Part 1: The Journey to Africa
Chapter 2
"Meeting Mr. Clayton"
As the days until Jane and Professor Porter's journey to Africa got closer and closer, Archimedes was making all the necessary plans to prep for the journey. It was to be a long trip and who knew when they would return to England. Jane was perhaps more excited than her father as this was an opportunity to show her boyfriend, Robert and all her friends from finishing school that she was capable of surviving in the jungles of Africa. Of course, Archimedes was always first and foremost putting the safety of himself and his daughter first and to show that he meant it, he unknowingly hired a guide to accompany them through the jungles of Africa. A few days before they were due to depart, Jane had been given the opportunity to meet the man who would be guiding them.
"Janey," said Archimedes. "I would like you to meet someone that will be guiding us through the African jungles."
Jane was in the middle of selecting her clothes that she would bring to Africa when she saw her father sitting with a heavy set man with a small moustache and a red ascot hidden in his vest.
"Who is this, daddy?" she asked putting the clothes on the table. "Is this man coming with us to Africa?"
"He is," replied Archimedes. "I would like to introduce you to John Clayton, the man who will be guiding us through the African jungle as well as our protector."
Jane was somewhat taken aback by this man as he smiled lustfully at her and this made her feel very uncomfortable to say the least.
"I am honored to meet you, Miss Porter," he said putting his hand on Jane's. "Your father has said many wonderful things about you."
Jane didn't quite know what to make of this remark and chose to not say anything about it. She pulled her hand away and smiled wryly just to be nice to him, but deep down, she knew that this man who was guiding them to Africa seemed to have more on his mind than just bringing them to Africa for a safari.
"Yes, so he has," said Jane, trying to be polite about it. "So, my daddy says you will be guiding us to Africa I assume? Have you any experience?"
"My dear Miss Porter," he gasped. "Of course, I have experience. Why, I have fought lions and tigers and managed to come out alive. But, not without injuring myself of course."
"Mr. Clayton is the right man for this safari," said Archimedes. "We may be going deep into the African jungles, but we must always be civilized at all times, don't we, Jane?"
"Uh, yes," said Jane. "Of course, we must always be civilized."
If Jane had a choice, she would want to be as civilized as possible on this trip, but Clayton's intentions were not civilized and she knew it. In fact, the presence of Clayton sent chills up her spine and that she knew that these were warning signs of things to come for them.
"Now, don't you have any packing to do, my dearest daughter?" asked Archimedes. "We leave in a few days you know."
"Sadly, I do," she said. "It was very nice meeting you, Mr. Clayton."
"Indeed it has, Miss Porter," said Clayton. "I will see you in a few days."
So, Jane left the two men alone and went up to her bedroom which was just across from her old nursery. Putting her clothes down on the bed, she walked over to the window and just stared outside. She knew that Mr. Clayton would be assigned to protect her and her father when they went to Africa, but at the same time, she could not help but think about what she would be leaving behind.
You see, her home was across the street from Hyde Park and today was Sunday, her favorite day of the week. On Sundays, she and her father would put on their Sunday best and go to the morning mass before taking a walk in the park and admiring the young and old who had gathered to take in the beauty that God had to offer. At the same time, she could sense something about Clayton and that her encounter with him raised warning signs about who he really was coming along for. Being a young and beautiful woman, she had to be protected at all times, even if it meant for a short time. Also, she could not help but think of her mother, Mary, who died giving birth to Jane. As she looked out over Hyde Park, a small tear trickled down her face and she let out a heavy sigh.
"Oh, Mother," she sighed. "It's too bad you are not here to see me in this moment. You would have been proud of daddy and me for going on this quest to begin with. You see, I will make you the proudest mother in the world, you wait and see."
But, Jane couldn't think this way for very long as she now had to go back to packing her things for the trip. She was bringing many clothes for the trip, including shirts, skirts, shoes, stockings, undergarments and her favorite yellow dress that she always wore on Sundays and on special occasions. She may be going to Africa, but she still had to be modest and dignified at the same time. As she finished packing, her father knocked on the door and Jane opened it for him.
"Janey," he said. "I couldn't help but forgetting that I meant to give these new boots for you."
"What's wrong with my other shoes?" she asked. "It's not like that they are going to get dirty or anything."
"Well, I think it would be best if you have some new boots for the safari," replied Archimedes. "They were the best I could find."
Looking at the boots, she could see that they were gray ankle boots with black on the soles, toes and heels; much like the high heels she would wear with her other outfits.
"Thank you anyway, daddy," she said. "You are probably right; I could use some new shoes for this journey."
She placed the shoes in with her other garments and closed up her suitcase. Her father was suddenly taken aback by her daughter's distressed look as she closed it.
"Jane," he asked. "Is something bothering you?"
"Well, as a matter of fact, yes," she answered. "It's Mr. Clayton, the man you hired to be our guide in Africa. There is something strange about him."
"He seems like a very nice man and very experienced about what he does," replied Archimedes. "I wouldn't worry about Jane. After all, we could have gotten someone who was not experienced and then we would really be in trouble, wouldn't we?"
"We could have," said Jane. "But, didn't you see how he looked at me like he wanted to violate me in some way."
Archimedes was taking aback by what his daughter had just said, knowing how vulnerable she could be given the fact that she was only a 19 year old woman. Yet, he never saw what Jane was talking about.
"I wouldn't be worried about it," said Archimedes. "He may have been enticed by your beauty, but I am sure that he would never even think about doing something horrible to you. In Africa, there are many savage wild men that would want to harm you Jane. But, just remember that is what Mr. Clayton is here for and that is protecting me and you from any trouble. Understand?"
Jane nodded yes and hugged her father before he left her room and she returned to her packing. She could still see that Clayton was up to something and she was most likely not the only target, for you see, Clayton had a far more devious plan in mind, more than Jane was thinking of.
For at that moment at his home in Chelsea, he was in the midst of hiring a group of men who were not only going to be crewmen, but also as poachers, for Clayton was planning to kidnap a family of gorillas who lived in the jungles that they were going to and sell them off for money. But first, he would have to get Jane and Archimedes to Africa and then he could plan into action…
