“Well, we’ve done it now. And you can tell by the weight it’s something worth having. He wouldn’t keep it in a thing like this if it wasn’t. Give a hand, then.”
There was a noise of scrambling on stones, some curses, and then the noise of heavy stones being thrown down on something made of wood and metal.
Then voices again.
“We’ll come out with fishing rods next time, and catch something worth having. Nobody’ll find it now even if they do come looking. And you grumbling all the time. Wish I’d come by myself.”
“Wish you had.”
“Shove her off now. Sure she doesn’t leak?”
“No, she won’t leak. But it’s not your fault she doesn’t.”
“Shove her off, then, and put your back into it. We’ve got to be far out of this before anyone’s stirring.”
The noise of rowing began again. This time it grew rapidly fainter.
“They didn’t sound at all like friendly natives,” thought Titty to herself. She listened, open-mouthed, till she could hear no more, staring into the darkness. Her eyes closed once or twice. She tried to keep them open with her fingers. “I’m going to sleep again,” she said, “I know I am.”
She was right.