Tim Severin - Sea Robber

‘She put out to sea the moment the launch returned to her. Unfortunately she was out of range of the batteries.’ The Governor sighed. ‘Now I have to deal with two pirate vessels in the area, maybe more. I have no ships capable of tackling them. That is why I’d hoped to capture the Cygnet and turn her against the other.’

Hector tried to gather his thoughts. The Cygnet was gone, taking Dan and Jacques with her. He and Jezreel were in the hands of the Spanish authorities, and his identity was known. His situation could hardly have been bleaker.

‘What will you do with Jezreel and me?’ he asked.

The Governor spread his hands in a gesture of sympathy. ‘Officially I can have you tried as pirates now, and executed if found guilty. Yet last night, over dinner, I found it difficult to believe that you are such an incorrigible criminal. I prefer to delay matters by sending a report to the Audiencia in Lima and keep you in custody while awaiting instructions.’

Beside him, his nephew shifted uncomfortably. ‘Perhaps Senor Lynch will give his parole.’

The Governor brightened. Addressing Hector, he said, ‘If you promise that neither you nor your colleague will try to escape, there will be no need to lock you up.’

Hector looked across at Jezreel, still standing by the window. ‘The Governor asks for our parole,’ he said.

‘It makes sense,’ said the ex-prizefighter with a shrug.

Don Alonso beamed. ‘It is decided then. You will remain here as my guests while we wait to hear back from the Audiencia.’

His nephew seemed relieved. ‘Hector, you’ve made the right choice. Escape from Valdivia is impossible. By sea you’d need to get a boat and get past the batteries. An attempt by land would be suicidal. The Mapuche would take you and kill you.’

But Hector had no thought of escape. His ill-judged plan to locate Maria was now in ruins. He had been naive and foolish.

HIS DISMAY deepened some days later. In the main plaza he encountered Don Alonso surrounded by several of his great hairy hounds. The dogs were milling about, clearly excited.

‘I’m on my way to inspect the silver mine. Would you care to join me?’ asked the Governor cheerfully. ‘The workings were abandoned several years ago as unprofitable, but it is my duty to carry out an occasional check to make sure there is no illegal activity.’ He bent down and fondled the ears of one of the hounds. ‘We’ll go on horseback. My dogs will relish the exercise.’

One of the hounds stretched up its muzzle and licked his master affectionately. Something stirred in Hector’s memory.

‘Are your dogs a special Peruvian breed?’

Don Alonso smiled indulgently. ‘My family came to the Americas with the first conquistadors and they brought the ancestors of these dogs with them. Trained to attack, they terrified the Indians.’ He leaned across to pat another of the hounds. ‘Mind you, this fellow’s too fat and lazy to terrify anyone.’

‘I’ve seen a dog very like him, though a different colour, a brindle.’

‘Where was that?’ Don Alonso asked. He was making polite conversation.

‘On a ship, though the unfortunate creature was dead, perfectly preserved.’

The Governor looked up sharply. Hector had his full attention now. ‘On a ship, you say?’

‘Yes. The vessel was stranded in the ice, off the Cape.’

All of a sudden Don Alonso had gone very still. His eyes were fixed on Hector’s face.

‘Tell me about it,’ he said very softly.

‘It was on the way around the Cape, after we’d been driven far to the south. We came across a vessel abandoned on an ice island. She was badly damaged.’

‘You know the name of the vessel?’

‘No. I went aboard with Jezreel to investigate. I found the man who I suppose was her captain. He was lying dead in his bunk. A dog like this was on the floor close to him.’

The Governor stood stock-still, scarcely breathing. It was the first time Hector had seen him look so serious and solemn.

‘What did you do?’

‘Our ship couldn’t delay. I only had time to cover the captain’s face with a blanket. He wore a medallion on a gold chain around his neck. One side of the medallion was worn smooth, the other had a crest on it, the figure of a bird. It was too dark to see clearly.’

‘Did you keep the medallion?’ The Governor’s voice was very low, almost menacing.

Hector shook his head. ‘I felt it would be robbing the dead.’

The Governor let out a slow breath. ‘Our visit to the silver mine can wait for another day. I want you to come inside and repeat your story to Luis.’

‘Why?’

‘That poor man was his father and my brother. He always wore that medallion as a keepsake. It belonged to his wife’s family. She died giving birth to Luis.’

Don Alonso led Hector back indoors and, as they waited for the ensign, the Governor told Hector more. ‘Two years ago Luis’ father set out from Valdivia on a small vessel. He was attempting a passage around the Cape, hoping to open a supply route. He took his dog with him. But nothing more was ever heard from him or the crew.’

‘Did no one report back? It appeared that the rest of the crew had taken the boats and abandoned the ship.’

The Governor shook his head. ‘We heard not a single word. We accepted he had died. But for these past two years Luis and I have long wondered whether he was drowned or killed by the Indians, or dead of fever.’

Hector was about to say how sorry he was to bring such sad news when the Governor gave him a long, sober look and said in a contrite voice, ‘Señor Lynch, you cannot imagine how great a service you have done me and my nephew. Now, at least, we know the truth. It makes me ashamed that I have withheld from you what I know of the whereabouts of the Alcalde, Don Fernando.’

For the first time since arriving in Valdivia, Hector felt a brief surge of hope, though it was mingled with a sense of foreboding. The Governor was already speaking again. ‘But I think it would be better if you began by telling me exactly why you are seeking the Alcalde.’

Somehow Hector was sure the Governor was a person in whom he could confide.

‘Don Alonso, the Alcalde’s wife has a companion, a young woman by the name of Maria. The sole reason I returned to Peru is to try to find Maria again. That is why I need to find the Alcalde.’

The Governor nodded a little sadly. ‘I didn’t think you were a gold-hungry pirate. I feared you bore a grudge against the Alcalde, and were seeking to hunt him down. I thought it better you shouldn’t know where to reach him.’ He paused to consider for a brief moment, then added, ‘What I have to tell you is not what you want to hear.’

‘I need to know, in any case.’

The Governor gazed up at one of the portraits on the wall. Clearly he was searching for the right words. ‘The affair of the kidnap of the Alcalde’s wife by pirates, the flight of the culprits, all that is common knowledge. So too is the outcome of the case brought by the Spanish Crown against the villains in their own jurisdiction, in London.’

Hector’s mood darkened. ‘Maria was the witness against me at the trial, but she refused to testify. Afterwards she wrote to tell me she was returning to Peru, and that the Alcalde was being promoted to the Audiencia.’

The Governor sighed heavily. ‘There was no promotion. When the result of the case was heard – it collapsed and the culprits went free – the Viceroy felt humiliated. There had been great expense and much effort invested in the prosecution. Don Fernando de Costana became a figure of embarrassment. He was sent away, given a new post, as far out of sight as possible.’