STORY ONE, CHAPTER THIRTY FIVE.
PRISONERS.
Meanwhile, to Hester's horror, she found that they were to be prisonersin Laure's cabin, and that the drunken scoundrel who shared it with himkept coming down blinking and leering at them, making their very bloodrun cold.
His offensive manner was, however, for the time stopped by the Cuban,who came down, and pointing to the inner cabin bade them go in there.
Their only course was to obey, and the two trembling women crouchedtogether, dreading the coming night, and yet hoping that some successfuleffort would be made for their release.
"Let us hope and pray, Bessy," said Hester, trying to be cheerful, inspite of her misery. "Dear old Rasp's words were not uttered withoutmeaning."
"But is he to be trusted?" sobbed Bessy; "he was with our enemies."
"Trusted? yes," cried Hester; "his behaviour must have been to deceivethe wretches, and he and old Oakum are working for our release."
"If I could only be as hopeful as you are, Hester."
"I _am_ full of hope now," cried Hester. "I can wait, and feel strongand full of energy, with my husband's trust. Time back I could havedied in my misery."
As the hours passed on, they could hear the Cuban and his companiontalking in the next cabin, and the clink of glasses told that they weredrinking.
All on deck was very still. They had heard the sounds of preparationtill nightfall, and then everything became very quiet; and, clingingtogether, the two women sat with every sense on the strain, listeningfor the danger they knew to be at hand, while they hoped for the rescuethat might come.
It grew rapidly dark, and their cabin was only lit by the gleams thatcame beneath and through a few ventilation holes in the door, a glancethrough which, once timidly taken, showed the Cuban drinking heavilywith his companion, who grew more stupid and riotous, while the onlyeffect upon Laure was to make his eyes glow as he sat glancing from timeto time at the door.
Every now and then, too, some allusion to the prisoners made the women'shearts palpitate with horror, and more than once Hester glanced at thelittle window as if through that she must seek for the help that was solong in coming, for that she knew would be protection from the outrageshe dreaded for them both.
Neither spoke now of their fear, but clung the closer as they listened,till suddenly they heard Laure rise and go on deck, when their breathingbecame more even, and they sighed with relief.
But hardly had the Cuban's foot left the steps, when his companionraised his head from the table where he had been simulating sleep, andglancing round for a moment he rose and came to the inner cabin door,opened it, and thrust in his head.
"Come here, my birdie," he said thickly. "One of you has got to be mywife, and let's see, you're the captain's," he continued with a hoarselaugh, as he thrust Hester aside and caught Bessy in his arms, holdingher tightly in spite of her struggles, till she uttered a long andpiercing shriek.
The next moment there was a rapid step on the stairs and the Cubanrushed savagely into the cabin, sword in hand.
He made for the ruffian who held Bessy, but as soon as he realised whomthe scoundrel had, he uttered a hoarse laugh, and, as if incited by hiscompanion's example, he threw the sword upon the table, and caughtHester in his arms.
For a few moments she struggled hard, but her strength failed; and asshe felt how powerless she was becoming, she tried to shriek, but, as ifprepared for this, Laure, laughing, placed one hand upon her lips, whilethe other clasped her to him so tightly that she could not move.
Just then, however, Bessy, who had been struggling long and bravely withher assailant, uttered a series of piercing screams, freed herself fromhis grasp, and, half-mad with fear and horror, threw her arm roundHester.
"Curse you, you noisy jade," cried the Cuban, furiously; and he struckher brutally across the mouth with the back of his hand as he releasedHester, who sank shivering on the cabin floor.
"Here, come away, now," cried the Cuban, sharply; and, thrusting hiscompanion before him, he hurried out and secured the door, leaving thetwo prisoners sobbing in each other's arms, while the light through theholes in the door streamed in long rays above their heads.
Hester was the first to recover herself, and she rose and tried tocomfort her stricken companion, than whom now she seemed to be far thestronger in spirit.
"Help must come soon, Bessy," she whispered. "They will have heard ourscreams."
"It would be better to die," sobbed Bessy. "There is no hope--no hopewhatever."
"What!" cried Hester. "No hope? And with my brave, true husband onboard? I tell you help will come, and soon."
"When it is too late," sobbed Bessy. "Those wretches will soon beback."
"Hush, listen," whispered Hester; and she stole to the door to peepthrough one of the holes, and see the drunken ruffian sitting there withhis head down upon the table, apparently asleep.
The Cuban had evidently gone on deck, and, nerved now to take somedesperate course, Hester stole back to where Bessy crouched.
"Get up--quickly," she whispered. "We must escape from the place now."
"But where, where, unless overboard?" wailed Bessy.
"To the deck--to the other cabin. They will fight for us. Dutch willsave us from another such outrage as this."
Bessy rose up directly, endeavoured to be firm, but she tottered, andhad to cling to the slighter woman.
They stood by the door while Hester tried it, but their hearts sank asthey found that they were more of prisoners than they imagined, for thedoor was fastened on the outside, while to make their position morepainful there were no means of securing it from within.
All seemed very still; so still, in fact, that they could hear plainlythe heavy breathing of the ruffian who was sleeping there alone; and asthey stood trembling and listening it seemed as if a light step wascoming down the cabin stairs.
It came so cautiously and stealthily that they did not dare to move lestthey should not hear it. For a moment Hester was tempted to change herposition, and gaze through the door, but a slight clicking noisearrested her, and she remained listening and hopefully consideringwhether this could be some of the promised help.
All was silent again for a time, and then there was another strangeclick, and something fell upon the floor, as if a sword had been knockeddown.
This was followed by a sharp rustling noise, and the sleeping ruffianrose up, growled loudly, pushed the lamp on one side, so that it creakedover the table, and then seemed to lay his head down again, and began tobreathe heavily.
A minute or two that seemed an hour passed away, and still the two womenlistened, feeling certain that help was coming, especially as therustling noise once more commenced; and then, as they waited longinglyfor the unfastening of their prison door, they plainly heard the Cuban'sstep on the deck, and directly after he began to descend.
Their hearts sank as they heard him coming, and they shrank away fromthe door, when, to their surprise, just as they were about to attributethe sounds they had heard to fancy, there was a flash as if the lamp hadbeen raised from the table, a heavy blow, a crash as of breaking glass,and a tremendous struggle ensued in what was evidently total darkness,for the lamp had been overturned, and not a gleam shone through thedoor.
Oaths and curses mingled with the struggling noises which fell upon thetrembling women's ears as the two men engaged, crashed against thebulkheads, and once came so violently against the door of communicationthat they threatened to break it in.
This lasted for about five minutes, when the Cuban's voice was heardshouting for lights.
The noise of the struggle had now ceased, and Hester found courageenough to look through the door, as a gleam of light shone through; andshe saw three sailors entering the cabin with a lantern, which cast itslight upon the bruised and bleeding face of the Cuban, who was kneelingon the chest of the ruffian who had been sleeping in the cabin.
"The drunken fool flew at me as I came in," exclaimed Laure, sav
agely.
"I didn't," growled the fellow. "You hit me on the head with the lamp."
"You knocked it over in your drunken sleep," shouted Laure. "Here, getup: you shall stay here no longer. Go and sleep on deck."
The man rose in a heavy, stupid way, and, muttering to himself, left thecabin and went on deck, while, under the Cuban's orders, the men who hadcome down fetched another lamp, and cleared away all the traces of thestruggle.
It was now evidently long past midnight, and as soon as Laure was leftalone, Hester and her companion began to tremble once more for theirfate.
The Cuban was evidently restless and uneasy, for he kept getting up andwalking to the stairs and listening, as if in doubt; but as an hourglided by, and all seemed perfectly still, he remained longer in hisseat, and at last, as Hester watched him, she saw his glance turnedtowards the inner cabin, and to her horror he rose and, with a peculiarsmile upon his face, came and laid his hand upon the lock of the door.
Dutch the Diver; Or, A Man's Mistake Page 35