Ivory Ocean
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“It is a long way to the Ivory Coast,” he said. “We will have no wind or weather, but it is good to be out of England.”
He looked at her thoughtfully for a moment and then continued in his quiet voice. “You are an odd girl, Miss Bennet. You seem too intelligent to believe some of the things you say, though I can’t imagine what it would take to make you believe them—and yet you do not think about things, and so your intelligence goes to waste.
The men on this ship know nothing of your sister; they do not know that she is here, nor even that she exists.” He shook his head in disgust. “If I were in charge of them, I should lock away any man who spoke such ill of a fellow’s sister.”
Jane flushed again, looking down and fiddling with her lace cuffs as she said: “I am sure Captain Smith does not approve of what Mr. Darcy did, but perhaps he feels that his sister is better off without him.”
“Perhaps, perhaps. But if we sail together into the West African trade tomorrow, I shall know more of how your sister is placed. For now, I must tell you that it has been decided that we will be heading to Guinea, where there is a trading station which I have heard may suit us both.
If we are to stay with the ships, however, it may mean we are obliged to sail back to England.” He looked at her meaningfully over the top of his pewter cup. “I do not think my captain would want me to leave you here alone. So it was arranged between Captain Smith and myself that I would come back for you when the weather cleared sufficiently.”
She nodded, thinking of how she had felt when he had told her his first words on board. It was hard to admit it now, but the excitement she had felt then made her feel warm inside now. As the sun rose she became aware of the other passengers, all of whom seemed to be asleep except one woman who sat by her own door, reading something from a book.
Jane smiled as she watched the woman look up every time someone walked past the door, but each time the face was blank and empty as though she had not seen anyone. She turned away and opened the window to let in some air.
The smells of the river was strong outside and the cool air helped clear her head of the haze of sleep that kept her thoughts confused. She could still hear the noise from the deck below, but her thoughts drifted until suddenly a loud crash came from behind the door.
She jumped, heart racing, and tried to pull the door closed but it wouldn’t close, and before she knew it a hand grabbed her arm. It was the woman from the doorway, her eyes full of rage.
“What do you think you are doing?” Her voice was deep and commanding.
“Nothing, nothing at all,” stammered Jane. The woman took her wrist and pulled her along into the corridor. Jane’s breath caught in her throat as the woman pushed her against the wall and put her hands around Jane’s neck. She squeezed tightly and Jane could see black spots before she passed out.
When she woke she found herself lying on the floor beside the door and the woman was gone. She looked around and saw that the ship was completely silent. No sound of voices or laughter, no footsteps, just the sound of the engines running as they powered through the water.
Looking up she could see the light coming through the open hatch and then realized that she was lying on the stairs leading to the upper deck. She struggled to sit up and was surprised to find the room was dark and deserted. The only person on the ship was the captain who sat at the wheel, staring blankly at the sea. Jane got slowly to her feet and stumbled towards him.
“Sir?” she asked, her voice trembling as she approached him. “Captain Smith?”
He didn’t acknowledge her and she reached out, gently touching his shoulder. He started as she touched him, but continued to stare blindly at the ocean ahead. He turned and stared at her for a moment before shaking himself free and moving to the helm.
Jane followed silently behind him, her heart thudding painfully in her chest as she watched him climb the steps toward the top deck. When she reached the deck she looked around desperately. There was no sign of the woman and she began to worry that she might have fallen overboard during the night.
She hurried to the railings and leaned over them, searching for any trace of the woman’s body. Suddenly she saw something bobbing in the water below and she ducked quickly out of sight. The woman had fallen from the stern railing! With a sigh of relief, she climbed quickly over the side, trying not to make too much noise so as not to attract attention.
She found a life belt near the wheel and, after struggling with it for a moment, managed to wrap it tightly around her waist, making sure she could swim with it tied on. Then, pulling her wet hair back from her face and using it as a makeshift towel to dry the worst of the mud off her skin, she went to stand in line with the others waiting for food.
The morning dragged on and she watched the sunrise begin its journey across the sky, wondering if anyone else had noticed the body that had washed up on shore last night. She couldn’t help thinking about how easily her fate could be the same.
The thought made her shudder, and then she wondered what would happen to her if she did manage to get away. Would she be able to keep up with someone in this heat? She would be exhausted before she even reached land. And how far would she have to go before she reached a place where they could sell their cargo to a trader and be safe again? The thought made her heart sink.
A sudden movement brought her thoughts away from herself; the woman from the corridor was standing next to her, staring blankly ahead. Jane looked down at her but saw nothing wrong with her appearance. The woman looked pale but that was probably because of the time she had spent without food and water.
Jane was glad that she hadn’t been thrown overboard and had died in the night. But what had happened to her since then? Did she know anything about the ship, or the captain and crew? If she did, there was no way Jane was going to be able to escape from here.
Jane’s stomach rumbled loudly, reminding her that she had not eaten for hours. They had received nothing other than some salt beef and biscuits for breakfast and she was already beginning to feel light-headed. She looked at the woman who was still staring straight ahead, oblivious to everything around her.
Jane swallowed hard and moved closer to the edge of the galley where a barrel full of water stood waiting to be distributed by the sailors. Taking a deep breath and trying to ignore the hunger pangs in her belly, she reached out and grabbed the wooden handle, turning it so that the water sloshed over the side and fell onto the stone floor with a splash.
She let out a quiet moan of happiness as the cold liquid soaked into her skin. The woman was still staring ahead and Jane took advantage of the opportunity to pull the woman forward and push her gently into the barrel, making sure none of her arms or legs were sticking out. Then Jane pushed herself inside and held her breath, waiting for the woman to start shouting for help.
There was a small silence. Then suddenly she felt a tug at her hair and she jerked back, gasping. The woman had reached out to grab hold of her, her hands digging painfully into her scalp.
“Let me go!” she shouted at the woman.
The woman stopped tugging and Jane waited expectantly until she was certain she was going to let her go. Then, pushing hard against the sides of the barrel, she began to crawl toward the end where she had left her clothes.
By the time she had pulled herself out and pulled her trousers on, the other women were standing around her, peering curiously at the woman that had tried to drown her.
“Did you see what happened?” asked Jane quickly, looking at each of them in turn as she spoke.
They all shook their heads in confusion.
“I fell overboard,” Jane said, her eyes flitting over each of the women, “and I think someone threw the woman overboard to stop her from telling everyone.”
She paused, letting this information sink in. The woman looked confused when she turned to look at Jane. There was nothing wrong with her appearance, apart from her slightly sunken cheeks and tired, vacant expression. Jane stared hard at her and saw nothing.
“Are you okay?” asked Jane.
The woman nodded and gave a short smile.
“You must be hungry after your ordeal,” said Jane. “Let’s go to the cookhouse and see if we can find something for you to eat. We can’t leave any loose ends hanging around now.”
She walked over to where she had left her bag and pulled out a handful of dried fruit and nuts. This was her usual ration of food for a day and it should keep the woman happy, if not completely satisfied. She was used to eating only twice a day and having little to fill her stomach.
In fact, sometimes when they’d had nothing for days on end, she’d found herself craving more solid foods. The woman followed silently behind Jane, her eyes darting from side to side as if looking for an escape route. When they entered the galley, the smell of freshly baked bread filled the air.
“Good news!” cried one of the sailors. “We’ve managed to get the sails up!”
All the women cheered with relief, even Jane. It had been such a long time since they had sailed away from the island and she had begun to wonder whether they would ever get a chance to sail again. As the women ran over to where the sailor stood grinning, Jane pulled out some coins and passed them out to each of the women before pulling the woman along with her.
The man looked surprised by the generosity but he smiled and bowed his head as he accepted them.
As Jane walked down the passageway, holding the woman close, she noticed that her feet seemed to be sinking slightly into the ground. Looking down, she realized that the earth beneath her was wet.
She stopped and stared in astonishment when she saw that there was a stream flowing through the passage directly underneath the ship. Had it always been there? How was she supposed to cross it in her condition?
The woman looked up at her in confusion and Jane turned around to see if anyone else was coming the same way. She heard footsteps and turned just in time to see a sailor approaching them carrying a large bucket of water.
Without a word being spoken he poured it out onto the stone floor and stepped over it, walking on water. Jane’s mouth dropped open as she watched the man walk easily over the stream.
“You needn’t worry,” said the man when he reached them. He pointed at the water below his feet. “It’s perfectly safe.”
Jane looked down into the murky water, her heart pounding in her chest.
“What is it?” she asked.
“The ship has a small lake inside,” explained the sailor. “It’s connected to the ocean so you never have to worry about running low on fresh water. Now follow my lead, and try not to look at the water.”
He began to step across the surface of the water, his strong arms swinging freely in front of him, almost effortlessly. She followed suit, taking tiny, careful steps, trying desperately not to look down.
She kept her gaze straight ahead, watching the dark water ripple gently under her boots, and took comfort in knowing that if she tripped or fell, she wouldn’t actually hit any sort of water, only the smooth, flat stones that made up the decking beneath her feet.
The End