Daughter on his Doorstep (HC #2)

22: Magistrate Slavery Search

At the prestigious boarding school the Duke of Thorne had paid handsomely for his sons to attend, Thomas had spent more time than he would have liked in the headmaster's office. As a result, he became very used to looks of weary disappointment tinged with the threat of corporal punishment. It was very like how the magistrate was looking at them now.

The Magistrate, a man by the name of Owens, was a rotund man a good few inches shorter than Thomas himself. He stood with his hands resting on his belly, fingertips occasionally stroking his finery, and cast contemplative looks at those gathered before him. Thomas wondered briefly in the beard was a personal or professional choice, as it made him overall more difficult to read.

His aides on the other hand were terrible at hiding their thoughts. Four young men, all lanky and bespectacled and carrying so many books and papers it looked as if their arms might snap, huddled around him with panicked looks on their face. One in particular kept casting a horrified expression at the Spanish flag that flapped limply above their heads and then swallowing heavily as he buried his nose back in the text before him.

It was not a comforting sight.

The rest of those gathered were split down the middle. To the stern of the ship were the Humphrey brothers, Thomas standing at the front of their cluster. Across from them, Edward Thorne was shadowed by the now disarmed crew of the ship and his sneering eldest son. Surrounding them all, at the magistrate's request, was a ring of constables whose hands twitched on their sabres whenever someone on the ship took too deep of a breath.

"Your honour..." Edward Thorne's voice, which had carried so much disgust only minutes earlier, was now laced with honey as he approached the magistrate slowly. "I'm afraid I must inform you that this ship is the property of Spaniards. We should all remove ourselves, for fear of breaching international law." He held out a hand, gesturing the man to the gangway.

The deeply concerned aide had already taken two steps before his superior answered. "If I didn't know better, I'd think you were trying to get me off the boat, Thorne." His head snapped to the side, startling his attendants. "Make a note of that."

Henry, standing behind his father, shook his head emphatically.

"If it were in my power to grant you time here, I would, sir," Edward replied, his expression even, "but alas..."

Magistrate Owens issued a grunt. "International law is clear; foreign vessels may not be boarded without express consent." His fingers drummed on his belly.

Thomas was frustrated beyond measure; they were already on the boat! Why were they discussing whether they could board the boat they had already boarded when they could be looking for the women? His mouth opened...

... but another spoke. "Unless there is evidence of illegal activity."

Thankfully, the men on deck had been waiting for the Magistrate's next words with bated breath, otherwise they may not have heard Vincent at all. He stood at the back of the group, hands clasped and head bowed slightly. In the silence that followed, he glanced up and froze.

"You there," the magistrate pointed one thick finger at him and Vincent visibly balked, "what did you say?"

Vincent returned his stare with wide eyes. His mouth moved slightly as he searched for words.

The duke stepped forward into the magistrate's line of sight, blocking Vincent. "Your honour, the boy is not all there in the head. He-"

"Foreign vessels may be boarded with cause." It was difficult to miss the snap in Vincent's tone, even if his gaze was deliberately focussed on the magistrate.