7. CURSE OF THE MAD PIRATE

Chapter 1

When the secretary of the Governor of the Cape of Good Hope entered, the man was distraught and pale.

“Your Excellency,” he said, breathlessly, “there is a matter of urgent importance. There is one Jansen van Vuuren, a citizen of the settlement, who urgently wishes to speak with you.”

“Jansen van Vuuren?” asked the Governor. “Who and what is he?”

“He is a citizen, Your Excellency. Actually, a hunter, I believe. He supposedly observed something in Hout Bay that he wishes to convey to you.”

“What is it that the man wishes to convey?” asked the Governor, somewhat irritably.

“I regret, Your Excellency,” answered the secretary nervously, “but he will not tell me. He says it is something very dangerous, but he wishes to convey it to you personally.”

“Let him come in,” commanded the Governor.

A moment later, a smallish man stood before the Governor. He nervously held his tricorn hat in his hands. The man was clearly exhausted to the point of death and utterly terrified. His small eyes darted back and forth, and he bowed low when he appeared before the Governor.

“Are you Jansen van Vuuren?”

“It is I, Your Excellency. Gerbrandt Jansen van Vuuren.”

“What is it that you wish to convey to me, Van Vuuren? Why can you not tell it to the secretary?”

Jansen van Vuuren, in his worn clothes, took a step closer. “Your Excellency,” he said, “I have come to speak with you myself because I saw something that should not be.”

“What is it, man?” asked the Governor, out of sorts. “Do not beat around the bush. Tell me what you wish to say.”

“A pirate ship, Your Excellency.”

“What?”

“A pirate ship, Your Excellency. I saw it myself in Hout Bay. It lies there at anchor.”

The Governor leaned back in his magnificent chair and laughed lightly. “My dear Van Vuuren,” he said, “you are surely touched in the head.”

“Your Excellency, I swear. I swear it is a pirate ship. I went hunting in Hout Bay and saw it. The pirate flag flutters on its mast. A warship, Your Excellency. I saw its cannon ports with my own eyes.”

The Governor stopped laughing. His eyes were now serious, and he looked attentively at the weathered man before him.

“Van Vuuren,” he said, “do you wish to tell me that a pirate dared to anchor in Hout Bay? A pirate here at the Cape of Storms? Here, close to the fire mouths of our castle? No, man, no, I do not believe it.”

Van Vuuren fell to his knees and frantically pressed his hat between his fists. “I beg you, Your Excellency. You must believe me. It is a pirate ship. If you do not wish to believe me, send someone to go and look. I am your servant, I am your subject. Why would I deceive you? I beg you, in the name of heaven, believe me, Your Excellency.”

The Governor leaned forward on his large writing desk. Was this man possessed, or was he merely a nuisance? Or could it be that he was speaking the truth? But a pirate ship here at the Cape of Good Hope? It sounded so impossible. What would its intention be?

“Very well, Van Vuuren,” said the Governor, “I thank you for your information. I will find out what is going on here.”

“Thank you, Your Excellency,” said Van Vuuren, rising and bowing submissively again. “I beg you, you must investigate yourself if you do not believe me. I ran from Hout Bay all the way here. Over the mountain.”

In the small eyes of the citizen, the Governor saw sincerity and earnestness. Therefore