Lost Empire (Fargo Adventures 2)

Sam was nodding. “A code: Pull out the marked characters and combine them in a hidden message.”

“Yes. But Blaylock, ever the mathematician, didn’t make it that simple. I’ll spare you the details, but he used the dates and page numbers to create a subtraction filter. For example, if the filter is a three, you take the letter G, subtract three characters, and get the letter D.”

“One of the first things we learned,” Wendy said, “is that Constance Ashworth was working for the Secret Service. She was his conduit to the powers that be.”

Sam chuckled. “I did not see that coming. How did you find out?”

“The hidden message in Blaylock’s third letter read, ‘Inform Camden ship in Bombay for repairs; crew, Maximilian men all, quartered Stone Town.”

“What are Maximilian men?” asked Remi.

Sam answered. “After the Civil War ended, Emperor Maximilian I of Mexico opened his doors to Confederate soldiers who wanted to fight on. At the time, the U.S. was backing partisans who were trying to overthrow Maximilian. He offered the Confederates quid pro quo: Fight for me first, then we’ll take on the U.S. government. Estimates vary on how many Confederates went down there, but it was enough that Washington was concerned. When you combine Dudley’s report that white men were crewing the El Majidi with Blaylock’s mention of Maximilian . . . It adds up to a rogue Confederate intelligence operation. Someone went down to Mexico, recruited some sailors, and dispatched them to Zanzibar where the El Majidi was waiting.”

“To what end?”

“To continue where the Shenandoah left off, I imagine. That ship did immense damage while she was active, and there were plenty of powerful factions in the Confederacy that swore to fight on regardless of the surrender.”

Wendy said, “What confuses me is, how did they get access to the El Majidi?”

“Hard to say. One thing we do know is, the second Sultan of Zanzibar—the brother of the man who initially bought the Shenandoah—had no love for either his brother or that ship, and yet, when he had a chance to scuttle her after the 1872 hurricane, he didn’t do it. In fact, he had her towed to Bombay and repaired at what was probably great expense.”

“Maybe this secret Confederate cabal had already purchased her, and the Sultan had no choice,” said Pete.

Sam’s brows furrowed at this. He stood up and walked to one of the computer workstations, where he began typing. After a couple minutes he turned in his seat. “Before he died, the first Sultan of Zanzibar had started to secretly crack down on the slave trade in his country. When his brother took over, the policy was reversed.”

Selma was nodding. “So if, against all odds, the Confederacy rose again, the second Sultan would have a built-in market for his slave industry.”

“It’s all speculation, of course, but the pieces seem to fit.”

“Okay, go back to Blaylock’s first coded message,” Remi said. “He mentions ‘Camden.’ Who’s Camden?”

“Camden, New Jersey, is where Thomas Haines Dudley was born,” Selma replied. “We think it was Blaylock’s nickname for him rather than an official code name. In fact, Dudley had his own moniker for Blaylock: Jotun.”

“It’s from Norse mythology,” Wendy added. “Jotun was a giant with superhuman strength.”

“Of course,” Sam said. “Jotun. I don’t know how I missed that.”

Remi lightly punched his arm. “Smart aleck. Don’t mind him, Wendy. Go ahead, Selma.”

“In another letter to Dudley via Constance, dated July 1872, Blaylock reported that the El Majidi—now re-dubbed Shenandoah, we presume—had returned to port with her crew already aboard. Blaylock suspects the repairs on the ship had been completed at least a month prior and that the ship and crew had been at sea since then.”

“Were there any unaccounted-for attacks or losses in the area during that time?” asked Sam.

“Dozens. For a long time the Indian Ocean was a bigger pirate haven than the Caribbean. But we weren’t able to connect the Shenandoah II to any of the losses. It’s at this point the story gets stranger. Blaylock ends his report with this line: ‘Have acquired reliable vessel and received Sharps.’”

“As in Sharps carbines?” Sam asked; Selma nodded. “Dudley must have arranged for them to be shipped to Blaylock.”

Selma went on. “‘Nilo-Hamitic crew learning rapidly and overcoming fear of water; expect to be fit to give chase by month’s end. Intend to catch them red-handed.’”

“Nilo-Hamitic?” Sam repeated. “Never heard of them.”

“I have,” Remi replied. “Nilo-Hamitic is an outdated name for the Maasai tribe. It appears our mysterious Mr. Blaylock recruited a guerrilla army of Maasai warriors to chase down the Shenandoah II.”

“Well, I’ll give him this much,” Sam said. “The man had a flair for the dramatic. According to Morton’s biography of Blaylock, he lived with the Maasai for a while.”

“He did,” Selma replied. “As far as we can tell from his letters, he explored the area inland from Bagamoyo and became friendly with some Maasai. That’s how he started the recruitment.”

“Okay, so it’s July 1872. The Shenandoah II has a new crew and she’s prepped for battle. What then?”