The three ships sped around the tip of the peninsula, past the Grand palace buildings and the Hagia Sophia, straight for the shipping anchored on the north side of the Golden Horn, and dropped anchor among the cruisers of the Grand Fleet. Talon cast a glance over at Aarif and smiled to himself. His prisoner wore the same expression Talon and the rest of his men had worn when they first saw the magnificent array of palaces, churches and villas on the hills before them.
Telling Henry that he should wait for him, Talon had himself and Giorgios rowed across the short distance to climb aboard the ship that had accompanied the Falcon from Abydos and was greeted cordially by Captain Petrous.
“I have a letter from the Phalangarches Meletios,” he told Talon without preamble. “But it is important that we have your testimony to back it up.”
Talon nodded his agreement and asked Giorgios to be permitted to accompany him. The captain nodded, and then they were rowed across the small military harbor to the jetty, where they had to explain themselves before being allowed to continue. Talon allowed the captain to do all the talking and just looked about him with interest. This area was off limits to the ordinary man on the street and there were many guards about. He was disconcerted to note that the ships they passed along the way were not heavily manned and wondered how long it would take to prepare them for an emergency.
They were finally provided with an escort that marched them through the gates of the harbor and up a short street along the inside of the walls to what was a small palace. Again guards wanted to know why they were there. Captain Petrous presented the missive from Meletios for proof to at least four officers along the way, each of whom checked the seal carefully before allowing them to proceed. Eventually they arrived before some large, carved wooden doors and were allowed entry. By this time Talon was becoming impatient. He badly needed a bath and a bed, and this endless officialdom was wearing on him.
The room they entered proved to be but an anteroom to an even larger chamber, where Talon could hear the murmur of voices. This was the inner office of someone of high rank. There was much activity, with eunuchs scribbling at desks in corners and others hurrying to and fro with papers tucked under their arms. He asked Petrous where they might be.
“We are in the offices of the Topoteretes, the Vice-Admiral of the Grand Fleet. It is he whom we must convince before he will inform the Megas Drungarios tou Ploimou, who is the Admiral of the Grand Fleet. Ultimately, it is he who will decide what we have to do next,” Petrous explained in a whisper. He handed the sealed letter to a eunuch who asked them their business.
“We come on urgent business from Abydos, and it is vital that we meet with the Admiral. We bear grave news,” Captain Petrous told the eunuch, who barely blinked as he took the letter and told them to wait while he delivered the message.
*****
They waited for nearly an hour before a young aide in a smart uniform, gold hemmed tunic and silver sandals with ornate breast plate and polished buckles, came to he door. He beckoned the three men forward. He sniffed and pursed his lips as they drew level with him. Their unwashed condition clearly offended his sensitive nostrils. Captain Petrous glared at him and the man hastened to lead them into the office.
They soon found themselves in a large, grandly appointed room with a good view of the harbor. A small group of officers stood in attendance around a grey-bearded man of very senior rank who was seated at a table covered in rolls of vellum and piles of papers.
Captain Petrous marched forward and saluted smartly, then stood silently, awaiting the portly senior officer to look up from the letter he was reading. It looked to Talon to be the same letter that Petrous had delivered. After some time the Admiral looked up and nodded to Petrous.
“Please explain in more detail what Phalangarches Meletios is saying in this letter. Also, who is the Templar he is talking about?” His tone was haughty.
Talon felt his heart sink. This was not the reaction he had looked for. The Admiral did not display any real interest in a situation that had the potential to be deadly. The man looked overweight and his features betrayed a liking for wine. His nose and upper cheekbones were riddled with blue and red veins. His puffy eyes regarded Talon’s disheveled appearance with evident distaste.
“My lord, the Templar Knight is standing here with me at this moment. I wish to present Sir Talon of the Knights Templar. It was he who brought us news of the Arab fleet. He arrived in our port and delivered the news three days ago,” Captain Petrous said formally.
The Vice Admiral barely glanced at Talon. “Did you see the fleet with your own eyes, Captain?” he demanded.
Petrous glanced uneasily at Talon. “Well no, Sir, not with my own eyes. But Sir Talon was pursued, and he captured one of their ships right in front of Abydos under very difficult circumstances.”
“I repeat, did anyone other than this man who claims to have, actually see the Arab fleet, Captain?” the Vice Admiral demanded in a louder voice.
Captain Petrous shifted his feet. “No, Sir. We…we only have the word of Sir Talon here, but…”
“That will be all, Captain. You are free to go about your duties. Dismissed.”
Captain Petrous almost gaped but drew himself up stiffly and saluted. Then he turned and marched out of the room.
All eyes swiveled to Talon. They regarded him with curiosity and he became acutely conscious of his bedraggled state. He did not think he looked very presentable, as he had not done more than change into his Templar uniform before coming ashore.
“Meletios says here that you captured one of the Arab ships right outside Abydos and towed him in with the storm raging all around. That sounds like quite a feat,” the Admiral remarked. His tone was dry but interested nonetheless.
“It was more the work of my captain, who is a first rate navigator and sailor, Sir,” Talon said.
“Ah, you speak Greek. Not many of you Franks do. That makes it easier. I have here the report made by Meletios which confirms the capture of the Arab ship, Sir Talon, which we will hold in Abydos until it can be decided as to what the Byzantine Navy wishes to do with it.”
Talon tried to speak, but the Vice Admiral raised his hand.
“There have been many rumors of late of an Arab fleet out there somewhere, but we need better confirmation than just the word of one man, who is not even Greek.”
Talon made to protest. “Sir, I sailed right through the fleet in question and I know its whereabouts. It is coming to this city.”
He was about to explain that he had an Arab prisoner who could confirm his report when the Vice Admiral smiled with disbelief and waved a languid hand. “We thank you for your concerns, Sir Talon. But please do not waste our time anymore. I am sure you have other things to do.”
Talon stood rooted to the floor, staring at the man in disbelief. Then with a shrug he whirled and stalked out of the room to find Petrous, followed closely by a bewildered Giorgios.
When he stopped to talk they were out in the middle of the courtyard. Talon put a hand on Petrous’ sleeve. “This is wrong. I do not know what the letter said, but this is not only wrong it is stupid.” Petrous was still looking stunned and Talon was still talking when Giorgios noticed a squad of soldiers emerge from the building and start to march their way.
“Look, Sir Talon, they are coming for us. I think they mean business,” Giorgios said nervously.
“Both of you, walk away and get out of here as fast as you can; those men are coming for me! Giorgios, get the ship over to Neorion and alert Alexios. Petrous, find Nikoporus; he will know what to do.” His two companions moved swiftly away and headed off into the rain without looking back.
To distract the soldiers’ attention from his companions, Talon began to walk toward them. They met in the middle of the courtyard. The soldiers crashed to a halt and a young officer marched up to Talon and saluted.
“You are to come with us, Sir.”
“What is this about?” Talon asked.
“I wil
l need to have your sword, Sir. It is procedure.”
Talon looked at the man hard. “Are you arresting me?” he demanded.
“You will come with us, those are my orders. Please do not make any trouble.” He was tense and ready for a struggle.
Talon sighed. It would not help his case to resist. Even were he to escape, he would be a hunted man, and then his explanations would be even less likely to be believed. He unbuckled his sword and handed it off to the officer, who then motioned to his men. They broke ranks and surrounded Talon. At a low command they moved off, not to the offices of the Vice Admiral but in the direction of a heavyset door placed in the wall of a low, solid looking building at the other end of the compound.
*****
Giorgios and Petrous hastened away from the buildings and out of the main gates, then almost ran down to the harbor.
“You must take your ship and flee this place. There is something going on that I do not understand,” Petrous said breathlessly. “I shall see if I can find Nikoporus and tell him what has happened.”
He strode away, his cloak flapping in the wind, leaving a confused and frightened Giorgios standing on the quayside looking after him.
Finally Giorgios pulled himself together and ran all the way along the stone quayside to where the Falcon’s rowing boat was tied. Once he arrived on the ship he ran past the sentry, who shouted after him, and almost slipped onto his back as he dove down the wet steps toward the main cabin.
Giorgios banged on the door and let himself in without being invited. He found Henry and Guy eating at the table in the stuffy cabin. The table was strewn with chunks of stale bread and dried meat. They looked up at him with their mouths full and stared at his scared face. He was gasping for breath as he stood shaking in front of them.
“What is the matter, Giorgios? You look as though you have seen a ghost,” asked Henry.
“They…they have arrested Talon! He told me that you must get this ship out of here without delay and across to the other side. So…so did Captain Petrous!” Giorgios babbled.
Both men registered shock. “Arrested? For what, in God’s name?”
“I do not know, Henry, but you must get the ship out of here very quickly or they will arrest us too!”
Henry wasted no time. “You can explain later, but now, Guy, get forward with the men. We need to hurry.”
Guy needed no persuasion. He dived out of the room and ran up the stairs, shouting for the men to get on deck. Within a matter of minutes the crew on watch had cast off and they were drifting away from the nearby ships.
The men who did the rowing were woken up and chased to their benches. With one of the senior crew members bellowing orders at them they pushed the oars out and began to pull while Guy prepared his men on deck to lower the sail when Henry gave the command.
They were none too soon. Giorgios, who had been watching the quay with great anxiety for any signs of activity, suddenly pointed.
“I told you, Henry! Look! They are coming for the ship!”
“Where are they?” Henry demanded. He peered at the quay.
“There…just coming out of the gates. They are coming here, I am sure of it.”
The Falcon was well out into the bay and almost out of sight among other shipping. Henry watched the squad of men come to a halt on the quayside. The officer was peering out into the gloom at the ships in the harbor, but evidently he could not see the Falcon, which was now drifting behind two larger naval vessels.
“By God, but you were right, Giorgios. We must hasten before they can send anyone after us. He is marching his men away, but I am sure that you were right. They were coming for us.”
“Guy, we must get over to the other side even if it is dark. Drop the sails and post men on the mast and in the bows to ensure that we do not run into anything.”
As the Falcon surged out of the harbor past the lighted towers they drove into a choppy sea, but the ship pushed the waves aside and raced under full sail to arrive shortly thereafter and without incident at the Neorion bay.
While they sailed past the Golden Horn, Henry and Guy quizzed Giorgios. He explained what he knew and had heard and the response of the Vice Admiral to Talon’s report. His puzzlement was matched by theirs. Henry, scratched his beard furiously and said, “There is something that smells bad here, Giorgios. What about the other captain? Did they not listen to him?”
“The Admiral dismissed the captain after asking if he himself had actually seen the fleet and he said no. They sent him away! He was with me when they came for Talon. He told Petrous to find a person called Nikoporus. Who is he?”
“I do not know, but one thing is clear, Giorgios: you and I will have to go to the Kalothesos house and tell them what has happened. Guy, you take the ship in and we will find our way from there.”
“We will have to watch out for patrols,” Giorgios said. “It is well past the curfew.”
“Do you know how to get there without running into them?” Guy asked.
Giorgios nodded his head uncertainly.
*****
Alexios was playing chess by lamplight with Theodora when Joseph came into the room and announced that Henry and Giorgios had arrived. He looked his surprise at Theodora, who got up with an expectant glow in her eyes.
“They have returned!” she exclaimed, and clapped her hands.
Both of them went as fast as Alexios could limp to find Henry and Giorgios standing in the anteroom looking wet and very agitated.
Alexios took in the condition of the two men and the notable absence of his friend Talon.
“Gods Blessings, Henry and Giorgios.” he said in Greek, then French.
Henry replied in broken Greek. “God’s blessings. Sir, we have a problem.”
He turned to Giorgios and said, “You must explain what has happened to the young master here.”
Giorgios nodded and then fell into rapid Greek. “Greetings, Master and Mistress, but we have bad news.”
Theodora uttered a little cry and put her hand over her mouth, her face anguished. “Talon?” she asked.
“Er…yes, but…Mistress, be assured he is not injured or dead but…Sir, he has been arrested!”
“Arrested? What in God’s name for?” Alexios almost shouted. “Where is he? Tell me, man.”
He put his arm around Theodora’s shoulders as she slumped against him.
“Who has been arrested?” Joannina asked as she swept in. “Theodora, why are you crying?” she demanded.
“Mother, Henry and Giorgios have just arrived and they tell us that Talon has been arrested, and we do not know why,” Theodora said, dashing her tears away and trying to look less concerned.
Henry ducked his head, holding onto his sea cap, while Giorgios tried to make a fashionable bow but only succeeded in dripping more water onto the tiles. Both men looked very uncomfortable.
Joannina took charge immediately. “Theodora, go and wake up your father and bring him to the dining room. Joseph, please call upon Eugenia and alert John that we will need refreshments and mulled wine. Come with me.” She led the way into the dining room where it was considerably warmer than in the anteroom.
“Be seated and tell us all about it,” she commanded as she sat at the head of the table.
Alexios limped over to join her while Henry and Giorgios sat on the edge of their chairs, looking bedraggled in that fine setting. Mulled wine appeared like magic and baklava arrived on small brass trays.
“You must be weary and cold from your journey, “Joannina said kindly as she waved at the food and drink. Neither man needed further persuasion. Eugenia arrived close behind a breathless Theodora and asked what had happened.
“The authorities have arrested Talon,” Theodora told her before she sat down. “You must go to the Empress and tell her that there has been some mistake. He is guilty of nothing!”
“I shall need to know a bit more than just that before I do so, Theo. As usual you are overreacting. I want to hear more. I assume th
at is why we are here, Mother?” she asked, ignoring her sister’s wrinkled nose.
“It is, my dear. I am glad that you are here as we might need some help.”
Henry and Giorgios were still eating when John assisted the senator into the room.
“What is all this about, Joannina?” he grumped.
“They have returned, Papa, but somehow Talon has been arrested, and Henry and Giorgios came to tell us about it,” Alexios said.
“Well? What happened?” He glared at Henry and Giorgios, who had jumped to their feet. “Sit down, sit down. You arrived safely enough, but Talon is now in jail? What is going on?” he demanded as he was assisted to a chair next to his wife.
Giorgios explained in detail all that had occurred from the day they had sailed from Rhodes. It took him well over an hour to recount all their adventures and his audience listened with rapt attention.
When he described the way they had slipped through the Arab fleet, and the subsequent chase and fight outside the harbor of Abydos, the senator slapped his thighs with glee and beamed at Henry, as Giorgios had not been stinting in his praise for the Frank’s seamanship.
“These Franks are fighters, by God. Most other men would have run for cover! Ha Ha!” he crowed happily to no one in particular.
“Let him finish, Papa, there is more to come,” Alexios admonished his father gently, but he too was flushed with excitement.
The old man subsided with a grunt and took a sip of mulled wine, then waved for Giorgios to continue.
Eventually Giorgios arrived at the point where Talon had told him to come and inform them of the situation, at which point he stopped and waited.
There was a long silence as everyone digested the news.
“What do we do now, Papa?” Theodora urged. “Will the Empress help?” she demanded of her sister, who shrugged uncertainly in response.
“I think I want to find Nikoporus,” Alexios said.
“I can always ask in the senate if anyone has heard anything. This is very serious. Why did the Vice Admiral not pay attention to either Talon or to Captain Petrous? I could understand if he did not like the young Frank, but Petrous is a Naval Captain and his testimony should carry some weight, even with a Vice Admiral.”
Greek Fire Page 52