[Flying Dutchman 01] - Castaways of the Flying Dutchman

The boy looked up from his task. “Not really, it’s all like a record of Captain Winn’s career, admiralty orders, sea blockade plans, and these newspapers. Look, 1854, war declared against Russia by Britain and France. September fourteenth, the Allied armies landing in the Crimea, the siege of Sevastopol. It goes on and on, British history, right through the Indian Mutiny, up to Africa and the Zulu wars in the late 1870s. No family history here that would help us. Let’s have a look at this fancy trunk.”

He opened the carved chest. This looked more interesting at first glance, it had a fragrance of flowers, rose and lilac. Fine, dark red tissue paper separated the contents. Ben unpacked it and found a Chinese dragon-embroidered gown, bundles of letters tied with blue silk ribbon, a huge family Bible, a child’s crayon drawings of landscapes and people, signed laboriously with the name James Winn, and photographs, some in cardboard frames bordered by hearts and doves.

Ben spread these on the carpet and studied them. “Hmm, what a handsome couple. Young Lieutenant Winn and his fiancée, Winifred, taken on the seafront at Brighton. Some wedding photographs, a picture of this house with Miz Winn standing in the garden. Here’s another of them both with a baby carriage that must have been taken when their son Jim was born. Winnie wasn’t joking when she said there were lots of memories here. What d’you think, Ned?”

The Labrador turned over a packet of letters with his nose. “Shall we take a look at these? There’s lots of ’em.”

Ben shook his head. “No, they’re love letters from when the captain and Winnie were courting. We don’t want to pry into personal things like that. They’re far too private.” He set the letters to one side. “Well, I think we’d better take a look in the desk. There doesn’t seem to be anything that can help us here.”

Ned gazed reprovingly at his friend. “Except the Bible!”

Ben did not catch his dog’s drift for a moment. “The Bible?”

The Labrador placed his paw on the volume. “Aye, Ben, the good book—every family should have one. Good for the spirit, a great source of scripture, and usually a book where family records are kept.” Sometimes Ned’s knowledge of things was as surprising as his own.

Ben needed both hands to lift the huge Moroccan leather-bound family heirloom. “Of course! The family Bible. Good old Ned!”

The dog stretched out and yawned. “Good old Ned indeed, where’d you be without me?”

The boy placed the hefty tome upon the desk, smiling fondly at the big black dog. “Probably drowned off Cape Horn!”

It was a magnificent Bible, with a stained silver clasp holding it shut, faded gold-edged pages, and woven silk place markers. Ben dusted off the cover with his sleeve, undid the clasp, and opened the ancient volume. On the inside cover was a hand-sketched angel, bearing a scroll written in gothic script.

“This Bible belongs to the Lord and the family of Winn. Blessed are those who trust in the Lord and live by His word.”

Ben leafed carefully through the yellowed pages. Apart from beautiful illuminated verse headings and several colorful illustrations, there was nothing out of the ordinary. At the back of the book, he discovered a number of pages, some blank and others filled in by different hands over the centuries. Details recorded of births, deaths, and marriages provided an almost complete lineage of the Winns for several hundred years.

Ben read some of the details aloud.

“Listen to this, Ned. ‘Edmond De Winn wedded to Evelyn Crowley. 1655. Lord deliver us from the plague of Black Death. 1665. A son, christened Charles in honor of our King. 1669. A daughter christened Eleanor.’ It says here that Edmond fathered more daughters, Winefride, Charity, Gwendoline, and three others.

“Poor old Edmond, eh, Ned, a son and seven daughters. Quite a few mouths to feed.” Ben closed the giant book. “This doesn’t seem to be getting us anywhere.”

The dog leapt up. Placing his front paws on the desk, he began frantically nosing at the Bible beneath Ben’s hand. “What’s the matter, boy?” Ben tried to push him away.

“What’ll Miz Winn say if you slobber all over her family Bible?”

But the dog persisted, sending out urgent thoughts. “The back of the book! I could see it from where I was lying. The back, Ben. Down inside the spine, something’s there!”

Ben quickly shut the book and stood it on edge. He peered down the space between the spine and the pages. “You’re right. It looks like a folded paper. Wait!” He took an ivory pair of chopsticks (one of the captain’s souvenirs) and delicately fished the object out.

As Ben carefully unfolded the paper, the black dog looked on. “A piece of torn parchment, with two tiny holes burned in it. There’s some wording on it. Read it, Ben, read it!”

The boy scanned the writing awhile. “It starts off strangely. Listen: ‘Re, keep safe for the house of De Winn thy treasure.’ ”

Ned’s tail wagged furiously. “Treasure! I think we’re on the right track. But what does ‘re’ mean?”