But the one profoundly relieving fact was self-evident. No party of marauding Indians had swooped down on their ark and its stores. Wherever the derelict boat had come from, its occupants were not to be seen in any part of Rotunda Bay. As Maseden put it tersely:
“We found it hard enough to get here. Others seemed to have tried and failed.”
Still he and Sturgess decided to mount guard that night. The girls were not supposed to know of this new arrangement, until Maseden was about to awaken Sturgess for his second spell of sentry-go. Then Nina emerged from the rear portion of the shack.
“Lend me your watch, Alec,” she said pleasantly. “I’ll take these two hours….
No, you mustn’t argue, there’s a dear-fellow-” the concluding word was added rather hurriedly, being an obvious afterthought.
