Page 105 of The Moonstone Hero
“No, Your Grace. Only those spots where you are seeing unexpected uprisings against the British. Do not tell me the Ashanti are the only ones in rebellion. Take a closer look at those governors. Question the injured soldiers as they return to England. You must do this.”
Wellington arched an eyebrow. “You are telling us what to do?”
“I ampleadingfor you to do this. Your Grace, you are England’s hero who led us to victory against Napoleon. Would you not be outraged if your own countrymen were feeding you false information about enemy battle strengths? Refusing to allow your own scouts to get the lie of the land for themselves?Purposely ordering your men into a massacre? Colluding with the Dutch, French, or Portuguese for the goal of seizing profitable mines or plantations for yourself?”
“Are you accusing Fulke of colluding with other countries?”
“He did collude, whenever it served his purpose. I sent off my reports addressing this very concern. Where did they go? Has anyone read them? What will it take to make you understand? You set him up like a potentate, with unrestricted authority to do as he pleased. Need I repeat, you left me helpless to stop him. So he tore up the existing treaties and ordered me and my men into a massacre. Has he done the same again? Was he the only one the Ashanti killed, or were other lives lost because of his venal actions? What else are you not telling me, Lord Palmerston? This outrage cannot be only about Fulke.”
“It isn’t,” Palmerston admitted. “Those mercenaries you mentioned… They were all killed as well.”
Caden inhaled sharply. “Where were the Royal Marines in all this? I know my regiment was replaced by fresh forces. Were they harmed, too?”
“No,” Lord Palmerston quickly assured him. “This is what had me confused. But if what you say is true, then everything starts to make sense. Fulke surrounded himself with his mercenaries and sent the regiment off on some wild goose chase.”
“Thank goodness for that.” Caden shook his head and sighed. “Fulke must have wanted them out of the way while he conducted some other private dealings designed to enrich himself and cheat the Crown. The Ashanti are the most powerful tribe in the region. They were not going to put up with Fulke and his greed.”
He paused to gauge their interest in what he was saying. They all appeared to be listening avidly.
“I’m sure Fulke thought the Fanta and other local tribes would serve as another layer of protection for him, since they are natural enemies of the Ashanti. But they never had the disciplined military strength of the Ashanti. He was an idiot and bound to fail. Which brings me to another point. What training do any of these governors have? Was Fulke told anything of the area’s history? Taught the language? Tested in any way? How did he qualify for his position? Merciful heaven. How was such a man ever selected?”
Palmerston cleared his throat. “That is something to be looked into. I’m sure we did not send Fulke off into Ashanti territory without any briefings.”
“You just gave him free rein to shut us out and do as he pleased. And off he went, with his hand out, ready to take all the bribes offered, and no one in place to look over his shoulder and restrain him. How could you hand him control of the Royal Marines? Was anyone even aware he had torn up the hard-fought treaties we had in place? This is just one spot around the world. Who else have you put in power in our colonies?”
“Indeed, how many crooks have we put in place?” Earl Grey muttered.
All eyes were on Palmerston now. He frowned. “We are the greatest power in the world. Obviously, we are doing many things right.”
“But there is much room for improvement,” Wooton commented. “And the fixes seem rather simple.”
“I could not have been the only commanding officer who expressed concerns. How many others were reporting similar problems?” Caden asked. “Where were our complaints going? Did any of mine ever reach your desk, Lord Palmerston?”
Palmerston sighed. “No, they did not.”
Wellington pounded his fist on the table. “What a bloody mess. Has our chain of command been so badly degraded? Andwhy are there no generals or admirals at this meeting? What is their responsibility in all this?”
“This is part of the problem,” Caden insisted. “You have shut them out here and around the world. Can you not see this?”
He wound up speaking to these high-ranking officials for hours. They had more questions, and then brought in their underlings, who asked more questions. Caden did not know if they would ultimately act upon any of his suggestions.
Would Abbott’s activities fall under closer scrutiny? There had to be other businessmen doing the same. For all he knew, that weasel could be but one among a wider circle of privateers sowing discord for their own profit. It required a large purse to fund mercenaries, and he did not think Abbott had the wealth to do it on his own.
Caden personally viewed men like Abbott as snakes. Cut off their ability to bribe territorial governors, and you effectively cut off the head of the snake.
His own role was to protect the Crown interests on the battlefield and secure its peaceful operations. No commanding officer wanted to operate with his hands tied behind his back, as he had been forced to do while Fulke held all the power.
It was the wee hours of the morning by the time the meeting broke up. To Caden’s surprise, Stafford was still waiting for him. “What did you tell them? What did they ask you? What was decided?”
Caden’s voice was hoarse as he began to fill Stafford in. “You had better clear everything through Palmerston before you print a single word of what I am about to tell you.”
“Why? Did he demand confidentiality?”
Caden grunted. “No, I wouldn’t tell you anything if he had asked me to keep it quiet. But I don’t want the villains alerted, especially if Palmerston and Wooton plan on acting on theinformation fast. They’ll want the element of surprise on their side.”
Stafford rolled his eyes. “Nothing moves fast in government. Besides, you have been giving speeches about these ills for the past two months. It does not matter whether or not you named anyone specifically. The bad players know who they are and have been scrambling to hide their involvement.”
“I suppose. Gad, what time is it?”
