," she said, and her glowing eyes
thrilled him afresh. "Wilt thou believe that it is necessary for a
while?"

"Necessary?" repeated Venner, dazedly. He strove hard to burst into
angry protest, but his tongue refused to utter the harsh words in the
face of such a creature of beauty. "I don't understand why it is
necessary at all, lady. It is no choice of mine, or my friends, that our
schooner is aground and we are your prisoners!"

"Ah, my friend, thou shalt understand," she answered, and laid a hand on
his shoulder, making his senses swim with the fragrance of her breath.
"But this is for thy ears alone. Thou wilt respect my confidence?"
Venner nodded, wondering if, after all, the adventure might not turn out
well. With Dolores so close to him that he could hear her tunic rustling
to her deep, even breathing, that her loosened hair continually brushed
his face, he would have nodded assent had she offered him a piece of
charcoal for his immortal soul. "Then listen, man of my own people. A
longing gnaws at my heart--this heart that beats under thy hand"--she
took his hand with a swift movement and pressed it to her breast--"a
longing to go far from this place and these brutish people, to thy land
and the land to which I belong.

"And now must I say why thy ship is here? It is because I have chosen
thee, my friend, to free me from this detestable bondage." She paused
for a breath, leaning closer to him, then asked with a sudden grip of
his hand at her breast: "Wilt take me out into thy world?"

Venner shifted uneasily beneath her blazing eyes. His soul was in
torment with the touch of her; yet somewhere back of his trained brain
lingered a spark of wit not yet extinguished along with his other wits
by her spell. He lowered his gaze and said:

"Was there need to murder my crew, wreck my vessel, and fling me and my
friends into these cells? Could not you, who are queen here, board my
schooner yourself and ask a passage?"

"The murder of thy crew was not of my seeking. And thinkest thou I would
go from here leaving behind my treasures? Or dost fancy my rascals would
permit me to carry them away? No, friend, it is not so simple. The man
who aids me to attain my desire must be strong and wise and true. He
shall mate with me, and my treasures shall be his. That is why I have
chosen thee."

"That requires thought, lady," returned Venner, half-heartedly. "I would
assist you in getting free from this, since you wish it; but