There was a great flapping and banging as the brig rounded to, and with much yo-ho-hoing the boats were lowered into the water.
"You will go off first, Master Bones," ordered Murray. "Kindly present my compliments to Captain Flint and say that I should like to have a word with him aboard the James at his early convenience."
Bones sullenly touched his cap and led better than half the crew into one of the two longboats the brig had carried. Murray nodded to Silver as they cast off.
"Start your train," he said shortly. "Nephew Robert, I wish you and Peter to go into the second boat. At once, please!"
"Plenty o' time, captain," said Silver with a grin. "You can lay to it I'm a-goin' to give myself a chance to hop up from below."
The suspicion of a smile dawned in my great-uncle's eyes.
"It is barely possible that your disability is a factor in my arrangements," he answered.
Peter and I climbed clumsily down the ladder of cleats nailed to the brig's hull and dropped into the bobbing longboat. Peter groaned as we crawled over the thwarts.
"Like der waves is my stomach—oop—andt down. Now I be sick, ja!"
And he was.