Tempest had heard the last words uttered by Bertha, and he was trembling violently.
"Do you hate me so much?" he asked.
"Hate you? No, I spoke of Captain Carter——"
"Of this ship?"
"Yes."
"What was he to you?"
"How can you ask? Do you not know that he visited my home and professed to love me—that when I told him I was engaged to another he declared I should never marry any one but himself? My brother ordered him to leave the house, and then, late that night, two men overtook me as I was returning home; they gagged me and carried me to a boat, from which I was taken to this ship, which was in the offing."
"I thank Heaven I killed that captain! My friend, here, is captain of the Lively Bee, privateer, and he has captured this vessel——"
"No, no, Tempest. I did nothing of the kind. You made the capture, for you led the assault, and you ran up the Stars and Stripes."
"Let me see it," said Bertha, still almost doubting.