Chapter 64: Dare
I fulfilled my promise of a house for Señor Alcantara—at great expense. Because I wasn’t sure he would accept my offer, I hadn’t arranged for his residence when he arrived. So I was forced to give him my own house in Boac—the very place I had lived in before I was given the governor’s quarters in the Casa Real.
I still dread telling Isabela. And sooner or later, Isidro—who stays there whenever he’s in Marinduque—will find out once he returns from wherever he’s gone these past few days.
I was accommodated in the sala, which, although not as furnished as the one in the Casa Real, was more spacious. As I sat there, everywhere I looked, memories came streaming in. It was surreal to have my emotions stirred in a place I had never technically been in before.
To my surprise, Señora Alcantara warmly received me when I paid them a visit. I suspect this was either because she hadn’t expected their accommodations to be this decent, or because she had just learned what my position truly meant. After all, she had been present during my speech.
Just as we were about to finish our small talk and get to the purpose of my visit, she entered the room with a cup of coffee for me and her husband.
"Señor Gobernador... forgive me if the coffee took too long. I don’t usually serve guests, you see. But I’ll be learning," she said with a slightly exaggerated smile on her thickly painted lips.
"I’m flattered, Señora," I replied, raising the cup to smell its contents. "Ah... this is strong. I like it."
"I hope you do," she said as she made her way back to the door.
Her husband watched her with a smile until the door shut behind her.
"So... how can I help you, Heneral?" he asked.
"About your ship, Señor Alcantara... I think we should start planning how to convert it into a gunboat," I said. I didn’t think I’d need it anytime soon, but if the elites knew I had a gunboat at my disposal, I’d appear more formidable. And for martial law to be upheld, I needed them to be intimidated.