amine me upon the amount of damage we had
sustained. I thought that the white, shapely hand tightened its grip
upon my wet sleeve at the moment Leith's bass voice came booming to our
ears, and I blessed the big brute's interference for the thrill which I
derived from the pressure of her fingers upon the greasy coat.

But Leith was not to be denied. The cold stare, instead of driving him
back into the cabin, only roused his temper. Very cautiously he climbed
along the heaving deck to the point where we were standing, and,
clutching a rope, he swayed backward and forward immediately behind us.

"Miss Edith!" he called.

The girl turned her head sharply. "Well?" she cried.

"This isn't a proper place for you!" roared Leith. "One of those seas is
liable to come aboard at any moment, and you might be washed away before
any one could assist you."

Edith Herndon's lips showed the slightest trace of a smile. "You had
better be careful too, Mr. Leith," she retorted. "Mr. Verslun is holding
on to me in case one of those old gray rollers should make a sudden
leap, but you have no one to hold on to you."

A frown passed over Leith's face like a cloud shadow across a yellow
plain. He slackened his grip on the rope and lurched toward us.

"You must go below at once!" he screamed, addressing the girl. "Your
father is too ill to look after you at this moment, so the duty is mine.
There is danger here, and I order you below!"

He touched her shoulder with his big fingers that resembled talons, but
the girl made a quick side movement and slipped from his grip.

"Do not touch me!" she cried fiercely. "How dare you put your hand on
me!"

But Leith's temper was up at that moment, and he was angry enough for
anything. He made a spring for the girl's hand, and I thrust my shoulder
forward to bump him off. _The Waif_ nearly stood on her end at that
instant, and her acrobatic feat combined with the push flung Leith off
his feet and sent him rolling ludicrously along the deck.

Miss Herndon gave a little cry of alarm and sprang for the
companion-stairs, down which she disappeared without taking a glance at
the brute on the wet planks. Leith picked himself up, gripped a loose
backstay with his left hand and swung himself toward me, striking out
viciously with his free right hand when he came within hitting distance.

The blow landed on my shoulder, and I returned the compliment with an
uppercut that jerked him from his swing rope and