Tears Of The Moon Part 12

'We'll get there. Full steam ahead.' He climbed slowly to his feet, pulled on his skipper's hat and gave her a cheeky salute.

'John Tyndall, you are incorrigible.'

'What would I do without a partner to keep me on the straight and narrow?' mused Tyndall as he stumbled past her to the stairs.

Still feeling somewhat appalled and annoyed, Olivia returned to the house where she was confronted by a distressed Yusef.

'Mem! Niah gone. No here. Run away.'

'What!' Olivia rushed to the servants' quarters to find Niah's room empty of her few possessions.

It wasn't till that afternoon, when the Shamrock Shamrock was well out to sea, following the was well out to sea, following the Bulan Bulan and several other luggers, that the j.a.panese diver came on deck looking quite fl.u.s.tered. and several other luggers, that the j.a.panese diver came on deck looking quite fl.u.s.tered.

'Stowaway,' he said, pointing to the main cabin.

Tyndall stepped through the hatch to find Niah sitting calmly on his bunk. She looked up at him and flashed a happy smile.

CHAPTER TEN.

A message was sent to Olivia and Conrad informing them of Niah's whereabouts via a lugger returning with a sick diver. Aware that Tyndall was less than pleased at her presence, she initially kept very much to herself. A bunk was rigged for her behind a canvas curtain in the small compartment for'ad of the main cabin, an area that contained water tanks and the sail locker in which Niah had concealed herself until the schooner was well out to sea. message was sent to Olivia and Conrad informing them of Niah's whereabouts via a lugger returning with a sick diver. Aware that Tyndall was less than pleased at her presence, she initially kept very much to herself. A bunk was rigged for her behind a canvas curtain in the small compartment for'ad of the main cabin, an area that contained water tanks and the sail locker in which Niah had concealed herself until the schooner was well out to sea.

As the days at sea and on the pearling grounds pa.s.sed routinely, Niah became more and more involved in helping around the boat, establis.h.i.+ng a polite but discreet working relations.h.i.+p with the crews on both the Shamrock Shamrock and the and the Bulan Bulan. The cook on the Shamrock Shamrock treated her like a servant, sending her to the galley for more rice, or mugs of sweet black chicory coffee during meals. She talked mainly to Ahmed, their homeland links providing the foundation of a more relaxed relations.h.i.+p. Together they made several trips in the dinghy between the two vessels, occasions Niah used to question him about the unusual white man who had saved her from slavery and who was now at pains to ignore her. treated her like a servant, sending her to the galley for more rice, or mugs of sweet black chicory coffee during meals. She talked mainly to Ahmed, their homeland links providing the foundation of a more relaxed relations.h.i.+p. Together they made several trips in the dinghy between the two vessels, occasions Niah used to question him about the unusual white man who had saved her from slavery and who was now at pains to ignore her.

Ahmed answered her questions discreetly. Out of loyalty to Tyndall he avoided responding to those he thought were too personal. He found it enjoyable having her on board for she was no trouble, had an easy sense of humour and was incredibly beautiful, a matter that he found more than a little disturbing. It was also a matter that made him ponder on his master's att.i.tude to the girl. The forced distancing from her would be hard to maintain much longer, and then ... ah, everything is in the hands of the Almighty One, mused Ahmed.

Some evenings, particularly on Sundays if the weather was calm, many of the luggers and schooners working the grounds would anchor within easy distance of each other, and crews and skippers would exchange visits, enjoying shared meals, drinks and gambling with dice and cards. Tyndall was busy building up friends.h.i.+ps with as many skippers as possible, particularly those working independently or belonging to the smaller fleets. He saw the chance for profit next season by acting as a mother s.h.i.+p to other luggers, packing and carrying sh.e.l.l as well as selling food, fuel and grog.

Tyndall had a firm rule for Niah when other crews came on board the Shamrock Shamrock for social evenings-she must keep to herself in the main cabin. He instructed that she venture on deck only after the last of the visitors had left. for social evenings-she must keep to herself in the main cabin. He instructed that she venture on deck only after the last of the visitors had left.

One evening she was sitting with her back against the main mast, her chin on hunched up knees, looking across the moonlit water. As she listened to the soft slap of water on the hull and the lazy rattle of the rigging, she could see that nearly all the boats had doused their lanterns, except the schooner Ambrosia Ambrosia run by 'Wild' Bill Leven. A waving lantern held over the side vaguely illuminated a tiny rowing boat into which a man was trying to clamber. There was a shout, a thump and a curse and then laughter from two men as the little craft rocked violently. After shouted slurred farewells, the boat zigzagged towards the run by 'Wild' Bill Leven. A waving lantern held over the side vaguely illuminated a tiny rowing boat into which a man was trying to clamber. There was a shout, a thump and a curse and then laughter from two men as the little craft rocked violently. After shouted slurred farewells, the boat zigzagged towards the Shamrock Shamrock.

She sat still until the dinghy b.u.mped alongside the rope ladder amids.h.i.+ps and she saw Tyndall fumbling with the rope to secure the craft. Without a word she went to the side, leaned down and took the mooring line, holding it firm while Tyndall climbed clumsily aboard, missing his footing several times. He stumbled to the main cabin without a word, as if he hadn't seen her.

After she had secured the dinghy astern she padded silently after him. In the dark cabin Tyndall was sprawled across his bunk, one leg and one arm hanging over the side.

Niah bent down and pulled off his plimsolls and socks, and as he opened a weary eye, she tugged at his s.h.i.+rt and, with some a.s.sistance from Tyndall, dragged it off. He watched her without saying a word as she leaned over him and unbuckled his belt, methodically undid the row of b.u.t.tons and, taking the bottom of each trouser leg, slid off his pants. Tyndall tossed his undergarments to the floor and lay there naked, without moving or speaking.

Standing by the bed Niah looked down at him for a moment and gave a small satisfied smile, then undid the knot of her sarong and let it fall to the floor. A faint change of expression swept fleetingly across Tyndall's face at the sight of the nubile golden body softly lit by moonlight through the portholes. Niah then laid her body gently on his and his outstretched arms tightened around her.

The Shamrock Shamrock strained at its mooring, the wooden planks groaned gently and rigging quivered as it lolled in the arms of the sea and Niah sighed sensually in the strong arms of Tyndall. strained at its mooring, the wooden planks groaned gently and rigging quivered as it lolled in the arms of the sea and Niah sighed sensually in the strong arms of Tyndall.

In the morning Ahmed quietly boarded, got a steaming mug of black tea from the galley and went to the main cabin to wake the tardy skipper. In the hatchway he paused, seeing Niah sleeping snugly curled into Tyndall's side.

Before he could retreat Tyndall opened his eyes, yawned and gave a small smile. 'Leave the tea thank you, Ahmed. I'll be up and about shortly.'

Ahmed nodded, his face impa.s.sive, and went up on deck and busied himself with bags of sh.e.l.l.

It was some time before Tyndall appeared, looking pleased with himself and surprisingly refreshed. He made no reference to Niah and, after calling for makan makan from the cook, heartily announced, 'Today is the day I go below.' from the cook, heartily announced, 'Today is the day I go below.'

Ahmed looked up in surprise. 'Is this wise, tuan, when you have had such a ... ' Ahmed paused delicately, 'such a night? Liquor in the blood is not good when diving.'

'Slept that off,' replied Tyndall cheerfully. 'No, my mind is made up. Tell Yos.h.i.+, today he can rest on deck for awhile and I'll go over the side. Only one way to find out what it's all about. Can't have these divers pulling the wool over our eyes and having us believe their fancy stories if I haven't seen it for myself.'

Ahmed knew better than to protest. He nodded and rowed over to the Bulan Bulan to alert the crew that the skipper wanted to dive. to alert the crew that the skipper wanted to dive.

Tomoko Yos.h.i.+kuri, the j.a.panese diver, was not happy at what he regarded as a mere little adventure by the captain, for they would lose at least half a day's work, and he was being paid a bonus percentage of the sh.e.l.l take. On the pearling grounds when the skipper was not aboard, the diver had control of the boat and when the diver was below, his tender guided the boat's movements, dictated by the diver below. Yos.h.i.+ could disagree with Tyndall's wish to attempt a first dive, but Tyndall was owner and pearling master and his sea skills were respected. Before signing on, Yos.h.i.+ and Takahas.h.i.+ Ono, his tender, had made their own enquiries. Some Malay crews were considered lazy but Ahmed had a solid reputation and his fierce loyalty to Tyndall was considered a credit by the two j.a.panese, and the word was about that the master ran a tight, efficient s.h.i.+p.

Yos.h.i.+ went and sat in the shade and waited. Tyndall would only try this once, he reasoned.

He was contemplative as the tender and Ahmed set out the gear for Tyndall's dive. A placid man, Yos.h.i.+'s calmness came from an acceptance of knowing his path in life. The old samurai who had opened a small school in his village after the overthrow of the shoguns had taught Yos.h.i.+ that success came from hard work and knowledge, and also from attending to one's fellow man by being loyal, trustworthy and kind. As a schoolboy he had dreamed of the world beyond his village. j.a.pan was changing, turning from feudalism to embrace ideas and ways of the western world, with merchants replacing warriors as the men of high esteem.

Yos.h.i.+'s village in Taiji on the coast of Wakayama Prefecture on Honshu was as different as the distance that separated it from the Kimberley coast. It was five years now since he had last wandered among the dark forests of elm and ash, fir and pines that grew in a solid green wall almost to the edge of the rugged steep cliffs over a sea-swept rocky sh.o.r.eline. As the land was impossible to farm, the villagers made a precarious existence as fishermen and whalers. Yos.h.i.+ still recalled the dreadful day when, as a young boy, he watched the abler men of the village row out to capture a whale calf, only to have their boats smashed by the enraged mother who, hearing the cries of her calf, charged and smashed the boats, killing all the men.

Many young men left the village to find work elsewhere and some found their way to north Australia on small boats working the waters for seafood delicacies and pearl sh.e.l.l. Their natural ability as divers, their innate understanding of the sea, and their strength of will and body, earned them a big reputation and thus began a traditional link between an island of j.a.pan and a remote part of the great Australian continent. Soon master pearlers right across the north were bidding for their services.

Throughout his teens, Yos.h.i.+ heard tales from returning divers and yearned to join them in what seemed to be a great and rewarding adventure. So when agents of the Thursday Island pearlers came recruiting one summer, Yos.h.i.+ signed up and was indentured. He learned his trade with the Torres Strait fleet, then contracted with a pearler moving west to the newer and richer grounds of Western Australia. He missed the coral and palm-fringed islands of the Torres Strait, but accepted the rough and barren Broome landscape with equanimity. The rewards were good. There was money to spare to send back to his brothers and sisters, to secure some property in the village. Whenever he was ash.o.r.e he went to the small temple built by the tight-knit j.a.panese community in Broome and burned incense and offered prayers for his mother who had died during his first year abroad. Yos.h.i.+ had yet to make a trip back home to his village, but such absences were not uncommon among j.a.panese divers. When he did go back it would be with the money to afford a wife whom he would bring to Broome.

Yos.h.i.+ was now in his late twenties, a senior diver with many years good work left in him, provided he was careful. And there were few divers on the coast as wary of the hazards as Yos.h.i.+. He had one rule ... never take unnecessary risks. There were too many examples about Broome of divers who had-men crippled and wizened with bodies crushed and warped by the pressure of the sea, causing the dreaded paralysis, which, if it didn't kill them, damaged them for life.

Yos.h.i.+ thought Tyndall was taking an unnecessary risk. He had no need to go down. It was a decision that he had not expected from his new boss, and it worried him. He thinks it a bit of a game, reflected Yos.h.i.+ as he sipped at a small blue china mug of warm tea. Taki his tender had brought it to him with a raised eyebrow and a nod toward Tyndall who was wrapping himself in layers of flannel while Ahmed fussed with the diving suit. Niah, in a sarong, sat on the aft gunwale, smiling at Tyndall's comic antics as he pulled on layers of clothes to combat the cold below.

'Yo, ho, ho, Yos.h.i.+,' shouted Tyndall in good humour. 'I'm ready to don the suit of the finest and bravest diver in the nor-west. How do I look?'

Everyone on deck, including the Malays, looked at Tyndall with inscrutable faces. Tyndall knew he looked ridiculous-a tall pole of a man wrapped in multicoloured layers of long Johns, strips of flannel sheets, several unders.h.i.+rts and pairs of long socks, none of them matching. But n.o.body smiled, except Niah, who broke into a giggle which she smothered with a hand, earning a wicked wink from Tyndall.

Ahmed and Taki helped Tyndall into the bulky canvas and rubber diving suit and then laced up the heavy lead-weighted boots, and pulled on the gloves. Yos.h.i.+ kept a professional eye on every detail, without moving from his squatting position on the roof of the cabin. Only when the team prepared to put on the helmet did Yos.h.i.+ move and take his place beside Tyndall. Yos.h.i.+ watched carefully as the corselet of bra.s.s and copper was guided over Tyndall's head and screwed to the reinforced neck of the suit. A coir rope was tied around his waist within easy hand reach to signal Taki from below and for Taki to signal him.

Yos.h.i.+ spoke at last. 'Breathe slowly. Never panic. Concentrate on the job. No time to look around pretty place. Look where you put feet all time. Remember, one pull, more air, two pulls, slack off line, three pulls help quick smart. Three pulls from topside, you come up quick time.' They rehea.r.s.ed the routine several times, Tyndall feeling increasingly uncomfortable and sweaty in the suit.

Ahmed grinned. 'No work today, boss. You just look around at pretty places.' He knew it would annoy Yos.h.i.+, but the j.a.panese diver showed no reaction.

'No, Ahmed, it's not a holiday. I've got to come up with something, or I'll be the laughing stock of the whole coast.' He took a couple of steps toward the ladder, then paused. 'Hey, shouldn't we have a ceremony or something?'

All divers were superst.i.tious and most carried lucky charms, prayed before diving or conducted some small personal ritual before sinking through the fathoms to the sea bed. They made countless dives, but knew each one could present some terrible accident that could claim their life. Yos.h.i.+ carried a miniature red torii, the simple two uprights crossed at the top by two horizontals which was a powerful symbol of s.h.i.+ntoism. The first tales he had heard of pearl diving were accounts highly coloured about devils that lurked beneath the sea. There were so many beliefs and customs. One must always bow before silver fish in a bowl. Two fish fighting meant sharks were around. It was not good of the master to joke about such things before a dive.

Niah leapt off the rail and ran to Tyndall, taking off her carved pearl sh.e.l.l pendant as she moved. Niah dropped it over his head, pus.h.i.+ng it inside the suit. He glanced at the carving, and smiled into her eyes. It was a good omen, he told himself, though he was not sure why. The spontaneity of the gesture pleased him.

The copper helmet was lifted and placed over his head and locked into place on the metal collar. The gla.s.s panels in the helmet had been rinsed with sea water to prevent them steaming up with his breath, and these too were locked shut.

Lifting his hand in salute, Tyndall stepped backwards and flopped into the water. He put a hand to the valve on his helmet and there was a hiss of air deflating the suit and he sank beneath the surface into a watery world of changing light and colour. He hit the bottom gently, quickly readjusted the air valve to get the right pressure, enough to keep the water pressure off his body, and yet not high enough to send him shooting to the surface. He was more conscious of his body than the world around him. He could feel pins and needles of pain spiking through his head and joints as his body rebelled against this unnatural state. He could hear the unexpectedly loud hissing of his breathing, the click-clack of the air pump on the deck transmitted down the hose, and the rush of bubbles each time he exhaled. Once he was comfortable, he sent a signal up the line and the tender began playing out line so he could start exploring his underwater world.

Slowly Tyndall began trudging along the sea bed, his lead boots kicking up clouds of sand. Initially the transparent walls of water around him were disorienting. He looked down at the sea floor. It was grubby-hued sand littered with rocks, weed and small outcrops of corallite-the decaying skeletons of coral formations. He was glad there wasn't the 'gra.s.s' that divers talked of-the lush, bright green weed that sometimes obscured the bottom and hid treacherous holes, sh.e.l.l and dangerous marine life.

As he became accustomed to the floor he started to pick out the sh.e.l.l, generally bunched together, greyish-brown, some covered with weed and coralline. Looking more closely, Tyndall could see the giveaway small ridge line in the sand where concealed sh.e.l.ls had 'breathed'. He bent down and began picking up sh.e.l.ls and placing them in the woven baskets strung on the extra line.

Above the surface Taki followed Tyndall's groping movements as the line played through his fingers. Ahmed kept the Bulan Bulan head reaching, ensuring it was close up to the wind, moving stern-first with the tide, its direction guided by the rudder and a small jib to stop her drifting away with the current too quickly and dragging Tyndall with her. head reaching, ensuring it was close up to the wind, moving stern-first with the tide, its direction guided by the rudder and a small jib to stop her drifting away with the current too quickly and dragging Tyndall with her.

Niah moved to the side, looking down to where the air-hose and lifeline disappeared into the tranquil sea. She glanced at Ahmed and found him watching her intently. If the crew had not been present she suspected he would have spoken to her about joining Tyndall in his bed. She saw a warning in his dark eyes and knew immediately mat should she ever do anything to hurt or upset Tyndall, she would have to answer to Ahmed. But she did not cower under his intense gaze. Instead she felt a rising knowledge of the power she had over Tyndall. She reciprocated Ahmed's challenging stare and then suddenly, laughing, she ripped the sarong from her body, and dressed in only a brief strip of cloth that wrapped around her b.u.t.tocks, she pulled herself up onto the gunwale, and dived smoothly into the sea.

Tyndall was four to five fathoms below and he caught his breath at the shadow and movement at the edge of his peripheral vision, fearing a shark. But as he turned his head he saw, like a sea siren or mer-maid, the near-naked shape of Niah, as she glided towards him, kicking her legs, her hair streaming behind her. He could see the laughter in her eyes and he reached out a clumsy gloved hand towards her bare b.r.e.a.s.t.s. She blew him a kiss and grasping the sh.e.l.l bag slid it up the manila rope line as she kicked towards the surface.

Two of the crew eagerly helped her back on board, lifting the half-filled bag onto the deck as they eyed the glistening figure of Niah.

'Is that all he has? Send the basket back down,' said Ahmed, ignoring Niah.

Yos.h.i.+ made no comment, remembering the first time he went into the world below and how sometimes, now, he regarded it as his real world. No one knew he sang and hummed as he worked, the pleasing sound reverberating in the metal helmet as he sang the folk songs of his childhood which his mother had taught him. It was a world that was familiar, and while he was ever alert to danger, he felt at peace in the sea, and despite the often intense cold, he enjoyed the work. The wildness of the other divers during lay up, the intrigues, the fights, the brothels and gambling, the fierce loyalty of the other j.a.panese 'club' members, did not interest him. He had the reputation of being a loner and it was one of the reasons Tyndall and Ahmed chose him.

Now dressed and ignored by the crew as they went about their jobs, Niah hung over the side again watching Tyndall's air bubbles lazily pop to the surface in a steady stream.

For Tyndall it was all fascinating and he felt he'd been down for hours. His body and head ached and he had lost track of time. If it hadn't been for his boots planted firmly on the seabed and a glimmer of light slanting through the water above, he would have easily felt disoriented and imagined himself drifting into a silvery aqua oblivion. He concentrated and focused on tiny objects and watched a small marine creature inch its way across a coral-encrusted rock.

It was Niah whose attention was diverted from the stream of bubbles breaking the surface to a distant movement on the water. It was fleeting, and for a while there was nothing more to be seen and she was about to look away when it came again, a brief spurt of water. She called out, 'Whale!'

All heads shot up and they stared in the direction of her pointing arm. The seconds, a minute, ticked by in silence. Yos.h.i.+ was standing, shading his eyes, Taki held Tyndall's line, poised to give three rapid tugs, the sh.e.l.l openers sat with motionless knives as they too scanned the sea. The two men on the pump were the only ones moving. Ahmed looked back at Niah with a raised eyebrow.

She was about to shrug and protest that she was sure she had seen the blow, when, so loud, so fast, so surprising they were all stunned, a ma.s.sive whale breeched beside the lugger, slapping its giant flukes against the hull.

Niah screamed and the Bulan Bulan s.h.i.+vered with the impact of the brush from an old bull longer than the lugger. The crew sprang into action, Taki sending an urgent message to Tyndall they were bringing him up as Ahmed and the crew began to set the sails. s.h.i.+vered with the impact of the brush from an old bull longer than the lugger. The crew sprang into action, Taki sending an urgent message to Tyndall they were bringing him up as Ahmed and the crew began to set the sails.

'Quick, bring back tuan, quick,' cried Niah, tugging at Taki's arm as he methodically wrenched in the lifeline. Ahmed shouted at her in Malay to move back and she stood by wringing her hands. Once again the whale surfaced, regarding them with a small imperious eye and showing a hide encrusted with barnacles.

There was near panic on board as the whale sc.r.a.ped along the starboard side as the boat heeled well to port. The tender fell to the deck and momentarily lost control of the lifeline and air hose which were over the port side of the boat.

Tyndall, who had been unceremoniously jerked towards the surface, now dropped back to the seabed, wondering what the h.e.l.l was going on. Then, before he could make sense of the situation he was again jerked upwards. He felt the pressure swell inside his head, and he gasped long sucking breaths of air, wondering what had happened. Then all movement stopped and he was left dangling like a puppet on a string. He tilted his head to stare upward.

As if looking through the wrong end of a telescope, the scene above him seemed unreal and he felt his heart squeezed with fear. The silhouette of the Bulan Bulan was dwarfed by a great black lolling shape just below the hull. Tyndall was astern the lugger and as his vision adjusted he saw the flukes of the great tail were directly between him and the lugger. He watched in helpless horror. The whale moved upward so its back was against the was dwarfed by a great black lolling shape just below the hull. Tyndall was astern the lugger and as his vision adjusted he saw the flukes of the great tail were directly between him and the lugger. He watched in helpless horror. The whale moved upward so its back was against the Bulan Bulan. Tyndall waited, terrified the whale would flip over the lugger.

On the deck everyone was again flung off balance as the Bulan Bulan rolled and shook while the whale started scratching the barnacles off its crusty hide. rolled and shook while the whale started scratching the barnacles off its crusty hide.

The lugger began to move forward now that sails were going up but they couldn't get fully under way until the master was safely on board, and that was impossible now that the whale was between the boat and the diver. Taki took a turn around a bollard with the hose and lifeline. Yos.h.i.+ and Ahmed conferred quickly and Ahmed shouted to Niah and the crew to get anything metal-wok, tools, anything-and to start making as much metallic noise as possible in the hope of scaring the whale away. Niah ran to the main cabin and grabbed Tyndall's rifle, checked it was loaded, then dashed back on deck.

'Tidak,' shouted Ahmed in alarm when he saw her. A wounded and enraged whale could destroy the boat in seconds. At that moment the boat heaved again, throwing Niah off balance. She dropped the rifle which went off, the bullet whizzing into the sea. The sharp crack of the bullet seemed to have an effect, for as suddenly as it appeared, the whale disappeared from sight. For a few seconds everyone stood there in a frozen tableau, incredulous at their luck. Then, with Niah screaming for them to hurry, and Ahmed shouting instructions, Tyndall was hauled towards the lugger.

Then, into the small gap of water between Tyndall and the hull roared the train-like bulk of the whale. It crashed against the side of the boat as it charged past and dived, its white speckled triangular flukes catching Tyndall's lines and ripping them like strands of hair.

Tyndall's body spun wildly and painfully in the surging wake as the whale tore the lifeline and air hose. He felt the helmet was going to be wrenched off his shoulders and his hands instinctively flew up and miraculously caught hold of the light line used for hauling baskets of sh.e.l.l to the surface. He felt himself choking as the air in his suit was pressured out of the broken hose. He had to use both hands to hold on to the rope for he would sink like a stone if he let go. Panic was almost instantly replaced by terror as he struggled without effect to haul himself up the line to the surface.

As soon as Taki gave the alarm Niah was over the side, struggling to disentangle her sarong. Yos.h.i.+ and Taki flashed past her, strong strokes taking them to Tyndall within seconds. With one on either side of him and Tyndall hauling on the rope they suddenly broke the surface, and with Niah grabbing the remnant of air hose and holding it above water, were hauled to the ladder by the cheering and shouting crew.

Tyndall was nearly unconscious and too heavy for the rescuers to lift on board. They held him by the ladder while the chest weights were removed and the helmet unscrewed. The rush of fresh air revived Tyndall and he managed to stagger the few steps up the ladder before he was dragged over the side. He collapsed on the deck, bleeding from nose and ears, his skin grey-white. Niah crawled over the side and rushed to cradle his head in her lap as the men began to take him out of the boots and suit. Niah pulled off his gloves and rubbed his hands and, as Tyndall coughed and the colour began to return to his cheeks, she kissed the sh.e.l.l pendant still around his neck.

Ahmed got the Bulan Bulan under sail, noting that several other luggers, having seen the whale attack, were also under way. under sail, noting that several other luggers, having seen the whale attack, were also under way.

Tyndall had recovered by the next day and insisted they stay to finish the patch of sh.e.l.l. Yos.h.i.+ agreed, but for the first time since he had begun diving, he was fearful as he went over the side, remembering the death of his father's fleet by a whale.

However, the rest of the trip was uneventful, and Tyndall found great joy in the arms and the happy laugh of Niah, who made no secret of her devotion and attachment to him.

One evening she sat cross-legged on the bunk, his head in her lap, ma.s.saging his scalp. She asked him, as all women were wont to do he thought, about the other women in his life. She wanted to know about Mem Hennessy and he tried to explain they were friends, business friends.

'Why you have no wife?' she asked, using a new word she'd learned.

Tyndall closed his eyes in pleasure as her strong fingers ran through his hair, soothing his head. 'Um, I did once. In a far away place. Very cold. You wouldn't like it.' He hadn't thought of Belfast in years. It was his past, of no relevance now.

'Where wife go?'

'Heaven I suppose. Spirit place. She died. Big sickness.' He didn't want to talk any more and moved her hands down to rub the back of his neck.

'Mem Hennessy wife too,' said Niah after a while, causing Tyndall to look up at her, slightly puzzled.

'Yeah. That's right. She's a wife.' He was prepared to let it rest at that.

Niah was silent for a while, quietly ma.s.saging.

'You like Mem Hennessy?'

Tyndall stiffened and grabbed her hands, looking up at her. 'Good Lord, girl, what are you getting at? Like her? Well, she's a nice young woman. Why do you ask?'

'Mem Hennessy no like me. No like you get me.'

'Rubbish.'

'You see,' said Niah sadly. 'She send Niah away.'

'Nonsense,' said Tyndall and he pulled her down and she lay on top of him, light as a sea breeze, her hair and skin smelling of salt. She licked his ear and nuzzled her face in his neck, clinging to him like a lovable puppy. Tyndall realised however that she saw Olivia as a threat, someone who might send her away. It began to dawn on Tyndall that this romantic interlude was coming to an end and that soon they would be returning to Broome and the prying eyes of a small community. Suddenly the thought of giving up this pretty and affectionate girl was an appalling idea. As he felt his pa.s.sion rise under Niah's expert hands he decided to worry about what to do with her later.

The same thoughts had been on Ahmed's mind and one evening while he and Tyndall rowed back to the Shamrock Shamrock he delicately raised the question of Niah's future. he delicately raised the question of Niah's future.

Tyndall was vague. It troubled him that he'd become so attached to her. He hadn't realised how empty his life had been. How he had envied Olivia and Conrad their shared life and companions.h.i.+p. 'Don't know. S'pose she could make herself useful round the place. She doesn't want to go back home, nowhere to go really.'

'Being useful could cause plenty talk, tuan,' said Ahmed gently.

'Hmmm,' said Tyndall in half agreement.

'No good for business. No good for Mem and Tuan Hennessy. All people have their place in Broome. You break rules,' sighed Ahmed.

Tyndall gave a weak smile. 'I know what you mean. But she's a nice little thing. Bright, you know. Easier to get along with than most of the women in Broome, I'll wager.'

Nearing the Shamrock Shamrock, he could make out the silhouette of Niah on the deck outlined against the starry sky. He was acutely aware of a pleasant and sudden surge of excitement that was just as suddenly neutralised by Olivia Hennessy striding into his consciousness. Yes, that was going to be difficult, he acknowledged to himself. Explaining away the relations.h.i.+p to Mrs Hennessy. The old hands of Broome would accept it readily enough so long as both of them were fairly discreet in public. After all, everyone knew what went on in Sheba Lane some afternoons in the lay up season and after dark, but no one talked about it publicly. Ah, to h.e.l.l with it. But try as he might, the prospect of facing Olivia Hennessy worried him. He suddenly realised that she was more than just a business partner. He didn't want to let her down, not just because they were in business together, but because she was Olivia. It was but momentarily disconcerting. The sight of Niah smiling down at him in the moonlight, her long hair ruffled by the light breeze, and the sensual memories of her body filled his mind with only one thought.