And now a succession of sharp cracks were heard,
then the tongues of fire darted through the air, and again all was
gloom.
"O Lord!" groaned Joan, "I hope 'tain't nothin's gone wrong with 'em."
In an instant Eve had scrambled up by her side: "What can it be? what
could go wrong, Joan?"
But Joan's whole attention seemed now centred on the opposite cliff,
from where, a little below Hard Head, after a few minutes' watching,
Eve saw a blue light burning: this was answered by another lower down,
then a rocket was sent up, at sight of which Joan clasped her hands and
cried, "Awn, 'tis they! 'tis they! Lord save 'em! Lord help 'em! They
cursed hounds have surely played 'em false."
"What! not taken them, Joan?"
"They won't be taken," she said fiercely. "Do you think, unless 'twas
over their dead bodies, they'd ever let king's men stand masters on the
Lottery's deck?"
Eve's heart died within her, and with one rush every detail of the
lawless life seemed to come before her.
"There they go again!" cried Joan; and this time, by the sound, she
knew their position was altered to the westward and somewhat nearer to
land. "Lord send they mayn't knaw their course!" she continued: "'tis
but a point or two on, and they'll surely touch the Steeple Reef.
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