"Neither of you will stoop to ask him questions, so I had to. And I have
learned one thing. He is going pearl hunting."
"What? Off the Catwick? There's no pearl oyster in that region," Dennison
declared. "Either he is lying or the Catwick is a blind. The only chance
he'd have would be somewhere in the Sulu Archipelago; and this time of
year the pearl fleets will be as thick as flies in molasses. Of course if
he is aware of some deserted atoll, why, there might be something in it."
"Have you ever hunted pearls?"
"In a second-hand sort of way. But if pearls are his game, why commit
piracy when he could have chartered a tramp to carry his crew? There's
more than one old bucket hereabouts ready to his hand for coal and
stores. He'll need a shoe spoon to get inside or by the Sulu fleets, since
the oyster has been pretty well neglected these five years, and every
official pearler will be hiking down there. But it requires a certain
amount of capital and a stack of officially stamped paper, and I don't
fancy Cunningham has either."
Cleigh smiled dryly, but offered no comment. He knew all about
Cunningham's capital.
"Did he say anything about being picked up by another boat?" asked
Dennison.
"No," answered Jane. "But I don't believe it will be hard for me to make
him tell me that. I believe that he will keep his word, too."
"Jane, he has broken the law of the sea. I don't know what the penalty is
these days, but it used to be hanging to the yard-arm. He won't be
particular about his word if by breaking it he can save his skin. He's
been blarneying you. You've let his plausible tongue and handsome face
befog you."
"That is not true!" she flared. Afterward she wondered what caused the
flash of perversity. "And I resent your inference!" she added with
uplifted chin.
Dennison whirled her about savagely, stared into her eyes, then walked to
the companion, up which he disappeared. This rudeness astonished her
profoundly. She appealed silently to the father.
"We are riding a volcano," said Cleigh. "I'm not sure but he's setting
some trap for you. He may need you as a witness for the defense. Of course
I can't control your actions, but it would relieve me immensely if you'd
give him a wide berth."
"He was not the one who brought me aboard."