Part 13 (1/2)

The cook turned his watery blue eyes upon Rokoff and smiled vacuously

”Ay tank it blow purty soon purty hard,” he said, and then he began rearranging the few dishes upon the little table

”Get out of here, or I'll throw you out, youstep toward the Swede

Anderssen continued to smile foolishly in his direction, but one ha, sli his soiled apron

Rokoff saw the move and stopped short in his advance Then he turned toward Jane Clayton

”I will give you until tomorrow,” he said, ”to reconsider your answer to my offer All will be sent ashore upon one pretext or another except you and the child, Paulvitch and myself Then without interruption you will be able to witness the death of the baby”

He spoke in French that the cook ht not understand the sinister portent of his words When he had done he banged out of the cabin without another look at the man who had interrupted hione, Sven Anderssen turned toward Lady Greystoke-the idiotic expression that had hts had fallen away, and in its place was one of craft and cunning

”Hay tank Ay ban a fool,” he said ”Hay ben the fool Ay savvy Franch”

Jane Clayton looked at him in surprise

”You understood all that he said, then?”

Anderssen grinned

”You bat,” he said

”And you heard as going on in here and caood toAy help you, lady You yust vait-Ay help you Ay ban Vast Coast lots times”

”But how can you help ainst us?”

”Ay tank,” said Sven Anderssen, ”it blow purty soon purty hard,” and then he turned and left the cabin

Though Jane Clayton doubted the cook's ability to be of any rateful to hi these eneht the first ray of cohten the burden of her e of the Kincaid

She saw no more of Rokoff that day, nor of any other until Sven ca meal She tried to draw him into conversation relative to his plans to aid her, but all that she could get from him was his stereotyped prophecy as to the future state of the wind He seemed suddenly to have relapsed into his wonted state of dense stupidity

However, when he was leaving her cabin a little later with the empty dishes he whispered very low, ”Leave on your clothes an' roll up your blankets Ay come back after you purty soon”

He would have slipped from the room at once, but Jane laid her hand upon his sleeve