"I'm goin' to get out of this death-trap," he said to the bos'n's-mate, "so stand by to pick up the anchor. Keep the men at the guns till I give the word to cease firing, else them durned Germans will smell a rat and butt in before we can quit."
"'Ow about the Cap'n, sir?" asked the man doubtfully.
"Damn your eyes, do what I tell you, and don't ask fool questions!" snapped the mate.
The man walked away, somewhat unwillingly Mr. Dykes thought, which made him all the more angry and determined to carry out his plan. He wasn't going to be dictated to by a swab of a bos'n's-mate or anyone else so long as he was in charge of the ship.
Having rung down "Stand by" to the engine-room, he went on to the foc'sle head to superintend the weighing of the anchor. When all was ready and he was about to pass the word to the man at the steam capstan, Miss Fletcher suddenly appeared on the foc'sle.
"What are you going to do?" she asked.
"Get under way," he answered curtly.
"And leave the Captain and his men in the lurch?"
"There ain't any Captain, nor men either, by now, so just quit this foc'sle," answered the mate in a voice of suppressed rage.
"That's as it may be," said the girl quietly, "but you're not going to heave that anchor."