Chapter 15 The Roadblock
This chapter talks about the events that occur on Bates and his squads' first day at sea. Something happens that could affect the mission and Bates and Robert confer on how to handle the unplanned situation. Seeing as this is a 17 day journey, rest assured that I won't be taking a chapter per day to tell this part of the story. In fact, hopefully the next chapter at the end will find them docking at Cape Town.
Thank you so much for the reviews and PMs. I was beginning to lose my way on this story, and a PM I recently received really revitalized me and made me want to continue on. So your comments and reviews really do make a huge difference in motivating forward progress on this fic. Thanks again for any feedback you can offer.
Per the usual… none of the DA characters are mine.
The morning of the 4th dawned just like any other winter February morn. It was still dark as Bates approached the gangplank of the RMS Dunottar Castle, the fastest troop ship in her Majesty's fleet. They were scheduled to depart at 0600 and John sighed in exasperation as he noted that meant he'd be stuck dockside for another hour.
Sergeant Bates was eager, very eager to set sail both realistically and metaphorically speaking. Not that John believed in running away from his problems. No, it had more to do with starting afresh, problems be damned.
The mess with Vera, the monetary pressures left behind due to his brawl at the pub, his father's death not to mention his mother's possible involvement in it, were issues not to be easily forgotten no matter how many miles he'd put between them. But there was nothing could be done about them for now. John chose to just simply press on.
If there was one thing Sgt. Bates excelled at, it was his ability to focus on the task at hand. And for here and now that task was to infiltrate the Boer militia, cause dissension and disarray within the commando unit he was embedded within and then remove himself and his men to safety once the British forces were about to attack the fractured Boer unit.
The Boer militia and their guerilla tactics had successfully stifled the British Army and managed to draw out this war far past what was originally thought possible. John's was a new and unique scheme to injure and destroy the roaming bands of commandos of the Transvaal and Free Orange State. If this initial foray proved successful, then the tide would turn in favor of Britain and a speedy end to this irritant war would result.
Despite being an enlisted man, because he was a sergeant, Bates was assigned an actual room of his own aboard ship, rather than a cot in the hold of the ship along with the rest of the enlisted men.
Actually, room sounded a bit grander than the cabin actually was. It was very small with barely enough room for the bed. And speaking about the bed, it was going to be a problem for John. At 6'2" he was decidedly taller than most of his fellow countrymen and the designers of ships' cots obviously had no thought of accommodating folks taller than average. He resigned himself to sleeping with his legs hanging off the edges of the bed, and just hoped he'd still be able to walk by the time they got to Cape Town.
Once he was settled in his cabin, Bates decided to go up on deck and see if he could connect with any of the men in his unit. He took a quick peek outside above deck, but it was still so dark that he concluded it would be best to wait until the ship had departed and was on the open seas to look for his comrades. He returned to his room, sat himself upright on his bed, his back resting up against the wall and started to read.
Apparently he'd been more tired than he realized as John awoke with a start, the book propped open lying on his chest. It appeared that once the adrenalin shot through him, fueled by his excitement at heading off to sea, his lack of sleep while in London and Sandhurst caught up with him and he fell into a deep slumber.
Judging from the rocking of the boat, Bates estimated that they had left port and were on the ocean. He checked the time with his pocket watch and was shocked that it was already 9am. They had been sailing for 3 hours.
John flung his legs over the edge of the bed, stood up and tried to stretch, unfortunately his attempt was unsuccessful as his hand banged into the wardrobe door, reminding him that his cabin was really no larger than a small walk-in closet.
He gingerly stepped out into the hallway and resumed his stretch, hearing his neck and shoulders crack in relief from their cramped position in the cabin.
John yawned again, running his fingers through his hair and proceeded up onto the deck. It was overcast and the seas were a little choppy. His face quickly became wet from the ocean spray as the Dunottar sliced through the waves .
He turned his back to the railing and was just about to make it back down to his cabin when he heard something…
It sounded like a voice. He wasn't sure exactly what direction it came from.
"Sergeant Bates…" he heard his name. The voice sounded weak, but at least this time he could tell where it was coming from. John turned 90 degrees to his left and headed in the direction of the voice. Soon he saw the figure of a man about 20 meters away, standing next to one of the supporting brackets for the lifeboats. Actually, standing was not exact the right term, more like hanging on as if his life depended upon it.
John picked up his pace and then started to run as he saw the man crumple down to the deck, no longer able to remain upright even with support.
The closer John got, the more clear it became that this individual was in serious trouble. John reached the indisposed traveler and placed his arm beneath the man's back in an effort to bring him upright. He felt something wet and warm on his hand as he attempted to sit the man up… He placed his body against the injured man's back and looked at his hand. It was covered in blood.
At that moment the man's eyes fluttered open and Bates was able to see his face clearly for the first time. Bates was shocked to see the face of Jamie Smythe.
"Jamie, dear God man, what has happened…who did this to you?" John's eyes searched Jamie's face, as if he might find some clue as to what happened from the man's features?
"Jamie…Mate…Hold on, man."
Responding to the sound of his sergeant's voice, Jamie clutched at John's tunic and opened his mouth to speak… "T-t-t-tray…" was all he managed to say at first, he then struggled to pull himself up and whispered in John's ear… traitor.." Jamie then released his grip on John, lost consciousness and went limp.
John cradled Jamie's body in his arms stood up and raced towards the bridge. He needed to find the ship's doctor, but had no idea where to find him. The captain or members of his staff would know for sure he reasoned. He hurried as fast as he could, aware of Smythe's moans with every step he took.
As Bates closed the distance between himself and his destination, he saw a sailor standing at the base of the stairs. Seeing John, the seaman started running towards him.
"A Doctor… This man needs a doctor. Where can I find him?" Bates yelled out to the man.
"'E's upstairs with the Captain.. I'll gets him for you, sir."
"Never mind getting him for me." Bates rushed past the sailor and bound up the stairs two at a time.
He burst through the door and stood in front of the shocked officers. "Which one of you is the doctor?" There was an edge bordering on a demand to Bates voice. "This man has been stabbed and needs a physician now."
"I'm the ship's doctor," an officer off to the side responded. "Lay him here on the table so I can take a quick look. It looks like he's been stabbed in the back, so place him face down."
John carefully placed his fallen comrade on the table. The doctor stood over Jamie and did a quick exam of the unconscious soldier. He pulled a handkerchief from his pocket, folded it neatly into a square the size of the wound and applied direct pressure to the spot in order to staunch the flow of blood. After a few minutes passed, the doctor re-examined the wound and proclaimed it had finally stopped..
"He's lost a lot of blood, but it does not appear that any major organs were injured. Let me get some sailors to assist me and I'll do a more thorough exam in the ship's surgery. But, the fact that he's stopped bleeding and is still alive, would indicate that he's got better than a 50% chance of survival. Thank you for your assistance, Sergeant?"
"Bates, sir… Sergeant John Bates".
"Well Bates, this man is very lucky you happened to find him. He appeared to be minutes away from bleeding out."
Bates excused himself from the ship's Captain, explaining that he needed to report what had happened to the officer in charge, Col Crawley.
"Of course, I understand," said the Captain. "But will you please request him to inform me as to what steps need to be taken regarding this matter. Does he need to telegram London, or is this a matter he can take care of while on board this ship?"
Bates nodded to the Captain and set off to find Robert. Colonel Crawley had told Bates the night before his room location aboard ship, so Bates headed straight to his superior's cabin.
Robert was somewhat annoyed at the insistent knocking at his door but was curious who the impatient person was on the other side. He was surprised to see Bates as the perpetrator and perhaps even more disturbed at the look on his former batman's face.
"Begging your pardon sir," Bates burst into Robert's room and quickly apologized. "But there's been an incident below that you should be made aware of."
"Bates! Good God man, what is it? You look like you've seen a ghost!
"It's private Smythe, sir. Jamie Smythe, a member of my team… I found him barely alive on the main deck, near the lifeboats a few minutes ago. He'd been stabbed. I took him to the ship's doctor and he said there's a 50% chance he'll survive." The words gushed out of Bates, all in one breath.
"Sergeant, be seated please, and take a breath. Now, can you calmly report again what you just said?" Robert didn't quite believe his ears and wanted to make sure he'd heard Bates' correctly.
John retold the story to the colonel and added the fact that the last word spoken by Jamie before he lost consciousness was "traitor".
"Crikey…this is a totally unforeseen development," the colonel responded with furrowed brow. His lips pursed together as he thought what the next steps should be.
"We should probably get the men together and let them know what's happened and to be on the lookout for anyone or anything suspicious while on board." Bates suggested. "We can't keep this hidden from the men for the next 17 days, and it would be better to hear the facts from you directly sir, rather than let rumors spread amongst them."
"Quite right, sergeant. It is imperative that the men be told the facts as we know them. Give me an hour or two to sort through this… what I'm going to say. Please spread the word to them to stay on the mess deck after lunch and I'll address them all then. Oh, and Bates… no mention to your group of Smythe's condition… at least not yet. I'd rather handle any inquiries concerning the his condition directly."
John nodded in tacit agreement and left Robert's cabin. His mind was racing in a thousand directions at once as he re-capped the day's events so far.
Below the cabin decks he entered the room where the majority of the enlisted men were located. It was a large room encompassing 3/4 of that deck level. There were cots lined up in typical military precision. Bates was aware of the capacity of the Dunottar. She had recently ferried over 1,500 troops in support of Lord Kitchner. And she was carrying close to a thousand on this voyage.
Bates began wandering amongst the sea of men, hoping that the small group of soldiers on his team were quartered together and nearby.
"Sgt. Bates...Sgt. Bates" John turned in the direction of the call. "Over 'ere, sergeant"
Bates recognized ginger headed Doogan, his hand waving amongst the crowd. As he got closer he saw Culver and the rest of the special unit around him.
"We was hoping you'd come down here, Sgt. We've been a bit worried about Jamie. He went up deck a couple of hours ago, said he was going to grab some fresh air and walk up on the promenade, but it's been hours and no one has seen or heard of him. Culver, even went up on deck to see if he could find him, but to no avail. Have you seen him, sergeant? Is everything okay wit him?"
John knew that the men would be concerned for their comrade, but he was under strict orders to say nothing concerning his whereabouts. All inquiries were to be addressed to the colonel. But he wasn't going to lie to his men either.
"Yes, I've seen him. But the colonel is going to address us all after lunch and the question of Jamie's whereabouts will be answered then."
"But sarge, surely you can tell us what Jamie's condition is?" questioned Culver.
"Condition? I didn't mention anything about Smythe's condition, Simon." The wheels in Bates head started turning…wondering why Simon would use that word…"condition" when inquiring as to Jamie's whereabouts?
Thoroughly chastened, Simon put his head down and then murmured, "Of course not Sgt. Bates, it was a poor choice of words on my part," Simon then wandered off away from the group and started chatting with flailing gestures to another soldier who was part of the mission, but not in Bate's and Simon's team.
John wracked his brain trying to remember the trooper's name and then it came to him.. Thomas… Thomas Fellowes. Bates recalled he'd not had a good feeling about Fellowes. He was brash and cocky, but that wasn't what made Bates dislike the man. It was the fact that he was a bully and had an almost sadistic side to him. He enjoyed taunting his opponents, those soldiers pitted against him during arm to arm combat training.
It was never about the team or the mission for Thomas… It was always personal and always all about himself and his glory and honor.
John thought it an odd apparent friendship, Thomas and Simon. Two more differing soldiers in dedication and wits, Bates could not imagine.
He interrupted their discussion to let Thomas know about the colonel's mandatory address after lunch, and then proceeded to personally inform the other members of the squad. Because of the nature of their mission, they were also warned not to talk to anyone outside of their tight little unit about what the colonel would reveal at the meeting.
Lunch came and went and approximately 15 minutes later, the colonel entered the mess and walked over to the table where the men were gathered.
They snapped to attention as Robert approached, and he returned their salute.
"At ease men. Please be seated."
Robert looked each man in the eyes as he scanned the table, hoping he'd see something that would tip the hand of whoever the traitor was in this group.
"Men," Robert coughed to clear his throat. "I regret to inform you all that there has been an incident this morning that directly impacts not only our team, but our mission. Jamie…err... James Smythe was stabbed this morning. Sgt. Bates happened to find him, and before he lost consciousness, Smythe told him there was a traitor in our midst."
Bates noted the collective gasp and shifting of bodies as a low murmur started to rumble from the group.
"Cut the noise," John barked. "If you have questions or anything to tell the colonel regarding this incident, there will be time after Colonel Crawley is done.
"Thank you sergeant." Robert nodded his appreciation towards John. "But there really isn't anything more to say, other than you will all need to be on the lookout for any unusual actions amongst your fellow soldiers at least until we get to Cape Town. And of course, no mention of what happened is to go beyond this unit. I trust I have made myself clear?" The men nodded or spoke in agreement.
Just as Bates was going to dismiss the men, as Robert turned to leave, John heard Culver raise a question for the colonel
"Excuse me sir, but what of Private Smythe? Is he dead?"
"No, not yet. Thanks to your sergeant finding him, the ship's doctor was able to stabilize Smythe for now. He is still in critical condition in the ship's dispensary. Next 48 hours should tell whether he'll make it or not."
"So he's still alive, then?" Thomas inquired next.
"Yes, that's what I said, Private Fellowes, he's stabilized and recuperating. Now I want to remind you once again…no mention of this to any other soldiers on board. Understand?"
"Yes sir!" the group answered in chorus.
Robert left the group standing at attention. Bates then dismissed them and watched as Simon and Thomas wandered off together again.
Bates returned to his cabin and was just about to start reading when he heard a knock on this door. What now, he thought to himself as he got off his bed and in one stride reached and opened the door.
He was amazed to see Thomas standing in front of him.
"Pardon the intrusion, Sgt. Bates. But might I have a word with you?"
Bates was for all appearances struck dumb by Thomas' request and nodded for him to enter.
"So…um… Sgt. Bates. I think I have something important to tell you that I'm sure you'll want to relay it to the Colonel when I'm done."
"Tell me then, Thomas. What have you got?" Bates doubted the man before him had anything of value to tell him, but he'd hear him out.
Thomas took a step forward so he was just inches from Bates face.
"It's private Culver, sergeant" he whispered. "I think he done it."