on. The Senor brushed his hat further back on his
head, wiped his brow, and became thoughtful.

"It's too far south for Rosario," he said deprecatingly; "and the only
other mission I know of is San Carlos, and that's far inland. But that
is the Angelus, and those are mission bells, surely."

The captain turned to Mr. Brooks. The voice of invisible command again
passed along the deck, and, with a splash in the water and the rattling
of chains, the Excelsior swung slowly round on her anchor on the bosom
of what seemed a placid bay.

Miss Keene, who, in her complete absorption, had listened to the
phantom bells with an almost superstitious exaltation, had forgotten the
presence of her companion, and now turned towards him. But he was gone.
The imminent danger he had spoken of, half slightingly, he evidently
considered as past. He had taken the opportunity offered by the slight
bustle made by the lowering of the quarter-boat and the departure of the
mate on a voyage of discovery to mingle with the crowd, and regain his
state-room. With the anchoring of the vessel, the momentary restraint
was relaxed, the passengers were allowed to pervade the deck, and Mrs.
Markham and Mr. Brace simultaneously rushed to Miss Keene's side.

"We were awfully alarmed for you, my dear," said Mrs. Markham, "until
we saw you had a protector. Do tell me--what DID he say? He must have
thought the danger great to have broken the Senor's orders and come upon
deck? What did he talk about?"

With a vivid recollection in her mind of Mr. Hurlstone's contemptuous
ignoring of the other ladies, Miss Keene became slightly embarrassed.
Her confusion was not removed by the consciousness that the jealous eyes
of Brace were fixed upon her.

"Perhaps he thought it was night, and walked upon deck in his sleep,"
remarked Brace sarcastically. "He's probably gone back to bed."

"He offered me his protection very politely, and begged to remain to put
me in the boat in case of danger," said Miss Keene, recovering herself,
and directing her reply to Mrs. Markham. "I think that others have made
me the same kind of offer--who were wide awake," she added mischievously
to Brace.

"I wouldn't be too sure that they were not foolishly dreaming too,"
returned Brace, in a lower voice.

"I should think we all were asleep or dreaming here," said Mrs. Markham
briskly. "Nobody seems to know where we are, and the only man who might
guess it--Senor Perkins--has gone off in t