"They are, indeed, captain," said the doctor, in his coolest professional manner; "but, by your leave—and you are, of course, master on board your own ship—we will do nothing in a hurry. We've got to prove our case beyond dispute by obtaining possession of some of the poison, which, if we take care not to arouse suspicion, will doubtless be again administered, probably in the drinking water, since Eserine, the noxious element of Calabar bean, is tasteless in solution. Then, we mustn't forget that there are two criminals who have had a hand in this affair, and that a too hasty action on our part might result in the principal one escaping. No; let us be content for the time being to keep an eye on this pretty steward of yours. And now, Mr. Lees," turning to the sick man, who, overcome with excitement, was lying in his berth with closed eyes, "I will leave you until to-morrow in the good hands of Captain Graham."
Almost on the very day predicted by the doctor Joseph Lees was able to put his feet to the ground and sit up for two or three hours in his chair. Dr. Maxwell and Captain Graham were once more with him, talking over the events of the past week and discussing future plans. For several unexpected things had happened since the day on which it was discovered that an attempt had been made on the supercargo's life, and one of these—the disappearance of Daniel White—had completely altered their plan of campaign. The steward, who had evidently taken alarm at the doctor's repeated visits, the presence of the Thunderbolt, and the guard that was placed upon Lees' food and drink, had escaped down a rope and, unperceived by the watch until it was too late to hope to be able to put a bullet through him, had swum out to one of Ivory's ships, one of which—the Florentia, in all probability, since it was no longer in the roadstead when morning came—had taken him on board.
"Fate has certainly been against us," said the doctor, "and I'm sorry, captain, that I didn't follow your suggestion to take the fellow into custody whilst we had the chance. From the point of view of a case against Jasper Ivory, my blunder, unfortunately, has had disastrous consequences. There's a moral certainty he was the instigator of the crime, but without our hands on Daniel White's collar we cannot bring forward anything that would lead to the conviction of the captain of the Gurango. With the plea of absolute ignorance as to the very existence of this steward, he would be acquitted without a doubt."
"You're the last man in the world, doctor, who needs to reproach himself," responded Captain Graham. "You did the main thing, after all, when you arrested the assassin's hand. But for you Mr. Lees would have been takin' a longer voyage than from 'ere to the old country. And we sha'n't be long now afore we sails, thank goodness."
"The sooner you wind up your affairs and get away from the stench of Ichaboe the better for both of you," said Dr. Maxwell. "I should strongly advise you, Mr. Lees, to touch at St. Helena on your way home. The air there is particularly bracing, and a fortnight's sojourn will put new life into you. Indeed, the climate is so favourable to convalescents that some of my patients——"
The doctor's sentence was at this moment broken off short by the appearance of the second mate in the open doorway.
"Beg pardon for interrupting you, gentlemen," he said, "but Captain Ivory is here and would like to speak with Mr. Lees for a few minutes."
Before either Captain Graham or the supercargo had time to protest against his impertinent intrusion, the captain of the Gurango, with all his old assurance, had brushed past Baines and was advancing into the cabin.
"Good morning, captain; good morning, gentlemen all," he said briskly, and with a nod to each. "Very glad to see, Mr. Chairman, that you are on the high road to recovery. Mackenzie told me yesterday that you'd been making great progress lately, so I thought I'd come round and have a chat with you before you sailed, which I gather from him you'll be doing very shortly. You're a lucky man to be able to get from this wretched place—with your fortune made, I warrant, but a very unpleasant recollection, withal, of the infernal climate."
For several moments, which seemed an eternity of time, so dead was the silence, no one replied. The three men—a little taken aback at Ivory's audacity—gazed at him with frankly hostile eyes. The first to speak was Dr. Maxwell, in slowly pronounced phrases, as keen as a lancet:—