But the man pushed her aside without a word.
“Benjamin!” Sibylla cried in disbelief. “What do they want? You are a subject of the queen. They are not allowed to treat you like this!”
He stopped and, for the first time, looked at her directly. There was fear in his eyes. “Inform Consul Willshire at once! There has been a grave misunderstanding.”
The guard grabbed his arm and hauled him forward. She watched numbly as he disappeared into the dark.
“If there is so much as an ounce of truth in the qaid’s accusations, then we’re talking about your husband’s head, Mrs. Hopkins.” Consul Willshire sank wearily into the divan.
It was long past midnight. Many hours had passed since the Black Guards had led Benjamin away, since a distraught Sibylla had burst into her neighbors’ house with news of the arrest. The consul had not wasted a moment before leaving for the governor’s palace. In the meantime, his wife had gone back to Sibylla’s house to take care of her while they awaited Willshire’s return.
“All of this is going to be cleared up, you’ll see. By tomorrow, the whole thing will seem like nothing more than a bad dream,” Sara had insisted, but Sibylla could sense the other woman’s fear.
Now, Sibylla looked into the unsmiling face of the consul and said with strained calm, “Please, Consul, take a seat. May I offer you a cup of tea? I’m sure you could use it.” She picked up the pot and a cup from the tray Nadira had brought and placed the steaming beverage in front of the consul. Then she took a seat opposite and waited for him to take a few sips before she asked, “What is my husband being accused of?”
Willshire took a deep breath and placed the cup on the table. “I’m not going to mince words, Mrs. Hopkins. Your husband is being accused of trading in slaves. For three years now, one of the ships of the Spencer & Son Shipping Company has allegedly been taking on slaves and selling them overseas.”
“Good God!” Sara gasped, with a horrified look in Sibylla’s direction.
“Slander and nonsense!” Sibylla sputtered. “Benjamin has always had difficulties with the qaid. I’m certain this is all a plot against him.”
Willshire shook his head in doubt. “Apparently, the qaid has been having your husband watched for some time and is quite confident in his claim. Please forgive my bluntness, Mrs. Hopkins, but what makes you so certain of your husband’s innocence?”
“Because slave trading has been illegal for over thirty years and my husband knows it. He would not violate the law, especially to the detriment of my family’s company! And besides, I cannot believe that any of our captains would stoop to such shameful business.”
“According to Qaid Hash-Hash, the captain in question is Captain Nathaniel Brown of the Queen Charlotte.”
Sara got up and solicitously filled her husband’s teacup. He gave her a grateful smile.
“There is something more, I can tell,” Sibylla said with her heart in her throat. “What are you keeping from me? Mr. Willshire, I beg you to tell me everything you know!”
He cleared his throat. “Earlier this evening, the qaid of Mogador interrogated your husband, and His Excellency permitted me to be present. Your husband naturally denied all accusations, but then the governor produced a witness.”
“Whom?”
“Samuel Toledano. And, Mrs. Hopkins, his testimony against your husband was severely incriminating.”
Sibylla pounded the table with the palm of her hand. “Mightn’t it be possible that Toledano is lying to divert attention away from himself?”
“You may be correct.” Willshire lowered his head. “Of course, he will try anything to save his own neck. My impression is that he procured the slaves, Captain Brown organized the transport, and your husband was pulling the strings . . .”
“But it’s possible that Brown and Toledano are the only guilty parties and are simply using my husband as the scapegoat,” Sibylla interjected.
“Perhaps,” Willshire replied doubtfully. “But Brown is at sea and the qaid cannot arrest him. He cannot touch Toledano because, as tujjar al-sultan, he is under the ruler’s personal protection. So that leaves only your husband. He is the chief culprit as far as the governor is concerned. The only thing in your husband’s favor is the fact that Hash-Hash has not yet found the revenues of this business.”
Sibylla had a lump in her throat. To think that her own husband could be involved in the slave trade!
“Of course, Hash-Hash will do everything to find that money,” Willshire continued. “If there is so much as an ounce of truth to the story, it must be a fortune.”
Sara Willshire, who had been silently listening to the revelations, moved a little closer to her husband, disgust and horror on her face. Sibylla could well understand. She herself was fighting with all her might not to give credence to the accusations.
“But, Consul, how could it be possible to load slaves in the port of Mogador without attracting attention? The whole thing is absurd!”
Consul Willshire emptied his teacup and sighed. It pained him to be the bearer of such bad news to Mrs. Hopkins, all the more so since he considered the accusations plausible. He was not himself fond of Benjamin. He detested the man’s showing off and thought him absolutely capable of something as despicable as trading in slaves. But he respected Sibylla as an honest and incorruptible woman.
And so, he responded with the greatest reluctance. “Toledano claims the slaves were taken aboard at Cape Juby, an abandoned Spanish trading base about one hundred miles south of Agadir. Toledano’s karwan bashi could conceivably have brought them there straight through the Sahara from Timbuktu.”
Sibylla shook her head, bewildered. “And you believe all that? Do you really believe it?”
Willshire raised his shoulders. “To be perfectly honest, I don’t know what to believe, Mrs. Hopkins. Your husband has, of course, accused Toledano of fabrication. On the other hand, the overseas sales of slaves are very enticing because of the exorbitant profits. Money like that can lead many an honest man to flout the law.”
Sibylla cradled her head in her hands. “Mr. Willshire, what are we going to do to help my husband?”
He hesitated. “If you wish, I can ask Consul General Drummond-Hay in Tangier to address an official note of protest to the sultan.”
For a moment, Sibylla thought she had misheard him. “Well, of course you will do that, Consul! But what are you going to do in addition to that?”
Willshire squirmed. “I am very sorry, Mrs. Hopkins, but at this moment, we do not know the whole truth of the matter. The slightest indication of culpability on your husband’s part could bring about serious diplomatic disagreements between Great Britain and Morocco.”