The Pirate Shark Part 9

"Look here, Jerry," exclaimed Mart, breaking in abruptly on the old man's talk and forcing the bleary blue eyes to meet his. "I'd like to know just how much stock to take in your talk. How long is it since you and the rest of 'em were shipmates together aboard the _Coralie_, eh?"

Mart fully expected that Jerry would break out into vehement denial, and might even be surprised into making some admission. Bob, also, while no little astonished at his chum's unexpected attack, nodded his support and craned forward as he watched the quartermaster.

But to their mutual disconcertion, old Jerry's face did not change, save for a slight widening of his blue eyes as they met the hard gray ones of Mart. When he replied to the question, it was with a little chuckle as of inward amus.e.m.e.nt.

"Well, well! So you lads have heard about the old _Coralie_, hey? There ain't many in these seas as haven't, 'cause why, men are bound to talk.

Only fish tell no tales, lads. Aye, the old _Coralie_ was a sweet little schooner, she was! But that was all years ago--and now she's lyin'

ninety fathom deep, lads, off the South Lyconia reef. Not very far from here, neither, where she went down."

Mart sent a blank gaze at his chum, as Jerry replaced his pipe in his mouth and gazed calmly out at the ocean. This cool reception of his bomb was dismaying to say the least; but Bob came promptly to the rescue, and more successfully.

"Why do they call you Shark Smith, Jerry?" he asked carelessly.

This time the boys scored visibly. The quartermaster's position did not change, but his bleared eyes suddenly flashed out quick and keen and bright, while his wrinkled old face lost its gently benignant expression as his firm mouth snapped shut on his pipe. This was not the first time the boys had seen that swift alteration of his features; and now it pa.s.sed as quickly as it had pa.s.sed before. Jerry turned slowly and looked at them, a slow smile crinkling up his eyes.

"Why, lads, ye main surprised me, ye did that! How come you to learn that old Jerry was called Shark Smith, now?"

"Oh, we heard about it," laughed Mart carelessly. "What's the reason, Jerry?"

The quartermaster chuckled again, tapped down his pipe, and replied frankly.

"Well, lads, I like both o' you, so I'll tell you. You mind me tellin'

you about that there Pirate Shark, one day?"

They answered his questioning look with a nod.

"Well, when we was in the old _Coralie_, tradin' among the islands and doin' a bit o' pearl-fishin' on the side, we met up wi' that there Pirate Shark. He nipped two of our men, he did, and I been chasing him ever since, lads. I'm goin' to get him, an' I'm goin' to lay him out where he won't kill no more men, lads. My mates know this and that's why they call me Shark Smith, 'cause why I've been after that there Pirate Shark for a long time. Now I'm goin' to get him this cruise."

Mart's eyes flashed suddenly. He thought he understood everything now.

"So that's why you've got that dynamite aboard!" he cried accusingly.

"You lied to Captain Hollinger about that river having gold, just to get--"

"Tut, tut, lad!" Under Jerry's reproachful glance his words died away.

"No, I told no lies, lad. That river has gold in it all right. I'm goin'

to get the Pirate Shark, and the cap'n gets the gold concession. Ain't that fair, lads? Ain't that fair, I asks you?"

Mart looked into the reproachful blue eyes an instant, then nodded. He suddenly felt ashamed of suspecting this gentle, half-crazy old man of any wrong. It lay plain before him now--the Pirate Shark had killed two of Jerry's shipmates, years before, and ever since that time the old quartermaster had been pursuing his enemy, until it had become a fixed mania with him. After all, he did not blame old Jerry so very much, he thought.

Bob also was quite satisfied now, as appeared after Jerry had slouched away below again and the two boys talked over the matter.

"By juniper, Mart," exclaimed Bob, "I guess dad was right. We were foolish to suspect old Jerry. He's got a bug about killing that Pirate Shark, see?"

"Sure he has," agreed Mart at once. "He's a little bit touched in the head, Holly, but that's about all. Did you notice that he never budged an eyelash when I shot out the _Coralie_ at him?"

"Uh-huh," nodded Bob thoughtfully. "So the _Coralie_ was just a trading schooner among the islands, eh? That straightens out things pretty well, Mart. I s'pose she was a pretty tough craft, like most of 'em were in the old days, and prob'ly she did a little pirating on the side. But just as dad says, there aren't any pirates any more. Especially on the _Seamew_. Believe me, we've been knocking at the wrong door."

"Looks like it to me," a.s.sented Mart. "Let's just forget the whole thing, Holly, and call it square. I guess there's no doubt that poor Liverpool fell overboard, either. But if Jerry got that dynamite put aboard to kill the Pirate Shark, I see where we're going to have some fun, Holly!"

"Say, that's right!" Bob sat up suddenly, looking at Mart. Then they both grinned.

"We'll let your dad get off after his tigers, an' when he gets back we'll have some surprising news for him, eh?"

"You bet!" agreed Bob, chortling.

But if Mart had been able to look into the future, he would hardly have greeted the prospect with such unalloyed delight. For old Jerry Smith was not quite so crazy as he was credited with being.

CHAPTER VIII

KUALA BESUT

"Land ho!"

Early one morning the two magic words had thrilled the _Seamew_, and since breakfast the two boys had been perched on the upper bridge with their binoculars. They were different from the pair that had left San Francisco, weeks before; sun and salt wind had tanned them, self-confidence and energy had filled their hearts, and Mart in particular had gained an added air of resoluteness that became his strong features well.

And they had met with strange sights--unwieldy Chinese junks with matting sails, island trading schooners, slimmer craft containing natives, and even immense canoes which came from distant islands with fish and fruit to barter at sight of the yacht's smoke.

But now Asia itself lay before them--and the most uncivilized part of Asia, which nevertheless was held by the flag of England. They had pa.s.sed the Redang Islands, and were now standing in for the wide river mouth which denoted their goal, Kuala Besut. On the right lay a low, palm-grown island some two miles long, which Jerry Smith declared uninhabited, as it was often awash at the rainy season. Directly ahead of them, the harbor deepened in to meet the river, and to right and left the long lagoons slowly opened out.

"By juniper!" exclaimed Bob delightedly, as the captain and Jerry joined them. "Let's you and me run over to that island some time, Mart! I'll bet we'd pick up some great old sh.e.l.ls there!"

"That you would, lads," said the quartermaster, wagging his white hair in the breeze. "There be some fine sh.e.l.ls hereabouts! Cap'n, we'd best not run up the river."

"Looks pretty good sized to me," returned Captain Hollinger, as he swept the harbor with his gla.s.ses. Although the river was still two miles away, they could see that it was large and apparently of good depth.

"Had we better send out a boat to make soundings first, do you think?"

"No, sir--it ain't that. It's the natives, sir. They'll be off in boats as soon as they see us slip our anchor over into the mud, and I'll talk to 'em. They'll remember me, 'cause why I've been in here before, trading."

"Very well, then. You'd better go to the wheel."

Jerry shuffled to the wheel house and took the steam steering-gear in hand, his blue eyes sweeping over their course. The sh.o.r.es ahead and on either hand were low and thickly overgrown, but rose into hill-slopes behind. All was a tangle of dark green jungle, and as the brown river opened out before them, the boys saw that it was very sluggish and appeared to merge its waters with those of the lagoon.

The lagoon proved to be curious in this respect, for to the northeast of the river mouth, on the starboard side of the yacht, it ran far up inside the island, and its waters were here distinctly sea-green, owing to the channels beyond the island. Where the yacht was, however, and to the south, the water was of a muddy brown color, proving that the river-current tended to empty toward the southward instead of diverging generally into the entire lagoon.

Captain Hollinger had barely pointed out this fact when Jerry ordered their speed slowed down, and turned their course to the northeast. The _Seamew_ slowly ran into the lagoon, turned inside the island, where the green water narrowed into a half-mile stretch, and there the engines were stopped. The anchor plunged over and the cable roared out, then a leadsman forward gave their soundings.

"Six fathom, sir!"

Captain Hollinger, who had the deck, went to the chart house for his s.e.xtant. It was just noon, and he wished to log their exact position.

Mart gave Bob a meaning glance and the two boys went to the wheel house, where old Jerry was leaning on the idle wheel and gazing at the sh.o.r.e.

"Well, Jerry," said Bob, "where's the wreck of that old galleon, eh? The one where the Pirate Shark hangs out, I mean."

Jerry chuckled, and pointed with his pipe to the northern end of the lagoon.