"She's headed in shore and directly for the inlet, sir."
"Can you make her out yet?"
"I have not been ashore, sir, but Morgan's men say they can only see her lights."
"Lower a boat and let me take your glasses. I do not want to alarm the ladies by returning to the cabin for mine."
"Women are a bit of a nuisance at such times, sir," said Suarez, who could no longer refrain from expressing his views, however mildly.
"No, you are wrong there, Suarez," said O'Connor, who understood the mate's aversion to everyone and everything that was not working directly for the good of the cause. "They are only an incentive to extra caution, which you must admit is an admirable thing for me." Suarez shook his head doubtfully as he went forward to get the boat in the water and O'Connor laughed at his officer's crochet.
A boat was quickly lowered and manned, and O'Connor was rowed to the point of land that separated the lagoon from the ocean. He made his way to a group of men who, in the shelter of some palm trees, were watching the red and green lights of an approaching vessel.
"Can you make her out?" asked O'Connor, eagerly.
"No, sir. We have no glasses. Perhaps you can tell what she is."
O'Connor took a long look at the lights, which were yet mere specks.