“Now comes the hard part,” Jerry whispered. “We’ve got to get our sails up and shove off without anyone seeing or hearing us—and it’s not exactly a quiet job. In fact, if I remember right, our slides squeak pretty badly in their track. I noticed it when we first took it out, and made a mental note to oil the track as soon as we got some time.”
“Maybe we’d better not risk it,” Sandy said. “Is there some way we can get away from here without having to hoist the sails right away?”
“Well ...” Jerry said, “if there were enough current, we could drift off, but I don’t think there is. Besides, it would take a long time, and I don’t think we’ve got too much time to waste right now.”
“Suppose we tow it off behind the dinghy?” Sandy asked. “You know, the way we brought it out of the harbor for the first day’s sail.”
“Good!” Jerry exclaimed. But it only took a moment’s search to assure them that the dinghy was not with them. “Jones must have left it tied to his mooring,” Jerry said. “That puts us back where we started.”
“I guess there’s nothing to do but try it with our sails,” Sandy said. As he started to move forward, Jerry stopped him with a hand on his shoulder.
“Wait a minute! I think I know a way to do this! I remember I was once taught about sculling with the rudder. You use it like an oar. I’ve never had to try it, but this is probably the best time. C’mon! Let’s cast off those lines!”
Working swiftly, Sandy cast off the bow line while Jerry did the same with the line at the stern. Then both of them pushed off from the side of the freighter, and the little sloop drifted noiselessly away from the scarred steel cliff of the huge hull.
The bright light from the foredeck spilled on the waters around the bow of the ship, and seemed even to light up the sloop. Sandy only hoped that whoever was standing lookout on the freighter was within that circle of light. If he was in the darkness of the upper decks, even the few dim beams that reflected from the white hull of the little sailboat would shine out like a warning beacon against the dark waters!
Sandy worked his way aft over the cabin roof, and dropped into the cockpit to join Jerry at the tiller. Jerry was carefully working the tiller backward and forward, making small gurgling sounds as the rudder swept through the water.