The late second in command of the Alerte hardly hoped to pass himself off as one of the ratings of the pirate submarine. He realised that he was far from being popular with the crew. Sooner or later they would "give him away." But the attempt was worth trying.
As he came over the side of the Canvey he was interrogated by a stern-faced lieutenant, who demanded his name and rating.
"Smith, Tom—deck-hand," he replied.
The Canvey's officer noted the particulars without comment. Pengelly went for'ard under arrest, ignorant of the fact that Sub-Lieutenant Gerald Broadmayne was watching him from the bridge.
"There's no sign of Cain, sir," remarked the Sub to the owner. "That fellow just gone for'ard is Pengelly. Marchant the gunner and Barnard the bo'sun don't appear to be present."
"Hang it all!" ejaculated Raxworthy, "you don't suggest that three of the pirate officers, including the ringleader, are still on board the submarine? Pass the word to Mr. Hamley to send Pengelly to the quarter-deck under an armed guard."
The lieutenant on the gangway received the message. Consulting the list he had made, he found that no one answering to that name had been received on board. He sent a message to that effect to the captain.
After considerable delay, Pengelly was found and brought aft. The moment he saw Broadmayne standing behind the lieutenant-commander, he knew that the game was up as far as concealing his identity was concerned.
"Where's Cain?" demanded Raxworthy, without any preliminaries.
Pengelly explained what had occurred, spinning an elaborate yarn that he had done his utmost to persuade Captain Cain to surrender, and trying to excuse himself for having ever set foot on board the Alerte.