The Stoker

 

His eyes could pierce my very soul

His scowl could match my frown,

His hatred seemed to lurk beneath

The coal dust on his brow,

The stoker of the 'Antic Queen'

Was sallow, hollow-cheeked,

A voice that echoed, like the clang

Of echoes, from the deep.

 

He worked the vessel's engine room

Built up a head of steam,

He sprayed each layer of coal across

Like someone in a dream,

It glowed white-hot, he'd slam the door

And cast his shovel clear,

'A pox upon you, Derek Sloane,'

He'd call, when I was near.

 

I'd make believe I didn't hear,

Go through the bulkhead door

And make my way back up on deck,

I'd heard it all before.

His wife had tired of all his moods

Had eyed me through the crowd,

She'd left the stoker for me then,

The lissom Ann O'Dowd.

 

She'd always had a roving eye

I knew that from the start,

But reason has no part to play

When love attacks your heart.

We'd had a month of jollity

She'd wrecked my only bed,

When I went back to sea

The lovely Ann had filled my head.

 

We'd only been at sea a day

When I was sent below,

To see why steam in number two

Was building up so slow,

And then it was I saw O'Dowd,

I'd thought him still ashore,

Or coaling on another ship

En route to Singapore.

 

He came up to my cabin once

His shift was at an end,

And told me he had plans for Ann,

A coffin for a friend,

Then leered and sneered, 'I've said enough,

But you remember this,

Your Ann's as good as dead, old chum,

Before you leave this ship!'

 

I brooded on his words for days,

There wasn't any phone,

I couldn't use the radio

Without it being known,

I couldn't tell the Captain as

He wouldn't understand,

I had no proof of anything

That Tom O'Dowd had planned.

 

We hit the Bay of Biscay and

A fog came rolling in,

You couldn't see a dozen yards

Around the 'Antic Queen',

We cut our speed to seven knots

And edged on through the murk,

The foghorn sounded off and on

The sky was getting dark.

 

All that night we kept a watch

Until at early light,

A tanker nosing through the fog

Came steaming, out of sight,

She hit us just behind the bridge

And buckled plates without,

I rushed down to the engine room

To put the fires out.

 

O'Dowd was lying on the coal,

All covered in its dust,

The sea was pouring in too fast

To leave it all to trust,

I swung the heavy metal door

And sealed it from the tide,

O'Dowd jumped up and hit the door,

With terror in his eyes.

 

He screamed at me to open it,

I watched him through the port,

But regulations told me

To do nothing of the sort,

The ship was the important thing

And sometimes men must die,

But secretly, I smiled within

For Ann was safe and dry.

 

O'Dowd stood back and stared at me,

And realised his fate,

His wicked eyes stared through me

As the water lapped his feet;

I couldn't hear, but I could see

Him mouth two words of note,

He shouted 'parcel bomb', and drew

His hand across his throat.

 

The water rose, washed him away

I raced up to the deck,

The ship was listing badly

It would shortly be a wreck,

We got the lifeboats out by chance

Along the starboard side,

And drifted out as 'Antic Queen'

Turned turtle, rose and dived.

 

Three days it took to get on home

I couldn't contact Ann,

She wasn't answering the phone,

I took a cab, I ran,

I saw the note hand scribbled there

That lay, it seemed like hours,

To read that Ann decided she'd

Be true to all her vows.

 

She'd gone back to O'Dowd, she said,

Her husband, right or wrong,

I'd be all right, she said, I'd find

Some woman; just be strong.

I raced around to where O'Dowd

Had lived in Ratton Place,

The wall had blown out in the street,

Of Ann, there was no trace.

 

He'd left a bunch of flowers there,

A present tightly wrapped,

A note to tell his darling wife

That he would take her back;

She must have opened it, I think

A smile, a look serene,

O'Dowd had laughed the final laugh,

Down in the 'Antic Queen'.

 

David Lewis Paget

Reviews

[Cherrie Palmer]

that was a great story !! :)

[Valentine]

David, each new tale continues to amaze me at the talent that you have..I love reading your work as you well know by now..I just can't figure out how you manage to keep so many thoughts and tales inside of your mind and can bring them out onto paper for all of us to enjoy..Your memory must be vast..God bless dear friend..Valentine Thank you for another hum dinger of a tale!

[Gandré]

I liike your metric poetry, it is classical and wonderful to read, this story was heart-wrenching.

[Jinx's Heart]

Wow! That drew me in so hard that I couldn't stop reading. Excellent flow to it and the mysticism was well displayed. Very awesome piece of work!

[54321]

wow. this is amazing! one of my new favorites i must say! the story twists and turns and being written in iambic meter helped it just flow along like a dance! loved it!