“No, sir, we don’t,” broke in Hugh Morris at this point, “we intend to take her in quite the opposite direction, and clear off to sea with her.”
“Oh no, you don’t, Hugh,” returned Dominick, with an agreeable smile, which was a little perplexing as well as exasperating. “You are going into the lagoon; you know you are, and I have come to help you.”
“But I say we are not!” retorted Morris, in rising wrath, “and what’s more, you’ll have to go along with us, now that you’ve had the ill-luck to fall in with us.”
“Quite right, Hugh; didn’t I say that I came off on purpose to go along with you?”
As he spoke there was heard a rushing sound of feet and a number of dark forms were seen approaching from the bushes.
“Betrayed!” shouted Malines. “Jump in, lads, and shove off!”
He sprang forward, but was instantly arrested by the muzzle of a revolver within a foot of his head.
“It’s of no use, boys,” said Dominick, laying his hand on the bow of the boat. “You’ll have to enter it as dead men if you do so without my permission.”
Had the men been armed it might have gone hard with Dominick at that moment, but so sure had they been of accomplishing their purpose unmolested, that the idea of arming had never crossed their minds. Before they could recover from the surprise or decide what to do, the armed squad was upon them.
“Halt! boys,” cried Joe Binney, when close to the boat. “Now, look ’ee here. It warn’t o’ my seekin’ that I was made prime minister, but now that it’s bin done I’ll stick to it an’ do my duty. If ye knock under like good boys I’ll recommend ye to the queen’s marcy. If not I’ll have ’ee strung up, every man jack of ’ee. Moreover, the first man as disobeys my orders I’ll blow his brains out. Now, jump aboard, boys (turning to his own men), an’ keep your revolvers handy. You lads as wanted to run away will follow.”