They pushed themselves round with their heels until they were sitting with their backs against each other. Then Lalitha felt the girl’s fingers working at the cords that bound her round the waist.
It took some time, but finally Lalitha managed to squeeze her hands free and then hastily she turned to undo the girl from Somerset.
“They said they would unfasten us when we are out to sea,” she said, “when they come back we had best pretend we are still tied or we might be in trouble.”
“I understand,” the girl remarked. “What about the others?”
“I think we could loosen their gags,” Lalitha suggested. “What we must do is to let them down as far as their chins so that they can quickly edge them up over their mouths again.”
She saw that the girls had understood this and, propelling herself wi
