Johnny Dupl'eau

Johnny Dupl'eau never made notes - nobody could even say for certain whether or not he could read, let alone write - but he was a skilled ship's master and knew instinctively how to get the very best out of his crew.

"It was certainly a smart move to think of using his body weight to help raising the sail!" Johnny replied, drawing a plate of pork pies towards him, quartering one at the edge of the plate, hanging it momentarily on the point of his dirk before tilting his head back, allowing the morsel to drop into his mouth.

"What do we know about Jake?" he asked, as he dusted crumbs from his richly embroidered waistcoat.

Sam stared at him.

"What d'you mean? You must have hired him: I'm sure he was already on the crew when I joined in Southampton!"

Johnny began to laugh: then paused, a frown troubling his brow.

"Perhaps it would be just as well to ask him along for a brief chat .............

When questioned, Jake was equally vague in his recollections of when and how he joined the ship. Other than confirming that he remembered Sam joining them at Southampton, however, he was unable to shed much light on the mystery: in many ways, Jake's vagueness complicated things further.

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