"Well open the door Marlowe, for Christ's sake."

Marlowe held the door for Sir William and began to close it. "Marlowe, stay here!" the Admiral ordered.

The large cabin filled the stern of the ship--many small sea windows, big table and sea chairs anchored to the deck, small bunk and toilet, large sideboard with cut-glass decanters. The Admiral and General half got up with token politeness, and sat again. Marlowe stayed at the door.

"Thank you for arriving so expeditiously, Sir William. Brandy? Sherry?"

"Brandy, thank you Admiral Ketterer.

Trouble?"

The florid-faced man glared at Marlowe.

"Would you oblige, Mr. Marlowe, brandy for Sir William." He tossed a sheet of paper on the table. "Dispatch from Hong Kong."

With the usual flowery greetings, the dispatch read: You will proceed at once with the flagship and four or five warships to the port of Boh Chih Seh, north of Shanghai (coordinates overleaf) where the main pirate fleet of Wu Sung Choi is now harbouring. A week ago a swarm of this pirate's junks, arrogantly flying his flag--the White Lotus--intercepted and sank H.m.'s mailship Bonny Sailor in the waters off Mirs Bay, the pirate haven north of Hong Kong. The fleet here will deal with Mirs Bay--you will decimate Boh Chih Seh and sink all craft not fishing vessels if the leader, believed to be Chu Fang Choy, refuses to strike his colours and declines to surrender to Her Majesty's justice.

When accomplished, send one ship with a report here and return to Yokohama, placing yourself as usual at the disposition of Her Majesty's servants. Show this to Sir William and please give him the enclosed. yrs., Stanshope, KCB, Governor Far East.

PS: The Bonny Sailor was lost with all hands, 76 officers and men, ten passengers, one of whom was an Englishwoman, the wife of a trader here, a cargo of gold, opium and rice worth ten thousand guineas. Chu Fang Choy had the effrontery to have delivered to Government House a sack containing the ship's log and forty-three pairs of ears with a letter apologizing that the others could not be recovered. The woman's were not included and we fear the worst for her.

"Bastards," Sir William muttered, with an added queasiness at the thought that, as pirates were endemic in all Asian waters, particularly from Singapore north to Peking, and the White Lotus fleets the most abundant and notorious of all, the woman could easily have been his wife who was due to arrive Hong Kong any week from England with three of his children. "You leave on the tide?"

"Yes." The Admiral slid an envelope across the table. Sir William broke the seals: Dear Willie, The next mail ship will bring the specie for the Legation expenses. Between ourselves, sorry, Willie, but I cannot give you any further troops at the moment, or ships. In the spring possibly. I have been ordered to return troops and ships to India where the authorities fear repetition of the Mutiny of five years ago. Added to that, the Punjab is in ferment again, pirates plague the Persian Gulf and damned nomads in Mesopotamia have again cut the telegraph--another expeditionary force is being organized to deal with them once and for all!

How is that poor fellow Struan? Questions are bound to be asked in Parliament about "failure to protect our nationals." News of your Tokaido disaster should reach London within two weeks, their answer not for two more months.

I trust they will countenance stiff reprisals, and send us the money troops and ships to carry out their orders. In the meantime weather the storm, if there is one, as best you can. Hong Kong is seething about this attack. Struan's mother is hopping mad and all the riffraff China traders here (however rich from their foul opium trade) are up in arms, their misguided, slanted guttersnipe Press demanding your resignation. Was it ever different? as Disraeli would say! In haste, God speed, yrs. Stanshope, KCB, Governor.

Sir William took a large sip, hoping his face did not betray his anxiety. "Good brandy, Admiral."

"Yes it is, my very best private stock, in your honor," the Admiral said, furious that Marlowe had given Sir William almost half a tumbler and had not used the ordinary, second grade he kept for visitors. Stupid berk, he thought, he should know better--he'll never make flag rank.

"What about going to Osaka?" Sir William asked.

"Oh, Osaka? I regret you will have to delay until I return." The smile was barely concealed.

"When will that be?" The sinking feeling became worse.

"To arrive at our destination, six or seven days depending on the winds, two or three days at Boh Chih Seh should be enough. I will have to re-coal at Shanghai, oh I'd say I should be off Yokohama again unless fresh orders arrive in..." The Admiral quaffed his port and poured another. "I should be back in four or five weeks."

Sir William finished his brandy and this helped to ease his nausea. "Lieutenant, would you be so kind? Thanks."

Marlowe took his glass politely and refilled it with the Admiral's best, hiding his disgust at being a flunky and totally fed up with this aide-de-camp posting--wanting to be back on his own ship, his own quarterdeck to supervise the repairs the storm had caused. But at least I'll see some action at long last, he thought with relish, imagining the attack on the pirate haven, all guns blazing.

"Well, Admiral," Sir William was saying, "if we fail to make good our threat we will lose enormous face, the initiative, and put ourselves in great danger."

"It was your threat, Sir William, not ours.

As to face you put too much value on it, as to danger--I presume you mean to the Settlement --damme, Sir, the natives of Japan would not dare to create any major problem. They didn't really bother you at the Legation, they won't really bother Yokohama."

"With the fleet gone, we're helpless."

"Not exactly, Sir William," the General said stiffly. "The army is here in some strength."

"Quite right," the Admiral agreed, "but Sir William is perfectly correct to say the Royal Navy keeps the peace. I plan to take four warships, sir, not five and leave one frigate on station. That should be sufficient.

The Pearl."

Before Marlowe could stop himself, he had said, "Excuse me sir, she's still undergoing major repairs."

"I'm so glad to know you keep abreast of the state of my fleet, Mr. Marlowe, and that you keep your ears open," the Admiral said witheringly.

"Obviously Pearl can't go on this expedition so you'd best report back aboard and make sure she's in first-class seagoing condition ready for any duty by sundown tomorrow or you won't have a ship."

"Yessir." Marlowe gulped, saluted and rushed off.

The Admiral grunted and said to the General, "Good officer but not dry behind the ears yet--fine naval family, two brothers also officers and his father's flag captain at Plymouth."

He looked at Sir William. "Don't worry, his frigate will have stepped her mast by tomorrow and be in good order--he's the best of my captains but for God's sake don't tell him I said so.

He'll guard you until I return. If there's nothing else, gentlemen, I put to sea right smartly--so sorry I can't join you for dinner."

Sir William and the General finished their drinks and stood up. "God speed, Admiral Ketterer, may you come back safely with all hands," Sir William said sincerely, the General echoing him. Then his face hardened. "If I don't get any satisfaction from the Bakufu I will leave for Osaka as planned, in Pearl or not, at the head of the army or not--but by God, go to Osaka and Kyoto I will."

"Best wait until I return, best be prudent, best not swear by God to undertake such an ill-advised action, Sir William," the Admiral said curtly. "God might decide otherwise."

That evening, just before midnight, Angelique, Phillip Tyrer and Pallidar left the British Legation and strolled down High Street heading for the Struan Building. "La," she said happily, "Sir William certainly has a modest chef!"