Tim Severin - Sea Robber

They reached the main plaza and arrived before a tall double-fronted building. Set over the main doorway was a stone slab carved with Spain’s royal coat of arms. They entered, and Carvalho asked Hector to wait while he went ahead to find his uncle the Governor and inform him of their arrival.

Hector had expected some delay before he was granted an interview. But in less than five minutes Carvalho was ushering him through the building and out into a pleasantly shaded walled courtyard at the rear. It was a very informal scene. Trellised across the far wall was a luxuriant climbing plant with deep-green leaves and star-shaped blossoms of a delicate purple. Rose bushes grew out of half a dozen large earthenware pots arranged on the flagstones. From one corner came the sound of trickling water where a stone spout dribbled into a small pond covered with water lilies. Seated beside a low table was a small, grey-haired man neatly dressed in an old-fashioned dark-velvet doublet and knee breeches. He was peeling an apple. To add a further touch of domesticity two large, hairy dogs lay dozing at their master’s feet.

‘This is Señor Hector Lynch. He brings the letter from the foreign ship,’ explained the ensign. Turning to Hector, he said, ‘May I introduce my uncle, Don Alonso, the Governor of Valdivia.’

Without rising from his chair and still holding the apple, the small man looked up at Hector with bright interest. Hector was reminded of the sharp scrutiny of a blackbird disturbed while foraging.

‘Tell me about your vessel,’ said the Governor affably. He made no effort at formality.

‘The vessel is the Cygnet from Bristol. Her captain, Charles Swan, wishes to trade.’

‘Bristol is in England, is it not?’ The Governor dropped a curl of apple peel on a blue and white plate on the table beside him, and carefully began to cut himself a slice from the fruit.

‘Yes, in England.’

‘Your captain knows that we are forbidden to trade with foreigners?’

‘He was on his way to the East Indies …’

The Governor interrupted with a wave of his paring knife. ‘Please, Señor Lynch, my nephew has already told me of this fable. We can dispense with it, as no one believes it.’

Hector coughed and began again. ‘Captain Swan is genuine in his desire for peaceful trade. He has written you this letter, which explains everything.’ He held out the sealed despatch from Swan. The Governor took it, prised open the seal with his fruit knife and unfolded the parchment. Belatedly Hector realized that Swan would have written it in English. It was unlikely Don Alonso would be able to read the contents.

The Governor barely flicked his eyes over the writing before returning the parchment to Hector.

‘My nephew tells me that you have excellent Castilian. Please be good enough to read out what is said.’

Hector began to translate. ‘To His Excellency the Governor of Valdivia, greetings …’

‘Yes, yes,’ interrupted Don Alonso with a sigh. ‘Leave out the compliments. Just give me the gist of the contents.’

Hector quickly ran his eyes down the page. He decided it was best to proceed straight to Swan’s request that the ship be allowed to enter harbour, and then read out the list of goods he had for sale.

When he had finished detailing the last of the inventory – apparently the Cygnet ’s cargo included a stock of black-velvet caps, serge, silk, ribbons and knives – Hector paused. The Governor instantly picked up on the hesitation.

‘What else has your captain to say to me?’ he asked.

Hector cleared his throat. He was shocked by what Swan had written in the final paragraph of his letter. Reluctantly he continued, ‘Captain Swan wishes to inform His Excellency that an English pirate ship is cruising in this area,’ he said. He was stunned by Swan’s perfidy.

The Governor settled himself more comfortably on his chair. ‘Please read out to me your captain’s exact words.’

Hector had to concentrate as he delivered an accurate translation of Swan’s treachery. ‘The captain writes: “I feel it is my duty to report that two weeks ago in latitude fifty I encountered a vessel, the Bachelor’s Delight . The vessel is armed with thirty-two guns and sails under a false flag. Her captain, one John Cook, is English. I suspect him of being a bloody and known pirate. He claimed to be en route for the island of Juan Fernandez, but is clearly seeking plunder.” ’

Hector stopped reading and raised his eyes from the despatch. The Governor regarded him thoughtfully.

‘I see from your expression you find it shameful that your Captain Swan is so eager to open trade that he informs against his own countrymen,’ observed the Governor quietly.

There was a short silence. Then Don Alonso spoke as if Swan’s disloyalty was of no importance. ‘Señor Lynch, some of those trade goods on board the Cygnet could be of interest to our merchants. We have not received a supply ship for several months.’ The Governor turned to his nephew. ‘You say that the ship has anchored in the mouth of the gulf?’

‘Off the Niebla battery,’ answered the young man.

‘Then send word to the fort that she may remain there. I will consult the merchants of the Consulado and discuss which goods we might buy and what we may offer in exchange.’ Addressing Hector, he added in a friendly tone, ‘Perhaps you will be kind enough to pen a note to Captain Swan to advise him that we are prepared to consider his proposal. My nephew can carry the message back to the ship tomorrow morning.’

Hector allowed himself a quiet sigh of relief. Everything had gone more smoothly than he had dared to hope. Now was the moment to find out about Maria.

‘I will be happy to write such a letter. Meanwhile …’ he deliberately left the sentence unfinished.

‘Yes? Is there anything I can do?’ asked the Governor. His tone was solicitous.

Hector took a deep breath. ‘Would you be able to tell me where I might find His Excellency Don Fernando de Costana? He was formerly the Alcalde of the Real Sala del Crimen of Paita, but I believe he has been advanced to a higher office.’

As the words left his mouth, Hector felt a twinge of anxiety. He sensed a very brief, subtle change in the Governor’s manner. It lasted only a heartbeat, but a shadow flickered across the little man’s features.

‘You know Don Fernando?’ enquired the Governor.

Hector was ready with his reply. ‘A member of his household is a distant relation on my mother’s side.’ It was a lie, but a plausible one.

The Governor appeared to be distracted by the blade of his paring knife. He was turning it this way and that, as if to catch the glint from the sun.

‘Of course I am familiar with the name and reputation of the Alcalde. But I have never met him. I will be glad to make enquiries and try to learn his whereabouts.’

He put down the knife and smiled. ‘Señor Lynch, it is too late for you to return to your ship. I will arrange for a room to be prepared so that you can stay overnight. And if you would be my guest at dinner this evening, I would be honoured. Meanwhile I’ll leave you in the capable hands of Ensign Carvalho.’

The little man rose to his feet and murmured to the two dogs. They rose, stretched and followed their master into the main building, leaving Hector with the uneasy feeling there was something he’d failed to notice.

‘I’m glad my uncle has taken a liking to you, Hector,’ said Carvalho, leading the way indoors. ‘You’ll find he is kind-hearted and sincere. He’s been a parent figure to me ever since my own father died two years ago.’

He brought Hector to a room that was evidently a clerk’s office. There was a desk and writing materials, and Hector spent a few moments writing a report to Captain Swan explaining the satisfactory outcome of his visit. Then, after handing the note to Carvalho, he followed the ensign upstairs to find a bedroom ready for him. Already laid out were fresh clothes, and a tub of hot water stood in the adjoining bathroom. After Carvalho had taken his leave, Hector stripped off and lay soaking in the tub, wondering how long it would be before the Governor would have news of Maria’s whereabouts. At length, grateful to be getting rid of nearly three months’ accumulation of grime and sea salt, he heard a knock on the door and a servant summoning him to dine with the Governor.