“Whither are we bound?�
Her interrogation recalled me to myself. I had really given the matter no thought at all. All that I had permitted myself to decide upon was to get away from the island, and I had hoisted the sail and put the boat before the wind without a thought as to its direction.
It so happened—indeed, I humbly submit that perhaps it did not happen by chance but was so ordered by that Providence which had watched over us—that the wind blew directly off the island and the boat was headed toward the distant shores of the other islands whence the marauders had come and where The Rose of Devon had been wrecked. I recollected from the conversation I had had with Pimball that they had somehow floated the ship and that she was seaworthy, and as my mistress questioned me the daring design of seizing the ship flashed into my mind.
Indeed, the enterprise was in a measure forced upon me. We had no water in the boat, practically no provisions. We were thousands of miles away from the possibility of passing ships. Unless some vessel should be blown far out of her course by continued storms there was absolutely no chance of our being picked up. That small boat with its patched-up, makeshift equipment was in no condition anyway for a long voyage, even if we had plenty of food and water. The Rose of Devon would provide everything we needed if we once got aboard her, and while two would be an almost impossible crew for such a ship, as I had said or thought, yet if any of her spars still stood, by means of tackles I might make shift to hoist a rag of sail. If the vessel were still tight she could carry us indefinitely, and perhaps by taking advantage of every wind that was favorable we might in the end make the South American Coast. Of course the work would all have to be done by me, but my lady had often steered The Rose of Devon during the outward voyage, for her pleasure, and she could relieve me long enough for me to get the absolutely necessary sleep so long as we were aboard her. At any rate, half-naked, hungry, thirsty, as we were in a small boat stripped of everything, she was our only resource. Therefore I answered briefly.
“I am going to seize The Rose of Devon if I can find her.�
“But there will be men aboard her,� said my mistress apprehensively.
“Doubtless,� I returned, “but at most there cannot be many of them. We saw enough on the island to know that.�
“Yes,� admitted the brave woman by my side, “that is true.�
“No one would offer to stay on the ship when he had a chance to hunt for treasure and for you and me.�
“No, I suppose not.�