Revenge of an Englishman Page 4

  “As long as I am not cast off this ship and left for dead like I was on the previous ship, then I shall be fine,” I thought to myself while on the Charlotte.

  The vessel's crew was large in number and the men all came from different backgrounds. They were a pleasant bunch that would happily converse with me and they would answer any of the questions I posed to them. In return, they freely asked me questions and I answered each question honestly. The majority of questions revolved around how I came to be in Port Natal and many of the crew thought that I was a castaway pirate or an unsuccessful spy.

  "That unsightly hair and beard, you must be a fugitive or a violent man," the crew said to me openly. I told them I was neither of the things they supposed I was, but the sight of me still frightened them at night when they set eyes upon my uncivil appearance.

  The captain of the 'Charlotte' vessel was a tall and muscular man. I have since forgotten his name but I cannot be certain that I ever knew it in the first place. When Farewell introduced me to him in Port Natal, I'm sure he must have told me his name, but it immediately slipped from my memory. Regardless, the captain was a saint and scholar and he treated me well. Instead of sleeping with the crewmembers aboard the vessel, I was given private quarters. Likewise, he gave me the honour of allowing me to eat dinner with him each night, while the crew members ate elsewhere.

  The ship sailed for England but it was not destined to unload at Dover harbour or in London or even in Liverpool which had a thriving dockyard full of many vessels with different purposes. Instead 'Charlotte' would arrive in Plymouth, a city by the south-west of England. When I heard the news that we would land in Plymouth I was a little disheartened as it was a considerable distance from there to London. Many carriages trips, horses, nights at different inns and travelling companions would most likely be needed before I made it back to my city of London. It was a bittersweet feeling because although I was happy to be a free man, I knew that I still had a long journey to make before I was back in the presence of my loved ones.

  The ship followed the African coast up north and then westwards on our journey. The wind was always with our sails, blowing us faster home. It was on a Tuesday morning when England appeared to us on the horizon. Upon making out a vague island in the distance, one of the crew members shouted that we were almost home. I was relieved and thankful that soon my travelling by sea would be over. My stomach was increasingly worsening day after day.

  The captain and the crew navigated the vessel into the shallow waters meticulously and steered the ship into the harbour and into a secure space where the ship was moored securely with thick and durable ropes. Once the ship came to a halt all of the fatigue, fears and thoughts of the previous three years left my body. I was full of energy and hope and drive. The captain told me that the crew members were going to unload the supplies and then they were free to enjoy the city in any manner they wanted. He told me that I did not need to unload the supplies since I was not a crew member, he told me to grab my items from my private cabin and then I could leave him and the ship behind. We shook hands and I thanked him for his generosity and he said that it was no hassle.

  When I crossed the gangplank and left the harbour I found myself completely free for the first time in three years. There was a strong smell in the air from the harbours seaweed, but even every breath I took tasted like liberation to me. I even found comfort in the little things of everyday life that I had missed during my captivity. The crowd of adults I walked by or the children who loitered and played in the street all spoke English, my native language and I could understand all the words they spoke. I smiled as I listened intently to the elderly women that gossiped and the brutish men that spoke with coarse voices and bad diction.

  As I walked there were strange glances thrown my way. My rough facial hair and long hair on my head was an oddity in the small city where I roamed. The purse of gold coins, the pistol and ammunition pouch were all concealed by my waist and I felt that since I had finally returned to the civilised world and was among my fellow Englishmen, then now was an appropriate time to shave and turn myself back into the gentleman and academic scholar that I was when I left my homeland on the fifth of May in the year eighteen twenty-one. I set out for a tailor store and a barbershop. Whichever, type of business I found first, I would give them my custom. However, upon my searching, I found an inn that I went into and asked about accommodation. The innkeeper was an elderly man who had difficulty hearing and he gave me a room for the night for a reasonable price. The innkeeper's wife was a plump woman with frizzy hair who worked behind the small bar that served a small number of beverages to its guests and the general public. After I inspected my lodging and found it to be to a satisfactory standard I went down to the shabby bar and ordered ale from the innkeeper's wife.

  The wife of the innkeeper served me and the other customers in the bar, but she had a sour look on her face that remained fixed throughout my time drinking the ale. She spoke kindly to some of the customers and ignored others. I figured that she was speaking to the regular drinkers who would frequent her bar. She stared at me on occasion and I was embarrassed that she saw me staring at her, studying her, on more than one occasion.

  "Can I help you with something?" she asked me, after the third or fourth time she caught me staring at her.

  "Yes," I said instinctively, although it was a lie.

  "Well, what do you want?" she asked in an agitated tone.

  Thinking quickly, I told her that I wanted some form of transport that would take me to London. I told her the cost was not a factor and that comfort and time were my only real concerns. She looked at me queerly and told me that a ferry would be the fastest route and easiest way to travel. The thought of being on another ship on the water so soon brought dread to me and I felt my face flush. I told her I would prefer not to go by sea. She then told me of a carriage company that was positioned only a few streets over from the inn we were both standing in. She gave me the address and I thanked her. I then ordered another drink and enquired some more about barbers and tailors. She gave me as much information as she was able to on the matter and even some of the customers who were within earshot offered me suggestions on where I should go to buy new clothes and change my presentation. I thanked them all and in return, the innkeeper's face didn't seem to scowl as much anymore.

  After my third and final drink, I said goodbye to the innkeeper's wife and the people in the bar and made my way back out into the busy city streets of Plymouth. The day was cloudy and it looked like it had the potential to rain very soon. Again, I found great delight in this common forecast of poor weather as I had been away from it for so long. In my captivity, the weather was always hot, sticky and humid. I was now praying the rain would come down on the cobbled streets of Plymouth.

  I walked a few streets towards the carriage hire company and I walked into a building that was advertising carriage journeys. Inside the building, there was a strong odour of wood and not much else. Directly in front of the entrance door, where customers walked in, there was a large wooden desk with two men sat behind it. Along the walls, there was some artwork safeguarded in wooden frames and several uncomfortable-looking chairs lined the walls in case there was a long queue of customers looking for carriage services.

  I briefly exchanged pleasantries with the two men behind the smelly wooden desk then discussed transport, "Hello, I'm looking to hire a carriage that will take me to London. I would like to get there as fast as is possible."

  "A journey to London will take around four and a half days of near-constant travel, providing nothing goes amiss. Tomorrow morning our stagecoach will leave for Bath and it will take a good twenty hours of travelling. It will require one stage change and it will continue driving through the night. I suggest you take this route and once you are in Bath you can acquire another stagecoach to get you to London."

  The two men were soon made aware of my disappointment at learning about the journey's details. They also realised that I ha
d never travelled by carriage before which was true. I was born in London and grew up in London. I had never needed to leave the marvellous city.

  After a moment of silence, the younger gentleman that sat behind the desk told me that Bath was a beautiful city.

  "I promise you, sir, you will enjoy Bath. Many of your fellow countrymen have travelled there with us in the past."

  "My fellow countrymen have travelled here?" I asked perplexed.

  "Yes, we have many Parisians who travel with us from Plymouth to Bath and they are always content with our service and the beautiful place."

  I corrected the gentleman behind the desk and told him that I was an Englishman like he was. He asked to be pardoned but said that my beard and long hair were similar to the fashion trends of Paris, France, and the wider parts of Europe. The second man confirmed the first man's observation and said that he had met many wealthy Italians who wore similar clothes and had the same styled hair or features that I had.

  "I promise there was no offence taken by your remarks. I admit that I am long overdue a visit to the barbers and tailors, and once we conclude our business here I am going to go directly there."

  When prompted about the journey to Bath that would commence early tomorrow morning I said that I would take it and asked for the two men to reserve a seat for me in the stagecoach. Money was handed over there and then, and I shook hands with the two men before leaving the store. They each apologised one more time to me for the confusion about my nationality but I told them that such things were not important and no offence was taken. I bid them farewell and said I would see them both promptly the next morning.

  By the time I re-emerged into the street, the wind blew cold and droplets of rain that I had been so hopeful for began to fall. As the people on the streets began to scuttle fast and seek shelter from the coming rain I instead looked up and welcomed the raindrops on my face. I smiled and chuckled at how something so simple could bring me such joy. I was happy to be home in my country and feeling the sensations that I had felt for most of my life.

  The single droplets of rain soon turned into a torrent as if the very heavens were opening up and unleashing the very same waters that cleansed the Earth back when Noah roamed the world with his ark. This changed my plans drastically and instead of going to the tailor and barber, I instead went back to the inn where I had paid to stay the night. Upon arriving back at the inn, I quickly went to the room that I had rented and looked at myself in the mirror. My hair was long and black and fell to my shoulders. A full moustache and goatee had grown on my face with some pretty pathetic scruffs of hair growing along the sides of my face and my chin. My cheekbones were well-defined and protruded outwards as a result of being constantly underfed throughout my time in captivity. In truth, it was the first time I had properly inspected myself since my time in captivity ended. My appearance had changed so much that I could barely recognise myself.

  "No wonder those gentlemen thought I was foreign. I look nothing like an honest Englishman like I once did," I thought to myself.

  As the night came swiftly on over the Plymouth sky and the rain did not ease up even a little, I decided to spend the night in the inn. More accurately, I decided to spend the night at the bar drinking some of the locally brewed ale. I can't remember how many drinks I had but I know that it was more than I was used to and more than I could handle. The details of the night are blurry to me from the excess of alcohol I consumed but I still retain some information from that night. For example, the innkeeper's wife remained working hard behind the bar all night, and when ten o'clock in the evening struck she was assisted by her daughter. Her daughter was much better to look at. She was young and pretty and had dimples on her face. Although her hair was a little coarse and her attire lacked all signs of luxury, she seemed like a diamond in the rough of the Plymouth folk that I had so far come across. My opinion of the daughter was not an isolated one as with her arrival behind the bar to help her mother, more customers flocked into the inn and immediately took off their hats and tipped them to her as a sign of greeting and compliment.

  It was eleven o'clock or just sometime after when I decided to leave the bar and go to my room to sleep. Despite the lateness, the inn was still full of people drinking and being merry but I hadn't so much as spoke to a person in over fifteen minutes. Instead of joining in with the festivities and merriment of the night, the alcohol made me rather depressed and sombre. I felt foolish for drinking and wasting my time when there was so much that I needed to do now that I was back in England. I had to plan well for the coming days and alcohol only clouded my judgement. However, there was one bit of success which came from speaking with the locals of Plymouth and getting accommodation in the city for the night, as a great idea presented itself to me on how I could ensure my revenge was carried out and ensure that the three immoral humans were severely punished and that they knew who was responsible for inflicting their punishments.

  "Can I get you one more, sir?" the innkeeper's daughter asked me, as she looked at me and saw that my cup was almost empty. She flashed a beautiful smile which showed her dimples and perfect teeth to me.

  "No," I responded, "I am just about to go up to my room and turn-in for the night. Thank you for your hospitality."

  The daughter curtsied and said she would hopefully see me tomorrow morning before I left the inn and I responded with a similar sentiment. As I got up to leave my seat the daughter politely asked me my name.

  "My name is Monsieur Olivier Levasseur," I said to her before bidding her goodnight.

  I had decided that in my quest for revenge I would take the name of the pirate whose treasure I sought alongside James, Edward and Charles. Being fluent in French and already being mistaken for a Frenchman only a few hours previously, it seemed almost like a signal from God to portray this character. And with this character, Olivier Levasseur, I would get my revenge.

  Chapter 6 – The Stagecoach

  I slept soundly throughout the night without as much as waking up once until morning. The alcohol intake, the comfortable bed and the fresh-scented linen were all factors that helped my deep sleep. When morning came I asked the innkeeper for the washroom and he fetched his daughter to prepare a bath for me. She called me once it was ready and I relaxed in the warm water of the bathtub for a long time. In truth, I could have stayed in the bathtub all day if the warm water would always being replaced when it cooled down, but I was sure that the other guests who were staying at the inn must have been keen to wash.

  The innkeeper pointed me to the direction of the tailors and the barbers, upon request, and after my bath and after I had thanked the innkeeper I left the establishment and went straight to the tailors. The tailor shop I went into was run by two brothers who were both well-dressed and sharp in appearance. They both wore black suits with waistcoats and ties and well-polished leather shoes. As I arrived at the tailor store, they asked me how they could help me and I said I wanted to buy the same kind of attire that they both wore. Then I told them I wanted three complete suits, all in my size.

  "You are sure that you want three, sir? It is not common for people to have three as they are expensive," one of the brothers told me.

  I removed my purse and told him that money was not an issue for me. I then took the purse bag from my waist and opened it up to show them my large stock of gold coins.

  "Yes, sir, right away," the other brother responded. There was a sparkle in his eye and his speech was rapid. He was delighted at seeing such a bountiful purse and he wanted me to part with the contents inside of it.

  "Is there anything else we can get you? Shoes for walking?" he paused and looked around the items he had in the store.

  "Yes," I responded to him before he could continue. "I have travelled from France and misplaced my travelling trunk which contained all my clothing. I need all new clothes and a new trunk to transport them in. I will need undergarments, vests and the whole lot. Being from France my taste is a little more delicate than perhaps
you are used to, but I believe you two are stylish enough to meet my needs. Do you think you could arrange this for me within the next two hours?"

  The two brothers nodded their heads and said that they would quickly take my measurements and then they would assemble a new trunk and all the required clothing a person would need, including the three fancy suits. I told them my story about travelling from France and losing my travelling trunk so well that even I started to believe my own story for a moment.

  I walked out of the tailors, leaving them to their work and quickly went to the barbers. The barbershop was empty except for an old man of maybe fifty-five years. I saw his right hand wielded a pair of scissors but the same hand continuously trembled a little.

  "What are you after, my good fellow?" the man asked me with a thick accent that many of the people in the south-west of England possessed.

  I told him that although my moustache and beard were scruffy and my hair was long and unkempt, I wanted to keep them and simply wanted them to look more presentable and neat. I wanted him to change the appearance that I had transformed into during captivity into one that was intentional and well-maintained. The old man listened to my wishes and then nodded his head and went to work at fulfilling my request. It took him around forty minutes to complete his work and I was satisfied when he showed me my reflection in the mirror. Before he even told me the price of the service I tossed him a gold coin, which was much more than the cost would have been. The barber thanked me profusely as I left his store and wished me a good and happy day. I responded in kind as I exited his store.

  When I arrived back at the tailors they had prepared everything for me, including a new trunk for carrying my new clothes. The two brothers then displayed each item of clothing they had prepared for me, before neatly putting them into the trunk. The two brothers were eager to show off their collection of fine clothes and they were even more eager to win over my appreciation and my coins. Once I said that I was content with all of the clothing they had selected, and they had put the items into the trunk, I asked if the two brothers would be so kind as to give me a private moment to look over the contents of the trunk alone. I told them that I would appreciate privacy while I carried out this survey. Both brothers accepted my request and said they would be at the back of the store, out of sight, and when I was ready for them to come back I simply had to call them. Once they were gone I took out some of the items of clothing that rested at the top of the trunk, then, I removed Farewell's pistol which was concealed at my waist and put it deep into the trunk. Likewise, I put the pouch of ammunition balls and gunpowder into the trunk. That morning and the previous day I had kept the two items on my person and I was keen to keep them somewhere safer and not have to carry them. If I was caught carrying a pistol then I would be punished so severely that it is hard to even think about. In my trunk, they would be hidden and safely stored.