by Roy J. Snell
CHAPTER XVI LOOMING PERIL
Many times in his young life Johnny had been on his own, but never quitelike this.
"Not a bit of good to row," was MacGregor's decision. "We've not theleast notion which way to go. If there was a breeze we might row by that.There's no breeze."
"No sun, moon or stars, either," Johnny agreed.
For a full half hour they sat there in silence. Off in the distance aseal barked. Closer at hand an eider-duck quacked to his mate. A suddenscream, close at hand, startled them for an instant. It was followed by awild laugh. They joined in the merriment. It was only a loon.
There came a wild whir of wings. A flock of wild ducks, flying low andgoing like the wind, shot past them.
"That's north," Johnny exclaimed. "They're going due north to theirnesting place. That's east," he pointed. "All we have to do is to rowthat way. We'll come to land."
"If you kept your course, which you couldn't," MacGregor chuckled.
"It's worth trying. Anyway, I'm cold," Johnny began to row. "There may beother bird flights to set me right."
There were not, at least not for fifteen minutes. When at last a pair ofloons with long necks stretched straight before, passed them, to hisdisgust, Johnny saw that the boat was headed due north.
"Well," he sighed, dropping his oars, "At least I--"
"Listen!" MacGregor put up a hand.
Johnny listened. "Say! That's no seal."
"Nor a bird either. That's a human sound."
"Like someone trying to start a motor."
"Just that."
For a time the sound ceased. Then it began again.
"Over to the left." Once again Johnny took up the oars. This time herowed slowly, silently. No telling whose motor had stalled. Fisherman,trapper, or Oriental? Who could tell?
Four times the sound ceased. Four times Johnny's oars rested on thesurface of the water.
When, at last, a small, dark spot appeared on the surface of the sea,Johnny fairly ceased to breathe.
"Heck!" said a voice in that fog.
"Doesn't sound like an Oriental," Johnny whispered.
"Fisherman nor trapper either," replied MacGregor.
Leaning even more gently on his oars, Johnny sent his boat glidingforward. Then, of a sudden, he dropped his oars to stare.
"It's that girl, Rusty," he whispered hoarsely.
"The same," MacGregor agreed.
There could be no doubt about it. The girl was bending over to give herflywheel one more turn. Over her boy's shirt, high boots and knickers shehad drawn a suit of greasy coveralls. On her face, besides a look of grimdetermination, there was a long, black smudge.
"Heck!" she exclaimed once more.
"Havin' motor trouble?" MacGregor spoke aloud.
The girl started so suddenly that she all but lost her balance. Then,after a brief spell of unbelieving silence, she said, "It's you, Mr.MacGregor! How glad I am to see you! I've been lost for hours. I--I wentout to hunt the Shadow, that shadow you know. My motor's stalled. Butnow--"
"Now we're all lost together," MacGregor chuckled.
To Johnny, the girl gave never a second look.
"Do--do you suppose you could start it?" she said to MacGregor, noddingat her motor.
"No harm to try. At least we'll come aboard for a cup o' tea," MacGregorchuckled.
Johnny rowed the lifeboat alongside the girl's boat, the _Krazy Kat_, andthey climbed aboard.
"She's not gittin' gas," said MacGregor, after he had turned the motorover twice.
"I know," the girl's brow wrinkled.
Without saying a word, Johnny scrambled back to the box covering the gastank. After lifting the box off, he struck the tank a sharp rap. The tankgave off a hollow sound.
"You might try putting some gas in your tank," he said with a sly grin.
"Oh, but there must be gas!" the girl exclaimed. "There must be."
"Perhaps," said Johnny. "But it's empty. May be a leak." Drawing a smallflashlight from his pocket, he bent over and examined the offending tank.
"Yep," he said, "there is a leak, a small hole, but big enough. Your gasis in the bottom of the boat, along with the bilge water. Any reservesupply?"
"Not a bit."
"Well, then, here we are." Johnny took a seat. "Now we have two boats andthere are three of us. The motor-boat won't go, but--"
Suddenly he sprang to his feet. "You'd have a compass, wouldn't you?"
"Ye-es," the girl replied with evident reluctance, "but it--it's out oforder. That's why I got lost."
"Well, anyway," Johnny said with forced cheerfulness, "now there arethree of us. Two's company and three's a crowd. I always have likedcrowds. Besides," the corners of his mouth turned up, "you've gotsomething of a cabin."
"Oh, yes." The girl seemed, for the moment, to forget that she wasspeaking to one who had knocked her beloved daddy out. "Yes, there is acabin. There's a small stove and--and some wood. There's tea and somepilot biscuits."
"A stove, wood, tea and pilot biscuits?" Suddenly MacGregor seized herand waltzed her about in a narrow circle. "Rusty, me child, you are anangel."
A half hour later found them comfortably crowded into Rusty's smallcabin. They were sipping tea and munching hard round crackers.
"The fog'll lift after a while," MacGregor rumbled dreamily. "We lost ourboat. That's bad. But there's marine insurance. That's good. We'll haveanother boat. I wonder," he paused to meditate, "wonder what Blackie andthe others are thinking by now."
"And doing," Johnny suggested uneasily.
"Yes, and doin'," MacGregor agreed.
A half hour later, growing restless, Johnny crept from his corner, openedthe cabin door and disappeared up the narrow hatch.
Ten seconds later he poked his head into the door to exclaim in a low,tense voice, "MacGregor, come up here quick."
MacGregor came. The girl came too. For a full half minute the three ofthem stood there speechless. They were looking up and away. Their eyeswere wide and staring.
"MacGregor," Johnny asked, "what is it?"
"A ship," MacGregor whispered. "A thunderin' big ship. She's not twohundred leagues away. She's not movin', just driftin'. That's how shecame close to us."
"Wha-what ship is she?"
"Who knows, son? But I'd lay a bet I could guess the country she camefrom."
"So--so could I." Johnny's throat was dry.
"We--we," Rusty pulled her old sou'wester down hard on her head, "we'dbetter get into the life boat and row away. It--it doesn't matter aboutthe _Krazy Kat_. It really doesn't." She swallowed hard.
"We can try it," MacGregor agreed. "But I'm afraid it's too late.
"Well," he added with a low, rumbling laugh. "We were lookin' for 'em.Now we found 'em, we don't want 'em. Come on, an' mind you, never asound!"