Courier Democrat. (Langdon, N.D.) 1891-1920, 1918-02-28
CHAPTER XXI.
A Plan to Save Ourselves.

unable to utter a word.
"You-you actually think that, Mr..
Hollis? You mean he would be willing
toto murder all on board to protect
himselfw
eff assured such an act would bring
safety, 1 do not believe he would hest
tate at even that crime. To be per-
fectly plain, Miss Vera, it is my judy
ment that your presence on board pre-
sents the only problem unsolved."
my presence! Why, he has no
cause to fear me. No one knows where
I am. If I never appeared alive again,
not a soul could ver account for my
disappearance"
'True, and probably Mccain is fully
aware of these conditions. But he
wishes you alive, not dead. That is
what makes the problem"
She crossed the narrow space of
deck, and grasped my coat in her fin
gers.
ooh! this is too terrible! He-he
cannot imagine it possible"
"And why not" I interrupted. "He
is a%ll-powerful OF board. BE judges
the virtue of others by his own stand
ard. He dreams that you might even
make that bargain to preserve life."
"That I would marry him?"
Marriage would seal your lips;
would win him safety, and also your
s%ubjugation and wealth. 1t is a stake
worth playing for, surely"
"And the others? What would be
the fate Of you and the others if I
made that hateful bargain?"
"In no way different, I imagine,
from what it will be if you refuse" I
said soberly-and my hand closed on
hers. "McCann has no intention that
we shall ever put foot on shore. He
would be a fool to permit such G
thing"
"You think it all planned out?"
Gin detail; Mccain, Liverpool and
White know exactly what they intend
doing. Their questioning of me, and
their scrutiny of the chart, convinces
me Of this. 1 even believe now I could
name the other men of the crew who
will be in their boat, when. they aban-'
don ship-Dugan, Dubois, Sachs and
the negro, Watson, with perhaps two
others 1 am not so sure Of. Why, Miss
Vera, you heard what I was compelled
TO assent to q moment Ago.. I am to
pilot the Indian Chief to within fifty
miles of the harbor of st. Johns, tim
ing our arrival at that point to some
hour of the night. I am to give Nc
Cam notice Of our arrival there, and
furnish him with exact sailing direc-
tons to complete the course. This
mean that the crew expect to aban-
don the ship there, and take to the
boats. There are enough remaining
in good condition-and just enough
to carry them all, but the Indian
Chief will be left with none to rescue
those Of us who are left on board in
case of accident to the vessel"
"And you anticipate accident?"
II believe the ship will be deserted
in an unseaworthy condition-either
with her bottom pierced, o. her sea-
cocks open; and that those of us left
aboard will be so confined as to be
practically helpless to save the vessel
from going down."
"And the men in the boats will get
ashore, scatter and never be heard
from again. No one will ever learn
what became of the Indian Chiefs Tr
that we were aboard?"
"The French cruiser will report hav-
ing spoken US at sea-. That will be
the last word. The truth will never
be made clear. Our fate will be anoth-
er sea mystery, never explained"
"Some of the crew might talk later
In liquor"
ssThere is always that danger, and
Mccain is farsighted enough to guard
against it as far as possible. The,
boats will easily become separated in
the darkness. If the others are ever
picked up, it will be accidentally by:
some ship at sea-and there are al
most no ships in this ocean. There
are few flaws in the plan, as I have
figured out"
She did not answer, her eyes On
Ky 1uSC, AC1 cAp1CSS1Ou CAA1O1L1uS lAS
horror she felt at this vivid picture
which I had drawn. Then she slowly,
gently withdrew her hand from my
grasp, sinking into a chair. her head
bent forward. t
"You-you reilly believe they actu-
ally plan to do oil this?" she asked
at last. "And what-what about me?
You suggested that-that marriage
might i've me from this fate. Do you
think so Ill of me as to imagine L
would ever consent to such a bargain?"
"What I may imagine has nothing
to do with the case, Miss Vera. My
thought, and that of Fergus McCann,
is not liable to be the same on any
subject. The only hope he can nave
of ever winning you is through threat.
He possesses power and can assail you
with deadly peril. 1t is my belief that
he contemplates doing So"
"That he will offer me choice Of
marriage with him, or death?'