CHAPTER XIV
Ralph is Kidnapped
After his terrific head-on fall into the catamaran, Ralph lay momentarily stunned. He recovered consciousness as the gag was being passed over his mouth, but was utterly weak and bewildered, not comprehending at first what had happened to him. The next instant he felt his arms tightly bound to his side, and then his legs were firmly bound together. He lay helpless, but started to gather his wits together, and soon realized what had happened. The man in the catamaran was now sculling rapidly. Ralph opened his eyes, and in the dim dawn now breaking he recognized the man to be the oiler, Collins. The latter now stopped sculling, pulled his oar in the boat, and came toward Ralph. He bent down toward Ralph’s head, giving the midshipman a feeling of helpless terror. “What is this villain going to do to me now?” thought the young man to himself. But to Ralph’s surprise and comfort the “villain” now bathed his injured head with cold water; he then pulled off his heavy overshirt and making a pillow of it, put it under Ralph’s head. The midshipman’s terror now completely left him and was replaced by a great curiosity; this man was not like the villains he had read about.
“I hope you’re not hurt bad,” Collins said; “you came down awfully hard, head first.”
Ralph struggled to make a reply, but was effectually prevented by the neckerchief tightly bound over his mouth.
Collins now removed the neckerchief, saying roughly, “We’re a long ways off from the ship, but if you do any yelling I’ll brain you with this oar.” Then recognizing his prisoner, he said, “Oh, so it’s you, is it? The efficient midshipman who made a reputation by preventing a poor enlisted man from going to see his sick wife! That was a nice trick; I hope you’re proud of yourself, Osborn.”
Ralph sat up. “You’ll call me Mr. Osborn, when you speak to me, Collins.”
“Will I, my pretty boy? I’ll call you Mr. Osborn when you call me Mr. Collins,” he added sneeringly. “I’m glad it is you; I’m only sorry you didn’t get a worse bump. But I can make it worse at any time with this good oar.”
“I don’t believe you’ll hit me with the oar, Collins,” said Ralph quietly.
“Don’t you? Well you’d better not kick up any fuss then.” Collins spoke savagely. He now commenced to scull again, and by daylight had rounded a point of land and was now entirely hidden from the ship.
Ralph said nothing, wondering what the outcome of this adventure would be. In Collins’ face he saw mingled emotions of worry and anguish. But in it he saw no expression that frightened him, helpless as he was. The catamaran was now driven to a stretch of sand and hauled up on the beach. Collins looked at Ralph and said abruptly, “Get up.”