The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Perilous Journey

“By presenting you with a sealed envelope he sent me several weeks ago. He said he intended to make certain arrangements, and if he succeeded, I was to give you the envelope when we reached port. When he called from Lisbon, he confirmed I should deliver it, along with some official paperwork to ease your passage between countries.”

“Do you have the envelope with you?” Reynie asked.

“In my cabin,” said Captain Noland. “When we’ve finished here I’ll get it, and we can open it together. I know you meant to do this alone — and I admire your courage — but for your own safety I can’t allow it. I won’t send you back, but I am going to help you.”

“It isn’t that we don’t want help,” Reynie said, “and we certainly wouldn’t mind some protection. But Mr. Curtain is suspicious and extremely smart. His henchmen — the Ten Men — they’ll be on the lookout for any kind of rescue attempt, and —”

“I understand you,” Captain Noland said. “We mustn’t involve the authorities, must operate in secret as much as possible. That’s all right, Reynie. I’ll do whatever’s necessary. You probably don’t know this, but I owe Nicholas my life. So tell me again, what exactly —”

He was interrupted by a knock at the door. “Captain, are you in there?”

“I asked not to be disturbed!” Captain Noland called.

“You said except in case of emergency, sir,” said Cannonball, poking his head in. “Which it is.”

Captain Noland quickly stood up. “What’s happened, Joe?”

The young sailor closed the door, and standing with his back against it (there being no place else to stand) said, “Well, sir, you know how Mr. Pressius was going on to the other . . . um, the other owners about his scads of diamonds? About how the jewels themselves are worth more than the Shortcut and all her crew?”

“I seem to remember that,” the captain said dryly.

“Well, after you excused yourself, Mr. Pressius told Mr. Thomas about the . . .” Cannonball hesitated, glancing at the children.

“Speak freely, Joe.”

“Aye, sir. He told Mr. Thomas about the fakes.”

“Mr. Pressius has brought along a chest of plastic diamonds,” Captain Noland explained to the children, “which he seems to think may serve as decoys in the event of a robbery. I believe he took the idea from a movie.” The captain kept his face impassive, but the children got the distinct impression that he found Mr. Pressius perfectly ridiculous. “Now, Joe, tell me what happened.”

“Aye, Captain. Well, Mr. Pressius said the fakes were so good — the best cheap fakes ever made, he said — that he bet Mr. Thomas couldn’t tell the difference. Of course Mr. Thomas didn’t like that, as he figures himself an expert on everything —”

“Where’s the emergency in all this?” asked Captain Noland.

“Getting to it, Captain. So what happens is Mr. Thomas and Mr. Pressius insist I take them down to the security hold to open the chests. I didn’t know what to do — you said to keep them happy, and seeing as the diamonds do belong to Mr. Pressius —”

“You did the right thing.”

“Thank you, sir,” said Cannonball, looking relieved. “Only, the trouble is that Mr. Pressius wins the bet. Without a magnifying glass, it’s extremely hard to tell the difference between the real diamonds and the plastic ones.”

“Why is that a problem?” asked Captain Noland.

“Because . . . well, sir, did you happen to notice a kind of a joggle in the ship a few minutes ago? A bit of a lurching? Well, Mr. Thomas and Mr. Pressius were holding the open chests when that happened — they were carrying them across to where the light was better — and seeing as neither of them has his sea legs yet, why . . . the, uh, the diamonds and the decoys, they . . . ahem. They sort of spilled out.”

“Spilled out?”

“Exactly, sir. And mixed together. All across the floor of the security hold.”

“The idiots!” cried Captain Noland, putting a hand to his forehead. “Don’t tell me. Mr. Pressius refuses to do the sorting himself. He wants you to do it.”

“Yes, sir. Under heavy guard, of course. He said I’ll need to examine each one with a magnifying glass. He’ll inspect the diamonds when I’ve finished, he said, but he certainly isn’t going to do the initial sorting himself. That’s grunt work, he said. Said it wouldn’t have happened, anyway, if the ship had been sailing properly.”

“Of course that’s what he said. And what did you tell him?”

“I said I had to speak with you first. Said you might prefer someone else do it, as it’s likely to take several hours, and I’m needed to —”

“Everyone is needed!” Captain Noland snapped. He took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “I’m sorry. The fact is I can’t spare anyone for several hours, Joe. We’re shorthanded as it is. The crew is already working double duty, sacrificing their sleep, and now we have rough seas thrown into the bargain. What’s more,” Captain Noland said, with a significant look at the children, “our friends here have alerted me to an urgent situation that requires my attention.”

Cannonball was wringing his cap in his hands. He stared at the floor. “Sorry, Captain. I should never have —”

“It isn’t your fault, Joe. It’s the owners’ fault. First they compel me to reduce the crew, and now this.” Captain Noland’s face contorted with bitterness; his tone was desolate. “And yet if the Shortcut arrives late — if the least little thing goes wrong —”

“I know,” said Cannonball with an anxious look. “I know what it would mean for you, sir. It would be . . . well, if