Slave Of Destiny (9 page)

The cool autumn
breeze ruffled her hair and she swayed her hips sexily as she walked into the
Captain’s cabin.

Michael ate a cold
breakfast early the next morning of bread and cheese followed by a steaming hot
coffee and ventured back up to the bow of the
Mabuhay
. The schooner must
have passed by Nyata Island during the first night at sea, but they were still
well away from any land. He could just make out a few small sails on the port
side, so he assumed they were fishermen, setting their nets or casting their
long-lines. A pod of dolphins crossed the schooner’s bow and the clear sky was
filled with seabirds. The sea was a deep indigo blue this morning; as if the
storm had cleansed the water. An Albatross screamed along the waves, just
inches from the surface, swooping in and out of the swell, putting on an impressive
display.

“It’s simply
stunning” suggested
Vijendra.

Michael was surprised that the captain had come up so quietly
on him, but he didn’t show it.

“Yes!…The captain on the
Teresa
was looking for an
island which had an unbelievable amount of wealth hidden away on it; just like
a treasure island. Have you ever heard about this place, Captain?” he asked.

“Dutch pirates are supposed to have hidden a million pieces
of eight in a cave somewhere around here in 1717. A subsequent earthquake
sealed the cave and it has never been found” Vijendra admitted, before adding
more to his story of Indonesia. “The Indonesian people around here make their
living by fishing or trading. Apparently they trade spices, milk and liquor
back and forwards. That is why this area is called the Spice Islands for that
reason. Sumatra is the third largest nutmeg producer in the world. They also
grow cloves, cinnamon, allspice, pepper, a tremendous number of herbs and
rubber trees.”

“The captain showed me a map and he named the ‘treasure island’
as Diamond Island” Michael mentioned, enticing Vijendra to tell him more about
the treasure.

“Hundreds
of maps have been produced promoting many islands, but no one has succeeded in
finding the treasure. He sounded like a gullible man” he laughed, before
walking away.

Michael
remembered his history lessons from school and
the Cultivation System on Java.
The
dismantling of the system, Dutch subjugation of Sumatra and the eastern
archipelago and the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869 stimulated the rapid development
of a cash-crop, export economy. Another factor was technological change,
especially the rise of the automotive industry, which created unforeseen
markets for tropical products in Europe and North America. Although palm oil,
sugar, cinchona (the source of quinine, used in treating malaria), cocoa, tea,
coffee, and tobacco were major revenue earners, they were eclipsed during the
early twentieth century by rubber and, especially, petroleum. Sumatra and the
eastern archipelago surpassed Java as a source of tropical exports, although
sugarcane remained important in East Java. Rubber plantations were established
on a large scale in the early twentieth century, particularly around Medan,
Palembang, and Jambi on Sumatra, with British, American, French, and other
foreign investment playing a major role. A high-yield variety of rubber tree,
discovered in Brazil and proven very profitable in Malaya, was utilized. It was
during this period that the emergence of small-holder rubber cultivation, which
was to play a major role in the Indonesian economy, took place.
Tin had
long been a major mineral product of the archipelago, especially on the islands
of Bangka and Billiton, off the southeast coast of Sumatra. But petroleum was,
and remained, Indonesia's most important mineral resource. Oil, extracted from
Sumatra after 1884, was first used to light lamps
.

“Well, my history
lessons do come in handy and they are actually worth learning” he whispered as
he stared out to sea. “Maybe I could help my captain, as I gaze into my crystal
ball and predict the future.”

The
Mabuhay
rounded the rocky point of Madu Island, under the watchful eye of the captain.
Dayang eased past the mangrove clad buff and threaded his way into the bay as
the sails were lowered. Michael went up to the bow to watch the two crew
members release the anchor onto the sandy bottom. They didn’t talk to him, but
nodded in recognition as part of the group. He knew they could understand
English, but they preferred not to or couldn’t speak it. They were on the edge
of the Flores Sea and still a long way away from Sumatra. There was another
schooner in the bay and it displayed the Norwegian flag. The schooner’s name
was displayed proudly on the stern. - The
Vega. 
That name seemed so
familiar, but Michael couldn’t work out why he would know that name unless he
remembered it from his history lessons.

The Captain
assembled everyone on deck to explain why they stopped here. “We’ll be here for
several days to rest and replenish some supplies. You can go ashore if you
wish, or stay on board; the choice is up to you. The weather is picking up, so
we’ll remain here until it becomes safe to continue our journey.”

Michael looked over
to the west and noticed heavy masses of dark clouds collecting on the horizon,
so he thought he should go ashore before it hits the island. The longboat and
the two dinghies were lowered into the water and tethered to the stern.

“I’m going ashore
Michael, do you want to keep me company?” Constance asked innocently. “James is
staying on board with George to arrange some maintenance on the rudder and the
some of the fittings. – BORING!”

“James?” a name
Michael hadn’t heard before.

“It’s
Vijendra’s real middle name and he’s
letting me use it; another change from the dreaded pirate he once was” she
admitted.

“It would be an
honour to go with you, Connie” he said.

Michael rowed
through the smooth water and she pointed out which direction to take to thread
their way through the coral. The bay was roughly divided into four sections,
separated by rocky outcrops. He knew she was looking for the closet small cove,
hidden behind a large group of rocks. Here the tangled bush of trees, shrubs
and vines grew down to the beach.

“There’s a flowing
small stream over there” she pointed out happily. “Let’s tie up the dinghy
there.”

His oars moved with
a slow rhythmic motion in the crystal clear water and Michael could see the
black sea slugs feeding on the bottom. Schools of sky-blue and yellow fusiliers
parted as the dinghy passed overhead, only to regroup soon after. A stingray
left clouds of sand in its wake as it tried to escape from their path. As the
dinghy entered the small stream, schools of mullet dispersed with a slight
splashing.

“Turn to your right
and aim for the beach” she suggested.

He drove the nose
of the dinghy onto the sand and Connie slipped off her sandals, jumped out and
tied the dinghy to the dead tree lying close to the water’s edge. Michael
jumped out and took a few tentative steps further up the beach, because he
still felt himself swaying slightly from the few days at sea. From their
position the two of them couldn’t see the
Mabuhay,
but the small cove
had a magical feel to it. The rocky outcrops, the blue sky and the indigo blue
ocean, the golden sand, the dark green jungle and the small burbling stream
enhanced its appeal. Two pelicans waddled on the sand, just a few yards away
from them.

“Let’s go for a
swim” she shouted with joy. “It’s probably fresh water from the mountain mixed
with the salt water of the sea”

“I didn’t bring a
change of clothes” he admitted sadly.

“It’s just you and
me, so who needs clothes” she said.

Michael couldn’t
peel his eyes away as she stripped off her clothes in front of him, hung them
on the old tree on the beach and casually stepped into the shallow stream.  The
water must have been only about four feet deep; because when it reached her
thighs she lay down and floated on her back. He could clearly see her dark,
triangle of pubic hair and large breasts and Michael felt himself becoming
horny. He felt shy about getting undressed in front of a woman, but she wasn’t
looking at him so he stripped down and followed her lead, hoping the cool water
would keep his manhood soft.

“Do you miss Sally,
Michael?” she asked, opening her eyes when she heard the splashing.

“I have never
stopped thinking about her” he said. “I felt it was partly my fault for her
getting kidnapped.”

“Why do you think
that?” she said when she stopped floating and turned to look at me; her breasts
clearly in view.

“I..I..I” he
stuttered, looking away.

“Please look at me,
Michael. I’m not ashamed about my body and you’re a healthy young adult.
Nothing is going to happen between us and we’re friends connected by a common
bond” she said clearly.

Michael turned back
and looked into her eyes, before he said weakly, “ok.”

“Tell me why you
think it was partly you’re fault” she asked.

“If I didn’t ask
her to go for a swim at the waterfall, she wouldn’t have been kidnapped; it’s
as simple as that” he said.

“I told Sally about
the waterfall and gave her some soap so the both of you could have a bath. It’s
really my fault more than anyone’s” she said, reassuring me. “You must have
been terrified when the two of you were tied up in the room.”

“Yea, we were both
worried, but she knew the person that came in later as her ex-husband. He said
that he wasn’t going to hurt her; only use her as a pawn against the British
government. I only became really stressed when they left me there by myself;
ready for Mad Wayne to turn up. I felt I had to get free and try and find her
quickly, because Marcus and Snake were trying to get her back to the
Vega
and
leave on the high tide” he said, before realizing what he had just said. “Wait
a minute – the
Vega
– That is the name of the schooner next to us. Could
Sally be on the ship or around here?”

“That’s a distinct
possibility. We have to get back to the
Mabuhay
and ask James to help
us” she admitted.

The two of them
left the water and dressed quickly, hoping to get back to their schooner and
request their Captain’s help. Michael pushed out the small craft, jumped in and
began rowing frantically.

“Slow down Michael,
a few more minutes aren’t going to make any difference” she suggested.

He heeded her words
of advice and returned to his normal style of rowing. The sea had become choppy
in the short time the two of them had spent ashore, but the tide had turned and
the current was with them. When they reached the boarding platform, Connie
jumped out and rushed off to find
Vijendra
while he tethered the dinghy.

* * *

The
Vega
was
a two-mast gaff-rigged schooner with a length of 135 feet and a twenty-eight
foot beam.

“She looks heavily
built and she would be slow; I would say she would weigh about 150 tons. I wonder
what she is doing here?”
Vijendra
said, not expecting an answer.

Dayang,
Vijendra,
Connie and Michael gazed
over the vessel as the longboat came along its side. After tying the line from
the longboat securely the four of them climbed up and stepped aboard to search
it. There wasn’t any sign of life on board and it looked like it had been
vacated several weeks ago. It was like it was a ghost ship.
Vijendra
had left his first mate in
charge until they returned.

“Maybe they left
some indication of where everyone went on that map” Michael suggested, pointing
to the partly unrolled chart.

“It looks like one
of your treasure maps, my boy. They may have been gullible enough to try and
look for the treasure before they returned to India. There’s a place marked on
the eastern side of this island and I think that’s where we should start looking”
he suggested, gathering up the hand drawn chart. The two of you didn’t see any
sign of a longboat when you went ashore?” he asked.

“There is a small
stream on the starboard side of the first bay; it’s hidden by the rocks. It’s
only about four feet deep, but it does disappear under the canopy of thick
bushes. Someone could have hidden a longboat there” Connie suggested.

“The tide is
outgoing already” added Dayang. “We will have to rush before it becomes too
shallow.”

“It’s time we were
on our way then” he admitted. “And hope the storm is delayed.”

They returned to
the
Mabuhay
to collect some weapons and equipment.

“I want the two of
you to stay here” he ordered. “The two of us will go on alone.”

“We’re not staying
here. We’re the only ones that know what Sally looks like and we could be
helpful” she argued.

“All right then, I
get you both a
cutlass each” he
said. “Dayang, collect the two extra weapons and meet us at the longboat.”