“What are we going to do now?” asked the captain, apparently anxious to turn the current of conversation into a more agreeable channel.
“We’ll go back and make ready to leave on the proa. We have considerable to do before we depart. There 199 are a number of things in the cabin that we must carry with us.”
“Yes, that’s so; I forgot that. But, Abe––don’t you get mad!––what about them?”
“Just never you mind,” replied the mate with an important wave of the hand. “I’ll attend to them.”
“All right. I was afraid you would forget ’em!”
It pained Storms to tyrannize over his superior officer in this fashion, but stern necessity compelled him to become the real captain. The intention of the mate when he first followed his friend was to dig up the pearls and give him his share, but he saw that that would never do. It would precipitate a tragedy to allow the lunatic any option in the matter. So, without any further reference to the pearls, the two rose to their feet and walked slowly back in the direction of the proa, talking on no particular subject, since the mate was desirous of diverting the mind of the captain as much as possible.
The discoveries of the next few minutes did not serve to lighten the apprehension of Storms, for when he reached the proa the two islanders seemed to be enjoying a siesta, while neither Fred Sanders nor Inez was in sight.
Suspecting what was wanted, one of the natives roused up and pointed toward the sea, jabbering some odd words, which could not be understood, but which 200 Storms concluded were meant to indicate the direction taken by the couple.
“That’s almost the path to the spot where we were,” he thought, as he turned and walked away, holding the arm of the captain within his own.
Sure enough, they had not gone far when they caught sight of Fred and Inez sitting on the beach, just as if they were at some fashionable seaside resort in summer time, and were chattering no particular sense at all. Storms noticed that the place was such as to command a view of that where he and the captain had held their conversation, and where their precious possessions were buried.