Heuss turned angrily to the two English captains. ‘Take these men below!’ How different, he thought, from the sad dignity of the first prisoner, the old captain from the Cardiff Maid. He swallowed hard and turned back to von Steiger. ‘All lies, sir! How can the people who write such things believe them?’

  Von Steiger watched the two ships canting on to their sides and imagined that he could hear the roar of inrushing water. Already the lifeboats had drawn together and were hoisting small triangles of buff sails. ‘They don’t believe them, Heuss. But the people who read such things will swallow every word. Just as they do at home in Germany!’

  The screw lashed at the blue water, and with mounting revolutions the raider increased speed away from the widening path of flotsam and gently exploding air-bubbles.

  Damrosch crossed the bridge. ‘No sign of the cruiser, Captain!’

  ‘Good’ He sounded disinterested. ‘Fall out Action Stations and secure the guns. But keep all lookouts on their toes. I have a feeling there is more trouble yet.’

  Heuss waited until von Steiger had moved clear. ‘My God, Max, I have never seen him so shaken! That Englishman really cut him with his words!’

  ‘I suppose that is how the enemy sees us.’ Damrosch looked back at the tiny, shimmering lifeboats.

  Heuss snorted. ‘We could have left them like that U-boat did! But we did not, we treated them fairly and humanely! It sickens me to hear such rubbish! If we ruled the seas, as the British have done for centuries, would they stay quietly in Portsmouth or Scapa Flow?’ He laughed bitterly. ‘By God, they would be worse than we are!’ He stared at Damrosch’s brooding face. ‘The Captain has more control of himself than I have. I could have beaten that man into the deck for what he said.’

  Damrosch shook his head. ‘I just can’t get used to all this. Two ships sailing quietly, and then nothing!’ He peered at Heuss’s angry face as if to find an explanation. ‘Nothing at all, Emil. It’s so final!’

  Heus shrugged. ‘That’s it, Max. We are against the whole damn’ world!’ He laughed suddenly and freely, so that a lookout momentarily lowered his glasses and listened.

  ‘They used to tell us at the beginning of the war that we should conquer the world. What a laugh, eh? Now, we’ve got the whole world to conquer!’

  * * * * *

  The sun was high above the mainmast and its power defied the puny efforts of the fans to stir the lifeless air between decks. Speed had at last been reduced, but the ship still thrust forward at a steady thirteen knots, the vibration adding to the discomfort of the men off watch, who lolled half naked about the decks and avoided the searing heat of the metal plates and the vicinity of the funnel casing, which seemed to glow from the straining efforts of the engine-room beneath.

  Dehler and Heuss sat in the two chairs in von Steiger’s sea cabin, watching their captain as he moved restlessly back and forth near the open scuttle.

  Heuss could feel his eyelids drooping with strain and weariness, and tried to concentrate on what von Steiger was saying. It seemed incredible that it was only a few hours since they had despatched the two freighters, and only twenty-four hours since his rescue from Gelb and the two British seamen. He wondered how Caryl Brett was faring in the isolation of Von Steiger’s quarters, and whether her seemingly inexhaustible resistance against her hardship and shock had at last given out. He had wanted to go and see her, but the night escape from Corata, the nerve-racking race with the cruiser and the short, ruthless destruction of the two ships had left him no time at all. He could not remember when he had last been able to sleep, and now von Steiger had summoned him to another conference.

  He looked at the Captain and wondered. He was still brisk and apparently fresh, but had changed in some way. He frowned and tried to decide what had happened. He looked wild-eye, even reckless, which seemed somehow out of character. Did he really care so much about what the captured Englishman had said? Why, when he had brought them so far with unerring skill and cool judgement, had he allowed some clumsy insult to affect him?

  Delher drummed his fingers slowly on his knees, his small eyes frowning with concentration. He tried to listen to von Steiger’s quiet voice and digest the information about coal consumption, food and fresh water, but all the time he could feel the rising edge of panic inside him, which made his body cold in spite of the sunlight which filled the small cabin. He kept seeing that implacable white smoke-cloud, and imagined the long, slender muzzles of the cruiser’s guns as they lifted to maximum elevation before discharging a salvo at the vulnerable and slow-moving Vulkan. Twelve six-inch guns she had. Twelve great, armour piercing shells in a single salvo! He felt the sweat gathering like ice-rime along the edge of his stiff collar.

  Von Steiger moved to the chart and stared down at it. ‘We will maintain this course and speed, and then tomorrow we will alter course to the south. If Fleiuss’s information is reliable we will find no more warships in this vicinity, so, provided the Waltham maintains her present patrol, we shall get clear away into the South Atlantic once more. In four days there is a possible rendezvous with the collier, as you know, so we must be in position on time.’ He tapped the chart thoughtfully. ‘That will be here, two hundred miles east of Pernambuco. Well clear of the trade routes, and yet near enough to our last victims’ port of departure to allay suspicion.’

  Dehler licked his lips. Shall we take all the coal from the collier?’

  ‘I hope so. Our stocks are getting low, and I feel that the pace is getting warmer. If possible, I should like to send the collier off again when we have milked her dry and let her do a dummy attack on a few ships herself.’ He saw the uncertainty in their eyes. ‘Just to show the flag, I mean, and then sheer away on an opposite course to us. The ships she disturbs will be bound to call for assistance, and then we will have a better chance of closing with a worthwhile prize somewhere else!’

  Heuss eyed him quietly. ‘And the men in the collier, sir. What will happen to them?’

  ‘They will be taken prisoner, I am afraid. But by the time that happens we will be striking a harder blow elsewhere!’

  ‘It seems a bit hard on them. To get so far and then be put out as bait for the British.’

  ‘Rubbish! There are plenty of men aboard who would welcome the chance of reasonable comfort and safety behind barbed wire for the rest of the war!’ His eye passed quickly across Dehler’s strained face. ‘We will find no shortage of volunteers. I think. Just enough to watch over the prisoners and work the ship.’ Half to himself he added: ‘Call me a pirate, do they? I’ll make them wish they’d never thought of such a word!’

  Heuss said slowly, ‘When shall we turn for home, sir?’

  ‘Home? I cannot answer that yet, Heuss. There is so much to do. We must keep going while we can and while the ship is in good running order. If the ship fails we all fail, for, as you have seen, we have no friends any more.’

  Heuss thought of his conversation with Damrosch. ‘Why is that? We were feared and respected by so many before; now Germany is alone.’

  Von Steiger smiled sadly. ‘The Chinese have an interesting answer to that. “An empty hand is not licked!” I fear that we have nothing left to give anyone.’

  Dehler spoke at last. ‘The cruiser, sir. How long will it be before it comes after us again?’ He did not seem to have been listening, and von Steiger shrugged with sudden impatience.

  ‘Those lifeboats will reach the Brazilian coast tomorrow perhaps, or the next day. They might even be sighted by a coaster before that. When that happens the hunt will be speeded up, but by that time we can be several hundred miles away.’

  Heuss smiled grimly. ‘It is quite a thought, really. We see so little and yet it requires no imagination to visualise the havoc we have caused to the enemy. Ships sunk here and there, convoys re-routed, sailings cancelled and no doubt warship reinforcements moved south when they can be ill spared at present. I expect every solitary ship that moves has been reported as a raider! The British must be thirsting for our blood!’

  Von Steiger stared into the sunlight. ‘I shall try to postpone that privilege for them!’

  Dehler stood up, his face working like a fractious child’s. ‘It’s not fair!’ He ignored Heuss’s warning glance and the frozen stare which von Steiger turned on him. He could feel the cabin walls closing in on him, and tore at his tunic collar as if suffocating. ‘It was not meant to be like this! How much more strain can we take?’ He peered blindly around him. ‘We don’t get a second’s rest, and every day brings some new danger!’

  ‘Control yourself, man!’ The Captain’s voice was sharp.

  ‘Wildermuth is in the collier, Kohler is confined to his quarters and the rest of us are having to work twice as hard! It’s not fair, I say!’ He sat down suddenly, as if his legs had collapsed.

  ‘Are you afraid, Dehler?’ Von Steiger’s tone was even. ‘Is that what you want me to believe?’

  Dehler looked at his knotted fingers and nodded dumbly. ‘I didn’t bargain for all this, sir. I’ve always had a rotten life, and I thought this would be a chance to make some good out of the years I’m wasting in this damned war!’ He looked up and glared at his captain. ‘I can’t go on, sir! I’m beaten, finished!’ He dropped his head, and his fat shoulders shook convulsively.

  Heuss held his breath and waited for von Steiger to explode. Instead, he said quietly: ‘Go to your cabin, Dehler. Lieutenant Heuss will take over your duties as First Lieutenant completely, and you must make a final effort to control yourself. We all have our fears, one way or another. Pieck was afraid to ask his own officers for help, and that was as great a fear as yours. You are afraid of death, Dehler, and yet that is the only thing we can be sure of.’ He watched Dehler’s blank face and saw him suddenly as a tired, frightened old man. ‘Go below, Dehler. You are on the First Watch, I think?’ He added gently: ‘You have served the Vulkan before any of us. It would be a pity for you to fail her now.’

  Dehler moved to the door, his face crumpled. ‘Yes, sir! That’s true enough!’ He wiped his eyes vaguely with his sleeve. ‘She was a good ship, too, even for a poor mate!’ He was still mumbling to himself as the door closed.

  Heuss watched von Steiger and breathed out slowly. ‘You were very kind to him, sir.’

  ‘Maybe. I think perhaps I have done him more harm than good, but we shall see. Now, attend to your duties, Heuss. Keep the men occupied, and as happy as you can. We shall be crossing the Equator tomorrow, so that will give them something to celebrate.’ His eyes were dreamy as he stared down at the dazzling water. ‘It seems a lifetime since I crossed the line for the first time.’

  Heuss picked up his cap and stood up. ‘Are you afraid of anything, sir?’

  Von Steiger eyed him soberly. ‘You are impertinent, Heuss, but I like you for it. Since you wish to know. I can tell you that my only fear at present is that of failure.’

  He stared hard at Heuss, who was shaken by the intensity of those gold eyes.

  ‘By God, Heuss! They think I am a butcher, a pirate, eh? Well, we shall see. Dehler thinks I am just driving this ship because I want more glory for myself! Well, perhaps that was once true of me, too. But now I want something much more priceless. If we fail now and allow our name to be slandered and beaten into the mud, it will not only mean ignominy and disgrace for Germany, but for each one of us aboard this ship!’

  He waited until the Lieutenant had gone and then rested his head against the warm brass rim of the scuttle. He felt spent, and yet was unwilling to accept the advice he had given to Dehler. There was so much to do. So many preparations which had to be made.

  I must see Kohler again, he thought. Any more of his behaviour and I will put him under close arrest, no matter how shorthanded we are. He watched with sudden excitement as Caryl Brett moved along the sheltered side of the boatdeck.

  Her hair shone in the sunlight, and the grace of her movements was accentuated rather than spoiled by the shabbiness of her torn skirt and stained blouse. Reeder had told him that the girl had apparently recovered from her rough handling on the hillside, but no longer smiled, and showed no inclination to make use of her freedom to move about the upper deck. He had also told him that the other prisoners had turned their backs on her when she had passed, and the man Gelb had called something after her, which had made her cheeks burn with either anger or humiliation.

  Von Steiger watched her thoughtfully. When I took her from the sea I did her more harm than I realised. And by her own humanity she has added to her discomfort and uncertainty. Even her fellow prisoners hate her because of their own fear, and because she alone has retained her personality. They call me a criminal because I do not fight according to their rules.

  He strained his neck round the scuttle to watch the slim figure pass out of sight, and then turned back to the cabin.

  They lie, he thought with sudden bitterness. The only crime we have committed is that we are on the losing side!

  He felt the blood throbbing in his temples and was conscious of the ache in his wound. He sat down heavily and pushed the chart and the vital logbook on to the deck.

  Reeder opened the door and peered anxiously at his master. ‘You rang, sir?’

  ‘Yes. Bring me a bottle of schnapps and a clean glass!’ He smiled at the dismay on Reeder’s colourless face. ‘Quickly, man! The war can wait for a while, but I suddenly find that I cannot!’

  17

  AT NOON THE following day, as the ship cruised steadily and smoothly through a deep-purple sea, von Steiger, dressed in a fresh white drill tunic and ceremonial sword, stood stiffly below the fo’c’sle ladder to welcome King Neptune aboard.

  Seaman Schiller made a magnificent monarch; with his long beard and wig made of ropeyarn and a crown of painted cardboard, he carried an enormous trident, which he now pointed imperiously at the waiting Captain.

  ‘What ship is this?’ His booming voice, slightly slurred with a generous measure of schnapps, echoed around the crowded foredeck and brought a roar of laughter from the older seamen and uncomfortable titters from the waiting ‘victims’.

  Von Steiger saluted. ‘Vulkan, your Majesty! We crave pardon for entering your Kingdom and trust you will give our voyage your blessing!’

  The King scowled and prodded the neat Captain with his trident. ‘Have you passed this way before? I do not recall that face!’

  Von Steiger grinned in spite of his thoughts and pretended to falter. It was like being an onlooker, he thought. As if I were watching my other self perform. ‘I have! Many times.’

  The Queen, Seaman Schoningen, wearing a long robe of signal-flags, and coyly peering at von Steiger over a painted fan made of seagull feathers, nudged her monarch. ‘Bit stiff-necked, isn’t he? Give him another jab with the trident!’

  There was another great roll of laughter, and then, followed by their ‘Court’, the two royal figures led the way down to the hastily erected dais which was rigged in front of the first hold. A large canvas pool had been constructed with a slung tarpaulin, around which the Court assembled to await their victims.

  Sub-Lieutenant Damrosch was the first. Grinning with embarrassment, he was slung into a rickety chair and dutifully lathered by the Court Barber and his assistants. He choked and spluttered as he swallowed some of the vile mixture of soap, vinegar and cooking-fat, and stared with apprehension at the huge cardboard razor which moved none too kindly across his streaming face. The chair tipped backwards, and his half-naked body vanished amongst the waiting bears and ship’s policemen, who liberally ducked him, to the approval and final reproof of King Neptune.

  Von Steiger had returned to the bridge, and leaned on his elbows to watch the surging, colourful ceremony below him. For a few moments at least his men could forget their fears and enjoy the age-old custom of Crossing the Line, backed up with extra schnapps and salt pork for all hands.

  Heuss joined him on the bridge, grinning broadly, his face smeared with grease and soap. ‘The rough devils!’ He groped blindly for a towel he had placed in readiness and wiped his sore face. ‘They had it in for me, all right!’

  Von Steiger smiled. ‘You took a risk, going down with that great bruise on your skull! Especially as you’ve been across the line before!’

  ‘I could not let poor Max take all the punishment on behalf of the wardroom, sir! It was the least I could do!’

  He squinted up at a small, slow-moving range of clouds. ‘Rain-squall?’

  Von Steiger nodded. ‘We shall pass right through it. They come and go like lightning down here, but it will do the decks some good, they are as dry as tinder!’

  The squall did indeed descend with a suddenness which left them gasping, and scattered the remainder of King Neptune’s Court like so many skittles. It moved across the water in a thick, hissing wall, so that when it struck the ship the vibration made the parched decks quiver and flaked some of the cracked paintwork right down to the bare metal. Some of the seamen cheered and ran drunkenly about in the torrential downpour, their mouths open to catch the warm, heavy drops. Others hurried for clothes which needed washing, and Schiller, his wig in scattered remnants, shook his trident at the sky as if to challenge its right of intrusion.

  Von Steiger said suddenly: ‘Take over the ship, Heuss. I am going to my quarters for a while.’

  Heuss stopped towelling his face and stared at him curiously. ‘Your quarters? But have you forgotten, Captain? The woman is there!’

  ‘I have not forgotten.’ He glanced briefly around the bridge. ‘Call me if you want me. But we are away from the trade route for a while, and I think things will be quiet for a little longer.’ He saw Heuss follow his gaze around the bridge and smiled with amusement. ‘As you see, Heuss, there is no escape from your responsibility! You have been promoted already, and now you are in sole command until I return!’