Bongo, his guards and oarsmen looked on; the blank and puzzled faces had only questions that they could not answer within themselves. They had never seen Fial cry and believed it was an emotion that did not dwell in a helper of their god. What power from the crossroad of life had brought this upon their idol and crushed his spirit to that of the vanquished?
Bongo, familiar with the way of the white man, gave Fial a life line in front of his flock. He spoke softly amid the silence and muffled sobbing. "Bwana Fial. We bring your son. He wears mojo of Mama Queen."
Fial, sobbing in a curled mess on the deck, raised his head from between his hands, looking up at his son but saying nothing. He rose as he gathered himself, stood and embraced his son. He held one arm around his son's waist and led Will to the door and steps leading to the lower deck of the Ghost.
He gestured with his hand for Will to go below deck and spoke to Bongo. "Bongo my man, thank you, we will be back shortly." They went below deck to Fial's cabin where he sat Will down in front of him and finally spoke to him. "William my boy, you have grown into a fine man. I am lost for words here."
"Grandfather told me all he heard of you since we last met. He made the news into stories before I went to sleep. When I went to study in England, I would bring the stories back to him. Grandmother passed away two years ago. He lives alone in Bantry Bay."
Fial stared at the plain timber wall. "I can see her now, she was a fine woman." He looked back at Will. "You studied in England, what have you become?"
"An engineer; I build steam engines."
"Bless my soul boy."
"The chest is still there. We have used only a pittance of what is in it. Thank you father."
"I asked your grandfather not to tell you."
"Grandfather is a wise man. Too much of your life had been spent getting us the chest. It would all be lost with his passing. I needed to know or all could be lost."
Fial lowered his voice to a whisper. "Lost, the dead men I took it from are all lost."
Will became agitated and raised his voice, "The money was won over the dead bodies of my grandparents, the farmers and seamen of Ireland. It is the spoils of war, the war is over but the fight has just begun."
The room fell silent but inside Fial smiled. "Well behold, my son, a man after my own heart."
"I have come to take you home."
Silence again prevailed. "Home. I have no home. Home is where the Ghost is anchored."
"You have a home father, same as the black men here now have a home. Did you know slavery has been abolished in the British Empire? Wilberforce is dead father but one month after his passing Westminster passed the Slavery Abolition Act. Your black friends are free."
Fial stood but sat down again. "Why have I not been told of this?"
"The inquisition is finished; the clergy have been stripped of their judicial power."
"Why have I not been told of these things?"
"The people here love you as I do father, your safety is important to them. Two years back there was a rebellion of slaves in Jamaica. It turned the tide of public opinion and the outcry was so loud Wilberforce grasped the power of the people. It was the straw that broke the camel’s back."
"The organisers of that uprising were educated here. Are you telling me we made a difference?"
"A difference? All the difference."
Fial wore a look of disbelief. "At times I thought I had failed, even to this moment. Can I go and tell Bongo he's a free man?"
"You can. We still have work to do. I have read this act. They have become legalised workers with limited rights."
"While I have been here boy I have found a people and land so far removed from us I fear it will be crushed by those in power."
"Then if the fight is to continue it must be fought in the corridors of Westminster."
"Do you remember the first time you saw the Ghost boy?"
"Aye, etched into the mind of my heart."
"Her guns have been silent for years son, but she is kept ready should we need her. She grows old and the methods of her sword grow old. We need a new sword boy."
"You are done here father. I need you at home, with you at home I can marry. I will need a grandfather to tend my son for if I am to fight like Wilberforce he too may be without me for most of his life."
Fial stood up and walked to the door. "Come boy, time is short and the ways of negotiation long."
"Father wait." There were a few seconds of anticipation before Will spoke. "I came on the Angelina; I learnt of her through tavern stories."
Fial put his hands on Will’s shoulders and shook him with a wide smile on his face. "Your mother was from a tavern boy, she gave you to me and she's brought you back. Is she not the grandest thing you have ever seen?"