"I am very glad to see, Mr. Carteret, that you are perfectly safe."
Carteret's pale face, paler than usual, flushed. But with ready effrontery he carried himself through:
"Thank you, Mrs. MacAllister; I am very glad to see that every one is perfectly safe."
At that moment Sinclair's voice was heard saying:
"What's the matter in here? Was any one hurt?"
He stepped into the room again, followed by all the rest. From a dark corner came broken ejaculations, mingled with the names of the deity:
"Oh, God! Oh, God! ... Lord! ... Lord! ... Oh, God, have mercy on my soul!"
Peering through the semi-darkness after the glare of the bright sunshine outside, they discovered Clark on his hands and knees under a heavy teak table.
"Hallo, Clark!" exclaimed Sinclair. "What are you doing there? Are you hurt?"
"Oh, God! ... No! ... We'll all be killed.... Lord! ... Lord! ... The shell! ... Oh, God! Have mercy on my soul!"