Part 29 (2/2)
”Well see,” she said stubbornly.
A renegade lancer approached Salguero at a trot, bearing important news. Some of the recent arrivals had heard that Madrid had unleashed the flower of the cavalry to pursue them.
”The Order of the Golden Fleece?” Captain Salguero repeated in disbelief.
”Hai,” Gonji confirmed. ”Simon has also told me theyve been set on our heels.”
Corsini called over from where he sat before a blazing fire: ”Are they good?”
”Huh,” Salguero grunted in reply. ”Ask any lancer. Theres none better.”
A grim silence descended over the gathering, broken at last by Gonji. ”They wont follow to the Barbary Coast.”
”Theyll follow to Genoa,” Salguero spat. ”What will we do about all these innocent people?”
”Nothing but trouble ahead, eh?” Cardenas said smugly, shackled to a wagon yoke.
Gonji sighed. ”Ill just-somehow-have to get them to follow me.” He looked them over, gauging their reactions. It seemed clear they had accepted that he would be parting company with them. ”Anyway, how quickly can they take to s.h.i.+p? Neriah-san says the only s.h.i.+ps waiting at those shoals should be ours.”
Deep in thought and heavy-hearted, the others began to drift away. They would need a s.n.a.t.c.h of sleep before the sun presently rose.
Gonji sat near the fire, scribbling absently on a ragged sc.r.a.p of paper. Valentina changed Orozcos leg bandage and shared a cup of wine with the droll renegade before sidling up behind Gonji.
”What does that say?” she inquired, looking over his shoulder. He read it to her aloud twice, helping her with the p.r.o.nunciation. They exchanged weary pleasantries, and the samurai moved off to try to steal an hours rest from his unrelenting concerns.
”Et in Arcadia Ego,” she repeated again to herself before sleep overcame her.
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE.
They split the caravan into three parties to help confound pursuit as they neared the craggy seaport city of Valencia. Neriahs s.h.i.+ps were to be nestled in a treacherous inlet, anch.o.r.ed off a small fis.h.i.+ng village, ostensibly to maintain cheap harbor while the crews set to needless repairs and re-caulking.
Captain Salguero and his men left their camp and, dressing as inland hunters, entered Valencia to regather their families with the caravan. After an anxious two days, they returned intact, having encountered no difficulty and bringing the encouraging news that there seemed to be no general alert concerning the refugees in Valencia.
”I told you no messengers made it through,” Simon reminded them with annoyance.
”They may think weve gone west to Estremadura,” a lancer said.
”Or south toward Granada,” Salguero added. ”There was some rumor of trouble among the Moriscos.”
”We should be grateful for any circ.u.mstantial misdirection,” Gonji said thoughtfully.
When the blue-gray haze of the Mediterranean spread over the eastern horizon, the samurai took a scouting party to the brink of the crags overlooking the inlet. Simon and Jacob Neriah went along, plus a handful of the men under Salguero.
What they saw in the waters off the village coast drowned their hopes in a maelstrom of despair. Neriahs Portuguese carac and Venetian galley were anch.o.r.ed next to the hulking form of a Spanish s.h.i.+p of war.
”Mierda-s.h.i.+t,” Buey swore, grimacing and slamming a big fist onto the rocks.
”Well, that settles it, then-we must wait until the wars.h.i.+p departs.” Jacob nodded repeatedly as if to convince himself.
”Impossible,” Gonji disagreed softly.
”I tell you, you must move,” Simon intoned in a low growl. ”The Knights of the Golden Fleece are not far behind now. You cannot count on them to be misled.”
”Well...” Salguero began, his breath huffing anxiously. ”Any suggestions?”
”We take the land route,” Simon said forcefully. ”Just as Ive said from the beginning.”
”Through France?” a lancer grumbled.
”I will see you safely through France,” the lycanthrope a.s.sured.
”We take them,” Gonji said at last, all heads turning.
”Youre loco,” Buey said, voicing their thoughts. ”Take on a s.h.i.+p of the line? A seasoned crew? Twenty-four guns?”
”Neriah-san,” Gonji said, ignoring him, ”can your crews be trusted not to have talked?”
”Im certain of it,” the merchant responded, ”but-”
”Then theres only one way: You begin moving your entourage and your cargo aboard your s.h.i.+ps. Most of the wars.h.i.+ps crew seems to be ash.o.r.e. We put them out of action, and then we take their s.h.i.+p-”
”Que?”
”How?”
”Well have to improvise something,” Gonji told them, smiling thinly. ”We need that s.h.i.+p, if were to get everyone out to sea.”
”I told you-Im not going to sea.” Simons tone was vaguely threatening.
”But youll help me get these people off?” Gonji asked.
”I dont know-”
”This is madness-”
”Cholera!” Gonji swore. ”Are we fighting men or not? What do we tell all these people? I didnt ask them to join in my escape, you did. I didnt ask to be their leader. You all set me up as the leader. And now, so sorry, but you will all help me, or I will go my own way and let you mull this over until the troops arrive. Then you can follow Simon across the Pyrenees in the dead of winter till your a.s.ses freeze to your saddles and youre eaten by-”
He caught himself and spat disdainfully.
”Im afraid Gonjis right,” Salguero said into the hostile silence. The others began to grunt submissively.
”All right,” Simon said, the last of them to rise from where they had crouched. ”Vamos-Moses,” he said, sneering at Gonji.
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