“Beast!” he muttered.

“I hope,” said Claude, “there is no one in this ship deserves that title, doctor.”

“Will you come and see for yourself, sir?”

“I will.”

Claude followed the doctor out to the steerage and into the dispensary. There he pointed to an almost empty bottle of brandy.

He said nothing.

“Do you mean me to infer,” said Claude, “that one of my crew has been guilty of a theft so vile?”

The doctor nodded.

“And who?”

“Who but Datchet?”