But…
“That’s right,” said Mr Potter. “Rum name for a ship, I’ll allow. She were the Valerian once; built special for one of them Bristol Nabobs who ‘ad a fancy to go cruising to the gorjus East—“ence them pretty little port’oles, and such. But Captain Rory changes ‘er name to the Virago , which ‘e claims is a durned sight more suited to ‘er nasty cantankerous ways. Of course ‘e were only ‘aving ‘is little joke, but I’m not saying ‘e wasn’t right at that, for there’s times she can act as spiteful as a dockside drab. Look at the way she cuts up two days ago? Mules weren’t in it! Fair got the bit between ‘er teeth she did, and—”
Hero said sharply: “Captain who ? What did you say his name was?”
“The skipper? Captain Rory—Captain H’Emory Frost. An ‘oly terror, and don’t you let no one tell you different! But there’s times when the old Virago ‘as come near beating him. Two of a kind, they are. Why, once when we was off Ras-al-Had—”
But Hero was not listening to him. She was recalling with cold horror several things that Captain Fullbright had said about the owner of the Virago , Adventurer…black sheep…blackguard. ‘ If there’s anything discreditable going on, you can bet your last dime that Rory Frost’s mixed up in it …’ And now she, Hero Hollis, niece of the American Consul in Zanzibar, was actually on this ruffian’s ship and in his clutches!
It was an appalling situation. And even as she contemplated it, a further and far more horrifying thought occurred to her: Captain Fullbright had also mentioned piracy and kidnapping. Supposing that this Captain Frost, having realized who she was, had decided to hold her for ransom? Could that be why he had refused to pursue the Norah Crayne or to set out at once for Zanzibar?
The plot of several popular novels, borrowed in recent years from the Ladies’ Lending Library, flashed through Hero’s mind and added considerably to her disquiet. Those pale eyes—how right she had been to distrust them! Yes, undoubtedly that must be what he planned to do…hold her to ransom. Why, she must seem like manna from Heaven to him! How could she have been so foolish as to tell him who she was before asking his name? For now that he knew (she had insisted on his knowing!) that she was both rich and influential, it followed that if even half the things that Captain Fullbright had said of him were true, he could not be expected to miss such a golden opportunity.
It’s my own fault! thought Hero frantically: I ought to have thought…Why didn’t I think? Why didn’t I ask for his name ?
She could only put it down to the shock of those terrifying minutes in the sea and the injuries she had received while being dragged on board. But whatever the reason, the fact remained that until this moment the identity of her rescuer and the name of his ship had not seemed to her of the least importance.
6
The week that followed seemed endless to Hero, for even with her limited knowledge of the sea it soon became clear to her that the Virago was merely idling to and fro.
The Trade Wind was blowing strongly, and had they taken advantage of it they could surely have made Zanzibar in a matter of hours; or a day and a night at most. The fact that they did not do so lent weight to her suspicion that Captain Emory Frost was playing a deep game that involved threats and ransom money, and though she refrained from accusing him of it to his face, she was secretly convinced that he must be waiting for the reply to some message he had sent to her Uncle Nathaniel.
It may have been the effect of those hard, light-coloured eyes that prevented her from taxing him with it, for Miss Hollis had never been noted for guarding her tongue and was normally outspoken to a fault. But there was something about Emory Frost, quite apart from his reputation as sketched for her by Captain Fullbright, that suggested that he would be an ill man to cross
“That’s right,” said Mr Potter. “Rum name for a ship, I’ll allow. She were the Valerian once; built special for one of them Bristol Nabobs who ‘ad a fancy to go cruising to the gorjus East—“ence them pretty little port’oles, and such. But Captain Rory changes ‘er name to the Virago , which ‘e claims is a durned sight more suited to ‘er nasty cantankerous ways. Of course ‘e were only ‘aving ‘is little joke, but I’m not saying ‘e wasn’t right at that, for there’s times she can act as spiteful as a dockside drab. Look at the way she cuts up two days ago? Mules weren’t in it! Fair got the bit between ‘er teeth she did, and—”
Hero said sharply: “Captain who ? What did you say his name was?”
“The skipper? Captain Rory—Captain H’Emory Frost. An ‘oly terror, and don’t you let no one tell you different! But there’s times when the old Virago ‘as come near beating him. Two of a kind, they are. Why, once when we was off Ras-al-Had—”
But Hero was not listening to him. She was recalling with cold horror several things that Captain Fullbright had said about the owner of the Virago , Adventurer…black sheep…blackguard. ‘ If there’s anything discreditable going on, you can bet your last dime that Rory Frost’s mixed up in it …’ And now she, Hero Hollis, niece of the American Consul in Zanzibar, was actually on this ruffian’s ship and in his clutches!
It was an appalling situation. And even as she contemplated it, a further and far more horrifying thought occurred to her: Captain Fullbright had also mentioned piracy and kidnapping. Supposing that this Captain Frost, having realized who she was, had decided to hold her for ransom? Could that be why he had refused to pursue the Norah Crayne or to set out at once for Zanzibar?
The plot of several popular novels, borrowed in recent years from the Ladies’ Lending Library, flashed through Hero’s mind and added considerably to her disquiet. Those pale eyes—how right she had been to distrust them! Yes, undoubtedly that must be what he planned to do…hold her to ransom. Why, she must seem like manna from Heaven to him! How could she have been so foolish as to tell him who she was before asking his name? For now that he knew (she had insisted on his knowing!) that she was both rich and influential, it followed that if even half the things that Captain Fullbright had said of him were true, he could not be expected to miss such a golden opportunity.
It’s my own fault! thought Hero frantically: I ought to have thought…Why didn’t I think? Why didn’t I ask for his name ?
She could only put it down to the shock of those terrifying minutes in the sea and the injuries she had received while being dragged on board. But whatever the reason, the fact remained that until this moment the identity of her rescuer and the name of his ship had not seemed to her of the least importance.
6
The week that followed seemed endless to Hero, for even with her limited knowledge of the sea it soon became clear to her that the Virago was merely idling to and fro.
The Trade Wind was blowing strongly, and had they taken advantage of it they could surely have made Zanzibar in a matter of hours; or a day and a night at most. The fact that they did not do so lent weight to her suspicion that Captain Emory Frost was playing a deep game that involved threats and ransom money, and though she refrained from accusing him of it to his face, she was secretly convinced that he must be waiting for the reply to some message he had sent to her Uncle Nathaniel.
It may have been the effect of those hard, light-coloured eyes that prevented her from taxing him with it, for Miss Hollis had never been noted for guarding her tongue and was normally outspoken to a fault. But there was something about Emory Frost, quite apart from his reputation as sketched for her by Captain Fullbright, that suggested that he would be an ill man to cross
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