TOMB HUNTER

The Adventures of Larra Court

Episode 10

Larra’s Indonesian Adventure

Chapter 8 The Collaborator

Purwanto bowed subserviently as the Japanese corporal escorted him into the rude hut that was the headquarters of his Japanese contact. From across a table that served as a desk Lieutenant Matsu looked up at him. There was a chair in the room, but the Japanese officer did not indicate that he should sit so Purwanto remained standing.

“So,” Matsu said after several minutes of pretending to ignore him, “what have you brought me?”

It was not exactly the sort of welcome Purwanto had been expecting and Matsu’s small force of only about a hundred men was hardly the expedition he had been expecting. Apparently the wilds of central Kalimantan were too unimportant to commit a force larger than that. But he reminded himself that there was a war being fought and no doubt most of the Japanese forces were needed elsewhere. He smiled ingratiatingly. He needed to gain the full trust of the Japanese officer if his plan was to work.

He took a small leather bag out of his waistband and set it on the desk. Matsu merely looked at it and then looked back at him. Chagrined, Purwanto realized that the officer was indicating that it was far beneath his dignity to open the bag.

“Arrogant bastard,” Purwanto thought. He was rapidly reevaluating his decision to act as a fifth columnist for the Japanese, but realized that he could not afford to pass up the opportunity to ingratiate himself. When the Japanese won the war the economic and political structure of Asia would be radically changed and he planned to have a prominent place in it.

He leaned forward and opened the bag, spilling its contents onto the top of the table. Matsu’s face remained impassive, but Purwanto caught the gleam of greed in his eyes as the gold coins rolled onto the table. There were five coins, a portion of his share of the slaving expedition. He was not stupid enough to have brought his entire share, just enough to get Matsu interested.

Matsu picked up one of the coins and hefted it in the palm of his hand. He seemed to think for a second and then he looked up. “Where did you get this?” he asked.

“I was payment for trade goods with one of the interior tribes,” he answered. He omitted to mention that the “trade goods” had been human beings.

“I thought you might be interested,” he continued. “I suspect that there are a great deal more where these five came from.”

“Indeed,” Matsu said. “and you thought it proper to inform me as part of your duty to the empire”

Purwanto smiled his best smile. Matsu was not as easy to take in as he had hoped. “Yes,” he answered. “Following these coins to their source could make the finder extremely wealthy.”

“You are not suggesting,” Matsu said, “that I would be interested in acquiring such wealth for myself.”

“No,” of course not, he answered, “I inform you only because you are a representative of his imperial majesty.”

What Matsu did next told Purwanto that he had the Japanese officer hooked. He looked at the Japanese soldier standing guard by the door. “Tell Corporal Koyomi to bring us tea and something to eat.”

The soldier bowed and left. As soon as he was out of earshot, Matsu picked up the five gold coins and rolled them in the palm of his hand. “How many more of these do you think there are?” he asked.

“I have reason to believe that there may be thousands,” Purwanto answered. “Perhaps even more.”

“I think,” Matsu said slowly. “That you better tell me exactly how you know this.”

Purwanto explained, allowing the Japanese officer to learn as much as he wanted him to. While he was talking tea and food was brought, but he continued his conversation explaining that his contact with the Prahgan had convinced him that these mysterious people were rich in gold.

“Two weeks march to the north?” Matsu asked finally.

“Under good conditions,” Purwanto answered. “And if the expedition is not too heavily encumbered with equipment. However, the area is extremely wild and it would be best if porters were used to carry whatever is necessary. It could take longer than planned.”

“I will think about it,” Matsu said. “My superiors would not be pleased if I ran off on a wild boar hunt, and my men are short of ammunition and other important supplies.”

Purwanto took this as a signal to leave. As he got up Matsu asked one more question. “The woman you brought with you; is she yours?”

Purwanto nodded. “Yes. She was the wife of a friend who was accidentally killed. I am looking after her.”

“That is unfortunate,” Matsu said. “She is very pretty.”

Purwanto breathed a sigh of relief as he left the hut. He had little doubt that greed would bring Matsu around to his way of thinking. He noted that the lieutenant had not offered to return the gold coins. He was also relieved that he had not asked for Anom. The girl seemed to have accepted the fact that she now belonged to him; at least she no longer cried and fought him when he took her to his bed.

Anom was waiting where he had left her. She was surrounded by a small circle of Japanese soldiers who were eyeing her with interest, but they made no move to stop him when he took her arm and escorted her to the hut that had been set aside for him. Anom did not protest, apparently preferring his company to being gang-raped by the Japanese. Tonight he would make love to her again. Eventually he was sure she would forget about Guntur and accept him as her master.

Matsu flipped one of the gold coins through his fingers. He did not trust the Javanese informant, but he suspected that the man was telling the truth about the source of the gold coins. And he suspected that he could trust him to lead him to that source. If what the man had told him was even remotely true then he and his men would be rich beyond their wildest dreams.

Matsu smiled. The Javanese collaborator thought he was using him, but two could play at that game. He would use the informant to find the source of the gold and then dispose of him when he was no longer needed. As for his supply problem he would have to make do. A hundred men armed with several thousand rounds of ammunition should be enough to deal with any savages they might encounter. He might suffer a few casualties, but that would mean fewer persons to share in the gold.

He grinned and tossed the coin in the air catching it as it fell. Tomorrow he would tell Purwanto that he had agreed to allow him to lead him and his men to the source of the gold. After that, he would just have to see what happened.

Jia Li opened her eyes and tried to sit up. She immediately wished that she hadn’t moved so quickly. She let out a moan. Almost every part of her body hurt, but especially her breasts and vaginal region.

“Auntie Jia, I’m so glad you’re awake.”

Jia Li turned her head slowly in the direction of the voice. It was rather dark wherever she was, but she knew the voice. “James,” she croaked.

The boy knelt beside her and lifted her head. “Drink this,” he said, holding a cup to her lips.

Jia Li did as she was told emptying the cup. The water wasn’t much, but it helped sooth her dry throat. “I’ll get you some more,” James said, removing the cup.

As James fetched more water Jia Li took note of her surroundings. She was lying on a cot in a small, dark hut, covered only by a thin blanket. She realized to her chagrin that she was entirely nude under the blanket and wondered how long James had been looking after her.

“Are you going to be alright, Auntie Jia?”

Jia Li’s eyes searched the hut and located Lin Yao. The little girl was holding a gourd, which had no doubt contained the water James had given her. She considered the girl’s question carefully before answering. Experimentally beneath the blanket she tried moving her arms and legs. Everything seemed to work even if her body felt as if it had been used as a kicking bag in a karate class.

“Yes,” she answered, “I’m alright.” That was something at least. She now knew the location of James and Lin Yao. Now she just had to find Larra.

“Where is your mother?” she asked after another swallow of water.

“You rest, Auntie Jia,” James interrupted. “Don’t try to talk. I’ll tell you about mummy.”

About halfway through James’ account of what had happened to Larra, Jia Li realized that she needed to do something, but she listened politely to the end and then asked her question.

“Do you have anything I can wear?” she asked. “There is something I have to do.”

“I got something from one of the huts that the Japanese didn’t destroy,” James said. “I’m afraid the Japanese still have your clothes.”

Jia Li took the garment that James held out to her. It was a flowered sarong. Fortunately it was the sort of garment that could be adjusted to fit almost everyone.

“I’ll wait outside while you put it on,” James said. “You can call me if you need help.”

“Thank you,” Jia Li replied. As she dressed, she wondered how she had gotten to the hut and how she had managed to escape from the Japanese. James could probably explain but first she needed to attend to her almost bursting bladder.

She returned from the woods as soon as she was able. The hut she had been lying in was surrounded by forest so she did not have to go far, but it took a great deal out of her. The short walk emphasized the ordeal the Japanese had put her through.

Sitting down on the small bed in the hut she waited while James and Jia Li fetched something for her to eat. It was frustrating being so weak. Having to depend on two children to look after her was almost embarrassing, but she realized that she was lucky to be alive. While she ate the cold rice that James provided for her she had him explain what had happened.

“It was lucky, really,” he said. “I watched as the Japanese soldiers went into the hut where they had taken you. They left their rifles outside and since I know how to use a rifle…”

He didn’t finish, but didn’t need to. Now Jia Li knew who had fired the shots she had heard while the Japanese soldiers had been trying to rape her. She also knew who had helped her to her current place of safety. She had a vague memory of someone holding her and stroking her hair. She knew that if the memory was accurate it had to have been James, but she didn’t ask. She was already a little embarrassed that Larra’s twelve-year-old son had seen her unclothed.

“How long have I been here/” she asked.

“Two days,” James answered. “You were in some sort of very deep sleep. I just kept watch until you woke up.”

“Two days.” Jia Li thought. Two days of being cared for by children. She didn’t much feel like moving, but James’ story indicated that Larra was in very serious danger. The sooner she left to find her the better. First, however, she would have to find somewhere safe for James and Lin Yao. With the Japanese around that might be easier said than done.

Ultimately, the problem seemed to resolve itself. The rest of the day she rested, attempting to regain her strength. Depending upon James to get her food and water was embarrassing, but she had no choice. She also rested the next day, after finding that she was even weaker than she thought. Her foolish attempt to look after herself, left her so exhausted that she almost fainted and she retreated to the hut where she spent most of the day asleep. That, however, seemed to do the trick. The next day she felt her strength returning. She also received an interesting report from James.

“Gone?” she asked.

“Yes,” James replied. “Every one of them. I don’t know where they went, but there is no trace of them and they even burned the rest of the village.”

“Well,” Jia Li thought, “that was interesting.” With any luck she wouldn’t have to worry about the Japanese. On the other hand there was no guarantee that they might not come back and she couldn’t leave James and Lin Yao alone, no matter how competent James had shown himself to be. The two children would have to come with her until she could find some safe place to leave them.

She remembered that the base they had set up near the archeological site had a radio. It might just be possible to communicate with the outside world provided no one had discovered it. If nothing else it was a place to start and it was not far away. This time she would try not to blunder into the Japanese.

It took her and the two children most of the morning to return to the camp. Jia Li took no chances, moving with the utmost stealth through the forest and avoiding any places where there might be a possible ambush. She reached the camp without incident and cautiously moved toward the hut where she and Larra had stayed.

It seemed unchanged from the day she had returned to find Larra missing. The small house had been thoroughly ransacked, the door torn from its hinges and the contents of the house scattered haphazardly. She recalled her panicked reaction when she had returned from her trip to the local village and found the cabin ransacked and Larra and her children missing. She had paid heavily for that thoughtless reaction when she blundered into the Japanese.

Through James she now knew what had become of Larra, but her return to the cabin was motivated by something more than merely attempting to pick up the trail of her abducted friend. The house and the area around it seemed completely deserted and she waved for James and Lin Yao to join her.

“What are we looking for, Auntie Jia?” Lin Yao asked. “Mummy’s not here.”

“Anything that will improve our chances, sweetie,” Jia Li replied. She began to sift through the contents of the hut hoping to find something useful.

“Ahh,” she said. “I’m in luck.” She picked up a bundle of clothes that had been tossed into one corner. Apparently whoever had looted the house had not thought them worth taking. Perhaps if she was lucky she might find a few more items of value.

It turned out that everything made of metal was gone; including the radio, but most items of clothing had been left. Apparently the Prahgan, as James had called them, had no use for modern articles of clothing, but they had taken everything else, including the tinned food. “Who would have thought Spam would be so popular,” Jia Li muttered. She retired for a few minutes to the bedroom she had shared with Larra, and changed into a khaki shirt and pants. For walking through the jungle they were a little more practical than the sarong James had found for her.

She also found a pair of Larra’s boots. For some reason hers had been taken. They were close enough to the same size not to matter. Properly attired she stepped from the room and almost ran into James.

“Sorry,” the boy apologized, “but I found this. He held up a foot long Bowie knife. “Apparently the Prahgan overlooked it.”

Jia Li took the knife. “Well,” she said, “that’s something at least.”

It was the only weapon they found. Together with James’ machete it wasn’t much to go up against the Japanese or the Prahgan. Before they went anywhere Jia Li decided she would have to improvise some weapons.

It took her the rest of the day to properly equip herself. Jia Li was skilled in the use of many weapons but she had never had to make any, so she stuck to what she knew. She left the Bowie knife with James, but used its hardened edge to cut herself a hardwood staff. She was trained in the use of the Chinese bo, and the eight foot length she cut was more than suitable, consisting of a strong springy wood that was so hard it took her two hours with the knife to cut through and shape it.

With James’ help she also fashioned a bow and a few arrows. She had less faith in these as the arrows had only pointed wooden tips and small bits of wood for flights. Even so it took her several hours to fashion anything that would go remotely straight. In a fight, she decided, the bow would be a weapon of last resort. However, James had told her that the Prahgan were armed with bows and arrows and she thought it wise to have at least one missile weapon.

Thus prepared she was ready to set out. Fortunately the Prahgan had left less exotic foods like uncooked rice, so they would at least have something to eat. The only glitch in her plan was the fact that she could not think of anyplace where she could safely leave the two children. They would have to go with her, and given the fact that Lin Yao was barely forty inches tall, it would be slow going.

However, Lin Yao’s small steps were not all that disadvantageous. Jia Li was still in considerable discomfort from her ordeal at the hands of the Japanese and slowing to the child’s pace helped her to recover. Taking the small girl’s hand she smiled down at her. “Come on,” she said. “Let’s find your mother.”

“Bloody hell,” Wallace commented. “We’ll be lucky to make five miles a day in this muck.”

Katie nodded her agreement. Like Wallace and everyone else in the expedition she was splattered with mud from head to foot. It had been raining for the last five days, a more than depressing state of affairs. Not only did it make walking exhausting, but it would make it that much more difficult to pick up what was left of Larra’s trail. In addition, five of the porters she had hired had already deserted. Wallace was outraged, but Katie was resigned. There was no point in chasing after them, it would just have slowed them down even more. All they could do was share the burdens around among the other porters and carry a bit more weight themselves. It also meant leaving some of their supplies behind. Already short of porters, Katie decided that it was best to leave some of their food. It was taking a bit of a chance, but she hoped that they might be able to acquire more food along the way.

They were three days out of the archeological site. For the first few days of the trek the weather had been good. It had started raining just a few hours before they reached the small house where Larra and Jia Li had been staying. If there was any evidence of who had taken Larra it was gone before they arrived, but Katie had a strange feeling as she walked though the ransacked house that someone had been there recently. Unfortunately the rain had washed away any tracks anyone might have left. The only thing that enabled them to pick up what they hoped was the trail of Larra’s abductors was the fact that it was hard to miss. It looked as if hundreds of people had marched through the area. With nothing else to go on Katie decided to follow it and she and her friends had been doing so for the five days it had rained.

She slogged forward, trying to ignore the fact that she was wet to the skin. She had dry clothes in her luggage, but there was no point in changing into them. They had all made that mistake the first day only to find out that they were just as wet inside of an hour, and that with no other change of clothing they had been forced to sleep in their sodden clothing. Now she saved her dry clothing for sleeping, changing back into her wet clothes in the morning. It was damned unpleasant getting dressed in the morning, but at least she could get a night’s sleep.

Very strangely, the trail they were following led north into the wildest region of Kalimantan. That more than anything else convinced Katie that it was the way they should go. However, it also had the added advantage that it took them away from the areas where the Japanese forces had landed. Using their radio they were able to keep up with the progress of the invaders, even using it to listen in on Japanese broadcasts. Not surprisingly the Japanese were concentrating their efforts on the more populated areas of the country. That was all to the good. If they could locate Larra and Jia Li it meant that they might be able to return to Bertha and escape without being detected.

The rumble of thunder interrupted her thoughts. The rain was getting heavier. In spite of the urgency of the situation it was obvious that they should seek some shelter. Since they were just passing one of the areas where the people they were following had stopped it seemed like an opportune occasion. With forest on every side it was sometimes difficult to find a good place to camp and they had been using the sites cleared by the previous expedition.

Katie held up a hand. “We’ll stop here,” she shouted. Depressed, she shed her pack and moved to help set up the camp. Perhaps tomorrow would bring better weather and a chance to catch up with the people that they were following.

As gently as she could Rupali rubbed the healing ointment into Larra’s skin. The Englishwoman lay on her side, her belly now too distended for her to lie comfortably on her stomach, but Rupali was able to reach the area of her body that needed attention.

The only indication that she was in pain was a slight change in Larra’s breathing as Rupali applied the medicament, but Rupali had witnessed her punishment and knew that Larra must be in excruciating agony.

She had not wanted to watch. Her brutal treatment at the hands of the prince had left her unable to walk, but the prince had ordered that she watch the punishment and she had been carried from the harem apartments to where Larra was being held.

She had been horrified to see that the pregnant woman had been chained naked between two pillars, her arms stretched out to the side. Her ankles were chained to the floor and her body was angled slightly forward so that Larra was forced to grasp the chains that held her arms in order not to be pitched forward with all of her weight on her wrists. It left the sweet curve of her backside completely exposed and Rupali guessed what was going to happen to her friend even before the punishment began.

Her guess was confirmed a few minutes later when the prince entered the room accompanied by a soldier carrying a heavy bamboo staff. The prince seated himself comfortably on a cushioned divan. He addressed a few taunting words to Larra and then nodded to the soldier with the bamboo staff.

The soldier positioned himself directly behind Larra and to one side, giving himself space to strike his victim with all of his strength. Rupali almost screamed at the violence of the first blow, but to her amazement Larra didn’t. The only sound she let out was a brief expulsion of breath just before the staff made contact, but her entire body jerked and the sound of the blow was like a pistol shot.

Rupali expected Larra’s backside to be ripped open by the force of the blow, but she was relieved to see that the only mark was a bright red welt across the smooth curves of her buttocks.

A second blow followed the first and then another and another until finally Larra’s derriere was marked with five ugly welts. Then the man wielding the bamboo switched his target, aiming at the back of his victim’s thighs.

By this time, Rupali could hear Larra’s heavy breathing. It was clear that she was in tremendous pain, but she had yet to cry out. As the blow landed her body shuddered under the impact, but once again she made no sound. Another four blows to Larra’s rounded thighs followed the first, leaving her marked from just above her knees to the top of her cheeks with ten red stripes.

The soldier delivering the beating stepped away and one of the prince’s female attendants walked over to the victim. In her hand she carried a cup which she held to Larra’s lips. Rupali saw Larra’s throat move as she swallowed. In spite of the horror and pain of the beating she was obviously still conscious. Rupali breathed a sigh of relief that Larra had survived the brutal punishment and then her eyes widened in shock and horror as the soldier stepped forward again.

As the bamboo staff came down again Rupali realized that Larra’s ordeal was just beginning. The prince was determined that he would hear his victim scream before he was satisfied.

He got his wish almost immediately. The bamboo rod came down across the welts that already decorated Larra’s backside. Having been given a chance to swell and become engorged with blood, they were now much more sensitive to pain as Larra’s reaction showed only too well. As the rod made contact she let out a choked cry of agony, and upon the next blow she screamed in anguish.

Eight more blows followed. Three on her buttocks and another five across the thighs. Incredibly the brutal beating was administered without drawing blood, but Larra’s agonized shrieks were testament to the brutal ordeal she was forced to endure.

After the last stroke of the rod, the prince sneered a farewell and left the scene of Larra’s punishment and humiliation. Rupali was left to look after her.

Barely able to stand, the Indian girl was spared the ordeal of having to help Larra back to the harem. Several female attendants saw to that, and Rupali followed as best she could. Once back at the harem she was given the unguent to apply to Larra’s injuries. It was made clear by the other girls that it was her responsibility alone, probably due to an order from the prince. Barely able to walk herself, Rupali was in no condition to care for someone else, but she ignored the pain of her own injuries and tended to those of the tall woman who had befriended her.

Carefully, as with as much tenderness as she could muster, Rupali applied the salve until the cruel stripes that crisscrossed Larra’s buttocks and thighs were completely covered. Then too exhausted to make her way to the area of the harem set aside for her repose she lay down beside Larra and closed her eyes. It took only moments for sleep to sweep over her.

Purwanto surveyed the footprints in the mud of the trail. Beside him Matsu stood, legs slightly spread, his fingers tapping his belt impatiently.

“What is it?” the Japanese officer asked.

“Someone is taking the same trail as we are,” Purwanto replied. “It looks like a party of about twenty, but there is something more.”

“And that is?” Matsu said.

“The boot prints indicate that the people who came this were not all native to the island. I count at least five or six. They are most likely Dutch. Other than that I can’t tell anything more about them.”

“Only six? Then so much the worse for them,” Matsu commented. Turning back toward his men he waved them forward.

Purwanto nodded. Matsu’s one hundred battle-hardened soldiers should be more than enough to deal with any unsuspecting members of the Dutch armed forces.

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