Chapter 13 Chapter Thirteen Boarding the "Western Tower"

The next day, September 3, at 10 o'clock in the morning, the Occidental Tower drew up her small sails and sailed out of Scarpento harbor with the wind. The middle cabin and even the gun positions on the ship were filled with slaves redeemed by Henry.Although the crossing of the archipelago took only a few days, the sailors tried to accommodate them as comfortably as possible. Captain Darbale had been preparing to sail the day before yesterday.He posted a surety for his thirteen thousand pounds, which the judge was pleased with, and the embarkation of the prisoners proceeded very smoothly.Those who, three days before, were doomed to suffer on the slave ships of Africa, can now disembark in some Greek port without worrying about their freedom.

Able to be rescued, thanks to the man who took them back from Nicola Scota!So, as soon as they hit the deck of the Western Tower, express their gratitude in moving ways. Among them was a "priest," an old missionary to Leondari.He led his long-suffering companions toward the stern, where Haddina and Henry were with several officers.They all knelt down, and the old man stretched out his arms to the captain: "Henri d'Albarai, please accept the blessing of all those you have rescued!" "My friends, I just did what I should do!" The captain of the Western Tower was deeply moved.

"Yes, . . . blessings from all . . . from all . . . and mine, Henry!" said Haddina, also on her knees. Henry hurriedly helped her up.At this moment, from bow to stern, there was a shout of "Long live Henri Darbale!", "Long live Hadzina Elizondo!" Only one prisoner, the one who hid herself in the fair, did not join in the cheers.As soon as she got on board, she was preoccupied with not being noticed.She squatted in the darkest corner, and no one paid attention to her.She evidently hoped to remain undiscovered until she landed.Who is she?Why so careful?Did she know some officer or sailor on this ship?In any case, she must have some unavoidable reasons to cover up.

If Henri Darbale deserves to be applauded for what he has done, what should Hadzina deserve for what he has done since leaving Corfu? She said to Henry: "Hadzina is poor, but she is worthy of you!" She is indeed poor!Are you worthy of an officer? ... we can draw conclusions right away. If Henry had loved Haddina at the time of the momentous event which separated them both, how much would that love have increased when he knew what the girl had passed through during the long days of separation! When Hadzina found out how the property left by her father came from, she immediately decided to use it all to redeem prisoners of war. Most of the 20 million was earned by selling prisoners of war. won't stay.She discussed the plan with Kechalis, Kechalis agreed, and all the securities in the bank were converted into cash.

Then, Henry received a farewell letter from the girl asking for forgiveness.Accompanied by the faithful Kechalis, he quietly left Corfu for the Peloponnese. At that time, Ibrahim was still fighting a savage and cruel war in the middle of Morea.Those unfortunate people who survived the massacre were transported to Patras or Navanori, the main port of Messenia, and then used ships-including chartered by the Turkish government-but most of them were provided by pirates, Ship them by the thousands to the slave markets of Scarpento or Smyrna to be sold. During the two months that Hadzina and Kechalis left, they had been in the slave market around Messenia, and they had redeemed thousands of people, no matter how high the price.Then, try to settle them, either to the Ionian Islands, or to the free area of ​​Greece.

After this, they came to Smyrna in Asia Minor, where the human trade was very prosperous, and many Greek prisoners of war were transported here.Hadzina especially wanted to save them, and she offered a high price to make money for the Ottoman authorities, so she did a lot of business with her. At this moment, Hadzina thought of another problem. She wanted to achieve her goal in two different ways. It was not enough to simply redeem these sold slaves.We should also find a way to crack down on those pirates who are doing evil among the archipelago. She was in Smyrna at the time, and had heard about the Occidental Tower, that it had been equipped by the Corfu merchants, and what it was for.Just then it came that the Tower of the West had lost its captain, some officers and sailors in an encounter with the pirate leader Shakdiff.

Hadzina immediately got in touch with the merchants in Corfu, and she paid for the boat.She used the name of the owner of the Lagus Bank, but actually belonged to the heiress of Elizondo.She was trying to emulate Popolina, Modena, Charalia and other patriotic heroines.In the early days of the war, the ships funded and equipped by these heroines dealt a huge blow to the Ottoman navy. At this point, she thought of making Henri Darbale captain of the Tower of the West.Kechalis had a nephew, a Greek sailor, whom Haddina trusted.This man had been secretly following the young officer when he searched for Hadzina all over Corfu, and when he joined Fabvier on the Isle of Theo.When the patrol ship was re-staffed, he was ordered aboard as a sailor.It was he who passed the letter from Kechalis to Henri d'Alballe.The first was for him to take up his post at the Tower of the West, and the second was for a meeting at Scarpento in early September.

After arranging a series of things, Hadzina was ready to come to the appointed place and wait for the Western Tower when the time came, hoping to use her own ship to send the last batch of captives back to Greece. However, the six months of continuous traveling made her suffer a lot and experience countless dangers. Even the central part of the coast of North Africa, where pirates gathered, did not stop the brave girl.Accompanied by Kechalis, she risked her freedom and her life to accomplish her mission, regardless of the dangers her youthful beauty posed. Nothing could stop her, and she set off.

Like a charity nun, she frequented markets in Tripoli, Tunisia, and even the coast of North Africa, paying top dollar for Greek prisoners of war whenever they sold them.Wherever there is a priced Greek, she appears with a purse.She also learned about the miserable situation of the slaves through these. At that time Algiers was still under the administration of a rabble of militias, who lived by looting and selling slaves.In the 17th century, there were nearly 4,000 captives on the African continent, all of whom were plundered from European countries such as France, Italy, Britain, Germany, the Netherlands, Greece, Hungary, Russia, Spain, and Poland.

In Algiers, Hadzina paid special attention to finding Greek prisoners of war on the penal ships.As for her personally, it seems that she is protected by gods in the dark. Although she has experienced dangers, she can always turn dangers into safety!In six months she traveled in a canoe all over the coast of the Mediterranean -- from Tripoli to the edge of Morocco -- all the way to North Africa.Those poor prisoners of war lived in cellars twelve or fifteen feet below the ground without seeing the sun. Waiting until her mission was completed and her father's money was nearly spent, Haddzyna prepared to return to Europe with Kechalis.She took the last batch of redeemed slaves and sailed to Scarpento on a Greek ship, where she wanted to meet Henry and return to Greece on the Western Tower.Unexpectedly, three days after leaving Tunisia, their boat was hijacked by a Turkish warship, and they were taken to Alcazar to be sold as slaves! ...

In short, the result of Hadzina's efforts was that thousands of slaves were redeemed by the money they had earned from selling them.The girl is penniless now, but she does her best to atone for her father. This is what Henri Darbale has just learned.right!Poor as Haddina was, she was worthy of him.And to get her back from Nicolas Scotta, Henry is now as poor as she is! The next day, the Western Tower saw the land of Crete in the morning light. At this moment, the ship was sailing to the northwest of the archipelago. Captain Darbale wanted to sail along the eastern coast of Greece to the island of Evie.There the captives could disembark from several safer places from raids by the Turks in the interior of the Peloponnese.Now, there is no Turk in the Greek peninsula. All these poor souls, being cared for on board the Western Tower, were gradually recovering from the nightmarish ordeals they had endured.During the day, they can gather on the deck and breathe the free sea breeze.Mother and child, husband and wife who would have been separated forever will never be separated again.All because of Haddina.So whenever she walked across the deck on Henry's arm, people greeted her and expressed their gratitude. In the early morning of September 4, the Western Tower could no longer see the peaks on Crete.At this time, the wind also began to die down, and although the sails were fully hoisted, they could not travel much in a day. In short, there was a delay of at least one day, or even more than two days, which was not expected in advance.The sea is peaceful and beautiful, and the sky is clear and blue.No sign of any weather change.Now, as the sailors say, there is only "floating", and let God decide when the voyage ends. Such calm sailing is perfect for chatting on board.There was nothing to do, but the officer of the watch and the sailors on the foremast deck reported the land and ships in sight. Hadzyna went to the chairs in the stern for them.What they often talk about now is not the past, but the future, because they have grasped the future.They drew up various plans, of course not forgetting to have the courageous family, Kechalis, to approve them.The wedding took place as soon as they arrived in mainland Greece, which neither of them disputed.Hadzyna would no longer have any business problems to delay her wedding.The act of kindness she spent a year doing made it all so much easier!After marriage, Henry would put the Tower of the West in command of Toddros, and he would take his young wife back to France, and he would bring her back to his motherland. This evening, they were talking about these things.A breeze bulged the sails of the Western Tower, and a brilliant sunset painted gold on the misty horizon to the west.The things are a few stars that have just been drilled, twinkling.There are countless bright spots dancing on the surface of the sea.Another fantastic night. Haddina and Henry were intoxicated by the night.They watched the white spray the boat plowed in the sea, seeing and hearing nothing but their own business.After a while, Henry was brought back to reality by an anxious cry. It was Kechalis standing before them. "Captain?..." Kechalis called him for the third time. "What's the matter, my friend?" Henry felt that Chalice hesitated. "What is the matter with you, my good Chalice?" asked Haddina. "I want to tell you something, Captain." "What's up?" "That's what happened. The passengers on the ship...the people you sent home...they have an idea. Let me discuss it with you." "Okay, I'm listening, Kechalice." "Look, Captain. They know you're going to marry Haddina..." "Of course." Henry replied with a smile, "It's no secret!" "That is to say, these good people hope to be the witnesses of your wedding!" "Okay, Kechalice, let them all come when the time comes. No bride's wedding honor guard has ever been composed of people she personally rescued." "Henry! . . . " The girl wanted to interrupt him. "The captain is right," said Kechalis. "Anyway, they're coming, uh..." "As soon as we get to the mainland of Greece," said Henry, "I'll have them all come to the wedding." "All right, Captain," said Kechalis again, "but after that thought, they had second thoughts!" "Is that a good idea too?" "Better. They want you to have your wedding on the Occidental Tower! Isn't the ship that carried them back to their home country a part of Greece too?" "Well, Kechalice," replied Henry, "do you agree, my dear Haddina?" Haddina held out her hand in answer. "Good answer," said Chalice. "Then you can announce to all the passengers on the Western Tower," Henry added, "the wedding will be as they wish." "Okay, Captain." Kechalis hesitated, "But, there are more!" "Go ahead, Kechalice," said the girl. "That's right. These good people, after they had a good first idea, a better second idea, and now they have a third brilliant idea!" "Yes, the third one!" said Henry. "And what is the third one?" "Not only on a ship, but at sea, . . . tomorrow! There is an old priest among them . . . " Chalice's words were interrupted by sailors looking out from the foremast. "There is a boat!" Henry d'Albalay immediately found Captain Todros, who was looking in that direction. A fleet of twelve ships of varying tonnages, large and small, appeared about six miles to the east.At this time, the Western Tower was at a standstill due to the lack of wind, but the fleet was slowly approaching this side with the help of a gust of wind. The patrol ship could not blow the gust of wind, and the fleet would eventually approach. . Henry took the binoculars and carefully observed the direction of the fleet. "Captain Todros," he said, turning to the mate, "is too far away to observe her intentions and her firearms." "Captain," said the mate, "there is no moon tonight, and it is so dark that we cannot judge! We will have to wait until tomorrow." "Yes, that's the only way," Henry said, "but this area is not very safe, so please observe carefully! At the same time, be prepared for these ships to attack the Western Tower." Captain Todros immediately issued the relevant order, which was carried out immediately.The patrol ship stepped up its vigilant lookout, which lasted until dawn. Due to sudden circumstances, everyone had to put the wedding on hold for the time being.Hadjina returned to her cabin to rest under Henry's repeated requests. That night, the whole ship got very little sleep.The appearance of the fleet at sea caused everyone's uneasiness.As long as possible, everyone will pay attention to the movement of the fleet.But around nine o'clock, thick fog formed on the sea, and for a while, I couldn't see anything. The next day, as the sun rose in the east, there was still a mist on the horizon.Because there was no wind, it didn't disperse until ten o'clock in the morning.Nothing suspicious could be seen through the haze.But when the fog cleared, the entire convoy suddenly appeared less than four nautical miles away.It approached the Western Tower two nautical miles during the night, but it didn't come any closer because the thick fog hindered its movement.There were about a dozen ships, propelled by the oars of convicts.However, due to the large size of the patrol ship, it was impossible to move it by hand, so it had to wait in place. Now the intentions of the fleet could not be more clear. "The boat looks suspicious!" Todros said. "Especially suspicious," said Henry, "is that I recognize in the middle the brig which we missed off Crete." The captain of the Western Tower was not mistaken.The brig that suddenly disappeared in the waters of Scarponto was the command ship.The other ships acted on its orders. At this time, a gust of east wind blows, which is more conducive to the advancement of the fleet.The advance of the fleet stirred up slightly green waves on the sea surface, and suddenly stopped advancing not far from the patrol ship. Henry suddenly dropped the binoculars he had been using for observation and shouted, "Get ready to fire!" A puff of white smoke rose from the brig, a ball of fire exploded over the patrol ship, and a flag hoisted from the brig's mast. This is a black flag with a big red S across the center of the flag. This is the flag of the pirate Shakdiff.