Arabella (31 page)

             
'You two,' the sailor said beckoning to Peg and Arabella.  'You – the one behind you, you and you – and that four there.  Look sharp about it or I might change my mind.'

             
The women scrambled up the rope ladder to the deck above them, breathing deeply as the fresh air entered their lungs.  The sky was overcast and dull but even so the light seemed too bright and hurt their eyes.  Arabella blinked as her head started to spin, but she held on to Peg and they managed to keep each other upright until the dizziness passed.

When all ten women were assembled, the sailor looked them over scornfully.  He pulled a face and shook his head over them, scratching behind his ear.

'Filthy the lot of you,' he said.  'The Captain's niece won't want to see you looking like that.  You had better wash yourselves.  There's water in them buckets, a scrubbing brush and some soap.  Give yourselves a good scrub and I'll come and look you over when you've done.'

'What about our clothes?' Arabella asked and he turned to glare at her.  'We can't do much about them.'

              'What do you expect me to do – buy you a new gown?'  He leered at her.  'Maybe I could find you something if you were nice to me.'

             
'Leave her alone,' Peg said.  'We've got money if we want yer 'elp.'

             
'Money – where is it?'  Greed narrowed his eyes to mercenary slits.  'Give it to me and I'll get yer special treatment.'

             
'Give it to 'im,' Peg whispered to Arabella.  'This is our chance to get out of that place.'

             
'I've lost it,' Arabella lied.  'That's why I couldn't give it to you before.'

             
Peg's face fell, but she seemed to accept the lie.  'Somebody took it orf yer I suppose.  Why didn't yer tell me sooner?  I might 'ave got it back fer yer.'

             
'I thought it would upset you.'

             
'Lying through yer teeth again, Peg,' the sailor said.  'Just for that you can go below again.'

             
'That ain't fair,' Peg said and gave a scream as he grabbed her arm.  She looked at Arabella with a desperate appeal in her eyes.  'Bella – help me.'

             
Arabella felt pity for the woman, who had befriended her, but she still hesitated, and then, as he prepared to shove Peg back into the hold she knew that she could not refuse to help her.

             
'Stop,' she cried.  'I've got the ring.  We shall want fresh clothes and better food – and you can leave Peg on deck for a while with me.'

             
'Show me it!' the sailor demanded and Arabella reached into the bodice of her gown, tearing the material so that she could work the ring free of where it had lodged in the intricate stitching.

             
'I thought I'd looked there an' all,' Peg exclaimed as Arabella produced the ring, and then subsided at a flash of fire from angry green eyes.  'I would have shared it with you, Bella.  You know I would.'

             
Arabella knew nothing of the sort, but she had been glad of Peg sleeping at her back on more than one occasion and she had not been able to refuse when the alternative was that Peg should be immediately sent back below.

             
'Show it to me,' the sailor demanded again, his eyes gleaming with greed as he saw the emerald set with diamonds.  He knew it was worth more money than he would earn in three years on this damned ship and he grabbed for it but Arabella drew it back.  'Give it to me!'

             
'Not until we have the clothes and some food,' Arabella said.  'I want the promise of extra rations for me and for Peg from now until the end of the voyage.'

             
He could have taken it from her by force, of course, but the captain was strict about stealing from the convicts, and he knew she would get a better price if it were brought to the master's attention.  And this one would fight for her property.  He could see that in her eyes.  She was a right bitch, but she looked fit and spoke better than her companion, which meant she would probably be the one picked – and that he had better treat her fairly.

             
'Get washed with the others and I'll be back,' he muttered.  'They might not fit but I'll get yer somethin'.'

             
'Didn't I tell yer it would buy us more food?' Peg said triumphantly as he went off.  'Come on, let's get our share of that water!'

             
The other women looked at them resentfully as they joined the line behind the rough blanket that had been hung up to give them some privacy.

             
'You might have asked for clothes for all of us,' one of them muttered sullenly.  'That bleedin' ring were worth a fortune.'

             
'He wouldn't have given everyone the same,' Arabella said and grabbed her bucket.  She doused herself, stripping off her rags and scrubbing her skin until it stung.  That felt so much better, even though it also hurt.  She didn't care that she was naked, all the others were too, and none of them looked much more than bare bones and skin.  After weeks of near starvation, they were so emaciated that some of them looked as if a puff of wind would blow them over.

             
Arabella knew that she had lost weight, but was probably in better shape than most, because she had been in prison for a much shorter time.  She wrapped herself in the ragged cloth that had been provided for drying and waited until a shout told her that clothes had arrived for her and Peg.

             
They were poor quality and had obviously belonged to a girl of the lower orders, but at least they were clean and looked as if they might fit her.  Peg was shorter and would have to gird up her skirt, but she was already pulling the tunic on and tying it around her middle.

             
'Who did these belong to?' Arabella asked.

             
'Never you mind,' the sailor replied with a crafty look at her.  'Here's your food.  Now give me the ring.'

             
Arabella handed it over reluctantly.  She knew that it was the end of her dream of freedom unless she could find another way to buy her own bond, but she believed that was unlikely.

             
'What happens now?'

             
Captain's niece wants a girl to look after her and the baby,' he said.  'Her last maid took sick and died yesterday.  She can't manage the child by herself.'

             
'I suppose that's where the clothes came from,' Arabella said.  'What did she die of?'

             
'A fever – but nothing catching,' he told her.  'You ain't likely to die of it.'

             
'I ain't wearin' them!' Peg cried and flung them back at him.  'I'd rather 'ave me own.'

             
'Suit yerself.  There ain't no more.'

             
Arabella decided to risk it.  If the girl had died of a contagious disease all her things would probably have been tossed overboard when the body was buried.  She pulled on the plain blue gown and discovered that it fitted her reasonably well, except that it strained a little over her breasts.  She was tempted to open the fastenings to give herself more room, but decided that it might be better to be cautious for the moment.  If she were the lucky one chosen, it would mean she would be out of that stinking hold for the rest of the journey.

             
The women were ordered to stand in a line, and then a pretty but fragile looking woman came out of the forecastle and nervously approached them.  She walked slowly past them, stopped once or twice to look at one of the women and then reached Arabella, who had chosen to stand at the end of the line.

             
Arabella smiled and bobbed a curtsey.  'Good day, ma'am.'

             
'Oh…' the woman responded with a nervous smile of her own.  'Who are you please?  What is your name?'

             
'Arabella Tucker, ma'am.'

             
'And what was your crime?'

             
'I am innocent of any crime, ma'am, except that of a woman defending herself against a dishonourable man.  I was accused of murder but he fell and hit his head as we struggled.'

             
'Murder…' the woman looked horrified and turned away.

             
Arabella could have screamed her frustration, but just as she was expecting to be turned away, a young man wearing the uniform of first mate came to join the woman.  She said something and he glanced at Arabella and frowned, then took his wife by the hand and led her back to where Arabella was standing.

             
'You are Arabella Tucker?'

             
'Yes, sir, she said and bobbed a curtsey.  'The daughter of a country squire in better days.  My father had died and I was alone when Mr Meadows tried to persuade me to be his mistress.  I refused and he tried…I fought him, sir, and he hit his head on an iron fender.  I swear I am innocent.  I told the judge so but he would not listen.'

             
'But murder, John,' the young woman said, gazing up at him anxiously.  'Do you think…'

             
'She is plainly the best of them,' he replied.  'Be brave, Susan.  I am sure this woman would take good care of our son.  She knows what would happen to her if she does not.'  His bright blue eyes fixed on Arabella.

             
'Yes, sir.  I would be happy to care for your son – and very grateful.'

             
'Little Johnny needs a great deal of care,' Susan Baxter told her still looking nervous.  'He cries a lot and runs about if no one checks him.'

             
'He's a lively little lad of near on eighteen months,' John Baxter said with an affectionate glance at his young wife.  He was not a handsome man but his features were strong and he looked honest, and clearly thought a great deal of his family.  'Yes, I think we'll give you a try, Arabella – but if my wife complains of you, you'll go back to the hold and you will be flogged.'

             
'I am sure my mistress will have no reason to complain of me,' Arabella said.  'May I see little Johnny, ma'am?'

             
'Yes.  He is sleeping at the moment – or he was when I left him, but he is teething and has been fretful of late.'

             
Arabella heard the muttering from the women who were being taken back to the hold but she did not look at them.  She had no illusions about the treatment she would receive from them if she were sent back to the hold.  They hated her for being chosen, and for possessing a ring with which to buy the clothes, for they knew that it had given her an unfair advantage.  She looked clean and presentable, while they still looked and smelt of the stench of prison, for although they had washed their bodies, their clothes were but filthy rags.  Some women might have looked beyond that, but Susan Baxter was too timid and her husband obviously made the decisions.  Arabella looked attractive and her good manners had won her the freedom of the ship and fresh air.

             
Arabella followed behind Susan Baxter as she led the way into the forecastle, where most of the higher ranked crew were housed.  Her cabin was the second largest on board, and more comfortable than Arabella had imagined it could be, with a bed, a table and two chairs.  There were several sea chests for the family's belongings and a dressing screen, over which some petticoats had been flung.  Other pieces of clothing had been left about the floor, and Arabella bent to pick them up, folding them neatly and laying them on a chest near the child's cot.

             
Her heart turned over as she saw the child sleeping, his fist against his rosebud mouth.  Her own child would have been almost this age now, she thought and felt a pang of grief.

             
'How beautiful he is,' she said and the sincerity in her voice made her new mistress look at her.

             
'Yes, he is,' she agreed and smiled properly for the first time.  'He is so precious and I have been afraid that we shall lose him on this dreadful voyage.'

             
'He looks strong and healthy,' Arabella said.  'I am sure that he will be fine, ma'am.  I shall do all I can to see that he has every attention.'

             
'Thank you,' Susan said and sighed wearily.  She looked pale and there were shadows beneath her eyes. 'I am not strong, you see.  Johnny's birth tired me and I have not yet recovered fully.'

             
'The journey has been hard for you, ma'am?'

             
'Yes,' Susan agreed and sighed again.  'I fear my husband and my family spoil me, Arabella.  It has always been so.  John wanted to wait before making this journey, thinking I might be stronger in a few months, but he has the chance of a good position in Washington and this is his last voyage as a serving officer, so I said that I would accompany him. Otherwise it would have been months before he could return to fetch me and the position might have been lost.'