She nodded her head very seriously. "I like pirates," she said. "They're so scarey."
Just then a ship came into view far away across the water. It had enormous sails and a black hull. On the fore-sail was painted a huge black skull.
"Let's get out of here!" Charlie cried in alarm. But beetling cliffs reared behind the beach and although they ran frantically along at the edge of the green sand, they could find no way to scale the cliffs. The pirate ship came closer and closer.
They got down whimpering at the base of the cliffs and remained very still. After a long time the pirate ship came close to shore. A longboat was dispatched and its oars flashed in the triple sunlight like giant legs on which the longboat walked across the waves toward the beach.
Then the pirates were ashore. The man who led them had only one leg, and a peg. He looked very mean.
"It's Blackbeard the Pirate!" said Charlie in a frightened whisper. His Dad had once read him a story about Blackbeard.
The pirate with the wooden leg suddenly had a black beard.
"The doll!" cried Robin.
"What's the matter?"