"Sorry, Jamie, but you are wrong. An empty coffin was interred in the crypt, he was buried at sea with his mistress, May-may, in international waters off Hong Kong." She felt tears near. No tears, she ordered herself, not yet. "He was buried at sea. It was a Christian service, done correctly as he wished, and the witnesses were Culum and Tess Struan, Gordon Chen and Aristotle Quance."
"That's not possible," Jamie said.
"Oh yes it is and that's what happened. Your Church hierarchy refused to allow them to be buried together, refused them a Christian burial in hallowed ground in Happy Valley."
"But, Angelique, I saw the funeral.
He was buried there, I don't know where May-may was buried but I agree, she wasn't with him."
"You saw a sham, Jamie, the coffin was empty."
"This is nonsense," Sir William said.
"The hierarchy were adamant against a joint burial," she said as though he had not spoken.
"It was unheard of. They had been scandalized by Dirk Struan for many reasons, as you know only too well, Sir William, but the idea was too much for them. In his will, part of his Testament that's handed down from tai-pan to tai-pan, he had written two weeks before he died that if he and May-may died together, they were to be buried together, that it was his intention to marry her and--"
"He actually wrote that? He was going to marry her?" Sir William said, the others equally shocked, for even today, marriage to a Chinese was unthinkable--ostracism would be permanent, even for Dirk Struan. "He actually wrote that?"
"Yes," she said, seeing that Hoag alone did not share Sir William's consternation.
The English, the British, are such awful people in many ways, she was thinking. Such hypocrites, bigots, uncivilized and different from us, only too aware of their antagonism to marriage of Protestant to Catholic, let alone their detestation of intermarriage with peoples of their Empire.
Why consider intermarriage a heinous sin, she wanted to shout, while you have native mistresses and children by them openly, such hypocrisy! It's never been like that with us, in our French colonies or Empire. If a Frenchman marries a native woman she becomes not only his wife but French with all the protection of French law.
We even encourage intermarriage, correctly.
A man is a man a woman a woman whatever the color of her skin but not to you people. God protect me from becoming English, thank God I can never give up my French citizenship whoever I marry...
What am I saying, she thought with a jolt, bringing herself back to the room and these enemies of her husband. Time enough for such luxury later.
"I find some British attitudes difficult to understand, Sir William, about intermarriage, but then I am French. That aside, with the funeral of my husband's grandfather there was an impasse: your Church was outraged and would not agree to joint burial. The new tai-pan, his son, Culum, was insisting on it--anything other than a proper Christian burial for Dirk Struan was unthinkable, Culum more so than Tess who was very disturbed by Dirk's wishes and his flouting of conventions that were the bedrock of all her beliefs.
Her father, Tyler Brock, now the most powerful trader on the island was vehemently opposed, so was Tess's mother, so were most traders publicly, whatever they felt in private. The Governor supported the Church."
"Quite right," Sir William muttered.
"Yes," she said. "If Hong Kong had been Catholic my Church would have been equally hostile. So the scandal threatened the Colony, and this when most of Hong Kong lay in ruins after the typhoon--with no ice," she added thinly.
They shifted in their seats, except Skye who slouched in his chair with the same slight smile.
Babcott said gently, "It's normal, correct medical practice for important people in these circumstances, Angelique. Your husband was and is important to us. You must believe that."
"I do." She took her eyes off him and addressed Sir William as before, continuing in the same matter-of-fact way: "To break the impasse, a compromise was arranged. The compromise was arranged by Aristotle Quance and Gordon Chen, it was verbal, nothing in writing.
Quietly--the word should be secretly because that was what it was--the bodies were put aboard China Cloud. The Church of England ceremony was officiated at by a Naval Chaplain and Captain Orlov. It was a proper Christian burial. Dirk Struan and his mistress, May-may Sheng were buried together as he had desired."
"If it was so secret how do you know this's true?"
"It was recorded in the ship's log, Sir William, which was at once put into the tai-pan's private vault and all witnesses, Culum and Tess Struan, Aristotle Quance, and Gordon Chen, and of course the minimum crew aboard were sworn by holy oath to secrecy. The Naval Chaplain, who he was I don't know, was sent back to England at once. The other funeral took place with all the pomp due the tai-pan of the Noble House."
The silence stayed in the room, broken only by the breath of the wind against the windowpanes, the afternoon outside fair. Sir William said, "Have you seen the log?"
"No, nor spoken to... to his mother about it."
Jamie said, "Tess Struan could corroborate it, or Gordon Chen--if they would agree to break their oath--and if they wanted to."
Skye straightened in his chair. "This morning Mrs. Struan asked me if this story her late husband had told her was true. Happily I was able to corroborate certain details."
"And you know it's true because?"
"I happened to meet one of the crew who was less susceptible to secrecy than the others. A seaman, Hennery Fairchild--I've no idea if he's alive or dead now--but when I first came to Hong Kong, Sir William, I made it my business to learn all I could about the Noble House, the Brocks, Quance, about the founding of Hong Kong, and the... the various corruptions that took place in high places."
Sir William nodded sourly, finding his bad breath and bad teeth more overpowering than usual, knowing some of the dirty scandals that had been kept from public view and had preceded him. "That's hearsay evidence."
"It would not have much weight in court, Sir William. But it is true."
What to do? the Minister asked himself. Have to do the right thing, by God. The judgment of Paris? No, this is all a typhoon in a wineglass. "Very well, Madam, by all means let us respect his wishes. Jamie send the body at once to Hong Kong for burial at sea, at once," he said crisply, and thought, once there Tess Struan can have at Angelique Struan and I'm damned if I'm going to get between them. What the devil's come over Angelique, never seen such a change! "Quite understand you are loath to go by Prancing Cloud. We'll arrange the mail ship."
"Thank you," Angelique said calmly, "but no, Sir William. My late husband will not be sent like a carcass, in ice, to Hong Kong.
He will not."
"By God, Madame, if I order it, it will happen."
"True, if you order it. But, Sir William..." She glanced at Skye.
"What is the legal position?"
"Legally the wishes of the husband, supported by his widow would take precedence."
"Before I answer that where is there any proof?
There's none. As to preference over whom?" Sir William said testily, "Over Mrs.Struan, Tess Struan, is that what you are saying? We should disregard any consideration of her?"
Skye began to answer but Angelique motioned him to stop, and said, "Not at all. If Prancing Cloud went at once. A fast time to Hong Kong is ten days there and ten days back, in fair weather. A few days to turn around. Dr. Hoag, is there time for your, your ice," she said distastefully, "to preserve my husband's mortal remains properly over that time for his mother to be brought here--if she wished to come?"
Hoag was thinking about Dirk Struan and his legendary May-may, his beloved beauty, and about intermarriage and how he himself wished he had not killed his wife, love of his life.
He often felt he had. His love for her should have been great enough not to have married her, not to have taken her out of her safe, serene Indian life into the disaster he knew would be their lot. And was.
Once again your future is in the balance, Hoag old man. Do you help this girl or Tess Struan? Don't forget it was your fault that bloody assassin lived to frighten her, near to death. "Medically it might be, but I would advise against it," he said with a sideways glance at Babcott, cautioning him not to interfere. "The decision, Sir William, is really whether he should be sent back or not. If not, I think he should be buried as... as his wife wants."
Sir William hesitated, irritated that his solution was not accepted. "Angelique, why are you opposed to going with the body to Hong Kong, if not by Prancing Cloud by mail ship?"
"I am opposed because then he will not be buried in the way that he wishes, like his grandfather--his mother would never admit the other story, could not. I am his widow and I tell you his wishes are my wishes, with all my heart."