wind was
hauling more to the eastward, which meant rain, and once rain fell the
wind would fall too.

We had a third drink, and I passed a couple of bottles of square-face
oyer to his crew, and then, to our intense satisfaction, Tally went
over the side into his own boat, which at once pushed off, and in a
few minutes was slipping over the lagoon towards the big village, Tolly
waving his dirty Panama hat to us as he stood grasping the steer oar. I
almost fancied I could see him grin evilly at me.

"Simi," said Niabon as she watched the receding boat, "let us get away
from here quickly. That man Florry means ill to us, for I saw his eyes
gleam when, as Lucia sat down on the mats under which the rifles are
hidden, he heard them rattle together."

Tepi and Tematau joined her in her assertion that Tully meant mischief
and would seize the boat for the king, who would have no compunction in
resorting to violence or murder to achieve his object, especially with a
man like Tully to cany out his wishes. Tepi also said that once the
king knew that Niabon was on board he would use every effort to gain
possession of her. Then, too, the firearms we carried were a further
incentive to treachery--the king's mania to increase his stock of arms
and ammunition being well known.

"Very well," I said to Lucia, "I'm quite as anxious as any one of us
to get away. Let us wait, however, till Tully's boat is well down the
lagoon."

"Master," said Tepi, "do not delay. See, the wind is falling, and
rain--much rain--is close to from the east, and the rain killeth the
wind. And this is a heavy boat to move with oars."

He was quite right, for, as Tully had said was likely, the wind was not
only falling, but was going round to the eastward. The sooner we got out
of Apamama Lagoon the better.

"We'll loose the mainsail then," I said to Niabon, "and we'll get away.
But we won't hoist it yet. We'll up anchor and drift until the rain
comes--it will be on us in a quarter of an hour, and Tully won't be able
to see anything of us till we are abreast of the passage; and we may get
out to sea without any one seeing us at all."

We got the anchor up, and with mainsail and jib all ready for hoisting,
let the boat drift, and in another quarter of an hour a dense rain
squall came down on us from the eastward with just enough wind in it to
send us along at a smart pace as soon as we hoisted our sails. In less
than an hour we were pretty close to the pas