SILENCE IN WONDERLAND (#AStormOfFanFiction)

IV - 'Then, Why Don't We Make One?'

You'd think that after our stunt in Alexandria, I would learn.  But no.  Oh no.  Here I am again, posing as my dear employer's loving wife for the remainder of our stay here in the Philippines.

Mr Ambrose saw the increasing demand of sugar and hemp in London.  He wanted to exploit that so he came straight to the main source - Manila.  I don't think that's the only reason though.  I have a feeling there's more to his sugar-abaca story than he let on.  He just hadn't told me yet.  I'm sure though it had to do with the tales I heard about a galleon ship full of Spanish gold bars that sunk off the Pacific Ocean.  Surely, he was after that.

The gold-hoarding miser.  Pshh.

And to make our acting more believable, this time he had to employ a babe fresh out from the mother's bosom.

Or not him but Karim.

How he did so with all that imposing size and bushy beard was beyond me, but it was working.  He was able to successfully encourage the mother to let us borrow her babe for the three days of being here.

'Sufficient,' I heard Mr Ambrose say when Karim returned in our cabin cradling the babe of probably a year old in his arms.

'Give that thing to Mr Linton.'

I narrowed my eyes at him.

Was he serious? I never handled a baby before!

'It's your plan, you hold the babe yourself, Sir.'

He eyed me - or more like threw daggers of ice at me, and then examined the sleeping thing again with a look that told he'd rather wear skirts - and then back to me, narrowing his eyes infinitesimally.

'You hold it or you'll be kissing your full wage goodbye.'

Without a moment's pause, I held out my arms and Karim was more than happy to hand over the babe to me.

I gave both of them a scowl and naturally, it didn't affect them.

Gazing down, the poor Little One still kept on sleeping.  He looked oblivious to the machinations of my dear evil employer.

'Aren't you the sweetest thing.'  I couldn't help it.  I just had to kiss the babe's supple cheek.  Despite my disapproval of this set-up, I just couldn't resist the charms of an angel sent from Heaven.

From the periphery of my vision, Mr Ambrose looked at me in silence.  A meaningful silence.

But after a second, he said, 'Make your motherly act believable when we disembark this ship.  You can't possibly just give that thing kisses on the cheek.'

I twisted my lips.  'What would you have me do huh? Offer him my...uhm...breast to suckle on?'

A ghost of a blush, or maybe just my imagination, happened to appear on Mr Ambrose's face.

'If that's a must to make this plan work.  Go ahead.'

'Go ahead, Sir?' My temper rose.  'Of course! That would be advantageous for you.'

'Good that you see the benefit in it.'

He strode past me and went for the door.