Part 29 (1/2)
”Youit from him
He was quick to obey, and I found myself alone on the deck of the Ghost As quietly as was possible, I clewed up the topsails, lowered the flying jib and staysail, backed the jib over, and flattened the er on my lips for silence, and entered Wolf Larsen's room He was in the sa-al I can do for you?” I asked
Hethe question he answered, ”No, no; I'”
But as I turned to go I noted that his head had resu patiently for me, and I took notice, with a thrill of joy, of the queenly poise of her head and her glorious, calm eyes Calm and sure they were as her spirit itself
”Will you trust yourself to me for a journey of six hundred miles or so?” I asked
”You ht
”Yes, Ileft for us but the open boat”
”For me, you mean,” she said ”You are certainly as safe here as you have been”
”No, there is nothing left for us but the open boat,” I iterated stoutly ”Will you please dress as warmly as you can, at once, andwith you”
”And make all haste,” I added, as she turned toward her state-room
The lazarette was directly beneath the cabin, and, opening the trap-door in the floor and carrying a candle withthe shi+p's stores I selected oods, and by the ti hands were extended from above to receive what I passed up
We worked in silence I helped myself also to blankets, s, fro ourselves in a small boat to so raw and storuard ourselves against the cold and wet
We worked feverishly at carrying our plunder on deck and depositing it ath was hardly a positive quantity, had to give over, exhausted, and sit on the steps at the break of the poop This did not serve to recover her, and she lay on her back, on the hard deck, arms stretched out, and whole body relaxed It was a trick I reain I knew, also, that weapons would not coet his rifle and shot-gun I spoke to hi from side to side and he was not asleep
”Good-bye, Lucifer,” I whispered to myself as I softly closed the door
Next to obtain was a stock of ae companion-way to do it Here the hunters stored the ammunition-boxes they carried in the boats, and here, but a few feet from their noisy revels, I took possession of two boxes
Next, to lower a boat Not so sis, I hoisted first on the forward tackle, then on the aft, till the boat cleared the rail, when I lowered away, one tackle and then the other, for a couple of feet, till it hung snugly, above the water, against the schooner's side I made certain that it contained the proper equipment of oars, rowlocks, and sail Water was a consideration, and I robbed every boat aboard of its breaker As there were nine boats all told, it meant that we should have plenty of water, and ballast as well, though there was the chance that the boat would be overloaded, what of the generous supply of other things I was taking
While Maud was passingthem in the boat, a sailor came on deck from the forecastle He stood by the weather rail for a ti over the lee rail), and then sauntered slowly a the wind, with his back toward us I could hearas I crouched low in the boat Maud had sunk down upon the deck and was, I knew, lying motionless, her body in the shadow of the bulwark But thehis ar audibly, he retraced his steps to the forecastle scuttle and disappeared
A few , and I lowered the boat into the water As I helped Maud over the rail and felt her for out, ”I love you! I love you!” Truly Huers clung to mine while I lowered her down to the boat I held on to the rail with one hand and supported her weight with the other, and I was proud at the th I had not possessed a few ood-bye to Charley Furuseth and started for San Francisco on the ill-fated Martinez
As the boat ascended on a sea, her feet touched and I released her hands I cast off the tackles and leaped after her I had never rowed in my life, but I put out the oars and at the expense of ot the boat clear of the Ghost Then I experimented with the sail I had seen the boat-steerers and hunters set their spritsails many times, yet this was my first attempt What took them possibly twoand tri-oar in my hands hauled on the wind
”There lies japan,” I reht before us”
”Humphrey Van Weyden,” she said, ”you are a brave man”