The Magic Curtain Part 25

"I do say, though, they made a neat job of it. Meg'll show you her stateroom after a bit.

"But now, Meg, get down the cups. Coffee's on the stove as it always was in the galleys."

Florence smiled. She was liking this. Here she was finding contrast. She thought of the richly appointed Opera House where at this moment Jeanne haunted the boxes; then she glanced about her and smiled again.

She recalled the irrepressible Meg as she had seen her, a bronze statue against the sky, and resolved to know more of her.

As they sat dreaming over their coffee cups, Aunt Bobby began to speak of the romance of other days and to dispense with unstinting hand rich portions from her philosophy.

"Forty years I lived on s.h.i.+ps, child." She sighed deeply. "Forty years!

I've sailed on big ones and small ones, wind-jammers and steamers. Some mighty fine ones and some not so fine. Mostly I signed on freighters because I loved them best of all. They haul and carry.

"They're sort of human, s.h.i.+ps are." She cupped her chin in her hands to stare dreamily at the fire. "Sort of like folks, s.h.i.+ps are. Some are slim and pretty and not much use except just to play around when the water's sparklin' and the sun s.h.i.+nes bright. That's true of folks and s.h.i.+ps alike. And I guess it's right enough. We all like pretty things.

"But the slow old freighter, smelling of bilge and tar, she's good enough for me. She's like the most of us common workers, carrying things, doing the things that need to be done, moving straight on through suns.h.i.+ne and storm until the task is completed and the work is done.

"Yes, child, I've sailed for forty years. I've watched the moon paint a path of gold over waters blacker than the night. I've heard the ice screaming as it ground against our keel, and I've tossed all night in a storm that promised every minute to send us to the bottom. Forty years, child, forty years!" The aged woman's voice rose high and clear like the mellow toll of a bell at midnight. "Forty years I've felt the pitch and toss, the swell and roll beneath me. And now this!" She spread her arms wide.

"The ground beneath my feet, a roof over my head.

"But not for long, child. Not for long. A few months now, and a million pairs of feet will tramp past the spot where you now stand. What will these people see? Not the cathedral, as Meg will call it, nothing half as grand.

"And we, Meg and me, we'll move on. Fate will point his finger and we'll move.

"Ah, well, that's life for most of us. Sooner or later Fate points and we move. He's a traffic cop, is Fate. We come to a pause. He blows his whistle, he waves his arm. We move or he moves us.

"And, after all," she heaved a deep sigh that was more than half filled with contentment, "who'd object to that? Who wants to sit and grow roots like stupid little cottonwood trees?"

CHAPTER XXIV THE BLACK PACKET

"Meg, show Florence your stateroom." Aunt Bobby rose after her soliloquy.

"Mine's more plain-like," she apologized. "The men set a heap of store on Meg, so they took what was the stateroom of the captain in the balmy days of that old s.h.i.+p and set it up for Meg, right here on the island.

"It's all there, walls and cabinet all done in mahogany and gold, wide berth, and everything grand."

"It's not like sleeping on the water with a good hull beneath you." Meg's tone was almost sullen. "Just you wait! I'm going back!"

Once inside her stateroom her mood changed. It became evident at once that she was truly proud of this small room with its costly decorations that had come down from the past. Two great lanterns made of beaten bronze hung one at the head and one at the foot of her berth.

"It's wonderful!" Florence was truly impressed. "But this island, it is a lonely spot. There must be prowlers about."

"Oh, yes. All the time. Some good ones, some bad."

"But are you not afraid?"

"Afraid? No. I laugh at them. Why not?

"And besides. Look!" Her slender finger touched a secret b.u.t.ton. A cabinet door flew open, revealing two revolvers. Their long blue barrels shone wickedly in the light.

"But you couldn't fire them."

"Oh, couldn't I? Come over some day just before dark, when the waves are making a lot of noise. I'll show you.

"You see," she explained, "I must be careful. If the police heard, they'd come and take them from me.

"But on board s.h.i.+p!" Her eyes danced. "I could out-shoot them all. You know how long a freighter is?"

"Yes."

"We used that for a shooting range. I could out-shoot all the men. It was grand! If we missed the target, the bullet went plump into the sea! And that was all.

"No," she said thoughtfully as she dropped into a chair, "I'm not afraid.

There was one man, though, who had me almost scared. His face was so dark! He had such ugly eyes!"

"Dark face, ugly eyes!" Florence recalled Jeanne's description of the man who had hounded her footsteps.

"But I fooled him!" Meg chuckled. "I fooled him twice. And I laughed in his face, too."

Rising, she pressed a second b.u.t.ton in the wall to reveal still another secret compartment. "See that!" She pointed to a black packet. "That was his. It's mine now.

"I wonder why he put it where he did?" she mused.

"Where?"

"In s...o...b..ll's net."

"What?"

"That's just what he did. I was sitting alone among the rocks at night.

He came out, acting mysterious. He poured two buckets of water on s...o...b..ll's windla.s.s so it wouldn't creak and then he threw this package into the net and lowered away.

"It is heavy. Went right to the bottom. I slipped into the water and went after it. Got it, too. See! There it is!

"And do you know," her voice fell to an excited whisper, "that's to be my birthday present to myself. It's to be my surprise."

"Surprise! Haven't you unwrapped it?"

"No. Why should I? That would spoil my fun."

Florence looked at this slim girl in overalls, and smiled. "You surely are an unusual child!"

"He came back next day." Meg ignored this last. "He made s...o...b..ll dive down and look for his package. He didn't find it. The man was angry. His face got blacker than ever, and how his eyes snapped! An ugly red scar showed on his chin. Then I laughed, and he chased me.

"I dropped into the water and came up where there is a hole like a sea grotto. I watched him until he went away. He never came back. So now this is mine!" Pride of owners.h.i.+p was in her voice.