Chapter 6 To the Brothel
Rory's other business had taken him to see 'Doris', the owner of a brothel.
Doris wasn't her real name but everyone knew her by it. He wanted her to take
Beatrice into her house until he returned from the next leg of his trip which
was the long journey to Danzig. Doris would hire out the girl and pay Rory for
finding her. This he argued would cover the fare she should have paid for the
trip. Doris agreed thinking she could make a lot of money by offering punters a
real English Lady.
Later that evening Rory went to Beatrice and Jaz. He took her best dress with
him. "Put that on," he said, "And be ready to come with me in ten minutes."
"Where are we going?"
"Where you can earn enough money to pay your fare home. You aren't going to earn
that much as a deck hand."
"You taking 'er to a brothel Capt'n?" Jaz asked, "Doris's?"
"That's right, and don't think you are going to persuade me not to. As you
already know, Emma has more than paid her way, but this little bitch, has been
more of a liability."
"But Capt'n Sir, she gives herself to us now. Let's keep her. The men like a
wench to dip the cocks in when they are at sea."
"No good Jaz, I've arranged it with Doris."
Beatrice was crying in Jaz arms when Rory returned. "Look here Beatie, for a
couple of weeks you'll have a soft bed to lie on and all you'll have to do is
open your legs like any other whore and like you have to now. Come on. I ain't
wasting any more time."
Half the crew were already ashore getting drunk at the local taverns so Rory was
able to take the girl without causing much notice. Even Emma didn't know. Doris
took the girl in looked her over and stated Beatrice had better do something
about her appearance. She didn't look much like an English Lady.
Another girl led her to a room where she was undressed, washed and perfumed. The
girl was horrified at the bruises that still showed on her arse. They looked
worse because Jaz had added a few slaps that morning when she tried to become
her old truculent self now they were in port. As many of her clients were
English seaman, the girl could converse a little with Beatrice but couldn't
fathom the whole story. She powdered over the bruises as best she could in the
hope that any clients wouldn't look that closely.
After being fussed over and pampered for a little while, Beatrice began to
think, life here would be much better than on the boat. Perhaps when she earned
enough, she could pay her own way home on a regular passenger boat. Little did
she realize that nearly all the money she earned went to Doris. She only had a
relative pittance.
Knowing Beatrice was only on short term loan, Doris wanted to get her money
quickly. She put up a notice.
For a short time only
we have a Genuine English Lady.
Lady Beatrice d'Lisle
If you can pay the price, you may do as you wish with her.
She didn't really expect much as word would have to get around but it so
happened that the notice was spotted and word passed to Count Kaiser von
Darrenstein. He was rich, had rich friends and a hatred of the English
aristocracy. During the following afternoon he called and booked Beatrice for
the night for himself and his friends to use 'as they pleased.' With this one
booking, Doris could pay off Rory and still be comfortably in pocket herself.
She knew the Count had sadistic tendencies and expected Beatrice to be out of
action for a couple of days so she allowed for that in the asking price.
Count Kaiser von Darrenstein arrived with four of his friends about eight in the
evening. They were all in their early twenties and had been drinking most of the
previous few hours. Now they were ready for sport and what better to provide the
sport than one of the hated English nobility. Beatrice was hustled to a large
room in the cellar and told to strip. She showed up white in the dim light but
the Count wanted a better look and called for more lanterns. In the extra light
her saw the bruises and spat out a stream of invectives in German. He complained
of being sold soiled goods. One of his friends spoke more English and found the
reason for the marks but it still did not satisfy the Count. He hit her face,
kicked her arse and then picked up a whip and used it on any part of her body
that presented itself. Had not the others restrained him she would have been
killed. They laid her on the bed, gave her a little wine until she regained some
of her senses and then began fucking her, not only in her cunt but one of them
enjoyed her arse as well. Sobbing with pain, and drifting in and out of
consciousness, Beatrice had to endure it for several hours before they sated
themselves and left.
One of the girls found her and called Doris who did her best to revive and ease
her pain. Bruises and whip marks covered the whole of the poor girl's body.
Blood ran from her broken nose. She would be unable to move for days and
unlikely to work again before the ship returned. She cursed the Count for going
too far.
*******
Emma was furious with Rory for having done such a thing to Beatrice. She
verbally lambasted him and they had their first real row. She tried insisting he
take her to Doris's there and then but Rory had by that time gotten very
stubborn and refused. Eventually things calmed a little when he agreed to see
Doris in the morning. He took another slug of his whiskey and settled down on
the bunk. Before long he was snoring. Rory rarely drank while at sea but usually
in harbour when all seemed quiet, he made up for his abstinence. Emma knew their
would be no love making that night and went on deck to get some fresh air, if
the air in the port could be deemed fresh.
Jaz was depressed. His had not only lost his plaything, he had lost his status
symbol as well. No longer did the crew have to come to him to ask to fuck
Beatie. His day had passed as it often did in mending and repairing torn canvas
so that evening he decided to take himself to the town. Maybe look in at
Doris's. She catered for all tastes and pockets, one side of the building for
the seamen, the other for richer clients.
Jaz dressed in some decent clothes came on deck at the same time as Razer
appeared similarly dressed. Jaz asked if he too was going to the town and they
decided to go together.
"Wait!" Emma's voice came clearly across from the other end of the ship.
"Miss Emma? You can't come with us." It was Razer who answered.
"You know what they have done with your Beatrice, Jaz?"
"Yes, Miss. She's in bad trouble. But we can't do nothing."
"What do you say Razer? I guess you've been to Doris's before. Can we get her
out?"
"Might be difficult Miss. They keep a lot of strong arm boys there in case of
trouble. We might all end up in a kraut jail. Even with the whole crew to back
us up, we'd find it difficult."
There was more discussion and for a short while Emma leaned on the rail deep in
thought. "Hmm. You want her back Jaz? You willing to work for a sovereign
Razer?" Both agreed but looked stunned when she asked them to accompany her to
the tax office.
"Why there? It'll be empty." Razer was even more puzzled.
"No it won't. They live above the office and I got invited yesterday. You can
guess what for."
Their knock was answered by one of the officers still in his shirt sleeves. The
other was lying on a bed reading. For what seemed ages to the two crewmen, Emma
talked with the officers. Suddenly all seemed decided. The officers dressed in
the full parade uniform and with Emma between them and the two bewildered crew
following behind, marched to Doris's. Emma was really glad she hadn't come
alone. All along the way were drunken and unsavourary characters. There were
whores touting for business and pimps trying to pressurize men into their dens.
Marching attracted attention and soon a little crowd followed them but the five
kept on until they arrived at the rich man's entrance to Doris's brothel.
At the desk, Emma requested in her best formal German to see Doris but was told
she was unavailable. The senior of the two officers stepped forward and again
formally but politely suggested it would be in her mistresses best interest to
see them now or maybe the whole place would be closed down by morning.
Eventually she agreed to send someone to see if Doris was available. Minutes
later Doris herself appeared.
Emma introduced herself, then asked if she knew the officers and receiving an
affirmative not, introduced her crewmen as her protectors. "Can we go somewhere
private to talk?" Doris didn't wish the crew to come with her but Emma insisted.
"They won't understand a word of our conversation but if I am harmed, then you
and many of your staff will be too. But I hope we can do this all amicably. I am
willing to negotiate and I am sure you will be too especially as one of the
cards I hold is your unpaid tax bill. Hence my friends in uniform." The two
officers clicked their heels and bowed.
"First of all I want you to have Lady Beatrice d'Lisle brought in here." Emma
saw Doris's face go white fore a moment.
"That cannot be, Fraulein."
"Please explain exactly why not? She is in the building is she not?"
"Perhaps, Fraulein Emma."
"Good, then either get her or take us to her. Or do we have to contact the Chief
of Police as well as the tax office?" Doris couldn't get to grips with the
logic. The Chief she paid off so he wouldn't be willing to pull a raid unless
this young English girl who spoke German so well knew something she didn't. Was
it bluff? Or did she really know something? The Lady wouldn't be of much more
use to her for a while so why not try and cover her own arse?
"You know Capt'n Rory brought her here for us to use until he returned. It was
such a short length of stay that when a rich client wanted to have her for the
personal pleasure of himself and friends and he paid well, I hired her out to
them for the whole night. However, they must have been unsatisfied with her as
they left early and we found she had been the victim of some abuse. We have been
caring for her since but it is obvious she will not be able to perform for us
for some time."
"What do you mean by 'the victim of some abuse?' How bad?" Emma's voice was
sharp.
"Pretty bad. They beat her up." Emma reflected that only a couple of weeks ago
she would have been glad if Beatrice had been beaten and now she was being
protective of her.
"Can she be brought here please so we can see for ourselves?"
"Ya. But be prepared. She looks bad but we are doing all we can for her. I think
much of it is superficial. She should recover fine given time but we don't have
her for long." Doris went to the door and called for two girls to bring
Beatrice down. Emma heard one of the girls say they might have to carry her as
she wasn't walking very well even so she wasn't prepared for the sight as the
girls half carried Beatrice into the room and sat her on a chair.
Jaz nearly went berserk and would have hurt Doris had not Razer on Emma's
orders, restrained him. He turned his attention to his little Beatie and gently
and carefully held her. "We take her back to the ship, no matter what the Capt'n
says," he muttered.
"Yes, we will," stated Emma.
The Tax officers were horrified too. They had seen the girl only in working
men's clothes but knew underneath she was quite pretty. Emma heard them question
Doris while she looked over Beatrice's injuries. Her face was badly bruised,
swollen and distorted and when Emma lifted the thin nightdress she could see
multiple of bruises that were obviously kick marks and the stripes made by the
whip. Beatrice tried to talk but nothing really coherent came out.
"Shush, Beatrice. Don't try and talk. We'll take you back and I am sure Jaz will
look after you and care for you. I will too. Don't worry about Rory. I'll deal
with him. But first I must have a few more words with Frau Doris." Emma then
launched into a virulent verbal attack on the incompetence of Doris to supervise
and control her clients and suggested she must have known all along they were
going to harm her. She called the women all the vilest names she knew in a
flurry of words that for a moment or two left the others speechless. The two
girls that had brought Beatrice down, looked worried and pale. Eventually, when
Emma paused for breath, Doris suggested they carry on any further conversation
in English so as not to frighten her staff. She dismissed the two girls.
"Frau Doris. You obviously knew what the men were going to do as you said they
paid you well. Maybe you didn't expect them to go this far, but you knew they
were going to hurt her and hurt her badly therefore you charged a high price. I
know what Rory expected to receive from you when he returned. You will pay me
double that now." Doris started to quibble and the conversation lapsed into
German again but in a more business like way. In the end they agreed on a figure
that was fifty percent higher than Rory's but that was only after more threats
of tax investigations.
Doris asked to go to the safe room to collect the money but Emma insisted the
tax men accompany her. While she was gone, they asked Beatrice if she wanted to
stay here or be taken back on board the Red Witch and when she chose the ship
they talked about how to look after her. Jaz of course said he would do it but
the others wondered how she would cope if the passage got rough. In the end they
decided to buy a good thick feather mattress for Jaz's bunk and she would sleep
there with or without Jaz.
Doris returned with the money and after the usual heel clicking, bowing and
curtsying the party were escorted to the door. And they made their way back
along the street. Jaz carried Beatrice like a baby in arms until the reached the
tax office where they rested for a few moments. "Look after her boys," Emma
said, "I have to pay my debt to the tax men tonight." The others were perplexed
but she shooed them off. "What do we tell Rory?" Razer asked.
"Nothing. I hope I am back before he wakes. If I am not back on board soon after
breakfast come and get me."
"I am curious," said the younger tax man as they mounted the stairs to their
room, "Where you learned to swear like that in German. I hear a lot of bad
language in the docks but yours was more colourful than any."
"Carls," replied Emma, "My grandmother was German and she brought me up. To help
him learn the language my grandfather bought some indecent books while over
here, He said it gave him an incentive to learn. Of course while they lived I
never saw them but they were among the thing I inherited when she died.
Emma slept with the two. They fucked but for her she was only paying a debt.
Without their help she would never have be able to get into Doris's domain.
