“I agree heartily. Drink up, Boyle, and pass the buck. I have a five years’ thirst.”
They talked until day-break; then Courtenay turned in. He did not appear on deck again until noon. By that time the Kansas had lost all marks of the fight excepting the smashed windows, and a sailor who understood the glazier’s art was replacing the broken glass. Making the round of the ship, the captain found Elsie sitting with Isobel and Mrs. Somerville on the promenade deck. She was binding Joey’s foot, and he knew then why the dog had scampered off on three legs as soon as the cabin door was opened.
The girl colored very prettily the moment she set eyes on her lover. Memories of the previous night became exceedingly vivid. She was adorably shy, Courtenay thought. As he approached, he debated the manner of his greeting; being a sailor, he did not hesitate.
Lifting his cap with a smile and a general “Good morning,” he bent over Elsie.
“Well,” he said, “surely you owe me at least one kiss?”
If her cheeks were red before they became scarlet now. But his kindling glance had warned her that he would adopt no pretence, so she lifted her face to his, though she did not dare to look at her amazed companions. Courtenay explained matters quite coolly.
“If Elsie has not told you already, it is my privilege to announce that she and I have signed articles,” he said with a smile. “That is, we intend to get married as soon as the ship reaches England.”
“Indeed, I congratulate you both most heartily,” said the missionary’s wife.
“Events have marched, then, while we were stranded on that wretched island?” tittered Isobel. Her voice was rather shrill. She, too, was excited, not quite mistress of herself. She did not know how far Gray’s statements might have prejudiced her with the captain; she had already sent de Poincilit a note urging him to deny absolutely all knowledge of the plot to steal the boat, and attribute the American’s summary action to his mistaken rendering of the Spanish patois used by the Chilean sailors.
“Yes,” laughed Courtenay, ready to put her at ease. “One crowds the events of a month into a day under some conditions. Last night, for instance, I had five minutes’ amusement with a steampipe and a double-barrelled gun which will serve all my requirements in the way of physical exercise for a long time to come.”