Part 16 - Lord F Goes Forth to Meet his Grisly Fate

As the woman turns away to the stairs, Archie holds out a weak hand, "Pardon me, I haven't yet thanked you for your kindness to a stranger. I am Ar – ah, Askwyth! Third mate of the good ship 'Speedaway' of the Mercantile Marine bound for South America. And you are?"

She turns back to him with another beatific smile as if everything is all right, he isn't a stranger in a strange land, and she feeds and clothes castaways as a matter of course. "I am very pleased to meet you, Monsieur Askwyth, I am Catia," she replies then sees the stab of pain that crosses Archie's face and hastily amends, "but you may call me Yvette, as that is also one of my names."

Her attention is then drawn to the top of the steps as Frédéric clatters back down with a bundle of clothing under one arm. She waves a hand, "Lah! That was quick. Was Eldin waiting for you?"

Frédéric nods, "Oui, most good shop, that Eldin." He begins laying out the clothing onto a rude wooden shelf but Archie hardly cares to see what's been chosen to cover his near-nakedness. Whatever it is, it can't be any worse than the rig he had to wear as the former Lord F.

Yvette turns to the man by the window, "Water and soap, Dani, s'il vous plait?" Danilo nods, sporting the first grin Archie has seen on him, and disappears up the steps. Yvette then regards Archie with a critical eye, "You must bathe as best you may. Frédi and Dani will help you as I know English men are very shy in this regard." Her eyes gleam with mischief and Archie isn't so weak that national pride, not to mention the slur upon his entire sex, doesn't surge up within his breast.

"Madame," he enunciates slowly and clearly, clutching his rags a trifle closer, "English men are NOT shy! We are merely properly mannered and reserved, especially in the company of women."

She huffs a quiet laugh, "Naturellement, I forgot, how silly of me. I go now."

She is half-way up the steps when Archie implores, "And the soup?"

She laughs over her shoulder, "Oui, and the soup. I will return when you are once more decent."

It's on the tip of Archie's tongue to declare that English men are ALWAYS decent, then he hushes because he knows this is a lie. Instead he watches the woman's dainty feet disappear then turns to face the quietly waiting Frédéric, "Thank you, er – Fredi, let's see what there is for me."

Frédéric nods and brings the clothes as Danilo comes back down carrying a dinged metal basin, a bar of rough soap, and an even rougher towel – but none of it matters. The water feels like balm, the soap like salve, the towel like a kiss. The two men are very gentle and, as the dirt and care are washed away, Archie begins to feel human once more.

Dr. Stone returns just as Archie's ablution is done and begins to apply actual balms and salves onto his outraged skin just as gently. Archie is full of questions now, "Um, that formidable man on the beach, he said I was under arrest. On what charge?"

Stone nods, "Yes, the Magistrate, and no charge, not really. It's because Danilo won the argument about you being salvamento, salvage not wreckage, when they discovered your raft being built into Beau's fish hut on the beach. His use of it makes it salvage. You must have crawled away by then. He didn't see you, else he would have called for help. We are a small island of not many people but we ARE civilized." He says this in such a decided way that Archie dares not contradict him. They are certainly being more humane than many other ports he has visited in the past few years.

Archie hisses as the doctor's hands find painful spots, "Ahh! Uh, who… who is in charge then? Is this a protectorate?"

The Doctor nods. "We are proud to be a small part of the United Kingdom…" Archie's eyebrows jump, "… of Portugal, Brazil, and the Algarves."

Now Archie blinks, "Oh. Ah. Then what's to become of me? Will I be returned to my people?"

Finished, the doctor sits back on his heels as Frédéric and Danilo begin holding up articles of clothing, "That depends. Do you WANT to return to your people? If no one claims you, can you support yourself until a British ship enters our waters? I have to warn you that not many do."

As Archie eases into his new clothes, he thinks this over. "When was a British ship last here?"

"Almost two years ago," the doctor replies as he packs up his kit.

"I see," Archie mutters as he slips into his new jacket of faded blue broadcloth, wincing a bit at the drag on his still-tender skin, "so I must endure slavery until I can be rescued?"

The doctor stiffens, "Sir! Slavery is NOT condoned here. Almost all our people, including my own parents, were victims of that vile custom. No, if you cannot support yourself then someone must claim you so that you do not suffer needlessly until you can support yourself." He then nods to Frédéric and Danilo, dismissing them, and they start up the steps.

As he follows the two men, Stone pauses at the foot of the stairs. "Although, word about your eyes has spread through town already." He frowns at the window and the few faces still peering in draw back momentarily. "Unless you have unusual skills in farming or the trades, you may have some difficulty in finding a sponsor." Seeing the look of consternation on Archie's face, he suddenly smiles a little unconvincingly, "But I'm sure the good people of Île Paradisiaque will not let you starve. Someone will surely take you in." He gives Archie the once-over, "Now that you look like a proper gentleman."

Archie still has questions but the appearance of Yvette cancels everything else out. She holds a large bowl of soup and the smell makes Archie feel faint. She sets the bowl down on the low shelf and pulls out a rickety chair from beneath. Archie loses no time in tottering over to sit and begin wolfing it down; he doesn't care that a chicken foot floats right in the middle of everything; he eats around it. Once done, he looks up. "Thank you most sincerely, Madame. I think you just saved my life."

She takes up the bowl. "Vous êtes les bienvenus." She pauses at the foot of the stairs, eyeing him most acutely. "I heard what Dr. Stone said and there is no need for you to fret. If no one else takes you, I will." She smiles low and slow, "I will make sure you do not starve, mon ami, for I love to feed a man."

Archie watches her ascend with almost the exact opposite emotion with which he had watched her descend. It feels like his heart rate rises with her. He flops back onto his bed, his mind in turmoil, but his ordeal is still fresh and within minutes he is asleep; clean, fed, dressed, and completely at the mercy of his captors.

END – part 16

*ffh notes: The merchant marine in the UK was called the Mercantile Marine or the Merchant Service in 1816 and became the Merchant Navy around 1928. The registering of seafarers for drafting by the British Navy didn't actually take place until 1835, so Archie would need no one's help to vanish into the Mercantile ranks.

The United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil, and the Algarves was formed in 1815 and dissolved in 1825 when Brazil declared itself independent under King João VI's son Pedro I, the self-styled Emperor of Brazil. The Algarves are parts of southern Portugal, the last to be recovered from the Moors during the Reconquista, 1139-1249. The title King of the Algarve is an honorific with no political significance.

The British abolished their slave trade in 1807, the same year as the United States; that is, there was no more trading in people, but it did not FREE slaves. That happened in 1833 in Britain and 1863 of course in the US. Portugal abolished slavery in 1761, but continued to aid in shipping them to its colonies and other countries until the 20th century.*