than usual, a side effect of the wine. Captain Marcato told us his first name was Alfieri. After some erroneous pronunciations from the room, he finally said that most people simply called him Marcato, so that is what we did. There were raised voices, and I turned my attention to Julian, who was deep in conversation with Rex at the head of the table. Leo appeared to be intent on the conversation, trying to understand what was going on and Li was talking to Rupert at the other end.

  I caught a bit of heat in Julian’s voice and realized that Rex was trying to talk Julian into selling part of the land at Punam Estate so that the Hammonds could expand their imports to tea. They were back and forth and the discussion was becoming elevated. I looked at Leo and he was staring at me with a confused smile on his face. He shrugged and shook his head. I smiled at him. It felt like we were losing touch with one another since his marriage to Li. I remembered the day in the field with the rain.

  Later in the evening I overheard Julian and both of the Hammonds deep in conversation again but Leo was sitting quietly by, trying to follow the conversation, unsuccessfully. Li had gone to bed, and I had settled for staying and listening to the banter between the gentlemen. Marcato was telling me a story about when he was a young man at sea with his father, who was Captain on the Coragiosso before Marcato. I excused myself from him, and he said that he’d best be going and he made his ‘farewells’ to the room.

  I sat down beside Leo, and I asked him about what I gathered of the conversation between Rex and Julian.

  “Do you think it wise to sell a portion of Punam to Sir Hammond?” Leo sighed and thought out his answer.

  “They have talked of it many times. I don’t know that Julian will ever sell.” I nodded slowly, and I wondered if Leo would have it otherwise.

  “Do you not have a say in the matter?” I asked, placing a hand over Leo’s. I caught sight of Julian staring at me out of the corner of my eye and turned to face him, letting go of Leo’s hand. Rex was talking at him, and he waved a hand at a remark, turning back to his duel.

  When Julian and I readied for bed, I boldly asked about his thoughts on selling a portion of the land to the Hammonds. He was quiet for a moment, and it seemed he was not sure how to answer my question. He also scowled at the thought of the heated dinner conversation.

  “The Hammonds have wanted Punam for some time. They have made many offers, some very substantial, to buy the whole plantation. I’m not so sure I’m ready to let it go, even a piece of it,” he said, crawling into the bed next to me.

  “Why do you suppose they want it so badly?” I asked.

  “They are hard pressed to expand their business to whatever they can find. Tea is a growing industry. Look at how often it is drank back home. I only want to make sure I get all I can from it before I pass it on to someone else,” he said.

  “What does Leo think of all this?” He sighed.

  “Leo knows so little of the business at Punam. It is why he is coming to India with me. He would not know how to handle a transaction of that size, let alone the business of running that plantation.” He blew out the candle.

  “Perhaps you should at least ask his opinion?” I asked, and he did not answer.

  I felt upset for Leo, being left out of such an important issue. He tried, unsuccessfully, to see what his brother was saying at dinner, but the exchanges were so quick that it was too difficult for him to follow. It seemed like Julian was holding onto Punam recklessly when he had a rather large offering already on the table.

  “Julian?” I asked, but he was already asleep.

  * * *

  Before I knew it, we were packing our things and would be on The Coragiosso embarking on the next leg of our voyage. While I adored Portugal, I was swept up in the excitement for finally seeing Punam. The anticipation was growing, though we would be stopping at a few more ports along the way and still had several months to go before arrival. There would be Cape Town, South Africa and then a brief stop in Mozambique. After that, we would make our way to our final port in Cochin.

  Fleur was spending more and more time with Marcato. In fact, she was spending tea time with him every day. Bernadine wound up serving us our tea in our rooms so that Fleur could go to Marcato on deck. He invited us to all have tea in his quarters one day and this led to a dinner invitation, as well. It w
as easy to see that his affection for Fleur was becoming serious, and I wondered how she would handle it when we got to India, and he had to leave.

  We did not stay in Cape Town for long and spent even less time in Mozambique. There was less for the ship to take in trade from these ports, and it was important that we move on if we were to make it to India by September. Our voyage would be four and one half months by the time we arrived at Cochin, five including our month in Lisbon.

  By the final months of our voyage, Li and I were both not feeling well. At first, I thought that the seasickness had finally caught up to us and with a vengeance, but Bernadine kept saying how strange that we were so recently married and that we were both now feeling ill. It was not difficult to see what she was insinuating. Li was delighted at the prospect of having a child, but I was not so sure, though I was no authority on the signs of pregnancy.

  When I finally told Julian Bernadine’s theory, his excitement was apparent, and I did not want to spoil it with my own theories that I really was just ailing. I often went up on deck for the fresh air to soothe the nausea, but Li seemed to be handling it much better than I. She told me her symptoms were only in the morning, while my own lasted throughout the day, though they were far worse in the evening. Julian was worried about me and for our child, as well. We both longed for dry land.

  The Captain had a few draughts in his quarters that he kept on board in case he or any of the men were taken ill. He gladly offered several different mixtures to me, explaining what they were meant to do, hoping to help me through my indisposition. After some coaxing, I finally agreed and settled on a small brown vial filled with a thick liquid to be swallowed by the spoonful at night. He insisted that I keep the bottle, though I could not be sure that it was really helping at all.

  One month before we were to port in Cochin the very worst of the illness set in. I was confined to my bed and sometimes Li would sit with me, but more often it was Fleur who stayed by my side. Julian became increasingly concerned for me, but he tried to comfort me by talking about Punam and saying that we would be there soon. I was sincerely worried that if I was pregnant, I was losing the child.