Unfortunately, at this moment Chris, forgetting caution in the grip of his laughter, held on to Amos shouting feebly: "He's got a patch on his cheek! What do you know—a beauty patch!"
The derision in his voice, in spite of his laughter, was unmistakable, but before he could so much as draw another breath, he heard Claggett Chew's voice for the first time.
"So—you ill-found ugly twirp! You idiot whippersnapper! Let me give you one to match!"
And quicker than the eye could follow, the whip flicked out, and with a cutting sting, lashed Chris's cheek. The cut, from the metal wire, was deep, almost to Chris's jawbone; but he did not feel the hurt as much as he realized—his laughter gone—that Claggett Chew was now his deadly enemy.
"Next time," came Claggett Chew's sneering voice, "I shall take an eye from you, my laughing boy, and see if that amuses us as well!"
And turning on his heel, followed by the sauntering, giggling fop, the pair picked their way along the wharf and disappeared.
It was only then, looking around at the sobered, silent sailors, Chris remembered that Zachary Heigh was the only one who had not laughed.