Pieces of Eight by Josh Blair Delaney

Author:Josh Blair Delaney [Delaney, Joshua Blair]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 978-0-7414-9374-3
Publisher: Infinity Publishing
Published: 2011-12-15T00:00:00+00:00

There was a knock on the door. Bellamy turned from the window, but before he could reply, the door swung open and a white-haired man burst in, nodded curtly and sat down on the edge of the bed, wheezing from his climb up the stairs.

There was something in the man’s large frame that reminded Bellamy of some of the dockside workers he had known, but none of them had carried a Bible.

Behind the first man came a tall man with a drawn, grim face and an uncompromising air, like that of a tax collector.

He was followed by a stout, rumpled fellow who exclaimed, “He is out of bed! About time too! He has drunk more soup and rum in his feverish state than most men can drink whilst awake!” Then, casting a look at his companions, he unconsciously patted down the folds in his apron and added, “God left this poor sailor upon my doorstep, so who am I to give a cold shoulder to His request? Anyone would have done the same.”

The tall man looked at Bellamy. “If this is the first time that you have come fully awake, then no doubt you have not properly met your host Isaiah Higgins.” He gestured to the portly tavern keeper and then pointed to the man on the bed and continued, “This is our esteemed Reverend Treat. I am Justice Doane. We are here to discover who you are.”

Any last vestiges of slumber evaporated from Bellamy’s mind. The presence of this kind of men did not bode well. The possibilities came in a flash: the Josephine in port nearby, Captain Pound bringing wild charges against him, imprisonment, return to England in chains. He would not let it happen.

“I was washed ashore in the storm.”

“We are well used to men wrecking on our beaches but not men who wash up without the ship that carried them,” Doane said.

“Aye! There is no wreck. I have been out to the bar and found nothing,” Higgins added.

“Really?” Doane’s eyebrows arched.

“It’s true!” Higgins replied.

From the bed there was a hacking sound, and the other men turned towards the reverend, who spat into a handkerchief and then motioned for Bellamy to come nearer.

The old man flipped open the Bible and read, “I saw a beast rising out of the sea, with ten horns and seven heads, with ten diadems upon its horns and a blasphemous name upon its heads…”

He went on to describe floods, tidal waves and other such devastation, leaving Bellamy stunned and thinking it was the oddest start to any conversation he had ever had.

“You have come on a large stormy tide, haven’t you, Bellamy?” Treat asked.

Bellamy was not surprised that they knew his name. He had vague recollections of murmuring answers to questions asked by those who had taken care of him in the night. He was not able to recall what was inquired or what he had told them. He could not help wonder what else they knew. If he could find out fast, he might better figure out where he stood.

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