Fearful Breakers by Janice Sebring

Author:Janice Sebring [Janice Sebring]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Antimacassar Books
Published: 2023-08-23T00:00:00+00:00

Through the Transom

The wind was favorable, and Tío Domingo announced that they would cast off on the ebb tide that afternoon. José was awash in nervous excitement as he sat down for his last dinner with his family before joining the Orfeo. José wanted to savor every mouthful of his mother’s rice and beans, but they were dry in his mouth and he could barely swallow.

His uncle was ebullient. “Now you will do a man’s work, José!” he kept repeating. “You will not be some whey-faced scribe, poring over dry old tomes.”

Mamá looked down at her plate, still half full, and pushed it away. “If only you did not carry such risky cargoes, Domingo,” she said.

“Do not concern yourself about that,” Tío Domingo replied. “Most of my cargoes are under license. Between droughts and hurricanes, the Captain-General must allow some foreign trade or this island would starve. Cuba needs flour and the North Americans have it in abundance.”

“Flour is not the only thing you carry, though,” Papá intervened. “The king wants trade in contraband stopped and any official who prosecutes it with vigor is likely to see his career prosper. One day your luck will run out. They will confiscate everything you own and exile you to Florida, or worse, sentence you to years of hard labor building fortifications in some fever swamp.”

“I do not wish such a fate for José,” said Mamá.

“I assure you. I have the best of connections. I provide particular favors for certain officials, and they would not wish to lose my services.” Tío Domingo’s voice grew louder. “This system of licenses, register ships, and eternal harassment is breaking down. I can feel it cracking about me. One day, His Most High and Mighty Catholic Majesty will see sense and let us trade as we will, and then this island will truly prosper. And when that day comes, Albañez y Morejón will be ready to seize the day.”

“Let us hope that when that day comes it does not find you in chains,” said Papá dryly.

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