A PLACE OF SAFETY.

The glad sunlight, the leaping, dancing wind and the sparkling water on which was no sail to cause him fear, all served to make Ben feel happy, and he shouted through the companion-way:

“Come! Turn out! It’s mornin’, an’ the doctor’s craft must be pretty near Cedar Keys by this time. What are you goin’ to give us for breakfast, aunty?”

There was no reply for a moment; but the sound of some heavy body could be heard moving around in the cuddy, and then a fat, black face appeared above the hatch as its owner asked anxiously:

“Hab you done gone run ’way from dat low-down white man?”

“It looks like it, aunty,” Jake replied triumphantly. “There’s Key West dead ahead, an’ as his craft can’t sail so very much faster than this, I reckon we’ve given him the slip about as neat as Captain Irwin himself could a’ done it.”

“Is dat de truf, honey?” she asked, and when Ben nodded his head she exclaimed with a deep sigh of relief, resting her wrinkled chin on her hands as if the better to draw in long draughts of the invigorating morning air: “I ’clar to goodness, I ain’t had a good chance to breave till now. I’se nebber gwine ter poke fun onto Massa Jake any mo’ ef he’s done gone run ’way from dat wuffless trash.”

“It looks very much as if we had done it, aunty,” Ben said gleefully, “an’ in three or four hours we’ll be at Key West.”

“Wha’ you’se gwine dere fur? Why don’ you sail back to our island? De doctor’s suah to come to Key West, an’ den what’ll be done?”

“If we get there an hour before he arrives we can put you an’ her under the lawyer’s care, where you’ll be safe till the matter is settled in court. It’ll be all right, ’cause he told Jake to have Gertie at his office not later than Tuesday.”

“But dis yere’s Sunday mornin’, an’ how’se you gwine to fin’ him, when mos’ likely he’s in de meeting whar ebery Chris’ian oughter be?”

For a moment Ben was at a loss to know what reply to make. He had entirely forgotten that this new day was the Sabbath, and had counted on finding the attorney at his office.

“We’ll fix that all right,” Jake said with the air of one who is not to be deterred by such trifling difficulties. “Key West ain’t sich a large city but what we can soon find out where a man lives, an’ it’ll be all the better for us if we have to go right to his house.”

This reply evidently satisfied Chloe, for her head was immediately withdrawn from the hatchway, and a few moments later both she and Gertie came on deck for such a toilet as could be made with salt water, no soap, and a piece of cotton cloth as a towel.

The wind died away very perceptibly as the day advanced. By the time breakfast had been spread in the cockpit, it was nothing more than a fairly good sailing breeze; but this did not trouble Jake in the slightest, for if he was delayed the other craft would be also, and it was a matter of little moment whether they arrived in the forenoon or late at night.

“Unless the wind gives out entirely we’ll be there about noon,” he said cheerfully, as he ate the potted meat and dry hard-tack while holding the tiller, “an’ that will suit us exactly.”

In this he was more nearly correct than he himself had fancied. It was just twelve o’clock when the little craft glided lazily through the northwest channel into the harbor, where nothing could be seen of the boat the fugitives were so anxious to avoid, and preparations were made for a hurried landing.

“One of us will go ashore with Gertie, find a carriage if possible, and hunt for the lawyer’s house, while the other stays here with Chloe until we know what’s to be done,” Jake said as the boat approached the dock.

“You’d better do that part instead of me, ’cause you’ve met him once, an’ I might stand right alongside of him without knowin’ who he was,” Ben replied, not waiting to consult Gertie’s wishes in the matter, and the ex-cook made ready to go on shore by smoothing down the hair over his forehead, and otherwise trying to make himself presentable according to his own ideas on the subject.

No time was wasted after the little craft was at the dock. The possibility that the quack doctor might arrive at any moment caused Jake to make all haste, and the instant one of the hawsers was made fast he leaped ashore with Gertie in his arms, running up the street as if fancying the enemy was in pursuit.

“He’s all right so far,” Ben said after watching until the ex-cook was out of sight, and then entering the cuddy where Chloe sat nursing the kitten as some slight consolation for the temporary loss of the child she loved so well. “There ain’t much chance he’ll meet the doctor, an’ we can count on bein’ back to the captain’s house again pretty soon.”

“I’se gwine whar my chile is,” Chloe said stiffly, as if fearing Ben might propose that she be separated from Gertie during a certain length of time. “Dere’s no reason why she shouldn’t go on ahead; but I mus’ foller her jes’ as soon as dat wuffless Jake done gone foun’ de lawyer man.”

“Of course you will,” Ben replied so heartily that any suspicions Chloe may have had as to the possibility of not seeing Gertie again at the earliest practicable moment were immediately dispelled. “He can’t be away more than an hour, an’ then you shall take the cat and start.”

“Wha’s you and Massa Jake gwine?” the old woman asked.

“We’ll stay on board here till to-morrow, I guess, an’ then hunt up the captain.”

“Den I’se gwine ter fix yer something to eat.”

“Don’t do it, aunty,” and Ben spoke quickly to prevent her from carrying the plan into immediate execution. “We’ve had all the cold stuff we want, an’ when it’s dinner-time we’ll eat on shore where we can get a hot meal.”

After that Chloe made no effort to prolong the conversation. That she was uneasy regarding Gertie’s welfare could be plainly told from her face, and she remained on one of the lockers in anxious expectancy until the ex-cook’s return, nearly an hour later.

“Well, I found my man!” he exclaimed triumphantly as he leaped on board the little boat with a jar that caused her to tremble from stem to stern. “We got a hack at the head of the dock, an’ the driver knew all about the lawyer. He says she’ll be safe with him, an’ Chloe’s to go up there as soon as she can git ready.”

“An’ dat’s jes now, Massa Jake,” the old woman said as she gave an extra twist to the bandana turban on her head. “I’se only been waitin’ fur de word, an’ don’ wanter spend any time foolin’. I’ll take de cat wid me, an’ den de family’ll be mostly togedder.”

Jake was not eager to set out at once, and would have waited to gossip about what he saw and heard while on shore; but Chloe was impatient to be with “her chile” once more, and Ben said:

“Go with her now, and that part of the work will be settled. When you get back we shall have a chance to talk while we’re eating dinner.”

Then the ex-cook went on shore the second time and Ben was left alone for half an hour, at the expiration of which the two set out in search of the long-deferred meal.

In one of the Cuban cafés, with its cages of singing birds, Pride of India trees and multiplicity of parrots, the two ordered an elaborate dinner, during the progress of which Jake repeated over and over again, amid his criticism of the cooking, that which he had learned from the lawyer.

As near as Ben could ascertain he had simply been assured that there was no chance that Dr. Harlan could work her any harm now that his character was so well known by the judge before whom the case had been presented; but he told this so many times that it seemed as if he had a great amount of news to impart.

“I tell you, lad, that man lives in swell style, an’ I reckon she won’t hanker after anything she can’t get while he has charge of her.”

“And there’s no chance the doctor can steal her away?”

“Not a bit. Why, I had mighty hard work to get inter the house till I explained all the whys an’ wherefores of my comin’ to a big nigger, an’ I tell you, my boy, she’s as snug as a bug in a rug.”

“That will be more than we can say for ourselves if the doctor sails into the harbor before dark,” Ben replied with a laugh, and then after paying a moderate price for a highly satisfactory meal, the two walked leisurely down to the dock.

Once on board their own craft but little attention was paid to anything in the vicinity. Now that Gertie was in a place of safety there was nothing to fear, and for the time at least, Dr. Harlan had not so much as a place in their thoughts. It was as if the anxiety of the previous day and night had been so great that all fear of him fled with the departure of his step-daughter.

In his mind, however, they probably occupied quite a conspicuous place, for he arrived in port about a half an hour after Jake and Ben had gone on board to think over their very satisfactory dinner, and both were more surprised than pleased at hearing him hail them from the dock.

“I want to know where my daughter is?” he asked angrily when Jake showed his good-natured face above the companion-way.

“Your daughter?” the ex-cook repeated, as if he was hearing of such a person for the first time, and Ben crouched close behind him, believing they were about to have a very disagreeable interview.

“Yes, my daughter, for the law recognizes her as such!” the man screamed, his face absolutely livid with passion. “She was on board this boat last night, and I insist on knowing where she is now.”

“Then you’ll have to go up town to find out,” Jake replied with an exasperating drawl, “for she isn’t here.”

“I’ll come on board and see,” the man cried, leaping on the deck as he spoke, and Ben, thinking the time had come when Jake needed assistance, stepped out into the cockpit.

“Don’t get into a fret,” the ex-cook said in a tone calculated to excite rather than calm the visitor’s anger. “If it’ll do you any good, an’ you ask it as a favor, we’ll let you go below. But dare to put on any high an’ mighty airs, an’ overboard you go, for this is our craft so long as we choose to hire her.”

For one single instant it seemed as if the quack was about to rush upon Jake with an intent to do him bodily injury, and Ben seized the tiller in anticipation of a fight; but the visitor, understanding that he might get worsted in an encounter, stepped back a few paces as he said threateningly:

“Remember that I have certain rights in law which are not to be trifled with. I demand to know if my step-daughter is here?”

“An’ I told you she wasn’t. If you come on board here it is at your own peril, an’ unless I’m way off my reckonin’, the law gives us the right to throw you overboard if we choose.”

“Let him look into the cabin if he wants to, Jake,” Ben cried, “and then it will be best for him to get ashore as quickly as he can.”

“The boy is skipper now, so you can take a peep at our saloon,” Jake said with a mocking bow, and it was not necessary for the doctor to make any very lengthy examination. A single glance was sufficient to show that the tiny cabin had no occupants, and he cried in a shrill tone as he shook his fist in the ex-cook’s face:

“You shall answer for this before another day has passed, and I will have you arrested for abducting my daughter.”

“Do as you please to-morrow, but just now you’ll get ashore mighty lively, or I’ll give you a chance to swim.”

There was no mistaking the fact that the former cook of the Sea Queen was very angry, and Dr. Harlan understood that it was not safe to stay on board any longer. In a very undignified manner he clambered onto the pier, and once in a place of safety gave vent to his rage in a multiplicity of angry words and gesticulations expressive of what he would do in the way of revenge when the proper time arrived.

“Will we go ashore an’ knock his two eyes into one?” Jake asked while the man was dancing about in grotesque rage on the string-piece of the pier.

“No, let him alone, but if he attempts to come on board again it will be at his own risk,” Ben replied, swinging the tiller around in a savage way, while the doctor, evidently believing it would be of no use to prolong what was a profitless conversation, jumped into a small boat that had been moored near the head of the dock and rowed to his own craft a short distance away.

“What’ll we do now?” Ben asked when the quack disappeared over the side of the boat.

“Go to sleep, of course,” Jake replied calmly. “He won’t come back, for he knows Gertie isn’t here, and we’ve got to make up for last night’s wakefulness.”

It was good advice. Without fear of another visit from the irate man they went into the cuddy to get the rest both so sadly needed, and neither awakened to consciousness until the next morning, when Captain Irwin had shouted half a dozen times from the string-piece of the dock:

“Sleeping late, ain’t you?” he asked as Ben’s head appeared through the companion-way, and before any reply could be made he was on board ready to hear the story of their adventures during the past few days.

It was some time before a detailed account had been given, and then the captain said:

“Well, I reckon the child’s troubles are nearly over. It is probable that the court will appoint me her guardian, and then we can go back to our cottage, for between all three of us I don’t fancy the doctor will be able to steal her away. The matter of the salvage on the Mermaid’s cargo is progressing finely, and we can count on being ready to leave here in a month at the longest.”

Neither Jake nor Ben had much interest in anything except Gertie’s welfare just at that moment, and neither was sufficiently curious regarding the goods of the wrecked vessel to ask the probable amount which might be awarded them.

Acting upon Captain Irwin’s suggestion the boat which had served them so well was delivered up to her owners, the amount due for her use was paid, and the remains of their outfit, now a very limited collection, was carried to the hired cottage.

“I reckon I’ll snug the kitchen up a bit,” Jake said, as if delighted because of the opportunity, and determined to make the most of it during Chloe’s absence. “How long do you allow it’ll be before the court tells Gertie whether the quack’s her father or not?”

“The attorney himself couldn’t answer that question. We’ve got to wait for the law to take its course, and there’s no use trying to hurry matters,” the captain replied as he left the house to visit the lawyer.

“If they’d let me at that judge about ten minutes I’d soon show him how the thing oughter be fixed,” and Jake leaned on the broom in deep reflection for several seconds, as if trying to decide whether he should make an effort at once to convince the court of its duty. “You see lawyers allers fool ’round a good while so’s to make more wages.”

“Since Captain Irwin can’t hurry ’em up, I don’t believe you’d be able to do much at it,” Ben said, and Jake replied in a very decided tone:

“I ain’t so sure of that, lad. Could he a’ sneaked away from the quack any neater than I did? When I take hold of a job it’s allers done up pretty slick; but I s’pose the captain thinks he can sling more style than me, an’ I’m willin’ to say that that’s what counts sometimes.”

Then Jake resumed his sweeping, Ben set about building the fire, and during the next half-hour but little conversation was indulged in, for both were thinking how lonely it seemed without Gertie.

When night came the legal question had not been settled, greatly to the disappointment of those who were so deeply interested, and a second and a third day passed in the same unsatisfactory manner. Gertie, Chloe and the cat remained at the attorney’s home, while Ben and Jake wandered around the cottage disconsolately, trying in vain to curb their impatience, and at times even going so far as to threaten to take the law in their own hands by carrying away the child once more.

On the second day Captain Irwin reported that Dr. Harlan had been around the city breathing threats of the most dire vengeance against those who had so successfully eluded him.

“Barkin’ dogs don’t often bite,” Jake said when the captain related this bit of news, “an’ I reckon Ben an’ me will live jest as long as if he’d gone down with the Sea Queen as he oughter done.”

“In a legal way he is powerless,” the captain said musingly, “but it isn’t well to feel too safe, for he is an unscrupulous man, and in this city it is not difficult to hire another to make an attack. I think you and Ben had better keep pretty snug till the matter is settled.”

“I’m willin’ to do that so far as stayin’ in the house is concerned,” the ex-cook replied in a dissatisfied tone, “but I don’t like to let him think we’re afraid.”

“Never mind what he thinks, so that no more trouble comes to us,” the captain said, and then he walked away as if to show that the conversation was ended.

Jake and Ben had no real desire to stroll around the city, save as it might be to show Dr. Harlan that they had no fear; but the captain’s suggestion was virtually a command, and both remained at home, the former spending the greater portion of his time grumbling at the slow course of justice in Key West.

Thursday was a day of rejoicing at the cottage, for about eleven o’clock in the forenoon, when the ex-cook and his companion had begun to despair of ever seeing Gertie again, she and Chloe walked into the house, the latter carrying the kitten whose neck was decorated with a remarkably large bow of blue ribbon.

“We’se done gone fixed eberyting,” Chloe said as she sunk panting and breathless into a chair, which creaked and groaned under her weight. “De captin am her pappy now, an’ de doctor man’s gwine down to Mexico all by hisself.”

“Is it really settled at last?” Ben cried as Jake took the child in his arms to show his joy at her return.

“Indeed it is. Captain Irwin told us to come here, for the judge has appointed him my guardian, and Dr. Harlan is going away this afternoon in the steamer. Chloe and I have had a perfectly splendid time at the lawyer’s house, but we’re awfully glad to get back with you and Ben.”

“It’s mighty lucky you come jest as you did,” the ex-cook said sternly. “If they’d fooled round another day tryin’ to settle a case that was as plain as the nose on a man’s face, me an’ Ben would a’ straightened the thing up by gettin’ another boat an’ carryin’ you so far off that all the judges in Key West couldn’t a’ found us.”

“Dere’s gwine ter be no mo’ gallivantin’ in dem aig-shells,” Chloe added quickly. “I tole de captin I’se done got frou wid sich nonsense, an’ he declared he’d put his foot right down on fool work like dat. But what hab you an’ dat wuffless Jake bin up to now?” she asked, surveying the room, while a look of distress came over her black face. “It seems like de pigs had bin rootin’ roun’, ’stead ob a place fur ’spectable folks.”

Then Chloe arose slowly with many a groan and gasp, and five minutes later she was raising so much dust in her efforts to set the house to rights that Jake and Ben were literally driven out of doors.