LIEUTENANT Samuel deceased.pdf

LIEUTENANT

SAMUEL BLACKWOOD

(deceased)

A Georgian Ghost Story

by Emma Collingwood

Illustrations by

Amandine de Villeneuve

Edited by

Alex Beecroft

Special thanks to

Jane Watson

- 3 -

Editors: Alex Beecroft

With special thanks to Jane Watson.

"Lieutenant Samuel Blackwood (deceased)" is the first book in

the "Penny, Dreadful & Tarbottom" series.

First published in 2007.

The characters and events described in this book are fictitious.

Any similarity to any person living or dead is merely

coincidental. Where historic events and characters are

concerned, incidents, characters and timelines have been

changed for dramatic purposes in certain cases. Any references

to real people and events are for illustrative purposes only.

reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any

form or by any means electronic, mechanical, photocopying,

recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the

For her work, the same disclaimer applies.

In other words: please buy this book, don't copy it. Don't put it

online. Don't scan and distribute it. Miss Collingwood and Mlle

de Villeneuve are poor, suffering artists.

File-share pirates, beware:

Ill-gotten goods never prosper!

- 4 -

"Well, one thing's for sure: I won't get

bored on this journey!"

To Bert - first and best mate

- 1 -

Chapter 1

The men met once a month at Morgan's house to

drink, play whist and discuss the latest political

developments. They came from good families and

were, with the exception of Morgan, not married.

None of them had any desire to change that fact in

the near future; there were too many entertaining

ways for a young buck to run through a fortune that

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did not include settling a wife's milliner's bills.

Morgan, Johnson and Adams, just like their fathers,

worked at the Admiralty, carrying documents from

one desk to another and making themselves

indispensable by loudly bemoaning at every possible

opportunity the great workload that kept them busy.

Had Daniel Leigh believed their stories, he would

have lived under the impression that Britain's fate

rested solely on the narrow shoulders of his friends.

Lieutenant Daniel Leigh also occupied a desk at the

Admiralty, but not by choice. During an expedition

on the French coast he had been badly wounded, and

his mother had insisted that her husband use all

possible influence to keep their only son at home, on

shore and out of harm's way.

Most of his life it had been an advantage to Daniel,

being the son of Admiral Leigh, the great naval hero,

but now he had learned that a mother, worried for

- 2 -

her son's well-being, could seriously hinder the

ambitions of an adventurous young man.

He had long since recovered, and only faint scars

told of his injuries. Daniel longed to be at sea again,

on a fine ship with a capable and loyal crew, serving

under a worthy captain. He fired questions at his

father and eagerly combed all the newspapers for

news on the war. The thought that he might be

confined to his small, muggy office for all eternity

while the men he had served with were out there

fighting made him sometimes so frustrated and

angry that he could barely resist the temptation to set

fire to the documents on his desk.

On that particular night they were five, gathered

around the fireplace in Morgan's drawing room. The

fifth man was Lieutenant Henry Rice, just returned

from a mission near Sicily, and while none of them

mentioned it, they all thought the same: he looked

terrible. Rice didn't participate in the cheerful banter,

and when addressed, he said neither aye nor nay, just

stared into the fire and shrugged. After watching this

strange behaviour for an hour, Daniel couldn't check

his curiosity any longer.

"It's good to see you again Henry, it's been a couple

of months. But pray tell, you look like you've been

through heavy seas lately. Is anything amiss? You're

among friends, you can tell us."

- 3 -

- 4 -

The men looked at Rice, who didn't even turn his

head when he replied to his old friend.

"Is anything amiss? Why, yes, you could say so. I'll

be leaving in a week, and I won't return. You may

drink to my health one last time, my friends, for as

sure as eggs is eggs, I'll be in Davy Jones' locker

before you meet again."

- 5 -

Chapter 2

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There was a moment of silence, then Morgan shook

his head.

"Nonsense, Rice! What makes you think so? Oh, I

know: a bonny lass has broken your heart, and now

you're lovelorn! Ah, trust me, there will always be

another one, lovelier than her predecessor."

Rice closed his eyes.

"A girl? I wish. I've never taken lovesickness too

hard, Morgan, as you well know. But let's not

discuss this any further. I'd like to enjoy your

company one last time, and not spend the evening

with the unpleasant matters that currently bear down

on my soul."

Daniel was concerned about Rice's state of mind.

They had served together as midshipmen for six

years, and he knew him well. Something truly

terrifying must have happened to turn the evercheerful

Henry Rice into the deeply troubled man he

seemed to be now. He had lost a lot of weight, his

face was pale and haggard, but the worst change was

the fearful expression in his dark eyes. From time to

time, he would look over his shoulder, as if he

expected to find some terrible creature standing

there, ready to strike.

- 6 -

"Henry, answer me openly: what has happened? I

have known you for many years, and you know that

you can trust me with your life. What makes you

think that you will die? Have you made an enemy?

Are you ill?"

Rice shook his head and looked at Daniel, making

eye contact for the first time since he had entered the

room.

"Ill? I almost wish I was. I could deal with that, but

no. News reached me today that I've been

commissioned as first lieutenant on HMS Privet,

come next week, and that's a sentence of death."

Adams, Johnson and Morgan laughed, but upon

seeing Daniel's frown and Rice's distress, they broke

off, clearing their throats or busying themselves with

brushing invisible specks of dust off their sleeves.

"You're a good man, Henry, and an experienced

officer. Certainly the thought of being promoted to

first lieutenant can't be such a scare? I could name

twenty men off the top of my head less capable than

you who have made it to post captain already!"

"Daniel, if it was any other ship, I'd be happy and

praise my good luck; I would sit here celebrating my

promotion and we'd all get drunk as newts. But we're

talking about HMS Privet here, and as I've sailed on

- 7 -

that cursed ship for a year now, all I can say is that

this 'promotion' means certain death."

Daniel refilled Rice's glass and his own as well.

"Tell us your story, Henry. Everything. I promise I

won't laugh, and I'm very certain these three gits

here will behave as well."

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Adams, Johnson and Morgan nodded. They thought

that Rice was exaggerating, suffering a bad case of

nerves upon facing a challenge and new

responsibilities, but in any case there was the

prospect of a cracking good story, and the

Englishman hadn't been born yet who would pass up

the chance to hear a good tale.

"We won't laugh, Rice. Go ahead," Morgan

encouraged him.

Rice sighed and looked down at the glass in his

hand, letting the port wine swirl so he didn't have to

see the reflection of his face in the dark liquid.

"Fine then. On HMS Privet, every first lieutenant

I've served under has died under very strange

circumstances."

- 8 -

Chapter 3

They all leaned forward so as not to miss a word.

Rice swallowed hard, but upon seeing Daniel's

encouraging smile, he continued his story.

"It all began six months into my service on the

Privet. The first lieutenant was called Samuel

Blackwood, and he was the most capable officer I've

ever served under. I do not say this lightly, my

friends; the man really never made a mistake. He

must have had an extra set of eyes in the back of his

head, he missed nothing. The ship behaved like an

obstinate pony when he was off-duty, but there was

plain sailing even in the worst of storms when he

was in charge. Daniel, you certainly know all the

things that can go wrong aboard a ship - mouldy

canvas, tangled ropes, accidents - but we knew no

such problems under Samuel Blackwood. It was as if

the ship didn't dare to misbehave while he was in

charge. I swear to God, had the Privet been a cat,

she would have purred under his hands."

Daniel nodded.

"There are such men, yes. They seem to be one with

their ships, and it's usually a pleasure to serve under

them. Everything goes like clockwork."

- 9 -

"Aye, but that's the point: a ship should obey her

captain, just like the officers and the crew! It's our

duty to support him, but on the Privet, the captain

had no say. Samuel Blackwood, you must

understand, was a man of extraordinary charisma.

He was a handsome fellow, tall, charming, witty,

and very popular with the ladies when on shore

leave. The men aboard ate from the palm of his

hand. They would have given their lives for him

without a moment's hesitation. They didn't even

notice that they had a captain as well. Blackwood

gave the orders, and the captain stared out at the sea,

not saying a word. It was as if he didn't exist."

"That Samuel Blackwood sounds too good to be

true," Daniel said. "Who is the captain of the Privet,

by the way?"

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"John Meadows. A good man, but a bit of an odd

fish. He returned to Britain a month before he was

commissioned to the Privet after serving in the West

Indies for many years. I like him, he's a seaman

through and through, not one of those pompous fools

who only wear an uniform because they think the

ladies will fancy them. Tall man, quite reckless,

sarcastic, yet he treats the men fairly and with

respect, and he knows his business. At least that was

the case when I first met him."

- 10 -

"Maybe he brought some illness with him?" Daniel

suggested, but Rice shook his head.

"At first I thought he couldn't take the wet and cold

climate here, but he's just - fading away, you know

what I mean? Mind you, we hardly ever see him

nowadays. To be quite honest, I didn't expect the

Admiralty to let him keep his command. He's not fit

for service, a blind man could see that."

Daniel leaned back in his seat, folded his hands and

rolled his eyes.

"A blind man might see it, but not the Admiralty.

They can't tell their arses from their elbows. But go

ahead, Henry."

Rice pushed a strand of hair out of his face. It was

hot by the fire, and he loosened his cravat.

"After all I've just told you, it might be surprising to

hear that I didn't like Samuel Blackwood. I guess I

was the only man aboard the Privet holding that

point of view, but just like you, Daniel, I felt that he

was too good to be true. He sought my friendship,

but I kept my distance. Blackwood probably didn't

even realise how overbearing he was. It's ridiculous,

I should have counted myself lucky that he was a

man capable of taking command, considering the

state the captain was in."

- 11 -

Daniel licked his lips and leaned forward.

"Did Captain Meadows like him?"

Rice gave Daniel a surprised glance.

"Did he like him? That's a good question. I never

really thought about it. I think he was as charmed by

him as the other fools, but there were moments when

I thought that..."

He frowned and bit his lip, his hold on the glass

tightened. Daniel hoped that Rice would share his

thoughts, but then the man shook his head.

"Oh, I don't know - who can tell what's on a man's

mind! The trouble really started when Samuel

Blackwood went overboard during a storm. It was a

terrible shock for all of us, but it must have been

worst for the captain. He was inconsolable, locking

himself up in his cabin for two days, talking to

himself. My word, Daniel, I thought he'd lost his

mind! But then, one morning - I had just finished the

second dog watch - he came on deck, and he looked

better than he had in weeks. He even exchanged a

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