Talbot is towering over her. "Hannah, wake up." She wakes with a fright as the dream was deep and real. Looking up she sees him as he blocks the sun from her eyes. "Do you want to eat something? I can start the fire. Sorry to wake you but the sun is beginning to set and we have to prepare for nightfall."
"Umm....all right." She was disoriented. As soon as Talbot walked away from her she fell on her back again exhausted. Shaking now for the dream was so real. Where did that come from? Why did she dream that way? What did it mean? Do dreams have meaning? Was it prophetic? She was shaking her head so as to clear it.
Talbot started collecting some wood for the fire. She just watched him. She felt herself having warm feelings for him inside. He came from the same world that she did. Why was he hiding in a sailor's world? What happened to him that would make him choose this life and leave the other?
She would have to tell him that she found out things about him and that she looked through a trunk that, unbeknownst to her, was his.
Talbot had found cassava that he boiled in a little sea water to give it some flavor. Very bland root vegetable - somewhat like potato.
The leaves of the plant can be made into a spinach form although it would have to be boiled for a great deal of time to soften it. With a very distinct flavor although quite enjoyable when spiced.
This time he prepared the salted pork. That required soaking in fresh water to release the salt that preserved it. In the end the meat could be stewed with the cassava to make a stew of sorts. He was trying his best under limited circumstances. Onions, salt pork, cassava, even carrots that he found onboard. His secret ingredient was rum. There was plenty on the ship to be had. If he could get to the Captain's quarters there would be much delicacies to be found such as red wine, port, cognac and brandy.
The captain was in the habit of entertaining gentry and of course the senior officers on board such as Talbot himself, not for his birth, but his rank. The captain had no knowledge of Talbot's ancestry. Only some questioning glances directed Talbot's way when they would speak on all subjects in the evenings as they would share a glass of brandy together. The captain was confused by Talbot's intelligence and broad knowledge of most subjects. This was far beyond what a usual First Mate would be acquainted with. Although Talbot knew that he confused the Captain and many other people he never spoke about his personal affairs or life.
Talbot was very content for the food that was on the ship. He only had two concerns. The first concern was how long the ship would stay a float butted up against the rock mass. The integrity of the ship was compromised and very uncertain. It would not remain there forever. Possibly the next strong storm would crack it apart and it would sink to the bottom of the sea. How long did he have to retrieve all the usable items out of it before it sank? The second concern was, how long would these supplies last them?
Hannah came over to the fire that Talbot had started, she could smell the food at a distance and it was wonderful. It made her stomach growl. He was a good cook. She was grateful for that as cooking was not her talent, she had cooks to provide all the meals. He was much more talented at it than she was. Collecting berries and coconuts that would not open seemed years ago already. These meals were wonderful.
They ate heartily. Even laughed. As the night fell Talbot was staring at the stars and turning around and around. Hannah was watching him wondering what he was looking for. He caught her staring at him.
"I know exactly where we are. Mariners learn to navigate by the stars. I just don't know how to get us off of this island. I have to find the sextant on board."
"The what?" Hannah had no idea what he was talking about.
"The sextant. Its an instrument with a graduated arc of 60° and a sighting mechanism, used for measuring the angular distances between objects, especially for taking altitudes in navigation. That's the height of an object or point in relation to sea level or ground level. In astronomy the apparent height of a celestial object above the horizon, measured as an angle. And.....in geometry the length of the perpendicular line from a vertex to the opposite side of a figure."
He smiled realizing that he was overwhelming her with information.
She still did not know what he was talking about albeit was very impressed by his intelligence.
Still seeing her confusion he said, "I will draw it out for you." He took a sheet of paper and a piece of charcoal and started drawing a rough idea of the instrument.
'He draws well as well.' Hannah thought as he used the charcoal very well. 'What does he not do?' She asked herself. Watching him with cachet. There was a great deal to respect and admire about Mr. ....Hezekiah....Isaiah....Talbot.
