The Journey To Acre

Chapter 26

After an overly long stay in Acre, the men of the Mary Peel were glad to see the back of the place.

The otherness of the orient was invigorating for a spell, but soon became tiresome and without familiar routines, many struggled and slipped into dissipation. Consequently, the news they were to depart came not a moment too soon.

We need journeys you see.

Destinations.

Plans.

It's who we are.

It's what we do.

Turn the hourglass over and begin again... with memories of our adventures to sustain us along the way...

Of an evening, the men liked to talk of journeys past. Indeed, lively discussion of former escapades was a much-loved diversion. And all were certainly in agreement that their most recent voyage had given them more than enough to talk about...

But in all of this, one question remained... and as with all things left unresolved, one could not help but wonder...

Whatever happened to their former guests?

**********

No sooner were the remnants of the final search cleaned up and the shores of Acre behind them, than the 'What happened to Sir Guy and Lady Marian? betting circle' was established and became enormously popular. Not that anyone had much to throw in the pot; most had burned through their funds onshore, but that hardly seemed to matter - there was diversion enough to be had in discussing whatever theories were doing the rounds and supporting or ridiculing them as mood prevailed.

One small group was excluded from all this; the men everyone assumed knew the truth. And lord knows their fellow crewmen tried to winkle it out of them, but as tempting as it was to spill the beans, they never did. Not even Ingram and Cleggy could be swayed - deciding instead to ridicule everything, whether it was close to the mark or not.

Eventually, as with all things, interest waned and new sources of entertainment replaced those of old. Sully and his inner circle were immensely grateful to no longer be subject to the scrutiny of their colleagues and it was truly a relief as thoughts turned to their upcoming arrival in Greece.

Little did that small group know, there was one man still watching them. One man who knew them better than they knew themselves.

It came as a bit of a shock therefore, to observe the Captain take his place at Sully's side one morning, just as they'd set course for land, and ask (with a wry smirk and a tilt of the head to the approaching shoreline) that which he has suspected for quite some time;

"They're here, aren't they?"

Sully doesn't answer, but then he doesn't have to. His expression says it all.

**********

Smuggling ships were like grains of sand on the beach.

For every above board deal there were two done under the table.

The movement of goods from one far-flung country to another has been going on since the earliest humans found ways to traverse the oceans, and with those goods came people who for whatever reason were keen to start afresh elsewhere. The desire to flee has a long tradition and the methods to do so were plentiful.

Guy and Marian were fortunate in having a friend who knew a thing or two about that. Desertion might be the lowest disgrace to some, but Sully had seen the worst this war could do and therefore had never had a problem with helping someone if he could.

So as Marian had come to see him - distraught and wrung out, unable to see Guy and left to think the worst, he'd found he couldn't turn her away. Some might say, that with Guy at death's door, only a fool would agree to break him out, but then he never did care much for what people said. It was his friend who lay dying. His friend who was the closest thing he'd ever had to a son. His prickly, bad tempered, irascible mess of a companion, who'd burrowed under his skin and was rarely far from his thoughts...