"A lady who pleads so energetically should have her prayers granted,"
said the pirate, with a tone of irony. "But let him beware how he behaves--unhand him," he said to the men, in their own tongue. "These ladies have pleaded for the prisoner, and are answerable for his conduct. And tow, signora," he said, in a blander tone, addressing himself to Ada, "by what means do you propose to remedy the fault of that madman?"
Ada was silent for some minutes, during which the pirate stood regarding her attentively.
"It is fitter for you to point out the means by which I can serve you, than for me to propose them," she at length replied. "Indeed, I can do nothing till I am restored to my friends; I am sure that any ransom you may propose, which they have the power to pay, they will gladly give for my liberty."
"It is a pity that was not thought of before; but, are you aware, lady, that it is usual to secure the ransom before the prisoner is restored?"
observed Zappa.
"Touch then at one of the Ionian Islands, where there are English authorities, and let me write letters in different directions, and before long, I doubt not, the money will be raised, and will be deposited wherever you desire. If you will allow me to go on sh.o.r.e, I will promise to do my very utmost to place the money in your hands, and will send word to the British cruiser, now in search of this ship, that I am in safety; and will at the same time exert all the influence I may possess with my friends to obtain your pardon, should you be captured.
This I promise to do most faithfully."
"Oh, listen to her!" exclaimed Nina, springing towards the pirate, and seizing his hands. "Land her in safety and honour among her own people, and she will pay you the money if you demand it, and I--I will be responsible that she does so with my life--but why demand it? you have already more wealth than you require on board this vessel, and no rest nor safety can you expect, or hope to find, while you follow your present pursuits; your hand against every man, and the hand of every man against you,"--(Nina knew not that she was quoting the words of the sacred book to describe her husband)--"but oh, my husband, remember that there is a land across the narrow Adriatic, where your deeds are unknown, and where we may henceforth live unsuspected in tranquillity, and with such happiness as we can enjoy--that land, the land of my birth--there, in the home which I deserted for your sake, you will be secure; there I will watch over you, will tend you, will strive to make you forget the past in the contentment of the present; and should you be discovered, should any one attempt to tear you from me, I will give my life with joy for yours. Oh say that you will do this--say you will abandon the evil course you are leading, and you will make my heart beat lighter than it has done for many a day, and bless the words you utter."
The pirate was somewhat softened.
"Nina," he said, looking at her with a glance of more affection than she had for a long time seen, "you know not what you ask me to do. You know not the difficulty, the almost impossibility of accomplishing what you wish. Even were I seized with the humour to turn virtuous, I cannot abandon my vessel and my crew; they are bound to me and I to them; and were I to quit them, they would be captured, to a certainty, and in just revenge for my desertion, they would inform all they met of my retreat.
If I proposed to leave them they would not let me, and from that instant I should lose all my authority. And then think, should I even succeed in commencing the existence you propose, how is it likely to suit one, accustomed from his earliest days to the dissipation of cities, or the wild excitement of a rover"s life--how should I, who have so long commanded a band of men, regardless of all laws but those I have framed, and yet obedient to me as children, submit to the dull, plodding business of a country farmer engaged in superintending b.u.mpkins in their daily toil? No, Nina, you must not expect it; I feel it cannot be."
He was silent, and seemed lost in thought. His lips moved, but his words were almost inaudible.
"The vision was too bright and beautiful ever to be realised," he murmured. "Alas, alas, I have for ever cut myself off from such happiness--and that fond girl too--oh, it is a cruel fate for her to be linked for ever to one so lost. Yet it might be done. I might again seek out the speronara of the Sicilian Alessandro, and he should land us on some part of the coast I would select, nor should he know whither we went. Ah--but is he to be trusted? Would he not, if he saw our wealth, be tempted to destroy us for the sake of possessing himself of it?-- would he not, even if we concealed it ever so carefully, or even had it not, suspect that we had it, and equally attempt our destruction? Who is to be trusted? In whom can I, especially, of all men, dare to confide? Alas! on no one. Every one of my fellow men, except the ruffians who surround me, and a few like them, would glory in betraying me. I might, it is true, find some stranger bound for the Italian coast, and with a well-invented tale about the vessel I had quitted, persuade them to carry me whither I may determine to go."
"Nina, I will think about it," he said, aloud. "I would please you if I could; but though my power to do evil has been great, alas! the means I possess of doing good are small indeed."
"Oh, do more than think of it," exclaimed Nina, looking up imploringly in his face. "Resolve with your determined will to execute what you think of--resolve to overcome all difficulties--to be daunted by no dangers, and she and I will bless you to our dying day, and our prayers will ascend to heaven to implore forgiveness for the crimes which now weigh down your soul and prevent you from perceiving clearly where true peace and happiness can alone be found."
"Enough, Nina, enough, or you will make me act the woman," exclaimed Zappa, releasing his hands from her grasp, and rushing on deck, where his voice was heard, immediately after, issuing some orders in his usual firm and loud tones.
"You will conquer, my sweet Nina; you will persuade him to abandon a pirate"s life, and happiness may yet be in store for you," said Ada, kissing the cheek of her friend, who sat pale and trembling on the couch by her side.
Nina shook her head sorrowfully.
"Alas!" she replied, "you know not the wayward spirit which possesses him, or you would not speak to me of hope."
CHAPTER THIRTY EIGHT.
Several days had pa.s.sed, and the _Sea Hawk_ was still among the cl.u.s.tering islands of the Archipelago. Twice she had attempted to escape from them on her voyage to Cephalonia; but each time she had been driven back by the appearance of suspicious sails to the westward, which her captain believed to be British men-of-war, cruising in search of him.
Men were stationed all day and night on the yard-arms, and topmast-heads to look out for the first faint outline of a ship; yet, not as before, in the hopes of falling in with a richly-laden merchantman, but for the purpose of avoiding her, lest she should prove to be one of the many enemies on the watch to destroy them. The wind also no longer favoured them, but shifting to the westward, had aided to baffle them in their efforts to escape. Zappa prayed again for the gale, which had so opportunely arisen to enable him to force his way out of the harbour of Lissa; but now when he equally needed it, and had no evil purpose in view, when better intentions had been formed and better feelings had arisen, it refused to blow. Either contrary winds or calms had always been met with, and till he had a prospect of a quick run, it would be folly to venture out from amid the islets, which now sheltered him. He was afraid of anchoring, or of remaining off any place for an hour together, lest an enemy should suddenly appear and give him no time to make sail to escape. He seldom went below, but wrapped in his cloak he threw himself on the deck, when weary nature required rest, to be ready at a moment"s call. His days and nights were full of toil, care, and watchfulness, and thus the time wore on. It was a lovely day; the sky was of the most intense blue, without a cloud or speck to dim its brilliancy; the sea calm as a mirror, and reflecting the hue of the bright canopy above, was of so crystal a clearness that the eye seemed capable of piercing to its very lowest depths; the sun shone forth with glowing splendour, and the wind of the gentle zephyr, which came from the west, blew with a balmy softness, incapable of ruffling the water, or of forcing through it the pirate brig. Her sails, spread to catch the first breath of a stronger breeze, now hung almost idle from the yards, or ever and anon gave a loud flap of impatience against the masts.
Blue islands rose out of the water on every side of the ship; some extending a considerable distance along the horizon, others, mere hillocks, appearing above it; and besides the more distant islands, several islets were seen, mostly barren rocks, some of a mile in length, and others of a few hundred yards; the largest only being of a height sufficient to conceal a vessel behind them. Some were broken into picturesque forms, and their sides sprinkled with moss and lichens, or coa.r.s.e gra.s.s, and a few low shrubs looked green and inviting at a little distance--a deception which a nearer approach quickly dissipated. Here and there also black lines and spots might be seen on the surface, being the summit of coral reefs, which, with any sea, were entirely concealed by the wild foaming surf breaking over them; and though the greater number of these were almost flush with the water, or below it, a few rose as much as five or ten feet above it. As may be supposed, no vessel would venture into this locality, unless those on board were well acquainted with its numerous hidden dangers.
To increase them still further, strong currents set among the islands, running towards various quarters, accordingly as they encountered the opposition of the rocks, either above or below the surface, so that it was impossible, from the appearance of the land, to say in which direction the vessel, exposed to their influence, would next be carried.
Into one of these currents, the _Sea Hawk_ had now got, and though she appeared to be stationary in the water, she was being driven on at a rapid rate past the land to the westward. Her captain, however, apprehended no danger--he had every rock and shoal mapped out in his mind far more correctly than on any chart in existence, and he felt confident of being able to avoid them; and thus, though the airs came from the westward, the brig was carried bodily to windward, and steerage way was just kept on her.
The heat of the cabin was so great, that Ada and Nina had been forced on deck, over the after part of which an awning had been spread to shelter them from the sun--and there they sat, silent and sad, for the long delay which had occurred had depressed their spirits, and filled their imaginations with forebodings of coming evil.
Paolo stood by himself, leaning over the quarter-rail, and gazing, with a vacant listlessness, at the sea; no one speaking to him, and he noticing no one.
Zappa slowly paced the deck, every now and then stopping to watch the progress of the vessel, and to issue his orders to the helmsman or sail trimmers, who were at their stations ready for any emergency; but though every sail, to her royals, were set, with that light wind, a few hands only were required to box about the yards, as it became necessary to keep the vessel away, or haul her more up, to avoid the rocks and shoals as they presented themselves.
Looking at that beautiful fabric, as she floated proudly on the waters, and observing the skill with which she was handled, it was difficult to suppose that danger of any kind, beyond what I have mentioned, could menace her.
Zappa himself felt secure, for he knew that none of his enemies could here approach him unawares; or, if they daringly ventured into that labyrinth of dangers, he could easily elude them, or entice them to their destruction. However, a strict look out for the appearance of any sail was, as usual, kept; but all his attention was occupied in conning the vessel through the intricate pa.s.sage he had selected, in order thus to make some progress on his voyage.
"If this dreadful state of uncertainty endure much longer, I feel that it will kill me," said Nina, taking Ada"s hand, and looking into her face, as if to read the effect her words produced. Her dim, sunken eye, and the hectic spot on her faded cheek, gave sad token that her words were too likely to be fulfilled. "For your sake, dear friend, I will try to live, and for his sake also. I would not quit him, even for another and a better world, till I was a.s.sured that he had forsaken the sinful and dangerous path he has, alas, so long followed. It is an awful thing to think that he whom one loves, better far than one"s-self, may be speedily hurried to his eternal doom, without a prayer for forgiveness--a hope in the future. I would not be separated from him, and yet I dare not wish to bear him company; though I feel that, black as are his crimes, my guilt is even greater. I deserted a fond father-- I broke his heart, Ada, and can such a one as I hope for Heaven? Will the suffering, the agony of heart, I have endured, be any atonement in the sight of G.o.d? Oh, promise me, Ada, that should death claim me as his own, you will strive, by every means in your power, to lead him back to virtue--to preserve him from the ignominy, the punishment which, even I acknowledge, he has deserved at the hands of his fellow-men."
Ada Garden roused herself from her own despondency, to soothe the feelings of her friend. She endeavoured to persuade her that her prognostications regarding her own death were probably groundless; and though she did not seek to lessen her horror of the crime she had committed, she pointed out to her the merciful promises held forth in the sacred writings, that her repentance was of more value than her sufferings; that the latter was sent by a kind Heaven to produce the former feeling, and that, trusting in Him who died for all, she might hope confidently for pardon, and remission of her sins. She a.s.sured her of her own belief, that Heaven is not deaf to those who pray that those they love may be made to repent; and she entreated her, if on that account alone, to live for her husband"s sake.
"And, Nina," she continued, "what a weak girl--what one situated as I am can do, I will do for your husband; and more, I will entreat Captain Fleetwood, not only to save him from punishment, but to use every means in order to persuade him to repent of the past, and to follow a n.o.ble and virtuous course of life."
In this manner the two lovely girls had conversed for some time in tones not above a whisper, lest it should be heard by him whom it most concerned, when an exclamation of terror escaped the lips of Nina, and, seizing Ada"s arm with a convulsive grasp, she pointed over the larboard side of the vessel, where a sight met their view, which was, indeed, sufficient to make the stoutest heart quail.
Meantime the captain stood near the weather gangway, directing, as I said, the course of the vessel, with his first mate by his side, whom he had called to him to point out the danger yet to be pa.s.sed; while, as a precautionary, and, indeed, usual measure on such occasions, hands were stationed at the jib-boom end, and at the weather foreyard-arm, to give timely notice of any rocks which might lie in their course beneath the water, from the beautiful clearness of which they were discernable, even though many feet from the surface, at a considerable distance. The brig"s head was to the southward, and all eyes were thus turned to windward, or in the direction towards which she was drifting with the current, and no one thought of looking on the lee side, from which no possible danger was apprehended.
"We have done well to come here, Baldo," observed Zappa to his mate.
"We are here far more secure than in any harbour in the world; for no one but a mariner of our own islands would venture his ship among these reefs. See yonder black ledge, which shows its threatening summit a few feet only above the water--there is a pa.s.sage between it and another reef further to the southward, through which we shall easily pa.s.s, provided the wind does not fail us altogether; and if so, we must rouse the hands up and take to our sweeps."
"It is a dangerous place, though, captain, and one I would rather not venture into, unless I was very sure of my weather," replied the mate.
"Even now, if it was to come on to blow, it would be no easy matter to get clear."
"No fear of that, my friend; I who brought the craft into this place will take her safely out again, let the wind blow with its greatest fury. A gale is what we have day and night been praying for; and let one come, the gallant _Sea Hawk_ will brave it, and laugh at her enemies. But tell me, Baldo, how do the people like this hide-and-seek life? It is not what they have been accustomed to under my command."
"They wonder what your intentions are," answered the mate. "They say that, by sailing westward, as you propose, we are more likely to meet with our enemies, than if we kept among the islands to the northward, where we have friends."
"The very reason I would avoid the locality," said Zappa. "We shall certainly be sought for there; whereas, no one will expect to find us in the broad seas to the west; and remind them besides, that where we are going, we shall, without doubt, fall in with some richly-laden merchantmen, which will amply repay all hands for their losses."
"There is reason in that, captain; I dare say it will content the men,"
said the mate. "But while I am on the subject, there is another complaint which they have to make."
"What is it?" asked the pirate, angrily, for he did not like his mate"s tone. "I love not to hear complaints."
"The stranger lady," replied the mate.
"Well, what of her?" inquired the captain.
"She has brought us all into this sc.r.a.pe," continued Baldo.
"So it is said, is it?" remarked the captain, with a dark frown.
"No one knows why she was brought on board," continued the mate, speaking fast, to say what he wished, before any further interruption occurred. "Some say that Signor Paolo brought her here; but it is supposed that he did so according to your orders."
"They do, do they?" said Zappa, compressing his lips. "And now, tell we what would they have done?"
"They would have you get rid of her," answered the mate, boldly.