| Chapter Seventeen - Standoff |
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The attire may have been different, but I recognised fighting men when I saw them. I found myself rather hoping that the Captain had encountered such a situation before and would have a plan. My hand ached to produce the pistol from my pocket but I knew that to reach for its wooden handle would spell the end of my brief foray into free enterprise. I glanced at the Captain, watching the expressions play across his face and preparing to follow his lead. He appeared to be casually appraising the armed group before us but a barely perceptable twitch in his right hand betrayed the fact that he was struggling with similar emotions to myself. "Morning my good fellows" he intoned "and how may I be of assistance?..."
At this point, a short but wiry looking fellow, adorned in fine quality but outlandish and slighty ludicrous looking garb, appeared from around the corner of our craft. "Keep this man under guard" he barked and then repeated this command in Punjabi, a language I recognised from my father's teachings. He strode purposefully to a concerned looking Sadeian. "He still owes me a thousand rupees..." he sternly announced. "...and an elephant!!" he added, breaking into a grin and embraced the Captain in a fierce hug. "Sadeian you old rascal, how the devil are you?!" he enquired fondly. "Good to see you Siraj old chap, I'm absolutely fine. I hadnt forgotten my debt and it shall be paid in full - how many years interest is it?" the captain enquired. "Ten by my reckoning sir but as you can see, the Raj have been good to me." he said, gesturing at his finery. His men now lowered their weapons and were now surveying the horizon for threats, they appeared well drilled at least. "Thats an impressive sandcastle sir, you always did like to make an entrance" Siraj continued, nodding towards the scene of our unorthodox landing. The captain laughed and sealed the ship with a touch of haste, the stairway elevating back into the craft. It appeared that although friends, sadeian did not trust the man entirely. "Let us catch up along the way shall we old chap, I'm sure your contact is eager to do business..." he replied crisply. We strode purposefully towards the city before us with the Captain and Siraj catching up along the way. It seemed that during his army days, the Captain has used him, then a street rat, as a spy to aid him in bringing down a renegade general in the province. A hasty escape had been required from the area which had involved an elephant. The exact details of which they refused to divulge but caused them great amusement. The army had recognised Siraj's endeavour and had rewarded him with a post in a trading company, in which he had evidently flourished. Now he was escorting us to our destination, having been searching for us with his men due to our late arrival. "As we worked our way through the shanty town on the periphery of the city, the Captain announced his intention to visit his contact alone to preserve his anonimity. "He is in a position of some power and his identity is known only to a select few" offered the Captain apologetically. "Siraj here will take you to a safe house and I will meet with you later". Previously I would have been taken aback by this, but I had become used to the Captain's sudden and secretive whims. "Righty-o Cap, good hunting" I replied. We then shook hands and went our seperate ways. The journey to the safe house was pleasant and enlightening. Siraj was lively, genial company and he was difficult to dislike but there was something about him which prevented me from trusting him. I think perhaps it was the obvious fact that, for him, everything had its price. I was left with the impression that he would sell his own mother if it would improve his station. He was however expansive, pointing out places of interest, explaining the politics of the region and advising of the areas to avoid. We eventually arrived at the safe house. It was a ramshackle affair and one which drew absolutely no attention to itself in any way - it blended seemlessly into its surroundings. It was a one storey building with peeling, whitewashed walls which opened up into a simple interior of only two rooms, one of which served as a rudimentary sitting/sleeping room and one for washing. I had no desire to sit here and wait for the Captain to return. Looking around, I longed for the comforts of "The Black Bull" and Annie's welcoming smile. A course of action suddenly came to me, I reached into my pack and produced the list of shipments of my father's company - my memory was correct, Calcutta was indeed one of his supply ports and one from where a number of shipments had gone awry. "Tell me Siraj, what can you tell me about "The Kentish Export Company"?... |
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