The Isle of Women

Chapter One-2

She had about a week to make her plans. When her mother had died she had inherited her jewels. She was not supposed to know where they were kept, but she did. She resolved to take them with her and make her way to London. She had a very little money, a handful of gold sovereigns that would take her there, she thought, and then she would find the ship which Lawrence was to be put on, and somehow bribe and cajole her way aboard, no matter how many ugly men she had to kiss.

As luck would have it, her father had business in the nearby town the day she planned to leave. He would not be home till nightfall, by which time she would be halfway to London. And so it proved. All went well on the coach, and she was not molested. But London was altogether a different matter. It was so huge and so bustling and so noisy and confusing. I shall never find the ship, she thought as she stepped down in the inn yard at the end of the journey. She spent almost the last of her cash on renting a room for the night and ordering supper. But she went to bed not knowing what she would do in the morning.

While she was eating her breakfast, the landlord came into the dining room. He seemed a decent sort of fellow and asked politely if everything was to her liking, and so she ventured to ask his advice. “I am seeking a ship, sir,” she said. “It is the Amethyst. Do you know where I might find her?”

“Well, down at the docks, of course,” the man said.

“And where are they? How do I get there? How will I know which ship it is?”

“Very well,” the man said kindly, “get yourself a cab, tell him you want the docks, and when you get there, make him enquire as to the berth of the Amethyst.”

“Thank you, sir,” Augusta said. It seemed quite simple really. And so it proved. The Amethyst proved to be a three-masted schooner. On the deck there was a good deal of hustle and bustle. Augusta paid off her cab and approached the ship. On deck was a young boy.

“Where is the captain?” Augusta called out.

“Cap’n?” said the boy. “He be over at the Grapes. As usual.”

“What’s the grapes?” Augusta asked.

“Tavern,” said the boy. He pointed along the quay. “Last place on the corner.”

The Grapes was an establishment of no great refinement, it appeared from the outside. It had a generally grimy look; from inside issued a good deal of noise, even singing. Taking a deep breath, Augusta went through its open door. Inside the atmosphere was so smoky her eyes began to water. The place was full of seamen, many seemingly inebriated. One or two called out to her, apparently making lewd suggestions, though such was the noise she could not quite make out what they said. There was a waiter carrying a tray of ale tankards; she laid a hand on his arm and earnestly asked him where she might find the captain of the Amethyst. The waiter pointed to a man sitting by himself in a corner.

Augusta ventured closer. The man wore a c****d hat and a long black coat. His face was dark with stubble and one eye had suffered some sort of injury. His mouth was wet from the beer he was drinking, while at the same time he chewed on a piece of cheese he was consuming. Augusta took an instant dislike to him, but she had come too far to back down now.

“Sir,” she said, “are you the captain of the Amethyst?”

The man looked up, focusing his one good eye on her. “Who wants to know?” he asked suspiciously.

“My name is Augusta Broadhurst,” she said, “though of course you don’t know me. I wish to discuss some business with you.”

“Business? What sort of business?” His manner was surly, unwelcoming.

“I wish to find out if there is any way of getting passage aboard your ship.”

“Passage?” he said. “Do you know where we are going?”

“You are bound for Australia, are you not?”

“Maybe,” he said. “But we ain’t a passenger ship.”

“I know what you are,” Augusta said firmly. “May I speak freely about a private matter? I think I can put some business your way.”

“Business?” he said. He had a habit of repeating what she said, as a way of giving away nothing.

“It could be to you profit. Could I explain?”

The captain shrugged. “If you like.”

Augusta told him in brief of her romance with Lawrence and its unfortunate outcome. She said that she was determined to follow him wherever that may lead. She said she knew it was unusual, but she would pay the captain to take her on board, secretly if necessary.

“Pay me?” he said. “With what?”

Augusta had anticipated such a question. From her purse she took a ring which had been her mother’s. At the centre was a large diamond. She had no idea how much the ring might be worth, but it was surely something. The captain took the ring from her and held it up to his good eye.

“Hmm,” he said. “It’s a very unusual request. And of course quite against regulations. I could be dismissed if anyone found out.”

It was clear to Augusta that the ring had aroused his interest. But no more. He would need persuading.

“So,” he said, “you give me the ring and I take you aboard. But once I’ve got the ring and we’re under sail, what’s to stop me tossing you over the stern? Such things happen at sea.”

Augusta had thought about this. She had other jewellery, but had no intention of disclosing this to him. But her experience with Lawrence’s jailer had given her an idea. It was a desperate measure, but her situation was desperate.

“I could offer you a further inducement,” she said. She looked at him and very slowly pulled her dress down a little on one shoulder, exposing her upper arm. “It is a long voyage, I know. I can imagine that a man gets lonely. Perhaps a little female company might help to shorten the voyage.”

He looked at her carefully. “You seem too respectable a woman to be making such offers,” he said.

“Sir,” Augusta answered, “my need is great, and this makes me bold.”

“How am I to know you’d be as good as your word?”

Augusta thought fast. She needed to convince this man she meant what she said. “Come outside with me now,” she said, “and I will show you that I am in earnest.”

There was a gleam in his good eye which she didn’t much like the look of. But she thought of Lawrence, of how much he needed her, and she knew she was willing to do anything in order to assist him. Outside the Grapes the captain took her arm and led her down a narrow alley. When they had left the street behind he stopped. “So?” he said.

Augusta took a deep breath. She began to unbutton the front of her dress. Underneath was a lacy shift, on top of her corset. She pulled the shift down and lifted one of her breasts out of the top of the corset. The captain stared.

“Do you like me, sir?” she said, trying to sound coquettish.

“Show me a little more,” the captain said. His voice was hoarse now. Augusta forced herself to smile. She lifted up her skirts. Underneath were her drawers, lacy like her shift.

“Pull ‘em down,” said the captain sharply.

Blushing, Augusta pushed her drawers down until the captain could see her belly, smooth and white, and below it the tuft of thick black curls.

“Turn around,” the captain said.

Nervously Augusta turned her back on him, offering him the sight of her round, shapely bottom. Then she felt him touch her.

“No,” she said sharply, rounding on him and letting her skirt fall. “You won’t touch a thing until I am safely aboard and we have set sail.”

“Very well,” said the captain in a surly voice. Just then she heard footsteps behind her. Fearing the worst, she reeled round. A young man was approaching. He looked her up and down, seeing her dishevelled state. “Dirty w***e,” he muttered as he passed.

Augusta blushed again. The man’s comment was not far wide of the mark, after all. Was she not prostituting herself, albeit for the sake of the man she loved? And for the first time she wondered what Lawrence would say if he knew. Would he approve? She feared he might not. But she had come too far to back out now. She told the captain he could keep the ring as an earnest of her good intentions. In return, he said she was to present herself at the quayside that evening at seven, by which time it would be dark.

“And lest anyone suspect,” he added, “you must be dressed in man’s clothing. None can suspect you are a woman.”

“But I have no man’s clothing,” Augusta protested.

“Then get some,” the captain said. With that he turned on his heel and was gone.

Augusta wandered about, not knowing what to do. Then she saw a little shop with clothes hanging up outside. The clothes were mostly old and worn, scarcely worth selling, she would have thought, but it was just what she was looking for. She went in and soon found what she needed, some grey trousers, a shirt with several buttons missing, a jacket and a shabby hat. She explained to the shopkeeper that she was buying them for her brother, but she didn’t much care if he believed her or not.

She had a few hours to kill, and just a little money left, so she bought herself something to eat in a pie-shop, making it last a long time. The woman who owned the shop seemed kindly enough. Augusta asked if there was a toilet she might use. Inside, with the door locked, she put on her new clothes. Once she had hidden her long black hair under the hat, she thought she might pass for a young boy on a dark night. She exited and walked quickly out of the shop, before the astonished woman could say anything. Then she hung around the quay until it was dark, and after waiting a long time the captain finally appeared. Peering to see if it was indeed her, he motioned her up the gangway.

“Quick, follow me,” he said “Speak to no one.”

He led her down a hatch and along a passage. Twice, unable to see, she stumbled over something on the floor. The captain opened a door and pushed her inside. Evidently this was his personal cabin. There was a lantern lit, and Augusta got a general impression of untidiness, objects strewn on the floor and on the bunk. The captain pulled back a curtain and showed her a little cubicle, On the floor inside was a grubby mattress and some blankets.

“This is where you’ll stay,” he said. “When I’m not here the door will be locked. Now let’s have a look at you.”

He drew her over to the lantern. He pulled apart her shirt and stared at her breasts. Then he put out a hand and pinched a n****e. Instinctively she recoiled.

“Let’s get this clear,” the captain said. “You will have to work your passage. That means you give me what I want. Whenever I want it. You are in no position to bargain. If you don’t put out, my girl, there’s the sea.” He pointed to a porthole. “You can be in it quicker than you can say Jack Sprat.”

Augusta looked at him grimly. She knew he spoke no more than the truth. She had got this far by intimating that in exchange for her passage she would offer s****l favours. She couldn’t back out now.

“Very well,” she said with a heavy heart. “But if you treat me kindly I shall be more disposed to be friendly.”

“We’ll see about that,” the captain said. “Now get your clothes off. I want to see what I’ve got.”

Augusta shrugged. She was a girl with very little s****l experience apart from her affair with Lawrence, but she was not overly shy about her body. She was resigned to allowing this uncouth and unappealing man to take liberties with it for the next two months. She would not enjoy it, she might on occasion be disgusted by it, but she was determined not to let it affect her overmuch. Foremost in her mind was Lawrence; she had to stay on the right side of the captain for the sake of her dear boy. Slowly she undressed, tossing her clothes onto a nearby chair. When she was naked she stood in front of the captain with a defiant expression, as if to say, you may possess my body but you will never have my soul.