CHAPTER TWENTY ONE.

"Here, what's all this noise about?" cried Jarette, roughly; and his words gave me intense relief, for I knew that he must be in ignorance of all that had taken place.

"I was not aware, sir, that we were making any noise," said Mr Frewen, coldly.

"Then what's the matter, doctor?"

"You can see, sir. The lad has been taken ill. No wonder, shut up in this stifling cabin."

"Humph! My faith, yes. One is enough. Make him well, and he shall have another to himself to-morrow."

"Not if I know it," I said to myself, as I lay with my eyes closed, thinking how I would sham being too ill to leave the doctor's cabin; but directly after feeling quite in dismay, for it struck me that if I were not taken away, Mr Frewen might be, and then all our proposed plans would be upset.

I opened my eyes with quite a start just then, for to my great delight a gruff voice exclaimed--

"He arn't ill. Wants a bucket of cold water drawn and soused over him.

That'd put him right."

"You speak when you're spoken to, Bob Hampton," said Jarette, with a snarl.

"All right, skipper--cap'n, I mean; all right."

"Yes, it's all right," I said to myself, with a sigh of relief, as I closed my eyes again and lay quite still, listening to what pa.s.sed.

"Well," said Jarette, "what are you going to do? Oh, that is some stuff you are going to give him."

"Yes, you need not wait," said Mr Frewen, quietly. "But you had better leave me a light."

"What for? Set the ship on fire?"

"If I wanted to set the ship on fire, I have plenty of matches," said Mr Frewen.

His imitation of the renegade Frenchman's p.r.o.nunciation of the word "ship" was almost involuntary, and he told me afterwards how he regretted making such a slip, for Jarette winced and darted a malignant look at him which was not pleasant to see.

He did not speak again, but stood looking on while Mr Frewen held some water to my lips, and bathed my temples, both of which proceedings were quite needless, for I was quite recovered now from my faintness, and he ended by helping me to lie down in the cot.

Upon seeing this, Jarette said something shortly to his followers and they drew back, the door was closed, and we were in total darkness once again.

"And all that trouble, care, and suffering for nothing, Dale," said Mr Frewen, dolefully.

"For nothing?" I said, sitting up. "Do you call it nothing to have found out that we have three strong men on the other side ready to fight for us? I don't."

"I had forgotten that for the moment," said my companion. "Yes, that is worth all our trouble; but I'm afraid poor Hampton will not venture to communicate with us again, so what do you say to beginning our sawing business once more?"

"Oh no: not to-night!" I said. "Perhaps Bob Hampton will be able to propose a better way next time he comes."

"If he does come, my lad."

"Ah, you don't know him so well as I do, Mr Frewen. He is sure to come again."

"I hope he will, my lad."

"Oh, he will; and you see if he does not tell us to wait until he and Neb Dumlow are on guard. They'll get us out and then help us to open the cabins one by one."

"Nothing like being sanguine, my lad," he said; "but there, it's getting very late. Let's sleep now."

I did not feel at all disposed to obey, and lay still, watching the stars through the open cabin-window, thinking over the events of the earlier part of the night, till the stars were blotted out, and I was as fast asleep as Mr Frewen, or our fellow-prisoner in the next cabin, who breathed so heavily that when I was awake it sounded like a snore.

I seemed to be watching the stars one minute, and the dazzling water the next, for the sun was high when I opened my eyes again, and the sea looked of such a delicious blue, that it was hard to feel low-spirited, and trouble oneself about our failure.

Mr Frewen lay on the floor fast asleep, and I was thinking whether I had not better follow his example, when I started up and gave my head a thump against the top of the cot, for something suddenly appeared at the round opening of the cabin-window, and for a moment I thought it was a bird. The next I was out of my cot and close to the window, waiting for an opportunity to make a s.n.a.t.c.h at the object swinging to and fro.

I could have made a dart at it instantly, but I wanted to make sure, knowing as I did that Bob Hampton or one of his men must be leaning over the bulwarks listening, and that the bait at the end of the thin line hanging down over our window was intended for me.

At last I made a s.n.a.t.c.h at the object, but it only swung out of reach; then another s.n.a.t.c.h, but all in vain. But the last time I was successful, for one of my hands flew out, and I caught hold of and dragged the bait in, cut the line with my pocket-knife, and saw it s.n.a.t.c.hed up out of sight directly.

I made some slight noise in starting back, and Mr Frewen rose quickly to his elbow to stare in my excited face.

"What is it?" he said in a hurried whisper.

For answer I held before him a packet of something made up in a piece of canvas, and tied round with spun-yarn.

"Let down to the cabin-window," I whispered, full of excitement, for the packet was heavy, and I had my suspicions as to what it contained.

I had my knife still in my hand, and my fingers itched to cut the yarn and open the parcel; but I thrust it beneath the blanket on the cot, and went to the cabin-door to listen.

All was silent there, and though I listened for a few minutes, there did not seem to be any one stirring on deck, so I turned back to Mr Frewen, who was now standing by the cot, with his hands under the blanket, and offered him the knife.

"I believe there are pistols inside, Dale," he whispered.

"I'm sure of it," I said. "Open it quick. I'll stand on this side."

He now stood between the parcel and the cabin-door so as to shelter our treasure, which was turned out of the canvas the next minute, and proved to be the weapons named, a pair that I remembered to have seen in Captain Berriman's cabin, and with them plenty of ammunition.

"Loaded!" whispered Mr Frewen. "Be careful with yours."

"Mine?" I said.

"Yes; one is for you, and I hope you will not have to use it; but these are stern times, Dale, and we must not be squeamish now."

After a few moments' consideration, it was decided to hide one pistol at the foot of the cot, and the other beneath a quant.i.ty of drugs in the big medicine-chest which stood in one corner of the cabin.

"Hah!" said my companion, smiling for the first time for days. "I begin to feel a little more hopeful now, Dale. You and I are going to take the ship yet. That was Hampton's work, of course?"

"Sure to be," I said, and we now began to turn over every plan we could think of for getting our freedom.