Bruce Alexander - Watery Grave

“I’m sure,” said Sir John, “you can see the failure in your reasoning.”

“I can, sir, yes.”

“Well, now you must run and fetch the doctor — that man Carr, who treated Kate — that is. Lady Fielding — some time ago.”

“Yes, sir,” said I, grabbing up my hat and making quickly for the door.

Then, quite to my surprise, Tom Durham stepped forward and said to them: “I believe I shall accompany Jeremy. A walk would do me good just now.” And in three quick steps he was by my side.

With that, we went — and swiftly — I preceding, leading the way past Constable Baker and the empty strong room, down the hall and out the door to Bow Street. We said nothing to one another for some time as we moved along toward Drury Lane v/hereat Amos Carr kept his surgery in his rooms.

There was something I wished to say to you, ‘ said Tom to me at last.

“Oh?” said I, keeping step with him.” And what might that be?”

“You mustn’t take it hard the way they came down on you there. When things go wrong, people look around for someone to blame it on. It’s quite natural. I’m sure it was just as you said — that you stuck close to help her. I got cobbed twice on the Adventure just because I was the nearest. She’s a very old party, that one we carried up the stairs. She was headed for something like this.”

“You’re right about Mrs. Gredge. I’m sure of it.”

“Course I am,” said he confidently.” They’re decent people, my mum and your Sir John. And you were right to answer honest. They’ll think over vhat was said and consider the old bawd’s condition. You’ll not be cobbed this time out. Mark my words.”

Amos Carr examined Mrs. Gredge and pronounced her sudden attack no more than simple exhaustion: he prescribed bed rest. On his way out, he asked her age; no one seemed to know.

“Well,” said he, “she’s no babe. That’s plain to see. She can’t carry on as she once did.” He smiled wisely, as if convinced he had just imparted great wisdom to us, his listeners.” That will be five bob, Sir John.”

Seeing him to the door. Sir John dipped into his pocket, paid him off, and all but pushed him out.

“Remarkable!” said he to us.” Five bob to tell us Mrs. Gredge needs a rest! Well, come all, let us at last sit down to dinner.”

Yet before we were to do that, Lady Fielding had taken me aside and gave a quiet speech to me there in the kitchen.

“Jeremy, ” said she, “we feel we dealt with you a bit severely. You’ve looked after her interests. Sir John is the first to admit she is a difficult woman. She has her ways, as of all of us, you best know. In any case, Sir John and I agreed that your response to her behavior was not as unreasonable as we first judged it to be. After all, you remained in the kitchen. You were there to tell us of her collapse. Had you not been, who knows how long she would have suffered without our knowledge.”

Tom Durham, who had heard his mother through, though he pretended not to, made no comment to me — save for one. As she turned a”way from me, with her back to him, he offered me a most prodigious wink.

I carried in the roast and saw that it was somewhat the worse for wear. In her uncertain state, Mrs. Gredge had hoped to hurr)’ things along by building a fire that would well have burned Number 4 Bow Street to the ground if it were not well contained within our stout kitchen stove. As a result, it was burnt crisp and near black on the outside but was near raw on the inside. I knew that before the rest, for it fell to me to carve it. Lady Fielding made apologies, yet neither Sir John nor Tom Durham seemed to find fault.

The former, after a judicious bite or two, pronounced it “a good piece of English beef,” adding, “It is near impossible to spoil such a good piece of meat. You chose it, did you not, Jeremy?”

“I did, yes, sir.”

“Well done, boy, well chosen.”

And as for Tom, he seemed quite in a transport of delight.” I had near forgotten how beef in its natural state tasted,” said he, most enthusiastic, “so long have I endured salt beef. Jeremy, do please cut me another, a thick one, eh?”

Indeed he had finished the first in no time at all. I jumped to my task and cut a whole joint for him.

“Kate, dear girl, do these boys have wine to wash it down?”

“Enough, I’m sure, ” said she.

“Well … fill their glasses. What can it hurt?”

Resigned, she did as he bade.

“Let me assure you, Tom Durham, I recall the taste of salt beef- and its texture, as well,” said Sir John.

“Hard as a rock!”

And the two laughed heartily together, as if sharing a great joke.

“Then you, Sir John, ” said Tom, “you’ve been to sea?”

“Indeed I have!”

“His Majesty’s Navy?”

“H.M.S. Resolute , seventy guns, no longer in service.”

“But tell us about it, sir. When was that?”

Sir John waved his hand, dismissing the matter.” All too long ago to remember,” said he.” I would far rather know a bit of your experiences. The (/z///Y was detached to protect East India shipping, was it not?”

“Aye, sir.”

“But the East Indiamen are armed-well armed — are they not? Can they not protect themselves?”

“The East India Company asked for help. The Adventure gave it,” Tom declared proudly, “privateers, pirates, frigates, sloops, grabs. What we could not take as prizes, we left sinking, sir.”

“That sounds a proper report. You must give it me in detail now. But tell me first, Tom, what in the name of God is a ‘grab’?”

“Ah, well, that will take a bit of explaining, and then a tale to tell.”

“Then explain and tell your tale.”

Sir John leaned forward in anticipation, drained his glass of wine, and lifted it toward Lady Fielding for refilling.

“A grab, ” said Tom, “is a sort of galley — oars and sails — small and lightly armed, much favored by Angrian pirates. Now in itself it is nothing, a few small swivel guns, less than fifty men aboard. Yet they operate in fleets of five or six, sometimes more, along the iVlalabar Coast. They come in alongside under your guns and make to board. They’ve taken two East Indiamen just so. Now to the tale …”

“By all means the tale!”

“We were sailing just out from the coastline, at dusk it was — and I not much older than Jeremy here. We rounded a point of land protecting a cove, or a small bay — and we found them waiting for us. Of a sudden there came a swarm of these grabs about us, trom either side, six at least. In no time they were under our guns — only our own swivel guns were of any use at all then.”

“What, then, did you do?”

Sir John felt about and found his wineglass. He took a great gulp of claret as Tom held him for a moment in suspense.

“We fought them, by God, we fought them! ‘

What followed was a swiftly told narrative of the battle in which bits and details came forth as on a huge canvas which may seem in whole to be all ajumble. Tom gesticulated wildly over his joint of beef with his knife and fork. He cut the air with them, this way and that. He became quite carried away with the telHng of it — the steady musket fire kept up by the marines, the heavy cutlasses handed out quickly to the crew, pistol fire, resolute determination, desperate bravery. Though I had read such tales, I had never heard one told. I was all alive with the excitement of each moment he described. Sir John, too, listened close, held in fascination to the glorious end of it, in which all that had managed to board the Acrenture had been killed or captured. And the grabs from which they had come were burning and adrift in the night — though one or two had got away — and the British ensign flew yet high above.