The commotion in the water was terrible, and horribly suggestive, as the sharks snapped and struggled and fought for their share of the prey; and they thought that surely the pirates must hear, and, hearing, return to see what all the noise was about. Roger was out now, and only Bevan remained in the water. Jake and Roger stretched out their hands, Bevan grasped them with his own, and, with a simultaneous pull, out he came, landing on his knees on the rock. But only just in time; for even as he left the water a huge shark, of at least twenty-five feet in length, came dashing at him with such furious determination that he ran his great snout, with its rows of shining saw-edged teeth, right up on the ledge, so close as actually to graze Bevan's body. The man, however, hastily sprang aside, capsizing Irwin and Roger, and the three fell pell-mell into the hollow in the rocks which had served as their former hiding-place. Safe at last; but what a narrow and providential escape! And now to discover whether the pirates had seen them. Jake climbed up to his former coign of vantage, and as soon as he clapped his eye to the peep-hole he held up his hand in warning. Roger shuddered. "After all," thought he, "after those hairbreadth escapes, have they seen us, and are they coming back to take us?" Jake now came creeping cautiously down, and whispered that the pirates had not gone off as far as they had anticipated; indeed they were not very far away even now. They had evidently not seen the fugitives leave the water, but they were all standing in a group, looking back toward the hiding-place, and, so far as Jake could judge, they seemed to be listening. Bevan now crawled up and had a look, and then beckoned to the rest. They climbed up alongside him, and, through the peep-hole, saw that the pirates had now relaxed their attitude of attention, and were once more walking slowly away, ever and anon taking a backward glance over their shoulders. Presently they disappeared from sight behind the rocks, and the fugitives breathed more freely. Roger said: "If now they but go straight off to their ship we are saved. I trust they will not chance to stumble upon any of our buried provision-barrels, or they will at once suspect our presence and search until they find us; for I can see that they are not altogether easy in their minds over the strange disappearance of Gomez." "I don't think that's so, Master Trevose," replied Bevan. "'Tis only our fancy. For my part, I'm convinced that they believe Gomez have fallen off the rocks and been taken by a shark. But how pale you do look sir! better have a drop of brandy."