The Victory (26 page)

It was also inevitable that she should have learned, through
her maid, Dakers, of Héloïse's visit to Shawes last year.
Sometimes she wished that Dakers was less -devoted to her
welfare, for she reported faithfully to her mistress many an
uncomfortable fact that Mary Ann would sooner not know.
On this occasion, since the secret of Lucy's pregnancy had
been well kept, Dakers had not understood the underlying
reason for Héloïse's visit, and had assumed it was arranged
for James's benefit. It made Mary Ann sad to have to think ill
of Roberta; but it also made her determined that she would
not be at Morland Place this summer.

‘
Papa so enjoyed my visit last year, that I mean to make a
longer stay this year,' she said abruptly. 'If you should have no objection, I mean to take Henry to Manchester at the end of the week.' She addressed the remark impartially to the air
between the two brothers.

Edward looked disconcerted. 'But you will be back for
race-week, I hope?'

‘
No, I'm afraid not,' she said calmly. 'I mean to stay until
September. August is Papa's only period of leisure, and he
does so like to entertain, and to enjoy Henry's company.'

‘
But we shall have no hostess,' Edward said. 'Not even ...' He broke off, remembering last year. It was hard to think he
would never see Mrs Smith or William again. He was the only one in the family who had really mourned William, for he had
been brought up with him, and his faithful heart retained the
affection he had had for the fair-haired boy he remembered; and there now seemed little hope that any good news would
be learned of the York

‘
We mustn't stand in Mary Ann's way,' James said to his
brother. 'Of course, we'll miss her, but it's only right that
little Henry should visit his grandpapa. And if we don't enter
tain, we won't need a hostess.' He looked at Mary Ann and smiled genially. 'I hope your father will forgive me for not
coming with you, but there is so much to do here in the
summer, I can hardly get away.'

‘Papa does not expect it,' she said shortly.

‘
Neatly put,' James said with a grin. 'How your heart
would sink if I proposed to accompany you!'

‘Jamie!' Edward said, shocked.

‘
Come, Ned, no hypocrisy. You know it's true. Mary Ann
and I understand each other pretty well.' He eyed her
thoughtfully. 'Neither of us would stand in the way of the
other's innocent pleasure — would we, ma'am?’

Mary Ann declined to answer.

*

’Now hold still, miss, do,' said Dipton as Africa wriggled with
excitement, 'else I'll never get this bow tied.' He threaded a
narrow length of blue ribbon through her brown curls with
fingers that had become increasingly skilled in the refine
ments of a little girl's toilette. He had always done little
sewing jobs for his master, such as darning a shirt or hem
ming a cuff, but over the last year on blockade duty he had
steadily extended the range of his skills, and the muslin frock
that Africa was wearing for her birthday party was entirely
the product of his needle and scissors.

‘
There now, miss,' he said, giving her sash a final tweak.
‘What do you think of yourself?' And he took down the
captain's shaving-glass from the bulkhead and held it for her.

Africa eyed herself cautiously. She had few opportunities of
exercising personal vanity, and was not sure how to go about
it; but then Dipton, misunderstanding her silence, said in
disappointed tones, 'Don't you like it?' and she knew what to
do about that.

She flung her arms around his waist and cried, 'Yes, it's
lovely. Thank you, dear Dipton!’

His thick fingers touched her curly head tenderly. 'Off you
go then, miss. Your pa'll be waiting.' Miss Africa might not be
a beauty like her mother, he thought, but she had something
of Mrs Haworth about her, all the same.

In the great stern cabin of the
Cetus the table
was already laid for dinner, and Captain George Haworth was waiting to
receive his daughter and her guests. It was natural that his
thoughts should turn towards his wife, who had died six years ago in Aboukir Bay. He held in his hands the miniature of her which her brother James had executed, for the captain to take
to sea with him when they were first married. It was a skilful
piece of work, and the ivory miniature was a suitable medium for Mary's delicate, porcelain beauty.

She smiled up at him, tiny and far away. Their marriage
had been all too short, but supremely happy, and she had left
him, in departing, his two lovely daughters. Polly would be as
beautiful as her mother one day, and it was right that she
should learn the ways of polished society in Lucy's household,
because one day she would make an excellent marriage and
become a great lady of society, as her mother would have
been if she had not thrown herself away on a penniless sailor.

Polly was Mary reborn — ah, but Africa was for him, for
his daily comfort, pleasure, amusement, and love! She had
too much of him in her to be a real beauty, but it would have
taken a brave man to suggest as much to any of the six
hundred souls on board the
Cetus;
for just as she had won the
hearts of the crew of the
Africa,
so she reigned supreme
aboard her new ship.

Today was her sixth birthday, and he cast his mind back
over the past year on the Toulon blockade, and thought how
much harder it would have been to bear without her.
Through the stormy autumn and winter, and the calm and
lovely spring and summer, they had remained at sea, patrol
ling the Gulf of Lions with no friendly port closer than Malta,
five hundred miles away.

There were eight French battleships and several frigates
under the command of Admiral Latouche-Treville inside
Toulon, while the blockading force's number varied between
nine and twelve. When
Cetus
had first joined them, Nelson
had explained his strategy to Haworth, as was his custom,
over dinner.

‘
Naturally, in the Channel, the fleet's business is to see that
the enemy never gets out,' the Admiral said, 'but my system
here is the very opposite. My numbers simply are not suffi
cient to do all that needs to be done in the Mediterranean.
There's the
Armée d'Italie,
for instance, all ready to overrun
the Two Sicilies. There's Malta to protect, and Alexandria.
Now, if the French remain in harbour at Toulon, my ships
have to remain here too, to guard them.’

Quis custodiet ipsos custodes,'
Haworth murmured. ‘Precisely, Captain,' Nelson said with a quick smile. 'So my business is to tempt 'em out, so that we can destroy the whole
fleet, and release our ships for other duties. I keep a couple of
frigates close in, while the rest of us remain out of sight over
the horizon. The system had the added advantage that the enemy cannot know when we are off station renewing our
supplies.'

‘
I understood, my lord, that we were to be supplied from
Malta and Gibraltar?' Haworth said.

‘
Only with ration stores, Captain,' Nelson said. 'You know
that we are already short of men, and there is precious little
chance of replacing any we lose. It is vitally important, there
fore, that we keep our men healthy — easier to keep 'em
healthy, than to cure 'em when they get sick.'

‘Indeed, my lord.'

‘
So we get fresh food whenever possible. Onions, green
vegetables, fruit, beef and mutton when we can. Fresh food,
I've discovered, can make all the difference to a crew's health.
And we have no water-hoys in the Mediterranean. We have to
refill our water casks wherever we can, usually at streams
along the uninhabited coasts of Corsica and Sardinia.'

‘
I understand, my lord. But is there not a chance that the
French may slip out while the fleet is off station, and that we
might lose them, as we did in '98?'

‘
Ah, but we found 'em again, didn't we, Haworth?' Nelson
smiled. 'Found 'em and thrashed 'em. And so we will again
_?
if
Monsieur Latouche will only put his nose out of port! No, no,
the chance of destroying the enemy far outweighs the risk of
losing him.’

So they had spent the past year, cruising out of sight of
Toulon in the hope of tempting the French into battle. The
strategy had so far met with little success. Once or twice a
couple of French ships had appeared in the roads, like mice
peeping out of their holes, only to scuttle back in as soon as
the English bore down. Only once, six weeks back, had
Latouche come forth in fighting order. A couple of French
scouting frigates were threatened by five of Nelson's ships off
the Hyères islands, and eight French ships had issued forth to
the rescue. The English ships drew off into the open water
and hove to, offering battle, but the French declined, content
with rescuing their frigates, and went back into Toulon
harbour.

The sequel to the episode caused Haworth some amuse
ment. All around the coast of France there were spies ready to
provide the English with news of events within France, and a
copy of Latouche's report to his superiors soon reached
Nelson's hands. In it he said that the English had turned tail
and fled, and that he had pursued them until nightfall. This piece of gallantry had been rewarded with promotion to the
Légion d'Honneur,
the highest award the new Emperor could
give.

Nelson had been incensed, called Latouche a poltroon and
a liar. 'I'll give him
la touche!'
he said. 'If I catch him, I'll give
him the Nelson touch! I've got a copy of his letter by me, and
by God, if I take him, he shall
eat
it!’

The opening of the door recalled Haworth from his
thoughts to the present, and he turned and smiled a welcome
as Africa came in, walking rather stiffly in her unaccustomed
finery, white muslin frock, blue sash, and blue satin slippers
on her normally bare feet. She paused just inside the door and
looked at him hesitantly for approval, and his heart gave a
painful tug.

‘
You look beautiful, my darling,' he said, holding out his
arms, and Africa's face broke into a smile, and she ran to him
to be hugged. 'Now,' he said, taking her hand and going to
the door, 'shall we pass the word for your guests?’

Three of the officers aboard the
Cetus
had been with
Haworth at the Battle of the Nile, and they were the principal
guests at the birthday dinner. They were First Lieutenant
Angevin, a dour man whom Africa's mother had secretly
dubbed The Anchovy, Third Lieutenant Webb, and Mr
Midshipman Morpurgo, now aged fourteen, the youngest son
of a noble but impoverished family who hoped he would
provide for himself by making a successful career in the navy.
Haworth had taken him to sea when he was eight and, apart
from the period of the Peace of Amiens, the boy had been
with him ever since, and had known Africa all her life.