Part 53 (1/2)
”It is what I a her at Cephalonia”
”What, without a ransom!” exclaimed Baldo
”With or without a ransom, as the case may be,” said Zappa, coldly
”If without a ranso rid of her, and would better satisfy theed look, in which a certain aled, with audacity ”We want no woone ill e have had them,” he muttered, in a lower tone, which the captain, however, did not fail to hear
”Speak out--what mean you?” he asked fiercely
”That the deep sea will be the safest place for her, where she will not trouble usas he uttered the words, for there was so in Zappa's look which warned him he had better not say them
Somewhat to his surprise, however, his captain suppressed whatever feelings inspired him
”And such is the wish of the crew, that I should destroy an innocent girl, who has trusted to me, and, perhaps, they would desire er, because we have met with a reverse to which all are subject Well, tell the your instant decision, captain Some of them have friends in an island not far off, and they declare that they will land, and leave you and the craft to take care of each other, if you refuse to grant their request So you, and sending you to look after your mistresses”
”And you, the loudest whisperer of them all,” exclaimed the pirate, in a fierce tone, so loud, that, had not those to whom it related been absorbed in their own conversations, they must have been startled by it
”That I slay you not this instant, you have to thank the critical position in which the shi+p is placed Go, tell them that I, Zappa, their chief, intend to re as the _Sea Hawk_ floats proudly on the ocean, or till I absolve theiance Go, tell theain venture to be the bearer of such a et a pull on the braces; we e”
Baldo, without venturing to answer, hurried to execute the order; and, as soon as the yards were braced sharp up, after giving a glance at his chief, who he had so lately been accustomed, to fear, that he felt surprised at his own audacity, he went below to consult with his coadjutors as to be done He cunningly had taken advantage of his chief's late want of success, to ingratiate himself with the people, and had eue to weaken the authority of the ave the answer to their ed would best suit his purpose, and infla his ns He had, somewhat to the surprise of Zappa, who, however, soon fathoation of the passage, through which they inding their way, that he est portion of the crew had been won over, and they were now summoned below to hear the decision of the rest, and to put their plan into iuessed at; it involved the instant destruction of their chief, as well as of the unprotected girl, whom he refused to sacrifice to their fears
Baldo had marked the ill-starred Nina as his own; and Paolo, who had always been a favourite, and had never made an enemy, they intended to preserve as useful to theeon Thus it is, that the lawless can never depend for an instant on each other
Zappa still stood at his post, issuing the necessary orders; and, although gloos were on his mind, he resolutely determined to dare the worst, rather than yield Heoff below, eachperceived, till, at last, the stations of many of them were deserted; and he saw that, should any duty suddenly be required of them, there were not hands to perform it
”This s too far I must recover ave a look to ard to see that the vessel was in no danger for so to thedown boldly a thethelanced, for an instant, to leeward That instant was sufficient to create far greater alarm in his mind than had his mutinous crew
”All hands on deck Up men, for your lives, up! Clew up, haul down!
Brace round the after-yards! Up with the helm!”
To the eastward, hitherto unobserved, a ser than a man's hand With almost the velocity of a thunderbolt it darted across the sky, expanding as rapidly, till, as it approached, it seemed like a vast bank of white ave a bright and shi+ning appearance, the sea below, as if swept up by its base, curling in huge, foary roar, the reefs it encountered, as it bubbled and hissed in its onward course, while it sent before it, flying high into the air, a sheet of spray, which, almost as soon as seen, enveloped the dootones of their commander's voice, attempted, in a mass, to rush up thetheir foul project; but, in an instant, as the roar of the tempest struck their ears, and they felt the y, in the hopes of preserving their worthless lives, one ht of--the fear of their own death, not the wish to destroy another, now urged the on deck, while those below grasped the thele, which seeht have availed was lost, if any power could have saved the vessel; those more faithful to their trust, who had remained on deck, flew to the halyards and braces; but, before they could let go the first, or haul away on the others, the white squall was upon theainst the mast would not start Down, down she went over on her starboard side, like a tall reed bent by the wind Her bowsprit and the canvas stretched on it flew to leeward Her head turned a few points to the eastward--she made a stern-board--the water rushed in torrents up her decks and into her hold--the foam fleildly over her side, and shrieks, and cries, and oaths, extorted by the agony of despair, escaped from her maddened crew, as they beheld their inevitable doom
As Zappa saw the fury of the squall, he felt that all his skill and all his courage would avail hiht to save the _Sea Hawk_ In this, his last dire extreh for his own life he cared not, he remembered that there were others whose lives depended on him To fly towards the stern before the vessel's deck had become completely perpendicular, was the work of one ed Ada and Nina, who, al on, by ere now the weather bulwarks, to the outside of the vessel In this task he was aided by Paolo, when the loud cries of ”The shi+p is sinking, the shi+p is sinking,” uttered by the seamen, and the roar of the te to the side of the two beingswith the of any assistance to them The dreadful position in which they were placed was sufficient to paralyse the heart of the bravest, and the terror of the two girls was further increased by the shrieks of the drowning wretches which reached their ears They now clung with convulsive energy to the quarter-rail, their feet partly supported by the sill of the after-port, and though expecting instant death, they still, with the iest feel, endeavoured to preserve their lives Nina was almost unconscious, but Ada Garden still retained her faculties uniers which surrounded her, she was better able to exert herself for her preservation; yet, in that wild vortex of water, and with a sinking shi+p alone to rest on, what hope was there?
Poor girl--in that h her mind Death to her could have few terrors, but life had ht, and even these, presented to hercolours, yet she tried to banish earthly things, to conte, to offer up a prayer to Heaven for herself, and for those ere being hurried to their doom with her--she prayed as earnestly for herself as for them, for it did not occur to her that she had less need of prayer than they, and ill venture to pronounce that she had?--her advantages had been e of one so truly loved would present itself to her eyes, and it added rief her loss would inflict on him Months, years would pass away, her fate unknown, he still would be vainly searching for her throughout those seas, till, perchance, soht be washed on soht reach his ears of the destruction of the pirate's bark, and the suspicions of her dooht was, perhaps, the most cruel she had to bear These and h her mind more rapidly than I have taken to write theible cry which reached her ears
”She does not sink,” was heard in answer, in Zappa's deep-toned voice
”She floats still--co this quarter-boat into the water”
The , could scarcely hear his words, but they coht of the lashed to thePaolo re on in their perilous position, in which they were further assisted by some ropes which Zappa had fastened to the rail, and placed in their hands The operation required great caution, as the only chance of her swi was to launch her on the lee-side, or, as it were, in board The attempt was made All looked on with anxiety, for they saw that on its success their lives depended--the boat gone, they had no other hope of being preserved The lashi+ngs were cut adrift, the boat was lifted up to stand on her keel, on the rigging, and her stern was slewed round for launching, when a wave, larger than any which had yet struck the vessel, ca towards them