The Pirate, and The Three Cutters Part 16

'Give way, my lads!' cried Hawkhurst.

The boats dashed up the creek, and Francisco hastened back to the house.

'Now, my lads,' said he, as he sprang up the ladder, 'you must be resolute; we have to deal with desperate men. I have heard the voices of the captain and the chief mate; so there is no doubt as to its being the pirate. The boats are up the creek and will land behind the out-buildings. Haul up these ladders, and lay them fore and aft on the veranda; and do not fire without taking a good aim. Silence! my men--silence! Here they come.'

The pirates were now seen advancing from the out-buildings in strong force. In the direction in which they came, it was only from the side of the veranda, at which not more than eight or ten men could be placed, that the enemy could be repulsed. Francisco therefore gave orders that as soon as some of the men had fired they should retreat and load their muskets, to make room for others.

When the pirates had advanced half-way to the house, on the clear s.p.a.ce between it and the out-buildings, Francisco gave the word to fire. The volley was answered by another, and a shout from the pirates, who, with Hawkhurst and Cain at their head, now pressed on, but not until they had received a second discharge from the Spaniards, and the pirates had fired in return. As the Spaniards could not at first fire a volley of more than a dozen muskets at a time, their opponents imagined their force to be much less than it really was. They now made other arrangements. They spread themselves in a semicircle in front of the veranda, and kept up a continued galling fire. This was returned by the party under Francisco for nearly a quarter of an hour; and as all the muskets were now called into action, the pirates found out that they had a more formidable enemy to cope with than they had antic.i.p.ated.

It was now quite dark, and not a figure was to be distinguished, except by the momentary flas.h.i.+ng of the firearms. Cain and Hawkhurst, leaving their men to continue the attack, had gained the house, and a position under the veranda. Examining the windows and the door, there appeared but little chance of forcing an entrance; but it immediately occurred to them that under the veranda their men would not be exposed, and that they might fire through the wooden floor of it upon those above.

Hawkhurst hastened away, and returned with about half the men, leaving the others to continue their attack as before. The advantage of this manoeuvre was soon evident. The musket-b.a.l.l.s of the pirates pierced the planks, and wounded many of the Spaniards severely; and Francisco was at last obliged to order his men to retreat into the house, and fire out of the windows.

But even this warfare did not continue; for the supporting pillars of the veranda being of wood, and very dry, they were set fire to by the pirates. Gradually the flames wound round them, and their forked tongues licked the bal.u.s.trade. At last the whole of the veranda was in flames.

This was a great advantage to the attacking party, who could now distinguish the Spaniards without their being so clearly seen themselves. Many were killed and wounded. The smoke and heat became so intense in the upper story that the men could no longer remain there; and, by the advice of Francisco, they retreated to the bas.e.m.e.nt of the house.

'What shall we do now, senor?' said Diego, with a grave face.

'Do?' replied Francisco; 'they have burnt the veranda, that is all. The house will not take fire; it is of solid stone: the roof indeed may; but still here we are. I do not see that they are more advanced than they were before. As soon as the veranda has burnt down, we must return above, and commence firing again from the windows.'

'Hark, sir! they are trying the door.'

'They may try a long while; they should have tried the door while the veranda protected them from our sight. As soon as it is burnt, we shall be able to drive them away from it. I will go up again and see how things are.'

'No, senor; it is of no use. Why expose yourself now that the flames are so bright?'

'I must go and see if that is the case, Diego. Put all the wounded men in the north chamber, it will be the safest, and more out of the way.'

Francisco ascended the stone staircase, and gained the upper story. The rooms were filled with smoke, and he could distinguish nothing. An occasional bullet whistled past him. He walked towards the windows, and sheltered himself behind the wall between them.

The flames were not so violent, and the heat more bearable. In a short time a crash, and then another, told him that the veranda had fallen in.

He looked through the window. The ma.s.s of lighted embers had fallen down in front of the house, and had, for a time, driven away the a.s.sailants. Nothing was left of the veranda but the burning ends of the joists fixed in the wall above the windows, and the still glowing remains of the posts which once supported it.

But the smoke from below now cleared away, and the discharge of one or two muskets told Francisco that he was perceived by the enemy.

'The roof is safe,' thought he, as he withdrew from the window; 'and now I do not know whether the loss of the veranda may not prove a gain to us.'

What were the intentions of the pirates it was difficult to ascertain.

For a time they had left off firing, and Francisco returned to his comrades. The smoke had gradually cleared away, and they were able to resume their positions above; but as the pirates did not fire, they, of course, could do nothing, as it was only by the flas.h.i.+ng of the muskets that the enemy was to be distinguished. No further attempts were made at the door or windows below; and Francisco in vain puzzled himself as to the intended plans of the a.s.sailants.

Nearly half an hour of suspense pa.s.sed away. Some of the Spaniards were of opinion that they had retreated to their boats and gone away, but Francisco knew them better. All he could do was to remain above, and occasionally look out to discover their motions. Diego, and one or two more, remained with him; the other men were kept below, that they might be out of danger.

'Holy Francis! but this has been a dreadful night, senor! How many hours until daylight?' said Diego.

'Two hours at least, I should think,' replied Francisco; 'but the affair will be decided before that.'

'The saints protect us! See, senor, are they not coming?'

Francisco looked through the gloom, in the direction of the out-buildings, and perceived a group of men advancing. A few moments and he could clearly make them out.

'Yes, truly, Diego; and they have made ladders, which they are carrying.

They intend to storm the windows. Call them up; and now we must fight hard indeed.'

The Spaniards hastened up and filled the room above, which had three windows in the front, looking towards the river, and which had been sheltered by the veranda.

'Shall we fire now, senor?'

'No--no; do not fire till your muzzles are at their hearts. They cannot mount more than two at a time at each window. Recollect, my lads, that you must now fight hard, for your lives will not be spared; they will show no quarter and no mercy.'

The ends of the rude ladders now made their appearance above the sill of each window. They had been hastily, yet firmly, constructed; and were nearly as wide as the windows. A loud cheer was followed by a simultaneous mounting of the ladders.

Francisco was at the centre window, when Hawkhurst made his appearance, sabre in hand. He struck aside a musket aimed at him, and the ball whizzed harmless over the broad water of the river. Another step, and he would have been in, when Francisco fired his pistol; the ball entered the left shoulder of Hawkhurst, and he dropped his hold. Before he could regain it, a Spaniard charged at him with a musket, and threw him back.

He fell, bearing down with him one or two of his comrades, who had been following him up the ladder.

Francisco felt as if the attack at that window was of little consequence after the fall of Hawkhurst, whose voice he had recognised; and he hastened to the one on the left, as he had heard Cain encouraging his men in that direction. He was not wrong in his conjecture; Cain was at the window, attempting to force an entrance, but was opposed by Diego and other resolute men. But the belt of the pirate captain was full of pistols, and he had already fired three with effect. Diego and the two best men were wounded, and the others who opposed him were alarmed at his giant proportions. Francisco rushed to attack him; but what was the force of so young a man against the herculean power of Cain? Still Francisco's left hand was at the throat of the pirate, and the pistol was pointed in his right, when a flash of another pistol, fired by one who followed Cain, threw its momentary vivid light upon the features of Francisco, as he cried out, 'Blood for blood!' It was enough; the pirate captain uttered a yell of terror at the supposed supernatural appearance; and he fell from the ladder in a fit amongst the still burning embers of the veranda.

[Ill.u.s.tration: _The ball entered the left shoulder of Hawkhurst, and he dropped his hold._]

The fall of their two chiefs, and the determined resistance of the Spaniards, checked the impetuosity of the a.s.sailants. They hesitated; and they at last retreated, bearing away with them their wounded. The Spaniards cheered, and, led by Francisco, followed them down the ladders, and in their turn became the a.s.sailants. Still the pirates'

retreat was orderly: they fired, and retired rank behind rank successively. They kept the Spaniards at bay, until they had arrived at the boats, when a charge was made, and a severe conflict ensued. But the pirates had lost too many men, and, without their commander, felt dispirited. Hawkhurst was still on his legs, and giving his orders as coolly as ever. He espied Francisco, and rus.h.i.+ng at him, while the two parties were opposed muzzle to muzzle, seized him by his collar and dragged him in amongst the pirates. 'Secure him, at all events!' cried Hawkhurst, as they slowly retreated and gained the outhouses. Francisco was overpowered and hauled into one of the boats, all of which in a few minutes afterwards were pulling with all their might to escape from the muskets of the Spaniards, who followed the pirates by the banks of the river, annoying them in their retreat.

CHAPTER XIV

THE MEETING

The pirates returned to their vessel discomfited. Those on board, who were prepared to hoist in ingots of precious metal, had to receive nought but wounded men, and many of their comrades had remained dead on the sh.o.r.e. Their captain was melancholy and downcast. Hawkhurst was badly wounded, and obliged to be carried below as soon as he came on board. The only capture which they had made was their former a.s.sociate Francisco, who, by the last words spoken by Hawkhurst as he was supported to his cabin, was ordered to be put in irons. The boats were hoisted in without noise, and a general gloom prevailed. All sail was then made upon the schooner, and when day dawned she was seen by the Spaniards far away to the northward.

The report was soon spread through the schooner that Francisco had been the cause of their defeat; and although this was only a surmise, still, as they considered that had he not recognised the vessel the Spaniards would not have been prepared, they had good grounds for what had swelled into an a.s.sertion. He became, therefore, to many of them, an object of bitter enmity, and they looked forward with pleasure to his destruction, which his present confinement they considered but the precursor of.

'Hist! Ma.s.sa Francisco,' said a low voice near to where Francisco sat on the chest. Francisco turned round and beheld the Krouman, his old friend.

'Ah! Pompey, are you all still on board?' said Francisco.

'All! no,' replied the man, shaking his head; 'some die--some get away--only four Kroumen left. Ma.s.sa Francisco, how you come back again?

Everybody tink you dead. I say no, not dead--ab charm with him--ab book.'

'If that was my charm, I have it still,' replied Francisco, taking the Bible out of his vest; for, strange to say, Francisco himself had a kind of superst.i.tion relative to that Bible, and had put it into his bosom previous to the attack made by the pirates.

'Dat very good, Ma.s.sa Francisco; den you quite safe. Here come Johnson--he very bad man. I go away.'

In the meantime Cain had retired to his cabin with feelings scarcely to be a.n.a.lysed. He was in a bewilderment. Notwithstanding the wound he had received by the hand of Francisco, he would never have sanctioned Hawkhurst putting him on sh.o.r.e on a spot which promised nothing but a lingering and miserable death. Irritated as he had been by the young man's open defiance, he loved him--loved him much more than he was aware of himself; and when he had recovered sufficiently from his wound, and had been informed where Francisco had been sent on sh.o.r.e, he quarrelled with Hawkhurst, and reproached him bitterly and sternly, in language which Hawkhurst never forgot or forgave. The vision of the starving lad haunted Cain, and rendered him miserable. His affection for him, now that he was, as he supposed, lost for ever, increased with tenfold force; and since that period Cain had never been seen to smile. He became more gloomy, more ferocious than ever, and the men trembled when he appeared on deck.

The apparition of Francisco after so long an interval, and in such an unexpected quarter of the globe, acted as we have before described upon Cain. When he was taken to the boat he was still confused in his ideas, and it was not until they were nearly on board that he perceived that this young man was indeed at his side. He could have fallen on his neck and kissed him; for Francisco had become to him a capture more prized than all the wealth of the Indies. But one pure, good feeling was unextinguished in the bosom of Cain; stained with every crime--with his hands so deeply imbrued in blood--at enmity with all the rest of the world, that one feeling burnt bright and clear, and was not to be quenched. It might have proved a beacon-light to steer him back to repentance and to good works.

But there were other feelings which also crowded upon the mind of the pirate captain. He knew Francisco's firmness and decision. By some inscrutable means, which Cain considered as supernatural, Francisco had obtained the knowledge, and had accused him, of his mother's death.

Would not the affection which he felt for the young man be met with hatred and defiance? He was but too sure that it would. And then his gloomy, cruel disposition would resume its influence, and he thought of revenging the attack upon his life. His astonishment at the reappearance of Francisco was equally great, and he trembled at the sight of him, as if he were his accusing and condemning spirit. Thus did he wander from one fearful fancy to another, until he at last summoned up resolution to send for him.