Part 36 (2/2)

”Better so,” I answered

”But think, Humphrey, a fellow-creature in his last lonely hour”

”Perhaps,” I suggested

”Yes, even perhaps,” she acknowledged ”But we do not know It would be terrible if he were I could never forgive ain

I waited, s inwardly at the woman of her which compelled a solicitude for Wolf Larsen, of all creatures Where was her solicitude for ht,-for me whom she had been afraid to have merely peep aboard?

She was too subtle not to follow the trend of my silence And she was as direct as she was subtle

”You o aboard, Huh at iveness”

I arose obediently and went down the beach

”Do be careful,” she called after me

I waved my arm from the forecastle head and dropped down to the deck Aft I walked to the cabin co below Wolf Larsen answered, and as he started to ascend the stairs I cockedour conversation, but he took no notice of it He appeared the saloomy and silent In fact, the feords we spoke could hardly be called a conversation I did not inquire why he had not been ashore, nor did he ask why I had not coain, he said, and so, without further parley, I left him

Maud received ht of salley put her in a alley slimpses of him on the poop But that was all He made no attempt to coht-watches We aiting for hi, to show his hand, so to say, and his inaction puzzled and worried us

A week of this passed by We had no other interest than Wolf Larsen, and his presence weighed us doith an apprehension which prevented us fros we had planned

But at the end of the week the ser showed hirowing, though she timidly-and even proudly, I think-forbore a repetition of her request After all, what censure could be put upon her? She was divinely altruistic, and she was a woht of thisalone with his fellow-creatures so near He was right The code of er than I The fact that he had hands, feet, and a body shaped sonore

So I did not wait a second time for Maud to send me I discovered that we stood in need of condensedaboard I could see that she wavered She even went so far as to murmur that they were non-essentials and that ht be inexpedient And as she had followed the trend of my silence, she now followed the trend ofaboard, not because of condensed milk and marmalade, but because of her and of her anxiety, which she knew she had failed to hide

I took off ained the forecastle head, and went noiselessly aft infeet Nor did I call this ti, I found the cabin deserted The door to his state-roo, then I remembered my ostensible errand and resolved to carry it out Carefully avoiding noise, I lifted the trap-door in the floor and set it to one side The slop-chest, as well as the provisions, was stored in the lazarette, and I took advantage of the opportunity to lay in a stock of underclothing

As I eed from the lazarette I heard sounds in Wolf Larsen's state-room I crouched and listened The door-knob rattled Furtively, instinctively, I slunk back behind the table and drew and cockedopen and he came forth Never had I seen so profound a despair as that which I saw on his face,-the face of Wolf Larsen the fighter, the strong ing her hands, he raised his clenched fists and groaned One fist unclosed, and the open pal away cobwebs

”God! God!” he groaned, and the clenched fists were raised again to the infinite despair hich his throat vibrated

It was horrible I was tre up and downout on my forehead Surely there can be little in this worldman in the moment when he is utterly weak and broken

But Wolf Larsen regained control of himself by an exertion of his remarkable will And it was exertion His whole frae of a fit His face strove to co in the effort till he broke down again Once ht his breath once or twice and sobbed Then he was successful I could have thought him the old Wolf Larsen, and yet there was in his estion of weakness and indecision He started for the companion-way, and stepped forward quite as I had been accustoain, in his very walk, there seeestion of weakness and indecision

I was now concerned with fear for myself The open trap lay directly in his path, and his discovery of it would lead instantly to his discovery of ht in so cowardly a position, crouching on the floor There was yet time I rose swiftly to my feet, and, I know, quite unconsciously assumed a defiant attitude He took no notice of rasp the situation, or act, he had walked right into the trap One foot was descending into the opening, while the other foot was just on the verge of beginning the uplift But when the descending footand felt vacancy beneath, it was the old Wolf Larsen and the tiger , even as it fell, so that he struck on his chest and stomach, with arms outstretched, on the floor of the opposite side The next instant he had drawn up his legs and rolled clear But he rolled into ainst the trap-door

The expression on his face was one of couess what he had co the lazarette Then I understood He thought he had me inside Also, he was blind, blind as a bat I watched hi carefully so that he should not hear me He stepped quickly to his state-room I saw his hand miss the door-knob by an inch, quickly fumble for it, and find it This was my chance I tiptoed across the cabin and to the top of the stairs He ca a heavy sea-chest, which he deposited on top of the trap Not content with this he fetched a second chest and placed it on top of the first Then he gathered up the marmalade and underclothes and put them on the table When he started up the co over on top of the cabin