Surely my ears deceived me, or did I hear the faint sound of a hail?

Looking round I saw, to my inexpressible joy and relief, a boat making towards the shoal. It was the same craft that I had seen taking soundings in the channel that morning.

Under the powerful strokes of the rowers the boat dashed to my rescue, the foam hissing at her bows as her sharp stem cleft the water.

Then everything began to grow dim; I heard the report of a musket, and was barely conscious of the shark quivering on the surface of the water, with shattered jaws. Strong arms bore me to the boat, and directly I felt myself placed on the bottom boards a white mist swam before my eyes, and I lost consciousness.

When I came to myself I was lying on my bunk in the cabin of the _Golden Hope_. Captain Jeremy, his head swathed in bandages, was sitting an a chair, with a chart spread out on the table in front of him. This surprised me not a little, for when I had last seen him he was lying weak and helpless.

I tried to raise myself on my elbow, but the task was beyond my power. Seeing this, Captain Jeremy got up and, coming over to my bed, gave me something to drink.

"That's better," he exclaimed encouragingly. "Now try to rest awhile."

"But, sir," said I, so feebly that I could scarce realize 'twas my own voice, "how do I come to be here? Ah! I remember," and I shuddered at the thought of my harrowing adventures.

"Not another word," he said imperatively, and as obediently as a child I fell asleep.

A few days later I was able to sit up, and then I learnt that I had been unconscious for sixteen days, while anxiety for my condition had been largely responsible for Captain Jeremy's rapid recovery.

I knew the kindly Captain was burning with impatience to hear the story of my misadventures, but he refrained from questioning me for quite another week.

"Are you really sure you're not dreaming?" he asked, when, in the course of my narrative, I related how I had found my captors to be Ned Slater and the five other deserters.

"I would I had been," I replied. "Yet now I know, on the rogue's own statement, that he it was who slew my father."

"If I had only given heed to your suspicions!" returned Captain Jeremy grimly. "No matter, I'll lay them by the heels yet;" and at the conclusion of my story, to which both he and Captain 'Enery listened with the greatest interest, he expressed his intention of going ash.o.r.e and making a descent upon the villains' retreat.

This he accordingly did, but, though the cave was discovered and a careful search made in and around the place, the rogues had vanished. I had often wondered how they managed to climb up from the mouth of the cavern to the top of the cliff. This Captain Jeremy explained. In the tunnel the searchers came across the trunk of a small tree which had apparently been thrust out a little way, so that by standing on it a man could climb up the perpendicular face of the precipice by means of a series of notches cut in the rock.

This done, he fastened a stout rope round a projecting ledge, so that his companions could follow with ease. Beyond this the villains had left no trace save, on careful examination, a dark stain that was found on the dusty floor, thus bearing out my statement that I had accounted for one of them at least.

I progressed slowly yet surely, and meanwhile Captain Jeremy recovered his accustomed strength and health. At length, to the unbounded satisfaction of all hands, it was announced that, all preparations being completed, an expedition into the interior of the island would be made early in the following week.

CHAPTER XXIV

More Trouble in Sight

Since the return of the master gunner and his party from their successful chase of the buccaneers, the crew of the _Neptune_ had been increased, though not up to full strength. It was Captain Jeremy's intention to keep a large garrison in the stockade, under Captain 'Enery, while the master gunner resumed his duties on board the _Golden Hope_. Joe Clemens, by virtue of his having been mate on a trading vessel, was appointed to the charge of the _Neptune_ till such time as Captain 'Enery could resume his command.

This was, in a measure, somewhat tactless, for Clemens, not being one of the original crew of the _Golden Hope_, was looked upon by some of the men as an outsider who had risen over their heads.

But Joe Clemens, cheerful and easy-going Cornishman that he was, treated this matter lightly, though he was fully aware of it. On being told of the feeling amongst certain of the crew of the _Neptune_, he merely remarked that they would soon get used to it, and that he was quite big and strong enough to look after both Captain Jeremy's interests and his own.

It happened, however, that one day, while Captain Jeremy, the master gunner, and I were in the cabin, a seaman knocked softly and, without waiting to be bidden to enter, came in and closed the door behind him.

He was one of the original band of Lymington men, yet Captain Jeremy, ever a strict disciplinarian, liked not the manner of his entry.

"How now, Cherry?" he asked sternly. "Is this the way--bursting in upon your officers without so much as 'by your leave'?"

"What I have to say must be said quietly, sir," replied the man resolutely.

"Say on."

"There's underhand work aboard the _Neptune_, sir," continued the man. "There's a dozen of 'em in touch with that rascal Slater."

Instinctively I recalled Slater's words: "Dost think I have no friends aboard the ships?"

"How d'ye know this?" demanded Captain Jeremy coolly.

"I heard 'em talking in the fo'c'sle last night, while I was lying down on the cathead for a spell. They'll try to seize the stuff when we get it aboard."

"Will they?" said the Captain grimly. "And who may the rascals be?"

Cherry gave the names of about a dozen, all of whom had, like Slater and his companions, joined the _Golden Hope_ from a Chatham brig.

"They mean to mutiny, lay hands on the treasure, and place it in the sloop," he continued. "They can scarce hope to take the _Golden Hope_."

Now, the sloop was a small, half-decked vessel, of about ten tons burthen, one of the craft that Touchstone had found hard by the place where he had ambushed the buccaneers. These boats had been brought round while I had been ill, and now lay close insh.o.r.e, and almost abreast of the stockade.

"Why not send an armed force aboard the _Neptune_ and secure them?"

asked Touchstone. "They'll lie safely in the bilboes, even if we do not run them up to the yard-arm."

"Nay, I'll play with them awhile," said Captain Jeremy. "Yet I'll take no risks in the matter. For aught I care, they are right welcome to the sloop. And now, Cherry, I thank you for your warning, and rest a.s.sured that I'll not forget to recompense you for it."

The sailor withdrew, and long and anxiously the two officers conferred as to their plan of action.

"'Twill be one way out of the difficulty," concluded Captain Jeremy, slapping his thigh as he was wont to do when in high good humour.

"Sink me! we'll begin our preparations to-morrow."

Accordingly, soon after breakfast on the morrow he was rowed aboard the _Neptune_, and having a.s.sembled the crew, true men and false alike, he addressed them.

"My lads," said he, "in the course of a few days I hope to have the long-sought-for treasure in our possession. Now, since no one can deny that I am a just man, I'll speak plainly on what I propose to do. Those of you who left England in the Golden Hope will receive a share in the _Madre_ treasure, while all hands are ent.i.tled to the spoils we recovered from the wreck of the pirate ship. Now, to prevent mistakes, I propose to separate the two; and since the _Neptune_ is of the lighter build, and sails a full knot faster than the _Golden Hope_, I'll stow the whole of the _Madre_ treasure in the hold of the _Neptune_. Thus, should we be attacked while homeward bound, the _Golden Hope_ can ward off our foes while the _Neptune_ shows a clean pair of heels. Then, should Providence guide us safely into port, a fair and just distribution will be made ere we warp alongside Poole Quay."

Three cheers greeted this announcement, though I felt certain that there were a dozen rogues at least who were laughing in their sleeves at Captain Jeremy for being a fool.

Ere noon arrived the whole of the treasure that we had recovered from the buccaneering craft was safely stowed away in the strong room of the _Golden Hope_; while, acting under instructions, Joe Clemens and several of the proved members of the _Neptune's_ crew removed their personal effects to the parent ship.

Meanwhile, the men who garrisoned the stockade had not been idle.

They had thoroughly explored the cliff path that led to the now deserted buccaneering settlement, and also the road that traversed the island from north to south, the same one that we had struck on our first expedition into the interior. The cliff route was found to be far more practicable than the direct one through the forest, though 'twas considerably longer.

Captain 'Enery had constructed several large wheelbarrows so that, with the a.s.sistance of a couple of men pulling ahead, the treasure could be conveyed to the sh.o.r.e with comparative ease; and Captain Jeremy gave orders for several large boxes, or chests, to be made of strong wood, each numbered on the lid. These boxes, he announced, would hold the treasure safely during the pa.s.sage home, till the time came for it to be duly apportioned.

While this was being done Captain Jeremy sent a party of six trusty men to proceed along the east coast of the island in a southerly direction till they came to a clump of three small palm trees standing far apart from the rest of the vegetation and close to the water's edge. These the men were to cut down, move a hundred yards in a southerly direction, and set up again as well as they were able. The seamen did this faithfully and well, whereat Captain Jeremy again slapped his thigh in evident satisfaction.

That the rascals on board the _Neptune_ were in constant communication with Slater and his fellows we had no doubt, for twice we perceived two men swimming off to the ship by night. Yet all this Captain Jeremy purposely winked at, being of a mind to let the villains work their own destruction.