I did not answer, only laid my hand upon his, and he pressed it warmly, holding it for some moments before turning his back to me; and I made out that he rested his arm upon the side of the boat, and sat gazing at the dim lights which showed where the ship lay.
For some time no one spoke, and we lay there gently rising and falling on the golden-spangled water. There was not a breath of wind, and the silence was so great that any one could have imagined that the occupants of the boat were asleep.
But no one dozed for a moment, only sat or lay there, trying to bear patiently their mental and bodily suffering.
It was the captain who broke the silence, toward morning, by saying to the mate—
“Have you settled what to do, Brymer?”
“Yes,” said the mate, starting. “I can’t quite make out how we are situated till daylight, but unless Jarette has taken them out, we have the boat’s spars and sails. You know how fast she is, and I propose, if we can do so, to—”
He stopped short, for Walters moaned piteously till Mr Frewen bent down over him and altered the position in which he lay.
“Yes, go on,” said the captain feebly.
“I propose hoisting sail in the morning.”
“And making for the Cape?”