The boat was freed. He and the men scrambled back aboard. "Hoist the sail!" he shouted, as he stood in the stern, raising the musket to his shoulder.
"The soldiers are from the big ship they've come out from Manila to man," the little Spaniard cried in dismay. He was still crouched at Cavendish's feet.
A bullet sang by Cavendish's head, and tore through the raised sail of the pinnace. The men pulled at the oars; the frigate was bearing down on them rapidly—her Captain had been lying in wait for the longboat; her guns opened fire.
The pinnace shuddered under the first hit. But no one was hurt, and the men bent low over the oars trying to keep out of danger.
"We'll be safe," Cavendish said calmly, reloading his musket. It was a narrow escape, but they had made it. The frigate was coming within range of the Desire's guns, and to make sure that the frigate's Captain perceived it, Havers, aboard the Desire, fired a booming salvo that splashed into the water twenty feet from her. The pinnace was safe. She slid up alongside the Desire, and her men climbed aboard.
Havers was waiting for Cavendish, smiling with relief.
Cavendish said angrily, "I don't dare take the Desire up that river. They know we are here, now."
The frigate was hovering at the river's mouth, and on the beach more soldiers marched, their ensigns flying.
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"They acted quickly," Havers said. "Their commander did."
"Aye," said Cavendish grimly. "We can't storm that beach! We don't have any boats big enough!"
"Nor men enough," added Havers, calmly.
Cavendish turned. "Bring that Spaniard up here, Master Moon," he called.
The little Spaniard was trembling so that he could hardly mount the ladder. "I've just come here," he said, fearfully, before Cavendish could speak.
"Those soldiers—" Cavendish waved his hand toward the beach. "You said they'd come out here to man a new ship?"
"Si, your honor!"
"How heavy is she?"
"Four hundred tons, señor," was the answer.
Cavendish looked at Havers. And the Spanish probably had dozens of smaller craft to aid them. "We'd better set sail, Havers," he said, wryly, and Havers smiled.
"It might be best, Tom," he agreed. "Unless you'd like to hang from the yardarm of that new ship."
The Desire weighed anchor. The pinnace had been hit in the bow, but she was seaworthy, and once more Cavendish went ahead in her, for the Desire could not venture her stout keel in these waters. The hours passed. There was no sign of pursuit yet.
The two islands of Negros and Panay lay close together. Negros was flat and full of vegetation; Panay had marvelous trees. Master Fuller himself was calling out the fathoms, and astern came the Desire, on a lazy fanning wind.
Cavendish's pinnace increased the distance between the two craft. He was intent only on the soundings, and marking down the reefs and channels and the entrances to narrow rivers.
"What a maze this is," he said. "We've come sixteen leagues."
Ahead was a jutting piece of the island of Negros, lying flat out into the sea. The longboat's sails filled with the wind, and she came around the point.
"There's our opening," Cavendish cried. "A fair one, Master Fuller. Southwest by south."
The longboat put about, and the Desire hoisted more sail. The two came together once more, and Cavendish clambered back aboard. He called the Spaniard, who appeared, trembling.
"Si, your honor," he said, before Cavendish had addressed him.
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Cavendish smiled. "I want you to carry a message to your Captain."
The other bowed hastily. "Si, sefior."
"I want you to tell your Captain to set aside a goodly store of gold, for I and my men mean to see you, perhaps at Manila, in a few years, and your Captain can have the gold ready for us." The members of the crew who could hear this laughed aloud, and Master Pretty, gazing at his Captain's tanned face, was remembering the words so he could write them down. "I did but want," Cavendish continued, "a bigger boat to have landed my men, or I would have seen your Captain this morning."
The Spaniard said seriously, "I shall tell my Captain, señor. To have the gold, for you'll be back."
"And do not forget to give our regrets that we had not a bigger boat for landing, else we'd have seen him today."
"I remember what you say. I remember."
He climbed eagerly into the pinnace that still bumped against the Desire. Fuller took him ashore and landed him on a lonely point of Panay. He started to walk rapidly up the beach.
The longboat was hoisted aboard. The Desire set sail again, her course southwest by south. For the third time she was going to cross the equatorial line. She was leaving Spanish waters. Ahead lay the uncharted South Pacific.
Chapter XXIX
The ship Eugenia proceeded slowly, she was hugging the shore —a majestic and white-sailed searcher.
It was afternoon, late. She had passed Point Maldonado hours ago, and across her deck her Captain walked, back and forth, back and forth. The Eugenia was stately, but she was a good sailer, and her small victim should be near. The Eugenia had been searching for David Cavendish ever since the night he had escaped from the flagship in the darkness.
A point of land jutted out into the sea. The Eugenia was rounding the point, bearing in toward land. The Captain walked once more, back and forth. Soon, in a few minutes, the mouth of the river Verde would be revealed. When the Eugenia came around the point, the cries the Captain wanted to hear came from the lookout.
The light guns had already been served with powder and shot. Time was important. The capture of this little bark was tremendously important. With all sails squared, the Eugenia bore down rapidly on her victim.
The first gun was fired. It fell short. The little bark was putting into the small harbor, tacking toward the river.
The guns roared again.
''She presents such a small target, sir," one officer said. "But she hasn't quite time to escape us up the river."
"Si, señor," the Captain murmured.
"But it must be Cavendish, the brother," the officer exclaimed.
"Quite true, señor," the Captain said, his words drowned in the sound of the guns.
The little bark was hit. The Captain smiled. The fight was unequal, and that was good, since he must win it, and bring back a prisoner so badly wanted by the Crown.
"I want him alive, though," he said, to his first officer.
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"Si, señor. If possible." The officer was staring ahead. The bark was near, she had been hit again and even while he watched, the bark heeled over, and righted again.
"We bear down on her," the Captain said. Satisfaction filled him. He glanced toward the shore.
The bark was within short range. The guns of the Eugenia, trained on her, thundered forth again, and again, until the Captain stopped them with a quick command.
"She will sink quickly," he said. "Hoist out a boat and board her, sir. I shall wait."
It had been done so easily. It was the discovery of the bark, not the taking of her, which was difficult. The Captain wished she had not been so near the river, then if she had not, he could have made sure to take her crew alive. Now he frowned as he resumed his pacing. He wished he hadn't had to use the guns.
The little bark was floating helplessly, almost at the edge of the river. The Eugenia stood off, under short sail; from her pulled a longboat, with twenty armed men.
"I pray the Englishman is alive," the Captain said aloud.
Aboard the longboat, the first officer watched the shape of the bark come close. She was almost gone; her decks were awash. Astern, her crude little boat, still hitched, bobbed on the waves, empty.