The man flung himself on the gangplank which was separated from the dock by some little distance. He scrambled aboard, and just then, Alice, standing near Jack Jepson, heard the old sailor utter an exclamation of surprise, and murmur:

"Can that be him? Can that be him--after these years? No, it can't be!"

"All aboard!" cried Captain Brisco. And the _Mary Ellen_, in charge of a fussy little tug, began moving away from the dock.

CHAPTER XIV

OVERBOARD

Alice was so impressed with what she had heard sailor Jack say, that, in spite of the desire to give all her attention to the start of the voyage, destined to be so momentous, she looked first at Jepson and then at the new arrival. The latter appeared to be an ordinary sailor, but there was a commanding air about him, as though he were used to having his own way. But he was sufficiently subservient to Captain Brisco, saluting the commander in formal fashion.

"You're late!" growled Captain Brisco.

"Yes--couldn't help it," was the almost cheerful answer. "You knew I wouldn't be left though, didn't you?"

"Well, I wasn't sure of it," Alice heard the captain answer. "Get below, and then we'll talk later."

Alice turned to see how Jack Jepson was taking this. The old salt seemed to be listening intently, but he had his back turned.

"He knows that man who just came aboard," decided Alice, "and there is something queer about it all. In fact there is something queer about this vessel and Captain Brisco. I feel as though I were in the midst of a mystery. I'm going to see if I can't solve it."

That was Alice's way. She always did like to solve puzzles, from the time when she was a small child, and she went at this one in much the same way as had been her habit in the case of the simple ones in the juvenile papers she took when a little girl.

"There's something between Captain Brisco, Jack Jepson and this new man," Alice decided. "Jack is afraid of being recognized, and yet he wants to make sure who this new man is. Can it have anything to do with the mutiny, I wonder?"

It was a question she could not answer just then. She resolved to be on the watch, to look and listen, without saying much, until she had in her mental grasp some of the loose ends of the puzzle.

Ruth was some distance off, talking to her father. Mr. DeVere, in spite of the warmth of the day, had a light silk scarf about his throat, which had pained him during the night. The other members of the company were scattered about the schooner which was being towed out to sea. Miss Pennington and Miss Dixon were waving to some young men who had come to see them off. Mr. Wellington Bunn's face wore a glum look. Perhaps he saw no chance of doing anything with his favorite role of Hamlet in this marine story that was soon to be enacted.

Alice heard Jack muttering to himself. She could not catch all the words, but she heard him say:

"Yes, it must be the same one! He hasn't changed much--not as much as I have. He won't know me. But what am I to do?"

The old salt's musings, however, were cut short, for Captain Brisco called to him.

"I say there, Mr. Jepson," ordered the commander, "will you go forward, and see how the bitts are standing up under the strain of that hawser? I don't want them to pull out, and they're none too strong. Lively now!"

"Aye, aye, sir!" dutifully answered the second mate, and he shuffled off along the deck, while Captain Brisco and the new arrival went below, being, apparently, on very friendly terms.

"And that is another queer part of it," mused Alice. "That new man is supposed to be a common sailor--he must be, as all the offices, from captain down, are filled. And yet Captain Brisco treats him as an equal. I can't understand it."

None of the others of the moving picture company appeared to find anything odd in the reception of the man who had almost been left. In fact, save for Alice and Jack Jepson, no one paid any attention to him.

As the captain and the new man whom he had addressed as "Hen Lacomb"

went below, the attention of Alice was taken by Ruth.

"Don't you think, dear," her sister said, "that we had better get our possessions in order. I understand that some pictures are to be taken aboard the schooner here, and we will want to get our costumes out where we can easily reach them."

"I suppose so," murmured Alice. "But I wonder who he is?" she added, half unconsciously.

"What in the world are you talking about?" asked Ruth in some surprise.

"Do you mean that young man who was waving to Miss Dixon?" for a certain youth seemed very loath to bid farewell to the former variety actress.

"Yes. Who is he?" asked Alice, accepting this chance to get out of answering, though what she had meant was the ident.i.ty of the mysterious Hen Lacomb, and not the youth on the dock.

"I've seen him before," Ruth said.

"Who?" asked Alice quickly, her mind still intent on the mystery.

"Why, Alice, how odd you are! That young man of whom we are speaking, to be sure. I mean I've seen him around the studio. He seems to be quite impressed by Miss Dixon."

"Yes," said Alice, vaguely. "Well, let's go below," she suggested. "You notice how nautical I'm getting," she went on.

"Forgetful you mean," supplemented Ruth. "Well, anyhow, we have fine weather for the start."

The schooner was well out from the dock now, and the pilot was in charge, so there was nothing for Captain Brisco to do for the present.

He had gone to his cabin, and the stranger, or, rather, Hen Lacomb, to give him the name bestowed on him, was with the commander.

"I wish I knew what they were talking about," said Alice, and, without intending to do so, she spoke aloud.

"Who?" asked Ruth. "Really, you are saying the strangest things this morning, Sister mine!"

"Oh, I was thinking--thinking----"

Alice was rather at a loss for words to explain.

"You must have some of your new roles on the brain," went on Ruth. "I know I've been doing a lot of thinking over mine. They are nearly all nice ones, I'm glad to say, but I don't like the parts we have to take in the shipwreck. Fancy having actually to jump into the water."

That was one of the things required, according to the scenario.

"There's no danger," Alice said, as she and her sister reached the stateroom they were to share.

"Oh, but think of _sharks_ in those Southern waters!"

"I'm not going to think of them," declared Alice. "Besides, we shall be in the water only a short time, and the motorboat will pick us up. It will be nice and warm."

The plan of the shipwreck included the jumping overboard of some of the company, and their rescue in small boats, or by the motorboat _Ajax_, that would follow, with Russ in it taking the moving pictures of the "thrilling scenes."

"Well, that doesn't come until toward the end," Ruth remarked, "so I'm not going to think about it until then. Now let's unpack."

Ruth and Alice had comfortable, if rather restricted, quarters in a small cabin containing two bunks. Their father was near them, and the other members of the company had rooms scattered about. The ship's crew, of course, berthed forward, and the two mates, of whom Jack Jepson was one, were quartered with the captain. Alice wondered what would be the standing of Hen Lacomb.

She learned a little later when she saw him taking his bag "aft." That meant he was to be treated as an officer. There is all the difference in the world on a sailing ship, whether a man bunks "forward" or "aft." In the latter case he is either an officer or a pa.s.senger, and in the former case he is cla.s.sed as a member of the crew, a "foremast hand,"

and, as such, has no authority.