The Secret Mantle (eBook)

A Cape pirate adventure, Book 20

Gerrie Radlof, Pieter Haasbroek (Autoren)

Pieter Haasbroek (Herausgeber)

eBook Download: EPUB

2025 | 1. Auflage
87 Seiten
Pieter Haasbroek (Verlag)
978-0-00-072752-7 (ISBN)

Infos

A king's ransom in lost treasure.

A blood-stained map.

A ruthless sea pirate who will stop at nothing to claim them both.

Plunge into the Golden Age of Piracy (1690-1720), where the treacherous waters of the Cape of Good Hope are just the beginning of a worldwide adventure.

On the perilous shores of southern Africa, young Margaret Hampden is haunted by her father's mysterious death and the whispers of a legendary fortune lost to the sea. Her only hope lies with Captain Oloff van Wagenaar. A man of noble birth, bound by a dangerous past as a pirate, and caught between honor and betrayal.

But danger stalks their every move. Javert, a feared pirate captain whose name strikes terror across the high seas, is hunting the same prize. As Oloff and Margaret follow a trail of riddles, perilous waters, and cryptic secrets, they are thrust into a deadly race where one wrong step could mean a watery grave.

To claim the treasure, and avenge her father's death, Oloff must solve the final riddle of the blood-written map. But as the ocean churns with treachery, betrayal, and hidden truths, he discovers that the greatest danger isn't the fortune itself... but the dark secret it was meant to protect forever.

Packed with swashbuckling action, pirate battles, high-seas adventure, and heart-pounding mystery, this unforgettable tale is perfect for fans of Treasure Island, nautical thrillers, and epic historical adventures.

Embark on the twentieth voyage of Captain Oloff the Sea Pirate, where legend, danger, and destiny collide.

Textauszug

20. The Secret Mantle

Chapter 1

“If only I had one extra mast with three sails!” Captain Leigh of the Indian Lark exclaimed.

“Might it perhaps help if I hold my handkerchief taut against the wind?” inquired the Duke of Hampden, equally obliging, beside him.

Captain Leigh glanced at his passenger. The witty remark was, in his opinion, particularly inappropriate at this moment. He did not reply. He looked again at the billowing sails above him and the British flag fluttering at the masthead. If he ever reached England safely, he would devote the rest of his life to developing a method by which a ship could be propelled over the water by a power, an energy, that was adjustable and could be applied to greater speed as soon as it was needed. Now he was dependent on the wind, and it was humanly impossible to make the wind blow harder. Every bit of sail was taut, and still the two ships that had just appeared on the horizon were approaching with relentless certainty.

No wonder, then, that the undisturbed smile on the middle-aged nobleman’s lips somewhat stuck in his craw. Hampden ought to realize the seriousness of their circumstances, for Leigh had already informed him that these were privateers heading towards them.

But despite the fact that the captain had had the Duke on board for six weeks and that they had been in each other’s company daily, sharing every meal, he was mistaken in thinking that the other was indifferent. The Duke was aware of what might possibly lie ahead for them. He was just as disappointed as the captain that at this stage of their journey, when they had believed that the greatest danger was behind them, this misfortune should strike. The pirates usually confined their activities to the Strait of Madagascar and the Indian Ocean. Here on the southernmost part of the coast of Africa, with the Cape of Good Hope only a few days away, it was rare for a privateer to make an appearance.

But the Duke had a sober mind. With practical resignation, he had learned to accept the things that could not be changed. If a sea battle was upon them, it should be tackled with calmness, deliberation, and resolute courage. And he had demonstrated not once, but often, that he could stand his ground in a fight. He was likely one of the few colonial appointments made in recent years on merit and not for political reasons.

As viceroy of the British possessions in India, the Duke of Hampden had acquitted himself admirably. With his measured advice, which he could substantiate with a sword in his powerful right hand, he had befriended many an Indian Prince and Maharaja.

Without thought of reward, it had nevertheless come to pass that he was so richly laden with gifts that he was now returning to his homeland after five years with two iron-bound coffers in his cabin in which a royal fortune was locked.

And what Captain Leigh perhaps also did not realize was that the Duke was yearning for the reunion with his daughter whom he had last seen five years ago.

Margaret was now twenty.

When she was fifteen, there were already few at the royal court who could rival her beauty.

She had the soft eyes and features of her mother, who had died so early in her life, but the Duke remembered with pride the fire in her gaze and the firmness of her lips and chin that she had inherited from him. For even at fifty, the Duke showed only a few grey hairs along his temples and his skin was smooth with the attractiveness of a much younger man.

“Do you recognize them?” he now inquired calmly of the captain, who was watching the privateers through a spyglass.

“You speak as if I have made their acquaintance before,” Leigh replied, slightly dryly.

“An experienced captain, such as yourself,” the Duke interjected with his subtle smile, “a veteran of these routes has surely often had this experience?”

“A few times, Your Grace,” Leigh admitted. “But rarely have I been alone and rarely have they been in the majority. No one could have foreseen that this adversity would befall us. But it now appears that we made an error in judgment to let the two escorting ships turn back at Algoa Bay.”

“It is a done deal,” the Duke remarked. “You ought to view this incident as a challenge, Leigh. You admit that the advantage has always been in your favour. Let us see what we can do now.”

“It seems to me,” the captain began seriously, refusing to be cheered up, “that you do not fully realize...”

“Blast it, man!” the Duke interrupted him. “If we cannot run away, we must fight. At least do it with a belief in your invincibility.” He smiled. “If you will excuse me, I am now going to make myself battle-ready.”

“Your Grace,” the captain turned to him, startled. “It was my commission to fetch you in India. It is my duty to deliver you safely to London. I must request that you go to your cabin until the danger has passed.”

With his hand on the round knob of the stanchion of the railing where the steps from the quarterdeck went to the main deck, the Duke regarded the captain with a patient, indulgent smile. Then he shook his head, almost resignedly.

“My dear friend,” he said calmly. “You have just informed me that they are in the majority. Do you also want to weaken your forces? I can assure you that this will not be my first field or sea battle. I have never hidden behind the lines. I will be back soon.”

With a light step that indicated the healthy condition of his body and the alertness of muscles that were in good practice, he trotted down the steps to his cabin. Against the railing of the main deck stood the sailors and marines. Anxiously, they looked over the vast undulations to the two approaching ships that were now clearly visible to the naked eye. On the rope ladders, many were already clambering to the cross-masts so that they could be ready to adjust the sails and give the ship greater mobility when the attack took place.

The Duke smiled. Every drop of his noble blood pulsed with the daring and courage of his ancestors through his veins. Of all on board, his loss would be the greatest if they were to fall into pirate hands. Of all on board, his resistance would be the strongest.

In his private cabin, he took off the embroidered satin jacket. He tore the cravat from his neck and kicked off the high-heeled shoes with the silver buckles. Then he fastened a strong leather waistcoat over the satin shirt and folded the side edges around his wrists and rolled up the long sleeves of his shirt. He stuck two pistols in the gold-decorated belt and put on two light flat-heeled sandals. A long, gleaming rapier hung loosely in its sheath at his side.

He peered into the mirror and tore the wig from his head. He adjusted his black hair slightly and smiled. Then he stepped back and regarded the broad sleeping-couch against the bulkhead. A blanket was tucked under the mattress, but he pulled it out so that it hung down to the floor on the side. This would hide the coffers. Perhaps they would not be noticed, and there was always the possibility of salvage if the ship should be scuttled, for perhaps it would not be too deep. He was a strong swimmer. Two miles would not pose too much of a problem for him, provided he was not wounded, and there were, of course, no sharks in the vicinity.

With an alert gaze and a firm stride, he returned to the quarterdeck. At that moment, Captain Leigh shouted to the boatswain and ordered that the cannons be brought into readiness. Loudly, the boatswain sang the order down a hatch to the gun deck.

The two privateers were less than half a mile from the Indian Lark.

Captain Leigh stood with the spyglass to his eye.

“Any further news?” inquired the Duke.

“Yes.” Leigh lowered the spyglass. He leaned with his hands on the rails. “One is the Albatross,” he said despondently. “I can recognize the captain too. He is a pirate by the name of Javert. About a year ago, he dared to attack three of us alone. There are reportedly no limits to his recklessness.”

“What happened then?” asked the Duke, interested.

“He is reckless, but not indifferent,” replied Leigh. “He fired a few shots at us and then made off.” He sighed. “But I have heard a lot about him. I must tell you this, Your Grace, there is surely only one pirate I fear more than this Javert.”

“And who is that?”

“They call him Oloff the Pirate. I have only heard of him, but he is reportedly the most powerful of them all.”

The Duke laughed. He clapped Leigh on the shoulder.

“Now look there!” he exclaimed. “How grateful we must be. Our situation could have been much worse.”

Leigh merely shook his head. His eyes wandered despondently to the sails with their limited capacity and then again to the privateers who were swiftly approaching over the undulations like jumping tornadoes.

Half an hour later, there were gunpowder flashes in the forward gun port of the Albatross. Almost simultaneously, the shot cracked and then the bullet splashed diagonally in front of the bow of the Indian Lark.

“Rather impudent,” remarked the Duke. “What do they expect? Should we stop and take them on board?”

Captain Leigh said nothing. It was not necessary to give an order, for they could do nothing to sail faster.

The masts of the Albatross slowly moved past the Indian Lark. And then both privateers swung into a parallel course until they were proceeding on either side of the Indian Lark. However, they remained out of firing range.

“It seems to me as if they are going to escort us,” said the Duke. “Perhaps we have underestimated the...

Produkt-Details

• Erscheint lt. Verlag: 27.8.2025
• Übersetzer: Pieter Haasbroek, Ai
• Sprache: englisch
• Themenwelt: Literatur ► Fantasy / Science Fiction ► Fantasy
• Themenwelt: Literatur ► Romane / Erzählungen
• ISBN-10: 0-00-072752-0 / 0000727520
• ISBN-13: 978-0-00-072752-7 / 9780000727527