When I opened my eyes it was broad daylight, and at first I could not remember where I was. But as I sat up I saw before me Nux and Bryonia, seated calmly side by side, with the wilderness all around me and the distant voices of the robbers echoing faintly in my ears. The sun was up, for I could see it glinting through the trees; so, as a recollection of my surroundings came back to me, I asked Bry what was going on. He said the men were breaking camp, having slept late, and that presently they were going to travel still further into the interior. I could not imagine what they had in view, or where they expected to hide from the vengeance of the men they had plundered; but Bry declared we could follow them without ourselves being seen, so I decided not to give up until we had tracked them to their hiding place—if, indeed, they had one.
Presently we could see them tramping away to the southward, carrying the gold and provisions they had tied up in the blankets. There must have been two or three hundredweight of the gold, so the packages were heavy, and they had to take turns carrying them. But men seldom feel overburdened by the weight of gold, so we heard no complaints from the bearers.
Bry went on alone, hiding behind rocks and trees but keeping the men well in sight. After him trailed Nux, keeping Bry in sight; and then, as far away as I dared, I followed Nux, trying to imitate the example of the blacks and to hide myself as well as possible.
Before noon I grew hungry, for we had brought no provisions of any sort with us. The robbers paused to lunch, and then went on; but, although I searched carefully, I could not find a morsel of food that they had cast aside. Of water there was plenty, for we crossed several small streams; but food began to be more precious than gold to me, and I vaguely wondered if I should die of starvation before I got back to camp.
At evening the men made camp again, this time in a little clearing strewn with fallen logs; and when Bry rejoined me in a clump of trees where Nux and I had halted, I told him frankly that I was faint with hunger, and that unless I could find something to eat I could not go on. I have no doubt the blacks were hungry, too; but they were more inured to hardship, and could bear it better.
But Bry volunteered to try to secure some food, and as soon as darkness had fallen he crept toward the camp, managing to approach to within five yards of the camp fire, around which the robbers sat smoking and talking. He was concealed by a huge log, behind which he hid, listening carefully to the conversation, which he afterward retailed to me.
“So far,” Larkin was saying, “we couldn’t have done better. By this time I guess we’re pretty safe from pursuit.”
“No one could find their way here in a year,” boasted Daggett, his lean face grinning with delight. “I’m the only man on the island as knows the trails.”
“Are you sure you can lead us to that queer rock you tell of?” asked Judson, a little uneasily.
“Sure. And once there, we could defy an army,” returned Daggett. “Then we can make our raft, row out to where the ship is, and sail away home.”
Larkin gave a rude laugh, ending it with an oath.
“There’ll be some tall cussin’ in the camp,” he said.
“Major’ll be crazy,” assented Daggett.
“I swiped every grain o’ gold he had, while he lay a-snorin’,” chuckled Hayes, a big ruffian who was called “Dandy Pete,” in derision, because he was so rough and unkempt. “Pity we couldn’t ’a’ got all there was in camp.”
“There’s enough to make us all rich, my boys, anyhow,” remarked Larkin. “It’s nearly broke my back, luggin’ of it, an’ there’s only four of us to divide.”
At this they seemed to grow thoughtful, and all sat silently smoking for several minutes.
“What bothers me,” said Judson, breaking the silence, “is how we’re to get that blasted ship into some civilized port. There ain’t a man here as knows anything about sailin’.”
“That’s all right,” said Larkin, confidently. “The sun rises in the east, don’t it? Well, all we’ve got to do is h’ist the sails and let the wind blow us towards the east. Some time or other we’ll get to the American continent, and then we can run down the coast to ’Frisco. It’s no trouble to sail a ship.”
“We’ve got to get away, somehow,” grumbled Judson, “or our gold won’t be of any use to us. When are we going to divide?”
“When we get on the ship,” said Daggett, promptly.
“When we’re at sea will be better,” added Larkin.
They looked at one another suspiciously.
“It’s got to be a fair divvy,” said Dandy Pete, with an oath, “or else there won’t be so many to divide up with.”
“What do you mean by that?” demanded Larkin, angrily.
“I mean I’ll stick a knife in your ribs, if you try any trickery with me,” replied Pete, scowling. “You made the terms yourself, and you’ve got to live up to ’em. It’s a quarter each, all around.”
“That’s wrong!” yelled Daggett, springing to his feet. “I’m to have a third, for guiding you. If it hadn’t been for me, you couldn’t get away with the gold at all.”
“Who promised you a third?” asked Hayes.
“Larkin.”
“Well, let Larkin make it up to you, out of his own share. I’m going to have a quarter.”
“And so am I,” said Judson, fingering his revolver.
Larkin glared at them with a white face.
“We won’t quarrel about it, boys,” he said, after a time. “There’s plenty for all, and we must hang together till we’re out of danger. I’ll take what you think is right, for my share.”
“I’ll take my third, an’ no less,” growled Daggett.
No one looked at him. Each seemed to be busy with his own thoughts.
Bryonia had chosen this especial log to hide behind, because the robbers had placed their sack of provisions upon it. While listening to the conversation I have recorded, the black had stealthily reached up his hand and managed to extract from the bundle a tin of corned beef and a handful of ship’s biscuits. Then he wriggled carefully away, and in a few minutes had rejoined Nux and me, where we hid among the trees.
I think no food has ever tasted quite so delicious to me as did that tinned beef and stale biscuit. When divided amongst three there was little enough in each share, but it sufficed to allay our hunger and give us fresh strength and courage.
After we had eaten, Bry decided to go back again for more, since another opportunity to purloin from the bundle of provisions might not be offered us.
As it was very dark by this time, Nux and I crept nearer, to where a big rock lay; and here, hidden by the deep shadows, we were able to distinguish clearly all that transpired around the camp fire.
Bry being between us and the light, we could follow his creeping form with our eyes until we saw him lying safely hidden behind the log, with the bundle of food just over him. By this time all the robbers had lain down to sleep except Larkin, who had taken the watch and sat moodily smoking beside the fire, on which he tossed now and then a handful of fuel.
Suddenly, as he looked toward the sack that rested upon the log, he saw it move. In an instant a pistol shot rang out, and the robbers sprang to their feet with cries of alarm.
“Somebody’s behind that log!” shouted Larkin, who was himself trembling with fear.
At once Bryonia arose to his feet, stepped over the log, and calmly advanced into the light of the fire, holding out his hand in greeting and smiling broadly into the angry faces confronting him.
“Don’ shoot poor Bry,” he said, pleadingly. “I’se run ’way to j’ine you.”
“Run awa............