We cast anchor on the morning of the 16th. The fog had made the last days of the journey tougher, but we managed to moor without problems. I remember the intense cold. On that day, a rare icy chill could be felt on Terceira Island but from then on, it was mostly the humidity that constantly made us aware of being mainlanders.
Gathered on the deck, all the passengers waited impatiently for their turn to get off the ship, hitting their feet on the ground and rubbing their hands because of the cold.
Once outside the boat, Diogo and I felt a bit disoriented. We knew we had to find a place to stay, but we had no idea where to start looking.
«We better find a carriage and ask the driver to leave us at some inn».
Diogo didn’t have time to reply, for no sooner than I had finished the sentence, a familiar voice behind us said: «I suppose you have no place to stay...»
Diogo and I turned around in surprise. It was Rodrigo. We still hadn’t seen him that morning.
«Would you accept a suggestion?» «Of course». «Well, come on then. Over there, on that street, there are usually many carriages».
We followed Rodrigo and minutes later we were inside a carriage with our luggage.
«To Chapel Street!», Rodrigo exclaimed to the driver.
«Where are you taking us anyway?», asked Diogo when the carriage started moving. «To the IlhaBela Inn. It’s a paradise for a liberal, you’ll see». «Oh, really?», I asked, not very convinced. «And why is that?» «Because the owners are liberals and their guests are very carefully handpicked. In fact...»
Rodrigo hesitated, unsure that it would be wise to reveal it all in one sitting. «In fact what?», Diogo asked. «Well, I suppose there’s no point in making a mystery of it any longer. The guests at the inn are all liberals. Mostly soldiers but there are civilians too».
In that moment, it crossed my mind that Rodrigo might be one of Vila Flor’s troops. «So you are...»
Rodrigo seemed to have read my mind, for he smiled, and before I finished the sentence he said: «Yes, I’m one of the count’s troops». «Why didn’t you tell us that on the boat?», Diogo wanted to know. «Well, because the real reason I was on board the Esperança was to choose too rookies among all the refugees there. And if I told you, your behaviour might not be genuine anymore». «So we were chosen?» «Exactly. I mean, if you’re interested. But since you seem so devoted to the cause I figured you were». «Of course we are!», exclaimed Diogo. «Our intention was precisely to enlist but I never thought it would be so easy...» «It’s not. There are hundreds of men who enlist and end up never having the chance to fight. And it’s a pity, for some of them are as good and loyal soldiers as the ones who do fight. But the truth is Vila Flor has a very strict policy, to prevent enemy spies from infiltrating the troops and ruin everything».
I could gather by my friend’s expression that Diogo was thrilled at the prospect of becoming part of the count’s troops. As for me, although the chance to fight for the Constitutional Charter was very dear to me too, I wasn’t completely happy. Something was bothering me. Even though Rodrigo told me that he wouldn’t have chosen me among the passengers of the Esperança if he didn’t trust my loyalty and my ability and courage to be a good soldier, I sensed that deep down he still saw in me the spoiled brat, the son of D. José Ávila, and that he was willing to recommend me to the count only because of Diogo.
The carriage stopped in a narrow little street after about twenty minutes, in front of a door. Over the door there was a wooden sign with black letters painted on it, which said: IlhaBela Inn.
We got off the carriage, took our suitcases down, split the cost of the trip between the three of us and after the driver left, Rodrigo led us inside the inn.
The building was old and both on the inside and the outside a series of crude repairs were evident, and so was the need for new ones. Sitting behind the wooden counter in the reception, darning clothes, there was a woman in her late forties, heavy, with somewhat dishevelled hair but looking quite friendly and nice. Still, her appearance commanded respect.
Hearing us come in, she raised her head from what she was doing and looked pleased to see Rodrigo. «Hello there, Mr. Rodrigo. Back already? Did you have a good trip?» «Very good, D. Rita. Very good. And I bring you two new guests».
D. Rita made a face, but she didn’t really seem angry. «Mr. Rodrigo! How many times have I told you I have no room left? Where do you want me to put the boys? I can’t make up more rooms!» «I know, but where do you want me to send them to? You know that I went to get them by order of the count. Besides, no one has taken Edgar and André’s place since... since they fell in action. Come on, they’re good boys and useful to the cause. I’m sure you can find a little corner for them». «Well, if Bernardo and Eduardo won’t mind sharing their room with new companions, they can stay there. There are at least five people in all the other rooms already. But I should warn you there are only two beds in the room. I can get you some mattresses but you’ll have to sleep on the floor».
It wasn’t too appealing but considering we would be staying inside a true liberals nest, we dared not refuse.
«Listen», Rodrigo said, before we gave our answer. «If you don’t want to stay, that’s ok. There are plenty of inns around with lots of vacancies, but don’t forget that you’ll be a lot closer to the cause in here». «We’re staying», I said. «We want to be useful». «Tell me your names then, to put it here on the registry», said D. Rita.
Again I felt uncomfortable about my name, for I didn’t want to reveal my background, but Rodrigo seemed to have noticed and intervened: «It’s ok, Pedro. D. Rita is one of the few people you can tell everything to. She won’t misjudge you because your Father is an absolutist».
In effect, although she seemed surprised, the owner of the inn made no unpleasant remark about the matter. However, immediately afterwards, Rodrigo admonished me: «But be prudent. There are some fanatics around who would promptly slit your throat if they knew who you really are. They forget that if there were no liberals among the nobility too, Vila Flor wouldn’t be on our side».
D. Rita wrote down our names and handing us a key, she said: «The room is 203. I only have two keys and the other one is either with Mr. Bernardo or Mr. Eduardo. Payments are made until the tenth of each month, without delays. We don’t serve meals in the rooms. As you can guess, we’re overcrowded and it’ impossible to serve meals at decent times if we keep going from room to room. You can eat downstairs or go to a restaurant, are we clear?» «Don’t you worry about that», I told her.
Next, Rodrigo led us to the room. As we crossed the small lobby on our way to the stairs that would take us to the second floor, we glimpsed, through a small door, the living room where meals were served and where guests passed their idle time. The thickness and noise in the air made us understand how crowded the inn really was.
The steps creaked under our feet but the noise, far from being unpleasant, felt very familiar to me, maybe because I recognized the same sound as in the stairs in the Roseiral.
Rodrigo indicated the room to us and knocked on the door. «Bernardo, Eduardo, are you in there?»
There was no answer. «They’re probably downstairs. Make yourselves comfortable while I inform them that they have new roommates».
Rodrigo went downstairs again. With the key that D. Rita had handed to us, we entered room 203. It wasn’t exactly spacious or luxurious but it looked clean. Besides the two beds, placed at a few centimetres from each other to make more room, there was only one tiny bedside table and a chair. On the table, bad quality paper and ink. Opposite the door, next to a window, there was a wardrobe which seemed incapable of containing the clothes of four people. A white, badly folded shirt on the chair and a pair of grey trousers on one of the beds made us realise our roommates weren’t exactly models of neatness and tidiness. I understood then how Cecília would be missed.
Diogo’s thoughts also seemed to have turned to our old house, for he sat on one of the beds and sighed: «I wonder what they’re doing in the Roseiral right now». «What Luz is doing, you mean». «Nonsense!» «Nonsense is wanting to deny to yourself your feelings for my sister».
For a moment we were silent. The memory of the Roseiral seemed to have created a magical atmosphere. For an instant, the smallness and impersonal feel of the room were gone. But the magic was interrupted by two vigorous knocks on the door. «Come in, it’s not locked».
Rodrigo opened the door and behind him were two men. One had blond hair, the other brown. The first one mustn’t have been more than 16; the other one was around 30.
«I thought I’d introduce you to your roommates. This is Bernardo and this is Eduardo».
And turning to the two men: «Pedro and Diogo, of whom I told you about».
Bernardo, the oldest one, was quite friendly. He welcomed us and it seemed like he was trying to make us feel at ease. As for Eduardo, although polite, he didn’t seem very pleased with our presence and claiming there was someone waiting for him, he excused himself and immediately left the room. «Never mind Eduardo», Bernardo said to us after he left. «Last week we lost our previous roommates in action and he’s pretty shaken up». «I suppose he resents us because he thinks we are here to take their places...», Diogo said. «He’ll get over it. He’s a good kid, and so brave at his age...»
Bernardo interrupted himself all of a sudden and stared at us. «Only now I realise you’re probably not much older than he his. Are you old enough to enlist?» «Leave the boys alone», Rodrigo intervened. «You know perfectly well we can’t afford to worry about that now, and the count knows it too. Besides, if Eduardo has been a good soldier, why wouldn’t they be too?» «I suppose you’re right...»
We spent the rest of the morning chatting. The three of us had lunch together in the inn and Diogo and I used the afternoon to unpack and write to Luz, Cecília and Aunt Francisca.
The next day was Sunday, so Diogo and I got up quite early to go to church but we soon found out that it was a habit not shared by the large majority of our fellow guests at the inn.
However, we did find D. Rita, who seemed pleased to see us. «Oh, I can see you’re good Christians», she said as she sat next to us, before the priest began Mass. «I keep telling Mr. Rodrigo and others like him they should take religion more seriously. After all, people who live so close to death all the time should always have a prepared soul». «Don’t worry», Rodrigo told her. «I’m sure Rodrigo is a good Christian too and that God will forgive his absence in church».
The next morning, we enlisted. And on that same day, our military training began. However, we continued living in the inn, for as Rodrigo had already explained to us, the influx was so great that the barracks weren’t enough to accommodate all the young soldiers.
Military service wasn’t easy. It required a lot of discipline and determination, but what exasperated us the most was that after a week we still had not been summoned to fight. However, Rodrigo laughed at our impatience and reminded us that the war would not be won by soldiers with a week’s training.
Except for our lack of patience, our life on the island didn’t feel like an exile at all. Of course we all missed our families but in time, Diogo and I got to be friends with all of the guests at D. Rita’s inn. We would have lunch together and sometimes got seriously drunk, we played cards, played pranks on each other and never gave another moment’s peace to some poor fellow who had the unfortunate idea of confessing he had a new girlfriend.
But when some of the men – some veterans already, others for the first time – were summoned to fight, a deadly silence came upon us, for we never knew how many would not be coming back.
The friendships that we made there were probably of the strongest I have ever known and although we lived shoulder to shoulder with death, when some of the men didn’t come back, it was as if a little part of us had died. And my disappointment at the delay in being summoned to fight almost made feel selfish.
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