Land of the Free by Jeffry Hepple Read Free Book Online

and
stopped to examine the papers again. “How soon can we be
underway?”
    “Underway? You mean begin
the expedition?”
    “Yes.”
    He shook his head. “I cannot
say for certain. That man Harvey was to have organized everything
so we could depart when I arrived, but it seems that he did next to
nothing.”
    “What do we need?” She took
his arm again and resumed walking.
    “Personnel.”
    “That’s all?”
    “Yes, I think so. The
materiel is in a bunker at the New Orleans Navy Yard and seemed
quite complete.”
    “What kind of
materiel?”
    “Weapons, tack, wagons,
tools.” He glanced toward the river. “I’ll show you as soon as we
have your emancipation properly documented and have collected your
belongings from the tavern.”
    “I have nothing at the
tavern worth collecting.”
    “Your clothes?”
    “Whore’s clothes,” she
replied. “I don’t want them. I have a little money. Perhaps we
could stop at the market where I could buy riding clothes and
boots.”
    “The market?” He looked over
his shoulder.
    “No, no,” she laughed. “Not
the slave market. The New Orleans market. You can buy anything
there. Except slaves. It’s on the docks near the Navy
Yard.”
    “Oh, I see,” he replied in
obvious relief. “And if you haven’t enough for whatever you need I
shall advance your wages to cover it.”
    “Wages?” she asked in
astonishment. “I’m to be paid wages?”
    “Of course.”
    “How much?”
    “Forty-one dollars a
month.”
    She stared up at him.
“Forty-one dollars a month?”
    “That is a ranking
sergeant’s pay,” he said apologetically. “It is all I am authorized
to pay. Although, that man Harvey received a hundred, twenty-five
dollars in advance as a signing bonus. Perhaps I could petition the
Secretary to extend the bonus to you. But that will take some time,
I fear.”
    “No, no,” she said, waving
her hand. “Forty-one dollars a month is very generous.” She
wrinkled her brow. “Is everyone to be so well paid?”
    “The regular men, such as
musketeers, laborers, teamsters and herdsmen, with no leadership
responsibility, will receive private’s pay.”
    “Which is?”
    “Eight dollars a month and a
twenty dollar signing bonus in advance. I might pay a bit more for
experienced riflemen.”
    “Eight dollars is still
quite good. What kind of men do we need?”
    “What kind?” He smiled. “The
rough kind. Men who can handle weapons and animals. Men who can
survive hard living.”
    “No women?”
    “One woman should be trouble
enough.” He chuckled but the truth of those words hit home and he
began to worry.
    “You will need cooks and
seamstresses,” she said. “Those are female skills.”
    “Our cook will be male and
we’ll have no need for a seamstress. Sailors can mend sails and a
blacksmith can mend harness.”
    They walked in silence for a
time, both lost in their thoughts. Marina’s thoughts revolved
around her freedom and newfound money and Yank was now seriously
considering the inadvisability of taking a woman on the
expedition.
    “Is something wrong?” she
asked, trying to read his face.
    “No.”
    “You look
troubled.”
    “Just thinking.”
    “About me?”
    “About your name,” he
lied.
    She looked up at him again.
“Pardon me? I don’t understand.”
    “Cortés is a famous
name.”
    “Ah, yes.” She smiled. “You
mean the Spanish Conquistador, Hernán Cortés, of
course.”
    “Yes.”
    She nodded. “He was, indeed,
my forefather.”
    “Well isn’t that
something?”
    “He fathered two sons who
were both named Martin. The first Martin Cortés was my
forefather.”
    “Well, well,” he said with a
broad grin. “You must be very proud.”
    “No. Well, perhaps. But not
for the reasons you might think. His mother was an Aztec woman who
acted as interpreter for the Spaniards. Her Christian name was Doña
Marina but she was called La Malinche. Have you heard of
her?”
    He shook his head. “No, but
it seems that you have