The bright sun at length arose, and as his warming rays fell on the
raft, they served to cheer the hearts of the adventurers. The raft had
made but little way, for the wind had failed them completely, and the
sail had been lowered as totally useless, so that they had to depend
entirely on their oars, to make progress towards the south, while the
current still carried them along at a faster rate to the westward. The
pirates were, as may be supposed, excessively anxious to get on shore as
soon as possible, it mattered little to them where, because, while they
remained afloat, they might, at any moment, be fallen in with by one of
the vessels in pursuit of them; and even should they be met by any
merchantman, they were perfectly unable to defend themselves, and should
they be recognised, they would equally be delivered up to justice. So
fast, however, did the current run, that it appeared very probable, not
only that they would be carried far to the westward, but that they might
pass the island altogether, and be obliged to attempt to gain another.
Zappa spoke but little; his mind was troubled with many thoughts, though
the present earnestly claimed his attention; he saw that if they could
not fetch the island, their voyage would be much prolonged, and they
would be exposed to many additional risks; and pointing this out to his
men, he entreated them to exert themselves to the utmost. From the
muttered words and growls he heard, he perceived that he must still be
on his guard against them, for they had conceived the idea, he had no
doubt, that if they could once free themselves of the ladies, whom they
believed to be the origin of their disasters, they should no longer be
pursued; but it did not occur to them, that unless the English lady was
restored, in safety, to her friends, their case would in no way be
bettered. Luckily, their intended victims did not understand them, and
Zappa would not alarm them by warning them of what he had heard. He
told Paolo to be on his guard, and kept his own weapons ready to be used
at a moment's notice. On went the raft, a thin pillar of smoke marking
the spot whence it had been launched.
Zappa had been silent for some time.
"Nina," he said at last, "you have endeavoured lately to induce me to
quit the life I have hitherto led. Your persuasions have influenced me
greatly, and I would now gladly follow your wishes; but, alas! all the
wealth I possess in the world went down in the hold of the Sea Hawk, and
I am now again a penniless adventurer. I could never consent to depend
on you, even had you wealth to support me, and I shall therefore once
more be driven to follow my old calling on the ocean. Not my own will,
but fate, drives me to it."
"Oh, no, no; neither fate nor necessity drives you to it!" exclaimed
Nina. "Had the wealth, for which you mourn, not been lost, I would not
have consented to use it. My brother and I have sufficient in our own
country for all our wants; what is mine, surely is yours also."
"And I have in my own power a sum which some would consider an ample
fortune," said Ada; "it is more, probably, than would have been demanded
as my ransom, and yet I will gladly make it over to you, provided you
quit for ever your lawless calling, and place your wife in safety in her
native country."
"Refuse the generous offer," said Nina, rising from her seat, and
placing her hand on his arm. "Do not be tempted to rob the fatherless
orphan. We shall have enough, without depriving her of her property."
"Peace, girl," said the pirate. "I will not now further speak on the
subject. It is folly to speak of the future when the present demands
all our care."
He spoke truly. His attention, while the conversation I have described
was going forward, had been less occupied than was requisite during the
last few minutes, in guiding the raft, and observing the direction in
which she was drifting; when, looking up, he saw on the starboard side,
at no great distance from them, a ledge of black rocks, whose heads were
just flush with the water, which broke over them in a line of hissing
foam, threatening to wreck the raft should it once be driven against
them. The pirate urged his men to exertion, for every instant the raft
drifted nearer and nearer the danger. All hands went to the oars, for
they saw that by their own exertions alone could they hope to escape.
The end of the reef, which it was necessary to clear before they could
be again in comparative safety, was still a considerable way off; and
yet it seemed scarcely possible, at the rate at which the raft could be
urged on, to avoid striking it. Never did Zappa more anxiously wish for
a breeze to carry them clear; for though, to the inexperienced eye, the
danger appeared but slight, he knew that, if the raft, for an instant,
struck the ledge, it would be forced on to it by the current, then the
slightest increase of wind would form waves which would quickly sweep
them all off to destruction. So slight, however, was the surf, that, at
a little distance, it had not been perceived; and even now, as Ada and
Nina watched it, the expression of the countenances and the eager
gestures of the men alone assured them of the risk to which they were
exposed.
Several times Zappa had looked astern, in the hopes of seeing the signs
of a breeze coming up in that direction.
"Ah, our good genius has not deserted us," he exclaimed, at last. "Row
on, my men--row on. The wind will come in time; but we must not slacken
in our exertions till it reaches us."
These encouraging words had their due effect; the crew, already
beginning to weary, aroused themselves afresh, the raft glided on, her
head turned off from the rocks; yet still she neared them, and the side
almost touched the outer ones, when the voice of the chief was again
heard.
"Hoist the sail, my men," he exclaimed. "Be quick about it, and we are
safe."
The sail was hoisted, and bulging out with the first breath of the wind
aided to keep the raft from the threatened danger. Again the wind fell,
and they once more glided towards the rock; but a stronger puff came,
and they rapidly increased their distance, till Zappa was able to steer
on a parallel line with the reef, and they shortly had the satisfaction
of seeing the dangerous point far astern. In this manner the greater
part of the voyage was accomplished, and the day drew on; but still they
were at some distance from the land.
The breeze, however, continued, and there was now little or no prospect
of their passing the island, and drifting out to sea. They were about
four miles off the nearest island, and were going at the rate of perhaps
two knots an hour through the water, when, as Nina was watching the
ever-changing countenance of the pirate, as troubled thoughts passed
through his mind, she saw him start, and shading his eyes with his hand,
cast an anxious glance towards the west. Long he looked, and as he, at
length, turned his face once more towards her, she observed a fierceness
in his eye and a stern frown on his brow, which at once aroused all her
fears.
"I see that something is again amiss," she said, looking timidly up at
him. "Oh, tell me what it is has agitated you?"
"Look there," he said. "A cause sufficient to make many a bold man,
circumstanced as I am, tremble," he replied, in a slow, determined tone,
pointing, as he spoke, towards the north-west. "Do you see yonder
stranger, which has just hove in sight?"
"I see the sails of a ship above the horizon. But what harm can she do
to us?" said Nina. "If she sees us, and takes us on board, she will
carry us to some land, whence we may proceed to Italy."
"You forget that, to the hunted pirate, all men are enemies," answered
Zappa, bitterly. "I could not venture on board a merchant-vessel,
without the risk of being recognised, and, if my eyes deceive me not,
yonder craft is no peaceful trader, but rather a British ship of war."
"Heaven forbid it," exclaimed Nina. "But should she be, still the raft
is so low in the water, that, at the distance we are off from her, we
surely shall scarcely be recognised."
"I wish that I could think so," said Zappa; "but on board that craft
there are numerous sharp eyes on the look out, and our sail may long
since have been seen from her mast-heads. She is also, I well know, one
of the very ships sent in chase of the _Sea Hawk_, and will not allow us
to pass unquestioned."
"Even should she be an enemy, are we not so near the shore that you may
easily escape thither?" asked Nina, who was unwilling to acknowledge,
even to herself, the danger to which Zappa was exposed.
"She is standing this way, and, by the manner in which her sails rise
from the water, she is making rapid progress towards us," murmured the
pirate, speaking to himself rather than answering Nina's question. "Ah!
I know her now; and long ere we can reach the shore she will be upon
us. Well, we will strive to the last. Fate may, for this once, favour
us. The wind may fail, or, by chance, we may not be seen; and if, when
I have done all that I can to escape, rather than be captured, to hang
alongside those wretches I saw not long ago on the fortifications of
Malta, I have but the brave man's last resource to fly to, and the wave
on which I have so long loved to float shall be my grave."
Ada Garden had heard the previous part of the conversation with feelings
between hope and fear. She trusted that the ship in sight was a friend;
and yet she could not tell what effect it might have on the pirates when
they discovered that such was the case. She deeply regretted, also, the
fate which she feared might await Zappa, were he captured,
notwithstanding the efforts she purposed to make to preserve his life,
more certainly for Nina's sake than for his own; yet she was grateful to
him for the forbearance he had shown towards her.
It was an anxious time for her--indeed, the joy and satisfaction she
would otherwise have felt at the thoughts of her own deliverance was
much alloyed by grief for poor Nina, who, at the moment of realising her
fondest hopes of reclaiming her husband, found them rudely torn from
her.
The crew had not yet observed the stranger, as they were occupied at the
oars, or tending the sail, and Zappa was unwilling to alarm them before
it was necessary; for he knew their caitiff nature, and though ferocious
enough when they were sure of victory, he could not now depend on their
courage, and he thought that they were very likely, when they saw that
all chance of escape was gone, to quit their oars, and refuse to exert
themselves further.
On came the stranger till her hull rose out of the water, and the report
of one of her guns was the first intimation the crew had of her
vicinity. They all looked round with astonishment, not unmixed with
terror; but the calm bearing of their chief reassured them.
"Bow on, my comrades," he said. "That ship will not fire at us, and in
another short hour we may be among our friends on shore."
The stranger was, as she drew near, seen to be a brig of war, and the
ensign which blew out from her peak showed her to be British.
"I know her," he muttered in Romaic. "She is no other than the accursed
_Ione_, which has already wrought me so much injury. To escape from her
is hopeless, and naught remains for me but to execute my last resolve.
Paolo, come here." He now spoke in Italian. "You know well how to
steer, so take the helm and keep the raft for yonder headland."
Paolo came aft and took the pirate's place at the helm, who, putting his
hand on his arm, continued in a whisper, "Now show your manhood, for to
you I commit the charge of those men. Save their lives, if you can; and
you yourself, with the testimony your sister and yon fair girl can give,
will run no hazard. Say that Zappa refused to fall alive into the hands
of his enemies, and bravely met the fate he had awarded to so many.
Farewell."
Whether the act of giving up the helm to Paolo, or the expression of the
pirate's countenance, made Nina suspect his intentions, she herself
could scarcely tell, but her eye was upon him, while her limbs shook
with dread, and, just as he was about to take the fatal leap from the
raft, she sprung up, and grasped him convulsively by the arm, while her
brother seized him on the other side, so that, without running the risk
of upsetting the raft, or dragging them both into the water, he could
not execute his dreadful purpose.
"You shall not--you shall not!" exclaimed Nina, trembling in an agony of
fear, and scarcely able to utter the words she wished to speak. "Commit
not so dire a crime, or fill the cup to the brim, and drag me with you.
In destroying yourself, you slay me likewise."
As the unhappy girl said this she clung to him, endeavouring to draw him
to the centre of the raft.
Ada had been afraid of leaving her seat, for she saw the risk to which
all were exposed by the struggle, and that the weight of another person
thrown on the spot might complete the catastrophe, though her agitation
was scarcely inferior to that exhibited by Nina.
"Stay, stay, signor," she exclaimed--"before you commit the impious deed
you threaten, listen to me. You would seek a certain death, and certain
punishment in another world, to avoid the risk you run of meeting it at
the hands of my countrymen in this--now listen to me. I have already
promised Nina to intercede in your behalf, and I now solemnly vow to you
to employ every means in my power to preserve your life, and I feel
almost certain of success. A petition made by me under the
circumstances of the case will, I am confident, be attended to, and you
may yet enjoy many years of happiness with one who is so well able to
afford it you."
"Lady," said Zappa, "again you have conquered me. Unworthy as I am to
live, I accept life at your hands, and confide in your promise, though
something tells me it will avail me but little. Nina, you need not thus
so fearfully clasp my arm. I will not attempt to escape you, girl."
As he said this, he allowed himself to be led forward by Nina, and sat
himself down on a chest, where he remained for some minutes with his
face buried in his hands, and bent down on his knees. Paolo steered as
he had been directed, and as the raft had for some time passed all the
rocks and shoals to be feared, the task was not difficult. Ada,
meantime, watched anxiously, the approach of the English brig; but the
wind, she thought, was lighter than it had been, for the distance
between them did not appear to decrease so rapidly as at first, and as
she looked alternately from the brig to the shore, she thought that
there was more than a probability of their reaching it before they were
overtaken. The pirate seemed indifferent to his fate, but he was once
more aroused to exertion by a shout from his men, and guided by what
they said, he turned his eyes towards the shore, whence, from behind the
headland towards which they were steering, the long low hull of a
mistico was seen stealing forth, with her pointed lateen sails hauled
close on a wind.
"The _Zoe_, the _Zoe_," shouted the pirates. "Our comrades come to our
assistance."
There could be little doubt that the mistico in sight was the _Zoe_.
"But is she manned by our friends?" thought Zappa, whose suspicions were
keenly alive to treachery. "If she were, would she thus venture out in
the very face of an enemy?" The men, however, seemed convinced that she
came as a friend, and welcomed her with every extravagant sign of joy.
Though so near them, she had to make several tacks before she could
reach them, whereas the brig of war, being before the wind, came down
steadily towards them, and was rapidly approaching within range of her
guns. Zappa watched them both. The mistico was manned by Greeks, for
their picturesque costume was easily distinguishable, but he was not
certain that they were friends; and far rather would he have fallen into
the hands of the English, than into the power of his own countrymen.
Should he continue his course, and should they prove enemies, the moment
he was recognised would probably be his last, and those with him would
be sacrificed; but, on the other hand, if he lowered the sail and
attempted to pull up to the brig, he might lose the chance of saving
himself and his followers. He saw the risk of having to trust to the
clemency of the British authorities, whom he had so often, by his
misdeeds, offended. He was decided on continuing his course by seeing
the mistico get out her sweeps, and from the point where she then was,
she could lay almost up for them. In a short time all doubt was at an
end, well-known faces were recognised on board, and greetings, loud and
frequent, were exchanged between them. A universal cry of sorrow was
uttered as the loss of their favourite _Sea Hawk_ was announced, though
their chief was warmly welcomed, as they saw that he was among those
saved, and no mutinous feeling was perceptible among them. The sail was
lowered, and he raft was soon alongside the mistico. The crew jumped on
board, and pointing to the approaching brig, urged their friends to
instant flight, but Zappa still remained with the rest.
"Lady," he said, addressing Ada, "I leave you here, whence you will
speedily be rescued by your own countrymen, and to your charge also I
leave this poor girl; you will, I feel assured, see her safely restored
to her country and her home; and Nina, listen to me; should I succeed in
escaping my enemies, I will join you there, and in peace and safety
forget the dangers we have passed."
"Listen, Nina," said Ada. "You cannot serve him by accompanying him,
while with me you will speedily, I trust, be in safety."
"What, leave him now in danger and in difficulty!" she exclaimed. "No,
no, I am not so light of feeling as to do that. Farewell, sweet lady.
You have loaded me with a debt of gratitude I cannot hope to repay."
She stooped as she spoke, and kissed Ada's brow, then sprang back
towards Zappa, who was stepping on board the mistico, for the pirates
loudly summoned him, and with good cause, for at that moment another
square-rigged vessel was seen coming round the east end of the island.
Nina was in time to clasp the pirate's arm.
"Oh, take me with you!" she cried. "Your lot I will share, your fate
shall be mine."
He clasped her round the waist, and seizing the stay of the mast, leaped
with her on board. Paolo stood irresolute a moment. He looked at Ada,
she turned her face from him. He saw his sister among the pirates. He
recollected his devoted love for her, and the sacrifice she had already
made, besides which he felt the hopelessness of his passion, and just as
the raft was being cast off, he followed her on board the mistico.
The next moment Ada Garden found herself the only occupant of the raft,
drifting on the face of the water.