Calgarron

By Howard McKenzie

Calgarron is the story of one mans life from boy to warrior to lover to husband and father. Set to the background of the Japanese invasion of the Malay Peninsula and the Second World War, his fast-paced novel moves through Asia, Australia, USA, and Europe. War brings injury, friendship, and love, but his family secrets shatter his life and grip on reality.
Lavinia Calgarron looked down at her son fast asleep in his bed. The last hundred years war had ravished not only her own family but especially the Calgarron family. Lavinia had lost her husband during the First World War, and now deep into the Second World War, the only Calgarron left lay wounded in a bed in Darwin hospital. He was the captain of a destroyer and had returned in triumph from a rescue mission on Timor but in the process had broken his leg.
Lewis Calgarron lay sleeping; he was thinking of Sophie, the woman he loved. They had met under such unusual circumstances thrown together by war. She had lost everything; he had lost estates, wealth, and status because of the war with Japan. He needed to build back that fortune, and he felt under self-applied pressure to produce an heir to carry the dynasty forward. He was determined to not only win the war but to win the peace.
Lavinia out! he heard. He opened his eyes and saw his mother standing near the door. Lewis thought he was dead!
He smelt her first, that unmistakably scent, her musk. He slowly turned his head and looked deep into Sophies eyes. She smiled at him and whispered, Lewis Calgarron, I love you. He smiled back at her and said, I love you too. Was that my mother?

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse UK
• Release date: Feb 27, 2013
• ISBN: 9781481784467

Howard McKenzie

Howard McKenzie is an academic, an education consultant, an artist, and a novelist. He is married and with two daughters and two granddaughters and lives near Edinburgh in Scotland. Calgarron is his fifth novel. In his writing, Howard chronicles the lives and experiences of people and how they change over time.

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© 2013 by Howard McKenzie. All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

Published by AuthorHouse 02/18/2013

ISBN: 978-1-4817-8391-0 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4817-8446-7 (e)

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models,

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Contents

Chapter 1 The Steam Of The Malayan Jungle

Chapter 2 Into A War Zone

Chapter 3 Chapel Hall

Chapter 4 Life On The Ocean Wave

Chapter 5 The Knight Comes To The Rescue

Chapter 6 HMS Lady Lavinia!

Chapter 7 Tengu

Chapter 8 Sophistication And Sand

Chapter 9 HMS Thanet

Chapter 10 Shooting The Breeze

Chapter 11 Christmas 1941

Chapter 12 The Last Two Pages Of The Last Will And Testament

Chapter 13 The Java Sea

Chapter 14 Arrival In Surabaya

Chapter 15 A Woman Of Business

Chapter 16 Castle Calgarron, Scotland And La Toc House, St Lucia

Chapter 17 Rest Days In Surabaya

Chapter 18 Riots And Death

Chapter 19 Taking On Cargo

Chapter 20 Happy New Year

Chapter 21 Sumbawa To Waingapu

Chapter 22 Chapel Hall, Malaya

Chapter 23 Nemberala Beach, Rote Island

Chapter 24 The Storm

Chapter 25 Tension On Board

Chapter 26 Arrival At Darwin

Chapter 27 Settling In

Chapter 28 War And Peace

Chapter 29 The Belle Of The Ball

Chapter 30 Letters From Home

Chapter 31 Darwin 19 February 1942

Chapter 32 Return To Active Service

Chapter 33 The Battle Of The Coral Sea

Chapter 34 Cairns

Chapter 35 Homecoming

Chapter 36 First Command—Land Based

Chapter 37 First Command—Seaward

Chapter 38 Operation Florence

Chapter 39 The Winds Of Change

Chapter 40 The Element Of Surprise

Chapter 41 Timor Rescue

Chapter 42 Am I dead?

Chapter 43 Relieved

Chapter 44 The Wedding Bell

Chapter 45 Travels To Sydney

Chapter 46 Sydney

Chapter 47 St Andrews Cathedral, Sydney

Chapter 48 Caribbean Posting

Chapter 49 Back To Active Service

Chapter 50 Back To Blighty

Chapter 51 Voyage To Scotland

Chapter 52 The Contentin Peninsula

Chapter 53 London Calling

Chapter 54 Home At Last

Chapter 55 Complete

Chapter 56 Learning To Swim

Chapter 57 Preparations For The Big Event

Chapter 58 The Birth

Chapter 59 Unexpected

Chapter 60 Christmas Presence

Chapter 61 Royal Flush

Chapter 62 Recalled To Service

Chapter 63 Singapore

Chapter 64 Return Of The Prodigal Son

Chapter 65 Changing Responsibilities

Chapter 66 Father And Daughter Quality Time

Chapter 67 We Are Sailing

Chapter 68 A Family Reunited

Chapter 1

The Steam Of The Malayan Jungle

Sub Lieutenant Lewis Calgarron had been training in the naval reserve whilst completing his degree at Glasgow University and on the outbreak of war in 1939 he was mobilised into the Royal Navy. After a very short while, in 1940, he was promoted to Lieutenant. He had done little to deserve this other than being able to lead men and thus fill one of the many such vacancies as the navy expanded to wartime proportions.

Lewis had never known his father who was the First Officer on HMS Indefatigable. He had died when Indefatigable exploded during the Battle of Jutland in June 1916, Lewis was born in March 1916. Lewis came from a long line of Calgarrons all with links to the navy, exploration and business.

There was angst in the family which was, Lewis knew, to do with his Uncle Archie being annoyed that his brother had sired a boy who had inherited the title and estates as the 10th Earl of Calgarron. Before the war his Uncle Archie had been sent to the family estates in Malaya and Singapore. His uncle had never married so Lewis inherited the Far Eastern estates on the death of his uncle in 1938.

Throughout his childhood and formative years Lewis and his mother visited Malaya and often stayed several months at a time. His mother seemed to like Uncle Archie. When he was ten Lewis had found them swimming naked together and had run into the waves to join them much to their embarrassment. It was only recently that Lewis had come to wonder about the depth of his mother’s friendship with his Uncle Archie.

As a naval lieutenant in 1941, Lewis Calgarron was serving on HMS Dragon in the Mediterranean where she was assigned to escort supply convoys from Gibraltar to Malta and various ports on the North African coast. The main threat was from Stukas—dive bombers although they had lost several ships to torpedoes launched from U boats.

As the gunnery officer Lewis had gained in depth experience of anti aircraft defence and the operation of the weaponry. This came from an ‘old timer’ called Tom who had served in the navy for nearly twenty years. Tom systematically taught Lewis everything he knew. Lewis quickly gained the reputation for being easy going with an almost laissez-faire leadership style. He had an inane talent and track record for leadership and getting the most out of a team.

The Captain of HMS Dragon had watched as Lewis gained the respect of his men and was fascinated that the young officer had allowed the old salt to teach him. It was only when they had been attacked by planes that he had realised that Tom had been teaching the entire gunnery group via the young man and in turn the lieutenant had been moulding a highly effective team. It might just have saved their lives thought the Captain.

They had just docked after escorting a hospital ship from Tunis to Gibraltar when Lewis was ordered to the bridge to see the Captain. Captain Gideon Richards walked out onto the observation platform with Lewis his gunnery officer. ‘Apparently, you are leaving us. You have been ordered to report to the Admiral at naval HQ Gibraltar. I hope it is a promotion for you. You are an excellent officer, an inspirational leader and I have been impressed with the way you have gained the respect of your men and indeed me. Well done, young man.’

‘Thank you, sir’ said Lewis somewhat taken aback, no one had ever said he was good at anything—they just expected he would be.

‘Can you hand this letter to the Admiral’s aide’ asked the Captain ‘and here is your post including your new orders.’

Lewis saluted the Captain and left. He looked at the three personal letters in his hand, one from his ailing mother and two from the Navy including his orders. He also had a bundle of business letters and reports; the business of his business pursued him. He read his orders; he had three hours to pack his belongings and report to Naval HQ. The next letter pleased him it told him that he had passed his Skipper’s exams including navigation at distinction.

At the appointed time, Lewis stood in an enormous ballroom full of desks and people scurrying around being very busy. The room had a high ceiling with a fresco of naval scenes and battles, the roof was held up by large imposing marble columns with cornices in the shape of waves. Between the columns were large statues of nautical gods like Poseidon and Neptune. In the corners were large plants which gave a warm natural feel to an otherwise austere room.

A Wren in an immaculate uniform approached him. She smiled at Lewis and said ‘the Admiral won’t be long Lieutenant’ then added ‘are you really an Earl too?’

‘Yes I am, I’m the Earl of Calgarron’ he said watching as the Wren openly flirted with him, he flirted back.

‘So do you have a stately home, servants and all that?’ she asked.

‘Yes in Scotland near Fort William’ he said suddenly feeling slightly homesick.

‘I spent a lot of my childhood at our rubber plantation in Malaya’ he added.

‘I bet that was idyllic, sunny and warm’ she replied.

‘Not really it seemed normal to me. My father died in the First World War and I was sent there to be looked after by my uncle whilst my mother lived it up in London’ he said.

‘I was brought up in Neasden, my mother runs a haberdashery shop and my father is an Electrician.’ She replied smiling sweetly at Lewis ‘Not the same as Malaya but I do have two doting parents.’

They were interrupted as the Commander arrived and said ‘Good afternoon, Lord Calgarron.’

‘Sir!’ replied Lewis standing crisply to attention. He always thought this a strange ritual when senior officers referred to his title first and then his rank. He gave a sharp salute.

‘Thank you Lieutenant, the Vice Admiral is waiting’ the Commander said.

Lewis marched into the room and saluted the Vice Admiral.

‘At ease Lieutenant’ said the Vice Admiral followed by ‘Lewis, my boy, how are you?’ Vice Admiral Bertie McLean was a long standing family friend; Lewis regarded him as an ‘Uncle’. He stepped around his desk and embraced Lewis patting him on the back.

‘Come and sit over here and talk to me’ he said indicating to the settees.

‘How is your mother my boy? I trust Lady Lavinia is well?’ asked Uncle Bertie.

‘She contracted Tuberculosis on her way home from the Far East after my uncle’s funeral. She is well looked after at Calgarron Castle but is alas a shell of her former self. She has gone to Oxford for treatment’ replied Lewis thinking of his mother.

As the personal discourse continued, the Commander looked at the young lieutenant. He looked very young, all the junior officers were looking impossibly young he thought. He knew from the Lieutenant’s profile that this was an exceptional young man.

The Earl of Calgarron was wealthy beyond the Commander’s wildest dreams yet regarded as a maverick by his family especially for his egalitarian and liberal views. Calgarron had been expelled from Harrow for ‘a comprehensive breach of school rules.’ It was clear there had been a misdemeanour involving a female; a housemaster’s daughter no less thought the Commander, admiringly.

He was clearly a clever boy, after his expulsion he had gone to University early, obtained his degree in Estate Management by the time his peers were leaving school. His record also contained details of his sailing exploits. He was the youngest person to compete in a trial for the America’s Cup yacht race in 1934 and had won the Round the Island race at Cowes Week in 1938. He was regarded as a future world class yachtsman, a career ended by the outbreak of war. He was clearly a born leader of men and an excellent gunnery officer as the rather irate rant from his current commanding officer illustrated well. But he knew Malaya well, with detailed knowledge of the seas around it, was trusted by the Malays and spoke their language.

The pleasantries continued until the Vice Admiral said ‘OK, Lieutenant. Back to work. We have a little job we would like you to undertake; the Commander will explain.’

The Vice Admirals’ aide, Commander Wilkinson, opened a file on his lap and started the verbal briefing.

‘This briefing is graded as Top Secret. Unlike the military, the Admiralty believes that Hong Kong, Malaya, Singapore and possibly the Dutch East Indies are lost causes and will be invaded by the Japanese in the next few months.’ said the Commander.

Lewis was shocked ‘But we have property there, large estates producing rubber, cereal, teak and pineapples and Chapel Hall is a magnificent mansion. The people are lovely what will become of them?’ asked Lewis.

‘Alas all will be lost; that is the price of war’ said Commander Wilkinson.

‘The Lady Lavinia is at Chapel Hall’ said Lewis with his face in his hands as he looked up with tears in his eyes. Uncle Bertie thought the burden that had descended on the young man had aged him beyond his tender years; he suddenly looked haggard and pale.

Lewis paused and thought of the twin-masted ocean racing schooner. It had been his father’s, his uncle’s and now was his pride and joy. Built and launched at Dumbarton on the Clyde in 1905, she was a sleek 108 foot racing schooner capable of over thirty knots under sail. She had been designed by William Fife, famous as the designer of boats that competed in the Americas Cup races.

What was unique about her design was that she was built with a retractable 14ft centreboard. This gave her a draft of about 4 feet so she could get into jetties and beaches most yachts of her size simply could not approach. The retractable centreboard and the recently fitted electric winches meant that she was very fast and could be sailed with a small crew or even single handed although you couldn’t use the full Gaff rig or get her up to full speed on your own.

His uncle and mother had sailed the boat with a full crew from the Mediterranean via Suez to Malaya in 1919. His mind drifted as he thought about the last time he was in Malaya when he sailed the Lady Lavinia single handed 500 miles to Tengu Island, off Borneo. He smiled as he remembered it wasn’t really solo, he had smuggled Ami on board; it had been a naughty time. Sandhu her father had been very angry with her and probably him. He paused and thought of Ami, she was his childhood sweetheart and he missed her presence in his life. His mind snapped back to the present.

The Commander continued ‘Operation HMS Lavinia is one of utmost National importance sanctioned by the Prime Minister’s office. In this dossier are the full facts and your detailed orders, you may read it under supervision in a few minutes and then they will be destroyed in front of you. In essence; go to Malaya, travel across the country, pick up a cargo and sail it in the yacht to Jakarta and safety.’

‘What cargo?’ asked Lewis.

‘The cargo is the Sabon Crown Jewels which were loaned by Queen Victoria; they are still the property of our King. There are also some other trinkets and baubles we do not want to fall into Japanese hands. Your cover story is that you have been given leave to rescue your own valuables and the yacht from Chapel Hall. You are to be promoted to Lieutenant Commander and then temporarily promoted to the rank of Commander and seconded to naval intelligence. Any questions?’

‘What about Rupert?’ asked Lewis.

‘The Crown Prince of Sabon is in India. He sort of did a runner six weeks ago’ the Admiral said. He knew that Lewis and the Crown Prince were childhood and school friends but the truth was that the Prince had packed his bags and gone at the first sign of trouble.

‘We stopped him taking the Crown Jewels because they didn’t belong to him; they are now in the possession of the army at the Jerantut base in central Malaya’ added the Commander.

‘That sounds fairly typical of Rupert’ Lewis said smiling.

‘Sailing Lady Lavinia single handed is a tough request. She has been modified but she was originally designed for a crew of 10’ replied Lewis hoping that the Vice Admiral didn’t know through his family contacts that he had already sailed her single handed.

‘Sorry, no crew—too risky, not only for your valuables but also the other cargo’ Commander Wilkinson replied.

‘So I take the Crown Jewels to safety but what happens to my stuff?’ Lewis asked.

‘You keep it’ replied the Captain.

‘I’ve seen some of the Sabon Crown Jewels, they are very pretty and must be worth a fortune’ said Lewis.

‘They are His Majesty’s property. The other cargo is such that it is felt that only you can be trusted with such valuables which is exactly why you were selected Lord Calgarron!’ replied the Vice Admiral.

‘To serve the King!’ said Lewis ‘it’s my family motto.’

‘Precisely, my Lord, precisely’ replied the Vice Admiral standing.

The Vice Admiral shook Lewis’s hand. Lewis was dismissed and led to a quiet room overlooking a private garden. He sat at a large Victorian desk reading his orders and the mission dossier supervised by the Wren from earlier. The only part of the dossier he could keep was the version of his orders he needed to ensure that he was given assistance and cleared for travel. As he read the papers he began to realise the enormity of his task, its importance and the trust placed on him.

The Wren passed him the pages one by one, removing the pages that Lewis had read on which she used special scissors to shred them before placing them on the fire in the grate. She looked at her watch and lost her concentration.

Lewis said ‘I’m sorry, am I keeping you from something?’

‘I finished my shift ten minutes ago and was looking forward to sitting in the sun with a cocktail’ she replied. Their eyes met and they smiled at each other.

‘That sounds an excellent idea. What’s your name?’ asked Lewis.

‘Gwen’ she smiled at him.

‘Well, Gwen, let’s get this finished and I will buy you that cocktail?’ he said.

‘That would be nice Commander’ she said.

Gwen looked down at the newly promoted Commander. He was a bit of all right this one, tanned skin, ginger hair with wonderful simmering blue eyes. He was smooth, debonair and looked really sexy and virile in his uniform; he also had the most gorgeous voice and smile.

As he read the papers she gently removed the rank lace from his tunic and replaced them with those of a Commander. A new hat sat on the table in front of him and she knew that the orders told him he was due at the tailors the following day. Her hand brushed against his neck and arm, Gwen felt a flurry of excitement.

A couple of hours later Commander Calgarron stood on the veranda of the officers club overlooking the harbour with his arm around Gwen watching a game of croquet on the lawn below. It was the start of a passionate ten day love affair which ended with Gwen in tears as she lay in bed watching Lewis dress in his new uniform to join his ship to Singapore. She came to the dock to say goodbye and Lewis left her with a heavy heart, he realised that he had very quickly established an emotional bond he found equally difficult to break.

Chapter 2

Into A War Zone

The flotilla fought its way through the Mediterranean. Between attacks by the Italians and the Germans it was a difficult and costly journey. Despite being a passenger on HMS Encounter, Lewis had volunteered to help crew a 40mm twin Bofos anti-aircraft gun. The men had been amazed that an officer, a Commander, was prepared to move the heavy ammunition boxes, work with them and fight alongside them in the heat and noise of battle. When he operated the gun he had shot down two aircraft; a skill much enhanced by the shooting of gulls from moving yachts. For his efforts Lewis was mentioned in dispatches by the ship’s Captain.

The attacks on the flotilla petered out as they reached the Suez Canal where troop ships joined the battle group en route for the Malay Peninsula, Singapore and the Dutch East Indies. It took just over a week to reach the Malay Coast by which time the Japanese had moved to within 150 miles of Jerantut and Chapel Hall. That part of the voyage was totally uneventful, a couple of false alarms but otherwise the days past slowly and quietly.

Early one morning, whilst still dark, HMS Encounter rendezvoused off the western coast of Malaya with a motor torpedo boat that whisked Lewis to the harbour at Port Swetenham. By midday he was in a staff car that had driven through Kuala Lumpur and had started to make its way over the winding mountain road towards Jerantut in the centre of the country. It was a long slow journey punctuated by breaks for the driver and snacks from stalls by the roadside.

They stopped at a waterfall that cascaded down the side of a rock face next to the road. The driver leant against the side of the car and lit a cigarette. Lewis walked across to the water and filled their two water bottles. It was an idyllic spot the mottled sunlight filtered through the trees and it was cooler near the water. Suddenly there was a shout and two men wielding machetes dashed out of the jungle towards the car.

Lewis drew his Webley service revolver aimed at the men and fired, one of them screamed and ran off holding his shoulder. The other crumpled to the floor with his machete in his hand just as he was about to strike the driver. Lewis rushed to see that the side of the man’s head had been blow away. The driver thanked Lewis for saving their lives however Lewis turned away and vomited next to the car.

He walked back over to the water and washed his face. He held his pistol and opened it to replace the three bullets he had fired; his hands were shaking so much he couldn’t get the bullets into the chamber. Five minutes later he was sat in the back of the car and tried again, this time despite the movement of the car his hands were still, their movements deliberate. It wasn’t the first time that Lewis had killed someone, it was the first time he had seen the man and the consequences of his actions.

When they arrived at Jerantut, Lewis washed and changed then sat in the officer’s mess at the army base and ate dinner. He listened to the update of the news of the Japanese advance. It seemed that they were held at Kota Bharu in the east about 120 miles north of his destination but in the west they had advanced to within 80 miles of Kuala Lumpur.

The Military police came to interview him about the shooting but after providing part of his written orders from naval intelligence the matter was closed without record.

Lewis had the chance to telephone Sandhu his manager at Chapel Hall and ensure that preparations were made for his voyage. He would need to move quickly in order to sail south behind the retreating British naval lines. During the last 14 hours they had seen several British and Japanese planes in the skies and hoards of dejected soldiers walking or travelling south. Things were not looking good Lewis thought.

For the second half of his trip Lewis climbed into a canvas covered truck. He was rather sad to leave the comparative comfort of the staff car. In the back was the ‘cargo’; six unmarked, nondescript wooden boxes containing the crown, orb and spectre and over twenty heavy flat wooden boxes. His new transport was driven by a very dark skinned soldier in an all black uniform with gold and red insignia, ten other heavily armed soldiers sat in the back of the truck as it bumped its way across the country. They explained that they were Malay ‘special’ personnel. They issued Lewis with a submachine gun and ammunition.

After a slow journey of many hours, the truck arrived at the ridge overlooking the eastern highway and the coastal town of Pekan. It was more a hard track than a highway but was designated as an all weather principal road and was certainly in better condition than the seasonal tracks they had been using to traverse the country. There were fires burning along the road and two Japanese aircraft swooped along the road below despite gunfire from the ground.

One of the aircraft was hit emitting a plume of black smoke. It climbed and started to fall towards them for a moment Lewis was worried it might hit them but it blew up with debris falling into the valley below. In the distance by the coast he could see his estates and where Chapel Hall was located, he peered through his binoculars and to his relief he could not see any smoke.

When they reached the road they were appalled by the sight of civilian refugees and an army in full retreat. An army Major tried to commandeer the truck. Lewis stood holding his sub-machine gun and explained that he was under naval orders. The Major was unimpressed and started to wave his pistol at Lewis. One of the guards silently slipped behind him and holding a dagger to the Major’s neck relieved him of his weapon; five of the other guards covered the Major’s ramshackle group of soldiers.

‘As the Commander said important navy business’ whispered the guard. It happened so quickly that the Major didn’t have time to react before the guard had disappeared with his pistol. The Major waved the truck onto the road as Lewis handed him his unloaded gun.

They continued slowly amongst the throng and were about to turn off onto the road to Chapel Hall when another aircraft appeared out of the sun and strafed the road in front of them. The driver put his foot down, turned off the road and sped across a field of soya bean towards the estate road. The truck burst through a gate, bounced over the road edge and sped up towards the house a couple of miles away. It stopped outside the front door and Lewis slid from the seat and spoke to the guards in the back.

‘Wait here for me I shall be a few minutes and then we will load the boxes into the yacht.’ The guard saluted and returned to the truck.

Chapter 3

Chapel Hall

‘My Lord’ said Sandhu who bowed and then yelled ‘Calley welcome home.’ He spread his arms wide in welcome. It was a long time Lewis thought since anyone had called him by his nickname. He saluted and then stepped forward to hug the old retainer. He had run the estates in Malaya for the best part of twenty years and was as close to family as Lewis had.

‘Ami will be here in a moment. Please take her with you, I beg you. She has matured into a beautiful woman and I am so afraid that the Japanese will rape her. I know this, she is too pretty’ pleaded Sandhu.

‘Sandhu I can’t, it is too dangerous. If I agree to take one I will have to take others and I can’t do this’ He looked at the shock and disappointment in his face. ‘Maybe she will defy me like she defied you once’ he winked at Sandhu who took his hand and kissed it ‘Thank you.’

They were interrupted by the arrival of Ami. Her slight, tanned body was enveloped by Lewis’s arms as they kissed passionately and looked at each other lovingly. Lewis thought that Sandhu was right she had filled out to an utterly beautiful woman from the slightly geek girl he had last seen nearly three years ago.

‘Lewis it is so wonderful to see you’ she said kissing him all over his face.

‘Ami Lei you forget your manners. Show respect’ scorned her father.

Ami stood back ‘My Lord welcome back to Chapel Hall. You look wonderful in your naval uniform holding that gun. I am always yours’ she said sinking to her knees with her hands behind her back, licking her lips and looking at his groin.

‘Ami behave!!’ said her father. The sexual connotations of the exchange were not lost on Lewis either; he could almost smell her excitement, he felt a twitch in his shorts and drew the gun across the front.

He had known Ami since he was six when he and his mother had visited the estate. They had teethed, learned to swim, climbed trees and explored the world together. They had taken lessons together taught by the fearsome Tidmus, Lewis’s governess. As young teens and adults they had explored each other, discovered sex and become lovers with a deep bond of affection that caused concern for their families. Indeed his mother had tried to separate them more than once but they met on the beach or in ‘secret camps’ in the jungle. His uncle on the other hand had just handed him condoms so as not to get the ‘native slut up the duff.’

Lewis left with the guards and returned some time later after loading the boxes into the yacht.

Lewis, Sandhu and Ami sat at the table on the veranda overlooking the grassy hill that swept down to the quay where the Lady Lavinia lay tied up and ready for her voyage. As was the custom, the house staff were lined up and introduced to Lewis. He met Amna who was the housekeeper and who had recently become Sandhu’s second wife. His first wife; Ami’s mother, had died in childbirth. He leant forward and kissed Amna on the cheek, held her hand and said ‘please come and join us at the table Sandhu’s wife has pride of place at my table.’ Sandhu was amazed yet pleased Calley did these things and mostly they worked. He looked on in pride as the Earl of Calgarron pulled out a chair, seated his wife at the table and served her some food in front of the other servants. He knew that Calley was very much signalling a new order on the estate, clever boy thought Sandhu.

Lewis was tired and hungry but enjoyed sitting talking to Sandhu, Ami and to a lesser extent Amna whilst they ate a meal. There were traditional Malay dishes such as dhosai breads, ikan pari—grilled stingray and nasi dagang—a spicy meat and rice dish which the cook made with beef for Calley. The lamb cutlets were cooked in mango chutney and served with mashed potatoes, very British, it would soon have to be sushi and noodles Lewis thought depressingly.

‘Sandhu, can I suggest that you put up those photos from when Crown Prince Hirohito visited the estate. It just might stop too much pillage.’ Sandhu laughed and took Lewis to the entrance hall where the photos and a signed visitor’s book were on a table waiting to be exhibited.

‘We have also nominated one of the bedrooms as the one he stayed in and will put some of the more valuable antiques in it. We hope the soldiers won’t destroy it because the Prince is now the Emperor.’

‘Hirohito never stayed here! My uncle said he was here less than a day after his yacht got into difficulties during a tropical storm after a race from Tokyo’ Lewis said.

‘Calley! That was nearly twenty years ago and none of the soldiers will know’ Sandhu chuckled.

‘Sandhu isn’t it sad that neither of us seem to have any confidence in our armies’ said Lewis crossing himself.

They were returning to the table when they looked up and saw a Japanese fighter swoop out of the sky and approach almost level with the house. Both Sandhu and Lewis dived to the floor yelling for others to follow. The pilot banked steeply and a canister with a ribbon attached fell onto the ground as the plane disappeared into the distance.

They approached the canister carefully and found that it contained some flags and message.

‘In recognition of assistance and kindness received. His Imperial Majesty the Emperor of Japan has granted this property his personal protection which will be provided by the flying of the enclosed pennants.’

‘OK, that’s made up my mind. I will leave in two hours on the evening tide and I will take one of those pennants’ said Lewis.

Lewis approached one of the house boys ‘Go and tell the guards on the quay that two of them are to report to me here with the truck. Now run’ he said.

He turned to Sandhu and without speaking they walked down the stairs to the servant’s quarter where they collected the key to the cellar. They walked to the far end of the storeroom, gently moved a cupboard to reveal a wall safe. This was his uncle’s personal safe and this was the first time that Lewis had opened it, the last person to do so was the lawyer who dealt with his uncles Will. Sandhu inserted a key and turned away as Lewis span the combination lock. They pulled the door of the safe open.

Lewis sorted the contents removing a gold cutlery service, some jewelled goblets, some property deeds, a chest containing gold and several locked document cases. He placed some other documents and valuables in a plain cardboard box and Sandhu placed it along the corridor on a shelf. Lewis left some gold and money and closed the door to the vault. Sandhu looked away but Lewis said ‘No Sandhu you should know the combination in case anything happens to me or you need to tell the Japanese. Sandhu there is nothing in there that is a valuable as a life.’

Sandhu slapped Lewis on the shoulder and as he laughed said ‘I have known the combination for nearly twenty years.’ They were still chuckling as they replaced the cupboard. Lewis met the guards who moved the boxes that held the contents of the safe to the truck and placed them on board the yacht. All of the soldiers then returned to the house as ordered.

The guards and the driver found Lewis in the parlour sat at a writing desk. He asked each of them their name and then handed them written orders signed and sealed by the Earl of Calgarron. He had used blue sealing wax, a family quirk, and impressed his crest using his signet ring. He said to them ‘these are letters of discharge, go home to your families and make sure they are safe. Good luck.’ His orders said this was necessary as it would disperse the secret of the journey and the cargo.

The soldiers saluted Lewis who saluted back and said ‘take the truck it is yours, Sandhu will give you some different clothes and some rice.’

‘Thank you sir’ said one of the men ‘I have been worried about my family.’

Lewis looked out of the window and just glimpsed Ami running down the hill carrying a small bag.

Chapter 4

Life On The Ocean Wave

Sandhu kissed Calley on the cheeks and said loudly ‘I am so sorry but Ami is too upset to be here but I am sure she would join me in saying may Lord Vishnu bless you and keep you safe.’

Lewis stood on the jetty, saluted those in front of him and stepped into the cockpit of the yacht. He turned the key and the twin motors roared to life just as the moorings were unfastened. He pushed the throttle forward and the yacht with a dinghy carrying an extra two barrels of diesel fuel left the quay and headed out to sea. The boat gradually gained speed until it reached 12 knots as it disappeared into a rapidly darkening ocean.

Lewis lowered the centre board and raised some sails. His plan was to sail by night and motor during the day as the white sails would be visible for miles in daylight. This would restrict him to 10 knots at night and 10-15 knots during the day. The advantage of using the motors was that they could travel in a straight line to their destination. The disadvantage of using sail was you had to follow the wind and tack and jib all the time to make progress and being single handed he could not set many of the sails.

He took the Imperial pennant and attached it to a lanyard so it could be raised quickly if a plane or ship came close. To hedge his bets he also had a white ensign ready to fly off the back of the boat in case it was a British plane or ship.

The boat had been rigged for single handed sailing and so he opened the electric winch cover and pushed the button to raise the mainsail, a job usually requiring three men. The wind caught the sails and the boat leaned over as the speed increased. Lewis switched the engines off and was pleased to see that the speed had increased to 17 knots. He knew that if he stayed on deck and steered the yacht he could make an apparent wind of approaching 20 knots but for a while he would settle for the true wind speed driven from the streams of air running off the mountains and out to sea.

He brought the boat around on course and set the automatic steering unit. He stepped into the luxurious cabin and walked through to the largest stateroom. He wanted a shower whilst the water was still hot from the electricity supplied from the quay. The boat’s engines usually heated the water and ran the rudimentary air conditioning system on board. When under sail they had battery power which was limited to the radio, winches, lights and the sanitation system.

Lewis had intended to change out of his naval uniform and sit for several hours manually steering the yacht to achieve the maximum possible speed. Once the hot water touched his body a wave of tiredness hit him. He had landed at Port Swetenham the day before and had achieved only fitful sleep in the car to Jerantut and that was before they were ambushed. He had not slept at all during the truck journey to Chapel Hall. He looked at the large bed with its soft silk sheets lay down and was asleep in seconds.

Lewis stirred and his arm move across the bed and rested on something warm. He turned opened his sleepy eyes and realised that he was not alone. He smiled at Ami as she lay with her head on the pillow next to him; she disappeared under the silk sheets. They made slow, gentle love and drifted off to sleep in each other’s arms.

He opened his eyes and stared into Ami’s and whispered ‘you look wonderful spotlighted in the sunshine.’ Suddenly, his expression changed his smile disappeared. He sat bolt upright and said ‘Christ! Sunlight, quick get the sails down!’

Lewis and Ami sprinted naked out of bed onto the deck and started to drop the sails.

An hour later they sat next to each other in the cockpit of the boat drinking chilled lime juice. Both were dripping wet through a mixture of perspiration and sea spray with rivulets running down their faces and bodies. It was not only the exertion of carefully stowing the sails and changing the rig of the boat but even at 7am it was nearly 90 degrees. The boat was now running on its engines at 12 knots with the sails safely put away.

Ami leant forward and kissed Lewis ‘Good morning’ she smiled.

‘Ami, I must find out where we are’ said Lewis walking down to the chart room.

From the briefing at Jerantut he knew that HMS Prince of Wales, HMS Repulse and their battle group were about 80 miles north between them and the Japanese fleet. Their course should take them south east away from the battle and towards Tengu Island in the Karimata Strait in which he knew there was an allied naval presence.

He returned to the cockpit with a sextant and started to take his readings. He could smell that Ami was preparing breakfast; the smell of the fried fish wafted out from the galley and threw itself at his taste buds making his stomach rumble. He returned to the chart room calculated their position and plotted it on the large chart on the table.

Ami arrived with some tea and leant on the table opposite. Lewis said ‘we are off course but not by much—

slightly more west that I would like. We are a hundred miles off the Malay coast and a couple of hundred of miles from Borneo and have another 400 miles to go which should take about another three days.’

‘What happens when we get to Tengu?’ asked Ami.

‘There should be water and fuel. Also there is a radio transmitter so I can check for orders. If you remember Uncle Archie built a small hut and water collection facilities; there should be provisions left there for us. There are also mangos, pineapples and coconuts to pick’ he said leaning forward and gently playing with one of her breasts. She didn’t move but just smiled and said ‘always yours.’

They ate their breakfast talking excitedly about what had happened to them in the previous couple of years. Lewis enjoyed the tea, there was nothing like really fresh green tea, from the bush and naturally dried all within about a week.

There was a pause in the conversation and they looked at each other. Lewis stepped around the table whisked her off her stool and carried her back to their bed. She lay on her back grabbed her ankles and opened her legs and said ‘always yours’. Lewis prepared himself as his uncle would recommend and then pounced, kissing and caressing her small breasts and entering her. They reached their climaxes far too quickly.

‘Thank you, Ami that was wonderful’ he said cuddling her. He felt a pang of guilt about Gwen he had become fond of her but it was just a wartime fling, he told himself alarmingly disbelievingly.

The engines droned on and on as the hours passed. Lewis spent some time plotting their course to Jakarta whilst Ami read a book but mainly they talked and enjoyed each other’s company. They also caught some fish by trailing a line behind the boat; grilled they would make their dinner.

There was also pleasure on their journey as Ami had given Lewis a full body massage using only her body. She had learnt the techniques from the girls in the village and her friend Hajar. Ami loved massaging her men because she came so many times especially with Calley. She howled like a porcupine as she orgasmed to his administrations to her whilst she watched his love juices spurting over her breasts. She collapsed onto his body and mumbled ‘no man on earth can do that to me except you.’

They cuddled in the sunshine for a few minutes before the need to deal with the real world re-exerted itself.

Lewis searched the cabins to see what valuables had been loaded; he had checked the Crown Jewels and the cargo before they set