Will Blackbeard tarry for a fight, Joe?"

"Not to my notion. He knows well this brig is no match for the
_Revenge_, knows it better than did Cap'n Bonnet, what with all the
heavy metal slung aboard from the sloop. And what does Blackbeard gain
by having this brig hammered into a cocked hat? Fate tricked him
comically with this swappin' about of ships."

"And will he linger on this coast? Oh, Joe, if he goes for a long
cruise, what in mercy's name becomes of us two?"

"A long cruise, it looks like, shipmate. In the _Revenge_ he could laugh
at the small king's men-o'-war commissioned to hunt him down. He was
ready to slap alongside any of 'em. Now 'tis different. As another flea
in his ear, I stole the only chart of these waters. To the south'ard
he'll turn, and I will bet that rampageous cheese on it."

"Clear to the Bay of Honduras?" said Jack.

"As far as that, at a guess. Or he may skirt the Floridas to look for
Spanish prizes and put in at the Dry Tortugas which is a famous
rendezvous for pirates of the Main. He will be hot to fit himself with a
bigger ship, by capture or by some knavish trick such as he dealt Cap'n
Bonnet."

CHAPTER XIV

BLACKBEARD APPEARS IN FIRE AND BRIMSTONE

HERE was a tragic predicament from which there was no release. Jack
Cockrell was firmly convinced that Blackbeard must have recognized him
that day in the swamp while Joe felt no less certain that he was marked
for death because he had been one of the party of marooned mutineers.
The hope of prolonging their existence by means of raiding the storeroom
had ebbed after Joe's investigation. Such provisions as had been broken
out of bulk were kept in lockers and pantries on deck where they were
convenient to the galley and forecastle. It was realized also that their
twittering nerves could not long withstand the darkness and suspense
once the brig had put out to sea. Joe Hawkridge had nothing more to say
about enduring it a month o' Sundays.

While the brig remained at anchor they clung to the thought that Captain
Stede Bonnet might intervene in their behalf. It did bring them a gleam
of solace to imagine him hoisting sail on the _Revenge_ and crowding out
to rake the brig with his formidable broadsides. And yet they were in
doubt whether the _Revenge_ was fit to proceed at once, what with all
the work there had been to do, rigging a new foremast, caulking leaky
seams, repairing the other ravages of the storm.

These pitiable