'Yaas, I send Misser Vise to you, sah,' said he; 'but first I would like to speakee about dat place we sail to. We have agree, and we ask you,' he continued with a smile that put an expression of coaxing into his handsome face, 'to agree allee same with us to sail for Mossel Bay. It is a very good bay, and it have a nice little town.'
'Yes,' said I; 'and when we get there, what do you mean to do with the ship?'
'Oh, we allee go ashore,' he answered.
He then asked me if I knew where Mossel Bay was. I answered that I had never heard of the place, but that if it was down on the charts we should undoubtedly be able to carry the barque to it. I then again requested him to send Abraham aft, that he and I and the young lady might examine the contents of the Captain's cabin, ascertain the situation of the ship when observations were last taken, and confer as to the course to be steered. I thought he hesitated for an instant, but, with true Malay swiftness of resolution that scarcely gave me time to note the hang of the mind in him, he exclaimed: 'I will send Misser Vise, sah,' and went forward.
In a few minutes Abraham arrived. He was speedily followed by Jacob, who hung about in the waist, looking wistfully aft. He, however, was to be talked to afterwards, for the policy of the three of us was to keep as separate as possible, coming together only under such excuse as I had now invented. The men who formed the watch on deck were 'loafing about,' to use the expressive vulgarism, one lounging against the bulwark-rail with another talking to him; here a fellow squatting like a Hindoo blowing a cloud, there a couple patrolling ten feet of deck, their arms folded upon their breasts. There was no gesticulation, no excitement, nothing of the swift fierce whispered conversation significant with the flashing of the askant glance that had been noticeable down to the dusk of the previous evening. Nakier paced the weather-side of the forecastle. I never once caught him looking our way, yet I could feel that the fellow had us in his eye as fully as though his stare was a level one.
'Abraham,' said I, 'I have sent for you under the pretence of helping me to overhaul the dead skipper's stock of nautical appliances. My real motive is to create an opportunity to acquaint you with the plot Miss Nielsen and I settled between us while we were in the cuddy. Don't look knowing, man! Put on as honest and stupid a Deal beach air as you can manufacture.'
I called to Nakier.
'The barque will want watching. Step aft and keep a look-out while we are below, will you?' and, followed by Abraham, I entered the cuddy.