“What? Look again.”
“That’s right. Sou’west by sou’.”
“Then the wind is shifting to the northeast. Betty, we’re headed for Cape Hatteras.”
The dread name apparently produced no alarm in the girl’s mind. “I’ve always wanted to be in a storm off Hatteras.”
“Well, you’re likely to have your wish before morning, if this gale keeps up.”
“If we reach Cape Hatteras in the dark like this—abruptly—what will happen?”
“I fancy we’ll hurt Cape Hatteras’s feelings.”
“Oh!”
After a silence, he felt her hand touch his arm as if she needed comfort.
“Poor little girl,” he said. “Don’t worry. I won’t let anything hurt you.”