Float selected the smallest of the cases—not so small as all that, in fact, but heavy for its size. He pulled the knife and a length of wire from inside his seaman’s jacket. The picking of locks came easily to him; the case stood open and Float thrust a hand in.
He felt a number of wash-leather bags of varying sizes, tied around their throats.
He brought one out, excitement rising like a fever, His fingers trembled as he pulled the cord free and opened the neck. He held the bag beneath the lantern and looked at the contents.
Diamonds!
Lovely, beautiful diamonds. The bag was filled with them. Float’s throat went dry. He brought out more of the bags. All diamonds; and the case contained a score or more of such bags. Very likely the other leather cases also contained diamonds. It was a king’s ransom, a hundred kings’ ransoms.
Float’s lips formed a whistle, but he managed to hold on to it. He had never expected to find wealth on this scale; and for the possessor of it to seek passage aboard the Aysgarth Falls when he could have booked a comfortable voyage in a steamer—or even bought his own steam yacht and done it in real style—positively confirmed to Float that Jesson was on the run with his loot.
For a moment Float sat back, considering his own situation. The light from the lantern flickered from the diamonds. The temptation to delve in and take a handful or two was immensely strong; it had to be resisted. Certainly Jesson was unlikely to realize he had been burgled until he was away from the ship, perhaps not even then; and even if he did, then no suspicions of theft would come Float’s way if his friend Althwaite performed as promised and came along to lock him back into the sail locker. But Float wouldn’t have any use for a cache of diamonds once the ship reached the Australian coast and he was handed over to the peelers. The whole object of his current expedition had been, in fact, to find some way of not being handed over and he had to remember that and stick fast to it. He had found what he believed he would find: evidence that Jesson had something to hide. And what a something! Jesson would want to preserve that; in Float’s good time his knowledge of Jesson’s haul would be made use of to ensure that he got out with the passenger, that he wasn’t around when the Aysgarth Falls berthed in Sydney. Of course, he had no idea what Jesson’s plans might be in regard to final disembarkation, but he would find out and then work things his way.
He restored the bags, re-tied, to the case, which he closed with a small snap. Gently he opened the door and looked along the alleyway.
All clear.
He emerged. Snores came from the saloon: that would be Jesson. Float padded along towards the door giving on to the open deck below the break of the poop. From that door it was just a step to the sail locker. Float waited inside the alleyway until he heard footsteps on the poop—McRafferty, who had the watch while Bullock slept. When the footsteps made aft, then Float would come out into the deck shadows.
He was all set when Goss came out of his cabin.
WHEN THE next dawn was up the German warships were still in company. They steamed in Line Ahead behind their Admiral, who was maintaining his station off the starboard beam of the Tacoma. Halfhyde examined the Admiral’s bridge through a telescope: there was no sign now of von Merkatz. Halfhyde paced the bridge; he had persuaded Captain Graves to go below to snatch some sleep, and the Chief Officer was on watch. Halfhyde pondered his next move, and the likely next move of the German. Von Merkatz would be beside himself with fury; it would not be in character for him to withdraw, but he was going to look a very foolish man if he remained in company all the way to Sydney, only to be refused entry through the Heads by the Australian authorities—which would surely be the case. Foreign navies were not expected to enter British or colonial ports other than by prior arrangement at diplomatic level.
So what would he do?
Not for the first time in his seagoing career Halfhyde wished there was means of communication between ships at sea and the Admiralty at home—or between a ship such as the Tacoma and other ships that might be somewhere in the vicinity. If only he could make contact with a British squadron, such as the Detached Cruiser Squadron which might or might not be in the Pacific, then he could have met any threat from von Merkatz with superior gun power. On the other hand, the Admiralty might well wish to steer clear of trouble and would do no more than shilly-shally…
Would von Merkatz try to board? If he put an armed party aboard the Tacoma to seize Halfhyde, he would be in violation of sovereign territory, but at least he would not have caused damage and loss of life. It would be a much easier situation for him to talk his way out of afterwards. But to board a ship steaming as fast as his own ships would be so difficult as to be virtually impossible. Yet would it? The German had a knot or two in hand, and, given time, could draw ahead and then let a boat drop back upon his quarry with orders to grapple and send armed men swarming up behind the grappling-irons. For a certainty, Nelson would have tried it.
Meanwhile, there was a kind of stalemate. Halfhyde listened to the German bugles sounding throughout the squadron as the hands were called to fall in for the start of the day’s work.
