A Flower for the Queen: A Historical Novel Read Online Free PDF Page B

that much more experienced when you stepped aboard the Endeavour , Joseph?” asked Cook, interrupting the inquisition.
    “No, I suppose not,” said Banks, relenting, as he turned to his friend and smiled at the memory.
    “Very well, Mr Masson. It seems that you have had the good fortune to apply for a position that no one else wants, and so, in the absence of any suitable alternative, you will go.”
    Boulton sighed with relief and cast his eyes heavenwards in silent gratitude and Simmons, who had positioned himself behind Boulton’s back in order to shield himself from any impending disaster, smiled broadly and gave Masson a sincere thumbs-up.
    “But, sir,” Masson protested.
    “No, Mr Masson, please do not thank me,” Banks said as he began a search of his office, leafing through the columns of paper and opening and closing drawers before finally finding whatever it was he was after.
    “You will have the opportunity to discuss your appointment at length with Mr Boulton, but there is one further matter which is of singular importance.” He walked towards Masson, holding in front of him a creased and stained piece of parchment on which was sketched an outline in pencil which had then been roughly filled in bright watercolours.
    “This,” continued Banks, “is something I would very much like for you to find and bring back.”
    “A bird, sir?”
    “No, not a bird. A flower. Forgive the rough drawing, my draftsman had died by the time we stopped at the Cape, and I was stricken with malaria when I saw it. I was certain that I harvested the seeds and pressed a sample for my herbarium, but when I returned to England, I found that the seeds and sample had mysteriously vanished. All I had left was this sketch.” Banks became distracted as he looked at the drawing in his hand, slipping for a moment into reverie. “Like a lady passing in the night, it is entirely possible that I might even have imagined it.”
    Masson was about to seize the moment to call set the record straight, but he was entranced by the crude sketch before him. The exotic beauty of the flower transcended the roughness of the rendering, sucking him in and robbing him of his opportunity to speak out.
    “You may keep the drawing, but take care of it as I have no other. I showed it to the King, who was very much taken by it. He made me swear that if it were found again, it would be brought back and named after the Queen. Thinking that I would soon have a chance to go back to the Cape, I gave him my word that I would retrieve it myself. But,” Banks smiled wryly, “it seems that the Admiralty has other ideas, and so it falls to you to make sure that I keep my promise.”
    Banks paused to allow the full weight of what he had said to sink in before continuing. “This is about more than mere flattery, Mr Masson. Time is running out. The world may be shrinking, but the world of science lies largely unclaimed, and if we are to take our rightful place at the forefront of discovery, then we must act now. We need twenty expeditions, not just one. But expeditions require ships, men and money. Only the King has the kind of influence that could make that happen, and so we dare not disappoint him. But seeds and pressed specimens will not be enough. You must find that flower and bring it back alive. I cannot take the chance of losing it a second time.”
    Masson looked around the room and found that everyone was looking at him expectantly, waiting for his response. The leather handle of the wooden box that he still carried in his left hand had become slippery with sweat, and suddenly it felt very heavy. As he looked from face to face, he knew that he was alone in the knowledge that this was all a colossal mistake. He was not the man they were looking for, and he could not afford to hesitate for another moment.
    “Sir,” replied Masson slowly but firmly and with only the slightest tremor in his voice, “I am very appreciative of the confidence you have placed