Dr Morbury's Cargo by Steve Turnbull

Author:Steve Turnbull
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: india, empire, alternate history, steampunk, action adventure for girls
Publisher: Tau Press Ltd
Published: 2017-09-07T04:00:00+00:00

xi

That Morning

Dingbang woke feeling strange. Sunlight poured in through the porthole of his cabin. He scowled. The ship was light; they must have set off. Why had he not been woken? He sat up and despite the lack of gravity his head spun as if he had stood too fast.

He felt around his head to see if he had been injured but could find nothing. Had he eaten something bad? Had he been ill for days? Had the ship been hijacked?

The last thought lingered. Of all the options, the idea that he had been drugged seemed the most likely. He could have been out for days. They might have killed the rest of the crew—no, that did not make sense. If they had killed the crew, why would they have kept him alive?

But despite his rationalisation he knew there was a reason. They might want him back, and no one else. Least of all Qi.

He let himself down gently on the deck. It was not that his head hurt or even that he felt sick. It was simply that everything about him felt wrong. As if he had the influenza.

He pushed his feet into his sandals and padded to the door but stopped before he reached it on realising he was very thirsty. Returning to the dresser he drained the jug of water he kept for washing. He spilt much of it on himself but downed enough to quench his need for the time being.

If they had intended him to be a prisoner they would have locked the door, but it was open. He peered out carefully. There was no one in sight.

His understanding of the situation was improving as time went on. Clearly Ketteridge was not what he had seemed. He and the others must be Company men who had finally located Dingbang, and this was a ruse to return him to the fold.

And, since Qi’s father was dead, they would want Qi as well. They might assume she had been told about the Company. But her father had never told her and indeed had asked Dingbang himself to protect her without giving her that knowledge. It is not a burden she needs, he had said, and Dingbang had agreed.

He slipped from his room. They might keep up the pretence for a while but ultimately the Company would kill all the other crew. This was why they were going to Calcutta instead of London.

If he could raise the crew to mutiny, then throw Ketteridge and the other two overboard, they would be safe. If they could manage it without alerting Qi, so much the better.

Whose help should he enlist? Not Qi, obviously, and Otto was no more than a child. Fanning and Mrs Cameron were of no value in a fight. That left Terry Montgomery, Remy Darras and Ichiro. Ichiro could hear nothing while Remy was an effeminate cockerel.

Terry, then.

The bridge was to the left of his cabin while the way into the cargo hold was to the right. There was no way of locking that door.

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