'Please, marm,' he said hurriedly and unevenly, 'I waited at the mouth of the river as the Admiral told me to do until seven o'clock, and he never came. Then I landed, and clambered up a bit to look for him. When a' was a bit up I saw the long-boat comin' and Mr. Trist steering her, so I went down again. Mr. Trist's gone up the river, marm, and me and Barker waited for two hours and heard nothin'. Then Barker says I'd better come on board an' tell yer, marm.'
'You did quite right, Cobbold,' replied Mrs. Wylie, in a singularly monotonous voice. 'You had better come on board and get something to eat; you look tired.'
But the man did not move. He shook his head.
'No, marm,' he said bashfully, 'I'm not wantin' anything t'eat. And I'm not tired ... only I'm a bit ... scared! I should like to go back, marm, at once to the river.'
Mrs. Wylie thought for a moment deeply.
'I will go back with you,' she said at length. Then she went forward to where Captain Barrow stood with the rest of the crew, now thoroughly aroused to anxiety, grouped behind him.
'Captain Barrow,' she said, in a tone slightly raised, so that all might hear her, 'the Admiral has not come back yet. I am afraid that he has either hurt himself or is lost in the mist. I will go back with Cobbold in the gig. But ... it will not be necessary to keep the men up.'
In the meantime, Brenda had not been idle. She ran down below and found the steward already in the saloon procuring waterproofs. He was kneeling before an open locker when she entered the little cabin, and, turning his head, he saw her.
'Are you going too, miss?' he asked.
'Yes, Clarke, I am going.'