THE HOSTAGES ARE MADE USE OF
ON returning to his prison cabin, Fielding communicated the details
of his interview with the pirate captain to his companions. One and
all agreed that the outlook, unless a warship intervened, looked
gloomy, but the news was borne with surprising fortitude.
"I suppose he's bound for the east coast of Greenland," said the sub.
"There are hundreds of creeks and inlets where a vessel of this size
could lay without fear of discovery; and, beyond a few whalers, there
are not many ships in those waters."
"What is the object in going to the Arctic?" asked Cardyke.
"To lie low, and also to economise the oil-fuel," replied Fielding.
"To keep the sea means a heavy consumption of stores, and those taken
from _L'Égalité_ won't last much more than a month. That's one reason
why we are to be marooned. Thirty or forty hostages who won't pay for
their keep are bound to make a hole in the commissariat."
"So he means to set us ashore and let us starve to death, or perish
with cold?"
"Seems like it; but I'll have a few words to say to the greasy Dago,"
replied the sub., tapping the revolver with the heel of his right
foot. "It's a pity we haven't more cartridges."
"We could hold the cabin for a good while," remarked the mid.,
tentatively.
"And get starved out in forty-eight hours. Won't do, Cardyke. If
things come to the worst, we must sally out, try and release the
other unfortunate beings who have fallen into Cervillo's clutches,
and sell our lives as dearly as possible. What say you, general?"
"I tink we might capture ship," replied Oki. "Clear dis end, take
pistols from arms-rack, and turn this part into castle."
"We'll have a shot at it, at all events," exclaimed Fielding,
enthusiastically. "If only we had more ammunition, I'd tackle the job
to-night."
"Better wait till we're within the Arctic circle," observed Cardyke.
"Why?"
"Those Spaniards and Italians, to say nothing of the Algerines and
the blacks, won't be able to stand the cold as well as we can.
They'll be torpid."
"Something in that," agreed Fielding. "But at present it's hot enough
for my liking. I vote we turn in."
Shortly after midnight Cardyke awoke to find the two Japs up and
about. Hokosuka was kneeling in front of the door with one ear close
against the lock, while Oki was standing with a lighted lamp in his
hand. Seeing the mid. stir, Oki placed a finger on his lips to enjoin
silence and pointed towards Fielding's bunk, indicating that the sub.
was to be aroused.
One touch of Cardyke's hand was enough. Fielding opened his eyes, and
without uttering a sound, sprang to his feet.
"Mukyima outside!" explained the general.
The two British officers listened. There was a faint scraping in the
lock, like a rat gnawing wood. Then Hokosuka whispered a few words,
and his compatriot instantly placed the lantern behind a curtain. In
the semi-gloom Cardyke saw the door open, a lithe figure glided in,
and the door closed gently after him. Then Oki uncovered the lamp,
and Mukyima stood revealed to the occupants of the cabin.
The Jap wore nothing but a loin-cloth. From head to foot he was
covered with a mixture of oil and soot. In his hands he carried a
rifle and two revolvers, while across his shoulder hung a canvas bag
filled with cartridges.
The three Japanese conversed in low toner, then Oki turned to his
English friends.
"Mukyima has come back not to stop," he explained. "Give sentry-man
outside the long sleep, leave cartridges and guns, then go back. Him
also lock door again, then no can tell pirates that door was opened."
Fielding and Cardyke nodded approval at Oki's words. Mukyima had
contrived to slip away from his prison on the orlop-deck, and, laying
hold of the arms and ammunition, made his way aft. On the half-deck
all was quiet; the sentry over the cabin door where the prisoners
were confined was dozing at his post. The Jap gripped the sentry by
the throat, and choked him into insensibility in less than fifteen
seconds. This done, he scratched in a peculiar manner on the cabin
bulkhead, and Hokosuka, recognising the signal, replied. The lock of
the cabin door was picked, and Mukyima rejoined his companions.
It was not his intention to remain. His absence from the orlop-deck
would soon be discovered, and the pirates would naturally search the
cabin occupied by the Jap's compatriots. So, in less than five
minutes from his arrival Mukyima left, the wards of the locks were
shot back again, and nothing remained to give rise to suspicion on
the part of the pirates with the exception of the body of the
luckless sentry. This discovery caused some consternation, but
finding the cabin door apparently intact the pirates concluded that
their comrade had died from natural causes.
Nevertheless, although Hokosuka sat up all the following night there
was no indication of his fellow-countryman's presence without.
Mukyima did make a second attempt, but finding two sentries on the
half-deck, realised that discretion was the better part of valour,
and returned to his place of detention on the orlop-deck.
Fielding and his companions had good cause to be satisfied with the
progress made. They had acquired more than enough firearms for each
man and a good store of ammunition. Prudence compelled them to
refrain from relieving the petty officer who was periodically lowered
to inspect the iron bar over the scuttle of another weapon; but, if
the worst came to the worst, the courage and resolution of a few
well-armed men might achieve wonders against the ill-disciplined mob
of international scoundrels who manned the _Independencia_.
At daybreak on the morning of the third day following the capture of
the _Duke of Negropont_ a body of armed men burst into the cabin, and
unceremoniously hauled the live prisoners from their berths.
Fortunately the hostages made a point of sleeping in their
clothes--even their boots--and in consequence their revolvers were
safe from observation. The rifles and spare ammunition had been
cleverly concealed in a blank recess behind one of the lowermost
bunks, and nothing short of another systematic search would result in
the discovery of these precious articles. Without a word of
explanation Fielding and his companions were marched out and taken up
the half-deck accommodation ladder. Expecting that Juan Cervillo had
taken it into his head to either coerce the hostages to accept his
terms or else to carry out his threat earlier than he had decided to
do, Fielding made a sign to his comrades to be on the alert. Should
the Spaniard give the word to murder his prisoners, the five were to
stoop, draw their revolvers, and open a sudden and unexpected fire
upon their captors, Cervillo being especially marked down as a
target.
But as soon as the captives reached the upper deck they could see at
once the reason for their removal. Less than two miles away, and
slightly on the starboard bow, was a United States cruiser. Although
considerably smaller than the _Independencia_, she was by no means
daunted by the appearance of her gigantic antagonist. This was to a
certain extent to be accounted for by the fact that it was now a
matter of general knowledge that the eight 12 in. guns that formed
the pirate-cruiser's principal armament were perfectly useless as
weapons; but, being heavily armoured, the _Independencia_ had a great
advantage over the American vessel, which was of the type known as
"protected," or, in other words, having armour over only the most
vital parts.
Already the cool, business-like determination of the American
cruiser, which Fielding recognised as the almost obsolete _Denver_,
had begun to tell upon the "jumpy" assortment of cosmopolitans who
formed the crew of the pirate vessel. Most of the _Independencia's_
quick-firers were manned, but many of the officers and men were
running aimlessly hither and thither; some dived below to avoid, if
possible, the bursting shells that might at any moment hurtle from
the _Denver_, others besought Juan Cervillo to put the ship about,
and seek safety in flight.
But the Spanish captain had set his mind on going northward. He was
not wholly without courage, and the presence of an insignificant
cruiser would not deter him from his course. The hostages would be
exposed on deck. Should the accursed Americans open fire they would
blow their compatriots and representatives of Great Britain, France,
Holland, and Japan to atoms.
There was no attempt made to clear the _Independencia's_ decks for
action. Her fo'c'sle stanchion rails were lined with human beings,
each prisoner being secured by the simple device of a cord passing
through the links of a chain and the ends fastened to the prisoners
thumbs. A few of the hostages, Fielding and Cardyke amongst the
number, resisted, but were soon overpowered; while so dubious was
Cervillo as to whether this means of securing the Japanese was quite
efficient, that he ordered Oki and Hokosuka to be additionally
pinioned by means of handcuffs. Luckily no attempt was made to bind
the prisoners' legs, otherwise the concealed revolvers might have
been discovered.
Cardyke made good use of the occasion by confiding to his nearest
companion in misfortune--an American iron merchant and colonel of
Kentucky militia--the news of their probable fate should Cervillo
succeed in reaching the Arctic Ocean, and the steps that he and his
companions had decided upon at the critical moment. The American
stoutly asserted his determination to take advantage of any
opportunity of joining forces with the British and Japanese captives
in a desperate bid for life and freedom.
Nearer and nearer steamed the _Independencia_ at a steady ten knots.
The hostages, torn by hopes and fears, could do nothing but keep
their attention on the American cruiser, alternately hoping that the
_Denver_ would not open fire, or that she would take drastic steps to
effect the capture of the modern buccaneer.
On board the _Denver_ all was ready for opening fire. Five of her ten
5 in. guns were trained upon the oncoming pirate, while her
six-pounders, working smoothly and easily on the mountings, turned
their muzzles to and fro, up and down, as if looking for a vital spot
where a shell might burst without injury to the luckless hostages;
for by the aid of their glasses the officers of the United States
cruiser could easily determine the nature of the callous artifice
that Juan Cervillo had adopted.
It was an anxious, nerve-racking time; the men at the pirate vessel's
quick-firers kept every available gun trained upon one particular
place in the side of the _Denver_, ready at the order to deliver a
simultaneous volley that would in all probability deal the protected
cruiser a mortal blow. In return the American cruiser's 5 in. guns
would be able to deal a devastating blow at comparatively short
range, but she hesitated to begin the conflict owing to the hostages
upon the pirate's deck.
Nearer and nearer; now the _Independencia_ was crossing the
_Denver's_ bows, barely three hundred yards separating the two
vessels. Slowly the guns of both vessels were trained as their
relative positions altered, till the pirate-cruiser was almost stern
on to the baffled American. Hard-a-starboard went the _Denver's_ helm
as she swung round in pursuit of her enemy. Even should she be unable
to have her by gun-fire she could at least hang on doggedly in
pursuit, calling for assistance till the pirate was hemmed in on
every side.
Now that the _Independencia_ was leading, it was a question of
flight, not fight. Telegraphing for full speed Cervillo stood upon
the after-bridge and made a disdainful gesture towards the ship
astern, then at twenty-two knots the pirate-cruiser simply walked
away from her antagonist, whose speed, even in her prime, was seven
and a half knots less than that of the _Independencia_.
"Take those men below," ordered the Spanish captain. "It is well I
had them on board. They will be more useful still to us very
shortly."