CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
Twenty years passed, but the Captain still had not returned. Lane stood on shore. It was a beach with white sand that sort of had a pink tint.
This island had become Lane’s home, and he had learned a lot about it. The place they had first landed was called Tucker’s Town. It was on the largest island’s south-east corner. But, he had found out that Bermuda was made up of many small islands.
Some things had changed, like Lane’s age, but the Princess still danced in the harbor.
Before putting out on the Fabien, Captain Matthew had asked Lane to watch out for the Princess.
Lane continued to do that. And, the Lord still watched over him and walked with him.
“Thank you, Lord. Thank you for allowing me to see this gorgeous morning. Thank you for my health.” Lane looked up to Heaven and saw clouds floating there. His vision of the heavens included, as it always had, the idea that clouds represented the Lord’s support.
Lane wasn’t alone. Although, it was tough to see that right now.
Stephan had, as most of the former slaves did eventually, moved on to some other life, but Nathan was still on the island.
The two men had learned about business and boating. And, they had been to St. George a few times.
St. George was another island to the north, and that’s where people went to deal with the British authorities. It’s the first place the Captain had gone to deliver the Fabien and her goods.
St. George didn’t hold the answers they had gone there to find but, in the boating world of the Bermuda Islands, it was still required bout once a year.
Nobody seemed to know what happened to the Fabien, but Lane had been certain the Captain would return.
Thoughts of home came into his mind. It was odd. He had left home looking for his father and ended up on this island.
At a certain point, he had guessed that his father was on the island, too.
Some looking around showed that thinking to be wrongful. But Nathan continued to tell him that his father had been taken by the Romanists.
He believed Lane’s father was either killed, or he was sold into slavery.
Any sort of an answer was simple guesswork. Nathan didn’t know.
Coming to the beach this morning wasn’t by chance; rather, Lane came down here for the purpose of looking out across the bay to the Princess.
Though, Lane and Nathan were in the business together, one of them stayed on the Princess all the time.
Both learned to sail her and to navigate the ocean waters. They had taken her to many islands closer to America and done business there.
One reason they took turns on the Princess, sleeping there on every occasion, had to do with news.
That very first year on the island, Lane learned about pigeons. People here used them to send messages between the islands.
A person will tie a carrier to the leg of his pigeon, and the bird will fly between the islands.
Presently, three men were living in St. George. They had been pulled from the ice water after being dumped over the railings of the Fabien.
Captain Matthew had rescued these men from their certain deaths, and Lane could remember those days before Tunisia.
These men were still loyal to the Princess and, with Lane and Nathan, they watched for the Captain’s return.
If the Captain came back here to Tucker’s Town, Lane would use a pigeon to send word to St. George.
They’d do the same for him, if the Captain showed up on St. George.
Each man did something near the sea to allow all of them to stay alert and informed.
Lane and Nathan were able to build boats now, too. It was something they had picked up on the island.
And, all five men participated, whenever they could, in setting slaves free from their masters.
Sometimes, it was done with gold. They would buy the slaves and set them free, but there were times when they had to sneak a man or woman to safety.
Life on the island was pleasant.
“Lane!” Nathan’s voice broke through the distance between the Princess and the shore.
Lane looked out across the water to see Nathan waving his arms to get his attention.
Nathan didn’t wait. “I got a message from St. George. The Fabien put in yesterday!!!! The Captain says we’re to bring the Princess!!!!”
Lane watched his friend jumping up and down on the deck. He was so excited.
“Get the crew together!!!!” Lane told his friend. “We’re leaving here in two hours.”
Their crew consisted of a few other men employed by them. These hadn’t ever met the Captain, but the sea was their home. They were good men.
It didn’t actually take two hours to tie up loose ends. Rather, the crew seemed to show up on their own that morning.
Maybe the clouds had something to do with it.
Lane stood at the helm, while the crew made ready the sails. He figured the trip to St. George would be a fast one.
“We’re ready.” Nathan reported in passing.
“Let’s pull up the anchors and see what this old girl can do.” Lane suggested.
Every man on the deck turned to Lane, as he referred to the Princess as an old girl. He knew their looks. These men were proud of the boat.
“Okay. Okay.” He joked with them. “She’s not an old girl. I should have said, beautiful lady.”
That got a round of smiles from the men.
“Tell me about the Captain’s message!!!!” Lane spoke to Nathan.
Nathan was looking over the railings at some of the dolphins playing in the water. He didn’t turn back to Lane, but he answered him. “It came in right before you showed up on the beach. All it said was he’s here. He said to bring the Princess to St. George.”
There was a storm to the south, and that didn’t surprise anybody. Each man noticed the thunder. It couldn’t really be missed.
There were a couple ways to get to St. George. And, the quickest would take the Princess by eight other islands, including St. David’s Island.
Lane was intending to sail this faster course, but he noticed the dolphins were moving in between the four smallest islands. They were moving away from the storm that was moving in from the southeast.
Twenty years on Bermuda had taught Lane to respect the weather and the dolphins.
“We’re going to take the long way.” Lane told his men.
Nearly everybody obeyed without comment, or perhaps with a quick verbal acknowledging of Lane’s authority.
Nathan was a little different. He walked up to Lane and asked the question. “Why are we changing our plans?”
Lane nodded in the direction of the dolphins. Nathan followed the gesture, so he saw them.
“I don’t like the look of that storm. We can use St. David’s Island to block some of the heavy wind. It’ll take longer, but I’d rather get there than not.” Lane explained.
Nathan understood the sign from the dolphins, for he had lived in the islands for twenty years, too. “You’re listening to the dolphins?”
Again, Lane nodded. “To them and the Lord.”
A smile came to Nathan’s face. “I like the way you work the Lord into everything.”
Lane points a finger at the dolphins and then at the storm’s clouds. “The Lord’s already into everything. It’s his world.”
The clouds were darker than before, and their color wasn’t really grey; rather, there was a yellowish hue to it, almost green at times.
The crew overheard the conversation, and they all understood the point Lane was making. This was the end of summer in these islands, and there were often very large storms.
People could die in the next few hours, especially those visiting Bermuda for the first time.
Lane couldn’t resist the distracting thoughts that came to his mind. It wasn’t the first time he had suffered over thoughts of home.
He wondered about his mother. Had she stayed with uncle MAHLI? Was Maria’s baby a boy or a girl?
That child would be something like twenty years old now. After which relative did they name the child? And, whatever happened to ZIBA?
Did he stay on the family’s property?
Lane had not found his father, nor could he say he’d learned anything about why his father had never come home. Well, maybe he did learn something.
Lane left the family home in 1734. He had been just a child then, but now he had spent twenty years learning about God’s world.
He had read the book from the Lord’s Apostle John, those he had picked up in Tunisia from Benny.
Lane had also read other testimonies from those who had walked with the Lord Jesus.
Not a single one disagreed with the Torah, nor the other books he had read in his father’s home.
Lane managed to obtain an English copy of the entire bible. He read it every day.
What he learned was that everything belongs to the Lord. The Lord gave life to everything, especially to animals like these dolphins swimming alongside the Princess.
If people could learn to do what these dolphins do; to listen to the Lord day by day; and, to trust in his planning, it would be a peaceful world.
The Princess made good time and, though the water grew choppy in places, they passed by St. David’s Island in less than two hours.
Suddenly, an idea came to Lane. He spoke to Nathan. “Let’s go around St. George, too. We’ll come up on the north side of the island and, if we time it right, the storm will pass by us to the south.”
Nathan commented. “You think it’ll be that bad?”
“It’s not what I think.” Lane began. It’s what they think.” He said this last bit, while indicating the dolphins swimming alongside the Princess.
Nathan looked over to the dolphins, too. He smiled and then went to find something useful to do. “You’re right.” He said in departing.
The winds were picking up seriously by the time they passed around the southwest point of St. George. Rain pelted anyone standing on the deck, but there was nowhere to go.
Each man had a duty to the others, and they all spent at least some time praying to the Lord and asking Him to guide them to safety.
Lane noticed that the dolphins also turned to the northeast, the very direction the Princess would need to take, if they were to find their port.
“Thank you, Lord.” Lane prayed. “I can see that you’re with us today. This storm is a reminder that we’re still alive, and the dolphins are a friendly push in the right direction.”
Just as Lane had hoped for, the storm did pass. Or seem to pass, right behind them and under their stern. The weather up ahead looked brighter, at least for the short term.
“Let’s hoist full sails!!!!” Lane gave the order. He was thinking they could outrun the worst of what was now passing to their south and west.
The problem was that the whole storm was getting larger and stronger.
“Lord.” Lane finally cried out. “We need your help here. This wind is too much for the Princess.”
Suddenly, Lane could see an alcove in the coast of St. George Island. He knew they weren’t quite to the point of turning southeast again, not far enough to go completely around the island.
It seemed like a perfect place to hold out for the storm to pass.
“Let’s make for the alcove!!!!” Lane gave the orders, and he handed the helm over to another sailor.
Everybody on the boat did what was required, or soon they were dropping anchor.
The Princess naturally headed into the wind, so she pointed to the beach.
“Does anybody know this part of the island?” Lane asked the crewmen standing near to him.
A man answered. “I’ve been here before. It’s possible to cross over, through the growth, and reach St. George from here.”
Lane had not even thought of doing this, but the idea was now on the table, or in his mind for consideration. “That’s a good idea. I’m going to need three men to stay with the Princess. The rest with me. Nathan, I want you to come with us.”
Nathan has a worried look on his face. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
Lane gave his friend full attention. “Why not? Don’t you want to see Captain Matthew?”
Nathan answers. “Sure I do. But, one of us ought to stay with the Princess. I’ll bring here around after the storm lets up.”
“Okay.” Lane agrees. He offers his right hand in friendship. “I guess we better get going.”
Lane looks at the launch, then at the wind and the storm raging around the Princess. The beach is actually very close to the boat, so he motions to those coming with him to follow, and he goes over the railing.
The other follows Lane’s example, and it doesn’t take very long to reach the shore.
Palm trees are bending with the wind, and it’s difficult to stand up, yet the men make it into the forest. Everyone’s wet, but nobody’s complaining.
“Follow me!” The man who had recognized the alcove speaks. He’s offering to take the lead.
Lane and the other men follow into the thicket, and he’s surprised to see a trail.
And, with the storm raging around them, it was easy to forget how much time they spent on their feet. It didn’t matter where they were, for the rain never even slowed down.
They reached an area beyond the jungle. It didn’t really take very long.
And, Lane was offended by what he saw.
There on what passed as a city street, though nobody else was around during the storm, were a series of stocks set up for punishment and public ridicule.
More than anything he had seen on the island, this brought anger to Lane’s heart.
A man was presently locked in by the stocks, and he was obviously cold and frightened.
“Get him out of that thing!” Lane spoke to one of his crewmen.
Though, the man hadn’t spoken, Lane recognized the man as Jewish.
“Where are you from?” He addressed the man.
Three of Lane’s crewmen went about breaking the locking mechanism, so they could release the prisoner.
The man answered, “I come from the city of Joppa.”
Lane couldn’t believe what he was hearing. It was a lot to accept. “What’s your name?”
It didn’t take long to break the man free from the wooden stocks that had held him. All the crewmen were listening now.
“Listen. The name’s Lane. I’m also from near Joppa. And, I want to talk with you.” Lane looked to one of his crewmen and spoke to Joseph. “This is a bad situation. I want you to take Joseph back to the Princess.”
The man nodded understanding.
Lane continued speaking with Joseph. “I want you to go back to my boat. It’ll be safer for everybody. And, I want to talk to you.”
Joseph agreed. “Yes. We must speak.” And, he looked around, as though to see whether anybody might be watching them.
The crewman and Joseph left in the direction Lane and the others had come, back through the jungle.
Lane led the rest of the party through the streets, for it was pretty obvious which way to go, if their purpose was to find the beach or the port.
Rain was falling, but the wind had died down. This didn’t mean anything good was happening, and only somebody from another place would assume the worst to be over.
These storms in the islands often had a quiet spell just before the winds picked up again. Lane expected that, even if the worst was past, they were going to receive more rain and bad weather.
His kind went back to Joseph for a moment. It was an odd thing to find a Jewish man here on the islands. What were the facts surrounding the man being fastened to the stocks?
His questions were put to one side by what happened next. A bell was ringing, but it wasn’t just any bell.
Lane learned to recognize these sorts of activities as functions of the Romanists. They had put up their buildings everywhere, and it seemed that St. George was just another one of their conquered territories.
The bell told him to act with alertness, for these Romanists were about.
It wasn’t the time to speak out openly.
Lane had also learned about many people in other lands closer to his home. They called it Europe, or some did anyway.
These Romanists had burned people for voicing their opinions. It simply wasn’t a good idea to relax in an area occupied by these people.
He also had the benefit of twenty years in close conversation with Nathan.
Nathan had been a servant of Pedro Taylor. That was back in Joppa, back at the time of Lane’s father going into the city looking for those very same people.
“That bell means trouble.” Lane reminded his men. We’d best run silently until we find the Fabien.”