Strange words, my lord, and most unmerited!
I am no spy, and neither are we traitors.
Byron.
On the following morning the sentinel on the forecastle of the Scorpion
was the first one who discovered the disappearance of the captured
slaver. Looking in the direction the schooner had been the evening
before, he missed her. As it was hardly light, he thought the fog must
have hidden the vessel; but it cleared away, and still nothing was to be
seen of her. Rubbing his eyes, to be sure he was awake, he took a long
and careful survey of the harbor, but without finding any traces of the
object of his search, and hastening to the officer of the deck, he
reported the news of the Maraposa’s departure.
The officer of the deck, equally astonished, hastened to let the first
lieutenant know of the strange event; for they were all concerned in the
loss of the schooner, as the price she would have sold for was to be
divided amongst the brig’s crew as prize money.
He had a boat called away, and getting into it, was rowed over to the
castle, to see if he could hear any thing of the missing vessel there;
but instead of getting information, found the whole garrison in a state
of excitement at the unaccountable events of the night—Willis and the
turnkey having just been missed.
As soon as the lieutenant of the brig learned of Willis’s escape, he
very readily and truly conjectured the whereabouts of the schooner; and
knowing it would be useless to seek her in the harbor, went ashore to
inform his captain that Willis and the Maraposa had both again escaped,
and were probably on their way back to the coast.
This intelligence, like that of the trial, affected the members of Don
Manuel’s family differently. De Vere was very angry, and would have gone
to sea at once, and chased Willis to Africa; but Clara made him promise
he would not go more than fifty or sixty miles; and if he did not meet
him, then to return, as it was not to be very long ere their nuptial
day. De Vere agreed to gratify his lady love; and after taking a short
cruise, returned without having seen any thing of the Maraposa.
Clara comforted him on his return, by telling him Willis would live to
be hung yet, a notion that the old duenna vigorously opposed, and
contended that “the handsome captain of the slaver would die in his bed,
in spite of all the navy officers on the station;” for, for some reason,
the members of the R. N. were no favorites with the old lady. Don Manuel
was more than pleased to hear of Willis’s escape, and expressed a hope
that the warning he had received might be the means of reforming him.
But Francisca was overjoyed, and did nothing but offer up thanks to the
Virgin the remainder of the day; and she also prayed fervently that
Willis might embrace some less dangerous and more honorable pursuit.
De Vere, feeling assured that Willis had escaped by the agency of some
one in the city or castle, and anxious to have them punished, made every
exertion to discover who they were. He had some suspicion of Don Manuel;
but all his efforts to get any clue from the Spaniard were unsuccessful.
He complained to the Governor-General of the Island, and had all the
garrison of the castle, from the commander down, rigorously examined.
But it was all of no avail; the only person who could be charged with
conniving at Willis’s escape, or in any way aiding him, was the jailor
who had him in charge; and their efforts to retake him proved as futile
as to find the captain.
De Vere could comfort himself in no other way, and therefore made a
mental resolve to hang Willis at once, if he ever was so fortunate as to
get possession of him again, and leave him no chance for another escape.