17. Blisters be damned

A full week had passed, and slowly the Surprises who had survived the influenza virus gathered their strength, soaked up the sunshine and bathed in the surf. Isla Fortuna was bountiful; there was fruit in abundance and further inland the men had discovered all kinds of edible wildlife. Hunting parties ventured out daily and they brought back birds, a type of boar and turtles in all shapes and sizes, which were all happily cooked and devoured. Mr. Woodring’s crew in the mean time scoured the forest for spare masts, spars and crosstrees, and as the gold was removed from within the ship and was reattached to the outer hull, Mr. Woodring took the chance to initiate some major repairs. He shifted the bulkhead according to the Captain’s wishes, made sure the Surprise’s figurehead Britannica was patched up, and while he was at it, he had the great cabin restored to its usual naval austerity. His crew, and indeed the entire crew, would have done anything for Captain Aubrey; the hands were all inordinately happy at his survival.

The subject of all that happiness now sat in the sand in front of his tent, blinking slowly, his feet bare and his shirt open at the neck. He enjoyed the feel of the sun on his back and the wind in his hair and he pondered the loss of weight a good solid fever could bring about. He was sure he had lost close to a stone, and his duck trousers sat around him loosely. He felt good; good to be alive, good to be out and about, good to be sitting there wiggling his toes in the warm sand. He also felt much weakened by the fever, and so, when Stephen wandered over, he called out:  ‘Ho, brother! You will be pleased to hear that your influenza has shrunk me prodigiously. Only now I must learn how to walk all over again, for I have lost as much strength as I have lost weight. I am no more than a babe in arms. And so…’ he rose laboriously, ‘I will endeavour to take a turn on the island, with your permission. Lord, but I’m fagged already!’

‘I give you joy of your new proportions,’ said Stephen, ‘and you are a vast babe in arms to be sure.  Any mother would abhor the notion. However I cannot think it wise for you to go wandering about all alone. I will join you presently, I must get my net and my…’

‘Oh, no, no, I’ve known you to stare at some incredibly rare species of beetle, or an empty bird’s nest for that matter, for hours. No, what I need is a brisk walk to invigorate the body, a…’

‘But you cannot go alone, Jack. I know you as well as you claim to know me; you will easily over-invigorate yourself and I will not have you lying about in the dust on this Godforsaken island all by yourself, overtaken by fatigue or heat. I will ask Padeen…’

‘I will go with him.’

Both men turned, surprised, to see Cat, her Grace the Duchess of Marlborough, clad in her leather pantaloons and Jack’s number three shirt, and a stout leather belt to tie all that billowing linen around her frail form. A few red whorls had escaped her braid, and they gently danced around her face in the breeze.

‘Well, I have looked after all the remaining patients; I would simply adore a turn about the island. And if the Captain can go no further, I will return and bring enough hands to carry him back, so he will not have to lie about all by himself for long,’ she added with a mischievous little smile.

‘I’m sure that won’t be necess…’ murmured Jack, embarrassed and red, but then he was interrupted by Stephen, whose face lit up with a glee that, on a face like his, was almost eerie to behold.

‘Capital, capital idea. As a medical man, I heartily give my consent. Your Grace, I beg you, do not go barefoot or in those fancy silk slippers, if you please; be sure to wear some sensible footwear. I heard Mr. Cummings mention that he had noticed a prodigious great snake slithering around. Oh how I wish he had brought it with him! I would have dearly loved to take it apart.’

‘A snake!’ said Cat, a little worried, but she frowned determinedly and went into her tent.

‘A snake?’ said Jack, entering his own tent and holding the flap open for Stephen. ‘Lord, I detest snakes on land. Sea snakes I can abide, but one hardly ever gets any trouble from them anyway. Now, sharks sometimes come up to play, but one great thump on the nose is enough if they become a little frisky with one’s legs… Where are my boots? Killick? Killick there!’

‘He is in the hunting party, I believe,’ Stephen said, locating the boots and holding them out to his friend.

‘Ah, tankee, Stephen… now, what I’ve been meaning to ask you…’ Jack said in an undertone, sinking down on his cot and hurriedly pulling on his boots, not bothering with stockings of any kind.

‘Yes? You will suffer from the most horrid blisters like that, Jack.’

‘Oh tosh. Blisters be damned. It is nothing compared to… to…’ Jack sighed, an inward look on his face as his hand inadvertently rubbed at his heart for the briefest of moments.

Oh, Jack my dear, a flower upon you; you have it bad, thought Stephen, and he smiled. ‘What would you have me tell you?’

‘You have seen the Duchess before.’

‘I have.’

‘Did you not notice the resemblance, when we first came upon Cat? After all, her beauty is quite…. remarkable… astounding… exquisite…’ Jack’s voice trailed off and he looked at Stephen questioningly.

‘The notion came to me, but I could not be sure. The Duchess was dressed formally when I saw her, she was much bewigged, bejeweled and bepowdered, and thus she looked much… dare I say it? ...older. I was aware of a difference of age between the Duke and her Grace, but the actual substance of it escaped me until it became clear that Cat was indeed…’

‘You could have clapped a stopper over my infernal ramblings. There I was, calling her a port wench, and you said nothing. I shall be mortified for the rest of my life, for sure,’ Jack grumbled softly, breathing out through his nose in one sharp blast full of vexation.

‘My dear, I beg you do not trouble yourself. Go for your walk. It will set you up forever I’m sure.’

Jack thought for a moment, pinched his lips, nodded curtly and slowly rose once more, ducking under the flap of his tent.

Cat was already waiting for him and he bowed then offered her his arm, mumbling an apology for making her wait. As soon as they were out of earshot of any Surprises, Cat swallowed and looked up at him. She hesitated, but it was clear to Jack that she was desperately trying to get something out.

‘Whatever is the matter, your Grace?’ he said, just a little more gruffly than he had intended. Having her so close by his side combined with feeling so infernally weakened frustrated him intensely, and he was trying for all he was worth not to lean against her. Droplets were forming on his brow.

‘Oh... I do beg your pardon, Captain... I had no intention of being indiscreet; you must believe me, but...’

‘Yes yes, what is it? Oh, and by all means,’ he quickly looked around and saw not a soul, ‘you must call me Jack when we’re alone. I insist; nothing else will do...Cat...’

‘Jack,’ she obediently repeated, then said it again for good measure. ‘Jack... I would like to apologize for... for... falling asleep on your shoulder. It was inexcusable.’

‘Not at all! Not at all...’ Jack laid his hand over hers, threaded through his arm, and looked down into her beautiful face warmly.

‘Propriety aside, Jack, you were mortally ill! I should have...’

‘Cat,’ whispered Jack, ‘I am convinced it was your presence alone that saved me...’

She blushed, looked at the tips of their shoes as they walked, and remained silent for quite some time.

Chapter Eighteen

email feedback to author                    contact webmistress

Return to Character Fiction                 Return to Main Page

WANT TO POST FEEDBACK?

VISIT THE ROUGH MAGIC FEEDBACK MESSAGE BOARD!