"I dare not sign."

"You dare not refuse."

Somers walked up and down the state-room, apparently in great mental agony.

"Shall I sign?" said he, in a loud tone, as though he were speaking to the empty air.

"Not so loud, man!" interposed Pillgrim, angrily.

At that instant two light raps were distinctly heard.

"What's that?" demanded the traitor, greatly alarmed.

"I will sign it," promptly added Somers, to whom the two raps seemed to be perfectly intelligible.

"What was that noise?" asked Pillgrim, fearfully. "Is there any one in Garboard's state-room?"

"I think not."

The second lieutenant was not satisfied. He opened the door and looked into the adjoining state-room, but there was no person there, and the ward-room was empty. There was no one within hearing, and the conspirator recovered his wonted self-possession.

"You will sign?" said he.

"I will."

"I knew you would, and therefore I prepared the doc.u.ment; read it," he continued, taking a paper from his pocket.

Somers read. It was simply an agreement to pay forty thousand dollars, when he married Kate Portington, in consideration of certain a.s.sistance rendered the signer, but without any allusion to the circ.u.mstances under which it was given. As a legal doc.u.ment, of course it was good for nothing, as both parties well understood. Somers signed it.

"Now, Mr. Somers, we are friends," said Pillgrim, as he folded up the paper, and restored it to his pocket. "You have done me a good turn, and I have done you one."

Somers, unwilling to regard Pillgrim as a fool, believed that this paper was intended to ruin him in the estimation of the Portington family, and that the villain intended to marry her himself when her apparent suitor was disposed of.

"Is this all you expect of me?" asked Somers.

"This is the princ.i.p.al thing. I may have occasion to use you again; if I do, I shall not hesitate to call upon you. You are in my confidence now."

"Will you tell me, then, where the Ben Nevis is bound? I may want to find her, for I haven't much taste for the old navy now."

"Ah, you make better progress than I antic.i.p.ated. She is bound to St.

Marks."

This was a lie, as Somers well knew.

"Coles and Langdon said she was to make Mobile."

"The plan was changed. You must not lay much stress on what you heard that night. It was all a blind,--or most of it was."

"Indeed?"

"The conversation at the house in Front Street was carried on for your especial benefit," added Pillgrim, laughing and rubbing his hands.

"Langdon wrote both letters about the wounded sailor; there was no such person. The old woman that kept the house was in my pay. When I spoke so warmly in your praise to Langdon, I knew that you were listening to all I said; indeed, I said it to you rather than to Langdon."

"Why did you tell me beforehand, if you intended to catch me with the treasonable offer?" asked Somers, rather mortified to learn that he had been duped from the beginning.

"I knew you would pretend to accept it. All I wanted was to get you to take the commission, orders, and oath. As you agreed to sign the latter, Langdon did it for you, for I could not wait."

"The Ben Nevis is no humbug?"

"No; I bought her and two other steamers on the Clyde, in Scotland. The Ben Nevis was captured, but my friends bought her after she was condemned. As there had been a great deal said about her in the newspapers, I used her because it was probable you had heard of her."

"I had."

"Everything works as I intended."

"Not exactly," thought Somers.

"The captain of the coaster that pounded you that night was Langdon,"

laughed Pillgrim.

"Why was that done?"

"That I might take you back to the hotel, and be your friend. We did not intend to hurt you much. It was important that you should think well of me. You do--don't you?"

"Of course."

"All right now; remember you are mine, Somers," said Pillgrim, as he left the room.

CHAPTER XII.

THE BEN NEVIS.

The Chatauqua rolled along easily on her course during the rest of the day, until the dog watch, when Mr. Pillgrim had the deck again. Somers, having discharged his whole duty in reference to the conspiracy, was content to leave the matter in the hands of Mr. Hackleford, to whom he had committed it.

At eight bells, as soon as Somers had been relieved from the afternoon watch, he was not a little surprised to receive a message from the captain, inviting him to his cabin. He readily came to the conclusion that the summons related to the conspiracy. When he entered the cabin, he saw Captain Cascabel and Mr. Hackleford seated at the table, on which was spread a general chart of the coast of the United States.

"Say what you wish to Mr. Somers," said the captain to the first lieutenant.

"Mr. Somers, Captain Cascabel has sent for you in relation to the affair of which we talked in your state-room last night," Mr. Hackleford began.

"All that you have written out in your statement, and all that you told me, have been fully confirmed."

"I intended to confine myself strictly to the facts," replied Somers, modestly.

"You have been very discreet and very prudent," added Mr. Hackleford.