“I don’t know. I might take to the water, swim to the stern of the launch, climb in and try to shove off.”
“Then why don’t you do it?”
“And leave you alone, Miss Silsbee, even for a few moments?”
“I could run across the island if those ugly-looking beasts started in my direction. You could pick me up at some other point of the shore.”
“Have you forgotten the snakes?” demanded Tom.
“Ugh! Don’t make me more afraid.”
“I don’t want to, Miss Silsbee. But neither do I want to see you forget any of the risks of our position.”
One of the big alligators, after eyeing them for some moments, started up the rise of ground toward them. From the slowness of its movements it looked as though the huge thing was bent mainly on securing a good point at which to sun itself, but Halstead and the girl retreated slowly.
“See,” whispered Halstead, “the other ’gator is moving a bit east along the shore. Let’s run down to the west shore. There we may be in a position to reach the launch bye and bye.”
As they stole along cautiously, in the direction Tom had indicated, each had to be careful in picking footing on the soft, springy ground, else it was impossible to tell when they might step upon a hidden rattler. Yet they gained the shore, at last, Tom in the lead. Here they halted, a hundred feet from the launch. By this time the first alligator had halted near the crest of the rise. Turning slowly, the beast was eyeing the fugitives blinkingly. The second alligator was now some thirty feet from the further side of the launch, though still quite close to the water.