Leaving Pengelly in charge of the bridge, Captain Cain called the gunner and the bo'sun to his cabin and put the case before them. He meant to ignore Pengelly altogether in the matter. Instinctively he knew that his second in command would strongly protest against the idea of an African base. Pengelly was all right up to a certain point in home waters, but not once but many times had he expressed his fears about proceeding far from his native Cornwall.
Both Barnard and Marchant fell in with the captain's suggestion. Already had they come to the conclusion that piracy, even with the assistance of a submarine craft, was too risky a game to be prosecuted for any length of time in British and French waters.
"You see the idea?" said Cain. "A couple of good hauls of shipping homeward-bound from Senegal, the Congo, and other French and Belgian colonies, and our fortunes are made. We'll cache the booty, make our way home, charter a vessel all above-board, recover the stuff, and there you are. It's as simple as A B C. Our first business is with the Spanish tanker. Pass the word for'ard, Mr. Barnard. There's a double share to the first man who sights the Mendez Nunez."
Ten miles to the west of the Scillies, the Alerte ran out of the bank of fog into a clear expanse of water under a cloudless sky. The sea had moderated considerably, although there was a long, sullen swell that caused the pirate vessel to roll until her scuppers were under water. In these circumstances, should the Mendez Nunez be captured, making fast alongside the prize would be a manoeuvre fraught with danger.
Captain Cain had made a correct guess with reference to the sighting of the Spanish tanker. A wisp of smoke away to the S.S.W. indicated the presence of a vessel. Half an hour later, two masts and funnel showed above the horizon.
Glass in hand, the captain went aloft. From his elevated perch he quickly ascertained that the on-coming craft was a tanker. Although end on, the vessel's build and rig confirmed his surmise. She was long, low-lying, with a funnel right aft. The only break between the funnel and the bows was a small structure crowned by the bridge and chart-house. She was flying no colours, but the yellow and red bands round her funnel were sufficient to proclaim her nationality.
Rapidly the distance between the two vessels decreased. Giving a rapid glance to reassure himself that there were no other craft in sight, Captain Cain descended from the cross-trees to the deck and thence to the bridge.
"Port a bit!" he ordered.
By so doing the Alerte was merely conforming to the usual custom by which vessels meeting nearly end on ported helm. The action served its purpose. Quite in ignorance of the danger that menaced her, the Mendez Nunez followed suit, intending to pass the supposed tramp at not less than two cables' distance.
Already the Alerte's quick-firer was cleared for action, but was hidden from the Spaniard by the rise of the former's fo'c'sle. The moment the pirate vessel was in a position to enable the gun to bear, a shell was fired across the tanker's bows, instantly followed by the signal to heave to.