“Singleton! Quick!” I called. “Bring your revolver.”
He stopped and peered in my direction.
“Who is it?”
“Leslie. Come below, for God’s sake!”
He came slowly toward me, and in a dozen words I told him what had happened. I saw then that he had been drinking. He reeled against me, and seemed at a loss to know what to do.
“Get your revolver,” I said, “and wake the captain.”
He disappeared into the forward house, to come back a moment later with a revolver. I had got a lantern in the mean time, and ran to the forward companionway which led into the main cabin. Singleton followed me.
“Where’s the captain?” I asked.
“I didn’t call him,” Singleton replied, and muttered something unintelligible under his breath.
Swinging the lantern ahead of me, I led the way down the companionway. Something lay huddled at the foot. I had to step over it to get down. Singleton stood above, on the steps. I stooped and held the lantern close, and we both saw that it was the captain, killed as Vail had been. He was fully dressed except for his coat, and as he lay on his back, his cap had been placed over his mutilated face.