Chapter 87
He found that the crewmen were in good mood. Everyone appreciated spending the night in a proper bed. They'd all been fed by their Pitcairn hosts too, and although the food was indifferent it provided a welcome change from the diet they'd lately had on Henderson Island.
Felipe was the last man he visited. He'd planned it that way: he needed to talk to Felipe at length about the situation. When he'd finished recounting the results of his meeting with the Christian brothers, Felipe frowned and said:
"I think, sir, that we should keep a close eye on things. With your permission, I'll inspect the boats before we sail for Henderson. I also think it might be unwise if just the two of us go. It would be better if we all stuck together."
"This is exactly what I've been thinking, Felipe!" exclaimed Cruz. He nodded to himself, and added:
"I was regretting I proposed only the two of us go as soon as the meeting was over. But maybe it's wiser to advance one step at a time. So you have a funny feeling about the people here, eh? So do I, so do I."
Felipe shrugged, and said:
"Maybe it's because they're all living here in total isolation. People often become weird in such circ.u.mstances."
"Whatever the reason, it's the end result that matters. We must stay on our guard. Constant vigilance, eh, Felipe? We won't take any bulls.h.i.+t from them."
"No, sir."
Felipe left together with Cruz in order to have a look at the boats that were to take them to Henderson Island. They split up in front of Cruz's house, with Cruz promising Felipe he'd look in on him after his meal with the island's rulers. Then Felipe went on his way, and Cruz went to his room.
A pleasant surprise awaited him there. The Christian brothers had sent him a big basket loaded with diverse goodies. Prominent among those was a round tin of the promised biscuits. There were even a couple of apples, green Granny Smiths! Cruz ate one with great relish, alternating bites from the apple with biscuits.
When the Christian brothers showed up around four in the afternoon, Cruz was in a bouncy mood. He had eaten more sugar in an hour than he had in the previous week. He a.s.sumed the brothers had come to personally escort him to dinner. They had not.
"We have come to complain, sir," said Peter Christian right away, wiping the welcoming smile off Cruz's face. "To complain, and to issue a warning. We will not tolerate any violence on the part of your men. Physical aggression will be punished with fines and jail sentences."
"What? What are you talking about? What violence?"
"One of your sailors - what's his name, Paul?" said the mayor.
Paul Christian blew out his cheeks and shook his head.
"d.a.m.n me, I can't remember," he said. "Something silly. Made me think of Flip and Flap, you know."
"Felipe Flores?" said Cruz.
"That's it! The man has been put in custody. He has a.s.saulted three of our townfolk. He has injured a couple. His behaviour has been absolutely outrageous."
"I cannot believe it," said Cruz. "I cannot believe it! Felipe is an exceptionally capable, stable man. I must speak to him. I promise to punish him severely if, if - "
"If what I say is true?" Peter Christian asked acidly.
"If he doesn't convince me that he had a reason for doing whatever he did. I believe you, of course. But I think we should investigate what led to this unfortunate occurence."
The brothers looked at each other. Peter raised his eyebrows; so did Paul. Peter lowered his eyebrows; Paul didn't. He thrust his chin out at Cruz, and said:
"I shall take you to see mister, mister - "
"Flores," Cruz said.
It turned out Felipe was confined inside the
"Could we get those handcuffs removed? I personally vouch for this man's behaviour."
"This man is a prisoner awaiting trial," Paul said heavily.
"Agreed. But where is he going to escape to? I solemnly swear to take all responsibility for his actions."
Paul huffed and puffed; he seemed to be trying to think of a good reason to refuse Cruz's request. He failed to find one, and eventually he said:
"Very well."
Accompanied by the unshackled Felipe, Cruz went out onto the large verandah gracing the front of the governor's house. He led Felipe as far away as possible from Paul Christian, who stood in the doorway with suspicious eyes, ears flapping. Cruz smiled at him by way of rea.s.surance. Then he turned to Felipe, and said:
"I hear you've been beating up on the locals. Judging by the state of your hands, it's true. What the h.e.l.l happened?"
Felipe looked down at his feet and said guiltily:
"I did hit a couple of people, but I didn't start anything. They were the ones that started the fight, I swear. I was just defending myself."
Cruz groaned.
"You'd better tell me everything from the beginning," he said.
Felipe shuffled his feet again and glanced uneasily at Paul Christian glowering in the doorway.
"We have nothing to hide," Cruz said. "Just tell me what happened."
"All right, sir," Felipe said dubiously. He swallowed, and said:
"I went to the jetty to look at the boats, sir. There were a few guys hanging out nearby. One of them told me that I musn't touch the boats. He grabbed my arm, and I shook him off. He grabbed me again, and I gave him a shove. He shouted and a couple more guys came running and they all started hitting me. So I hit back."
"I see," said Cruz. He turned to Paul Christian, and said:
"Did you hear all that? It was a simple misunderstanding that regrettably turned into a violent confrontation. And my man here acted in self-defense."
"He was resisting arrest," said the governor.
"Arrest? The men who attacked him were police officers?"
"We do not have a police force. We are our own police. It was a citizen's arrest."
"On what charges?"
"Resisting arrest."
"But why was he being arrested, in the first place? On what charge?"
"a.s.sault and battery of a public official."
"A public official?"
"Pitcairn citizens that perform public duties are temporarily awarded the status of public officials."
"But he says your men hit him first! Why did they hit him?"
"He was resisting arrest."
Cruz let out a soft moan, and ma.s.saged his temples: a dull ache had started there.
"Could we talk to the men, pardon me, the public officials involved?" he asked.
"No. That isn't possible."
"Why not?"
"One of them has a broken jaw. The other two have been diagnosed as suffering from concussion. They are not to be disturbed."
Cruz looked at Felipe with new appreciation. Susanto's first mate was clearly a man of many talents. He remembered dimly that Susanto had told him two of the sailors also acted as his personal bodyguards. It seemed Felipe was one of them.
"This is just one big misunderstanding," he told Paul Christian. "I greatly regret a couple of people have been injured. What can I do by way of compensation? Ask for whatever you like, within reason."
He noticed a mischevous glint appear in Paul Christian's eye when he said that. He instantly realized the whole a.s.sault and arrest business had been arranged especially so that he would make this statement.
"We need Peter," Paul said. "He's the mayor. It will be up to him."
"But of course," said Cruz. "Can we go and see him now?"
"It's d.a.m.ned inconvenient. But I suppose you can't wait."
"Not really. I'll be very grateful."
"Good," said Paul Christian. "But your man stays here."
It took Cruz an extra ten minutes to convince the governor to release Felipe on his and Cruz's own recognizance. It would have usually taken much less - Cruz was good at convincing people - but he was impeded by the anger he felt at the thought that those two hicks, those inbred island morons had outwitted him. He would pay them back for that in spades. Not right away: revenge was a dish that tasted best when eaten cold.
The day was ending when they finally caught up with Peter Christian. He was inspecting a plantation out of town. A half-an-hour hike up a steep dirt track left Cruz flushed and sweaty and out of breath. He was happy to let Paul Christian do all the explaining to his brother. Of course he listened closely, ready correct any misrepresentations.
There weren't any. Paul Christian put everything in very simple terms: Cruz was ready to do anything needed to get his man released, and - here, the governor threw Cruz a triumphant glance - to obtain the help needed to rescue the castaways on Henderson Island. The mayor listened attentively, nodding with great emphasis. He said:
"I am very pleased to hear that. You must understand, sir," he said, turning to Cruz, "That keeping anyone prisoner isn't in our interest. We cannot afford to a.s.sign something like twenty percent of our remaining manpower to guard duties."
"I fully understand," said Cruz. "I'll be happy to do anything within reason to resolve this situation."
"All right," said Peter Christian. "We do have a request. A very reasonable request."
"I'm listening."
"We're short of people, mister Cruz. We need more people to colonize the New World. We request that you provide us with a thousand people, five hundred each of men and women, all between twenty and thirty years of age. We will draw up a list of professions we require."
"You want me to move a thousand people to Pitcairn?"
"Just for the implantation process. They'll be free to go back the moment they've replicated in the New World. I was about to say they can keep the signal fully muted, but there's no longer any need for that."
"By 'signal', you mean the telepathic link with the New World?"
"Yes. It's broken. Everything else is working as before, so not to worry."
"Let me get this clear. You'd like me to bring a thousand selected people here, you will implant them, and then they're free to go back home?"
"That is exactly correct."
Cruz laughed.
"I am going to surprise you gentlemen," he said. "You want a thousand people? Well, I'll give you two. A thousand men and a thousand women. How is that?"
The brothers looked at each other: Paul shrugged. Peter grimaced. Paul shrugged again. Then they both turned to Cruz and said simultaneously, like characters in a comedy show:
"It's good."
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