Upon the Malabar Coast (The Alexander Clay Series Book 9) by Philip K Allan

Author:Philip K Allan [Allan, Philip K]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2021-04-24T23:00:00+00:00

Chapter 10 Kollam

The Griffin’s bell rang out later that night, stirring Sam Holden, one of her two master’s mates, into action. At sea, only the sailing master or one of the naval lieutenants stood watch, but at anchor, with the ship safe, the officers and most of the crew were allowed to enjoy a full night of sleep. This was a moment of rare responsibility for the young man. For once, he was in sole charge of the frigate’s small anchor watch, and he took his role seriously. He left his place by the wheel, clasped his hands behind him in faithful imitation of one of those officers and set off on his rounds.

He was surrounded by creaking night as the ship rocked gently in the swell. He carefully side-stepped the many obstacles in his path on the upper deck, checking that each lookout was alert and at his place, and that none of the navigation lights high in the rigging had blown out. He ended his circuit back by the wheel, where he sighted over the compass binnacle towards the looming bulk of one of Travancore’s temples. Content that the Griffin hadn’t dragged her anchor in the half hour since he last checked, he stepped over to the ship’s side and looked out at the water.

It had been a quiet night so far, he reflected. The captain had returned from the shore just as Holden was coming on watch, but had long since vanished below deck. Once the barge had been lashed back into place on the skid beams, and the boat crew had gone to their hammocks, there had been little to disturb him. The wind had dropped to a whisper and the dark sea had an oily calm to it. From the city came a stream of little fishing boats, like fireflies emerging from a nest. Each one had a lamp glowing on a pole projecting over its bow, every point of light paired with its reflection. Some were content to drift with the gentle breeze, others rowed, hastening out to sea to claim the best spots. Soon the cloud of lights were all around the frigate, dividing into two streams to pass her. It will be dawn in a few hours, he decided, and the end of my watch. The young man’s thoughts turned to the breakfast he would have, and his stomach groaned in expectation as he left the rail.

It was a shame that the master’s mate chose to look away at that moment, for he missed the only noteworthy occurrence of his watch, although he would have needed astonishing perception to spot it. One of the fishing boats had stopped level with the frigate’s stern quarter. The men at the oars continued to row in faithful imitation of those around them, but they had twisted their blades edge-on to the water so that the boat remained stationary. Another man, naked save for a thin rope draped around him with a hook at one end, slipped over the side as smooth as an otter.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.