“Very well.” He wrote out a receipt, stamped it, and laid on it fifteen sovereigns. “You can change the gold on board ship,” he said. “Is there anything more?” “Only this,” I replied, drawing, somewhat sheepishly, from my pocket an envelope addressed to himself. “It is my Will--not a very important document, but it is all regular; the Commissioner witnessed it. You can open it if you hear that anything has happened to me.” Pereira took the packet from me and deposited it in his safe. “It will remain there,” said he, “with your money and the old journal until you come back; and I hope it won’t be there long. Is that all?” “That is all,” I answered. He banged the door of the safe and put the key in his pocket, and, almost at the same moment, the report of a gun sounded from the sea. “That will be the _Benin_,” said Pereira. We both hurried round to the front of the compound, from which a view of the anchorage could be obtained, and as we turned the corner, we perceived the elegant, yacht-like steamer slowing down opposite the Fort. “I don’t expect she will finish loading to-day,” said Pereira, shading his eyes with his hand as he peered at the ship. “I know there is a good deal of produce to go on board. But you had better have everything ready in case the Captain is in a hurry.” So saying he went back to his office while I made my way slowly up to my room. Now, it happened that I was wearing a pair of tennis shoes with rubber soles, and I suppose that, walking slowly, lost in thought, I must have stepped more noiselessly than usual, for evidently Isabel had not heard me approach; and as I came to the half-open door I drew back with a start. She was kneeling on the floor before my trunk, making as if she would fold up the blue _riga_ that she held in her hands, and, although her back was turned to me, I could see that she was sobbing; indeed, as I stood there, she raised the blue cloth in both hands and buried her face in it. For one moment I remained stock-still, petrified with amazement. Then I stole softly away and hurried down into the compound, looking round right and left to see that no one was about; for the choking at my throat and a fulness in my eyes warned me not to speak to anyone lest I should utterly lose control of my emotions. Slipping out by the back gate, I strode down the narrow lane, breathing hard and clenching the pipe that I had thrust into my mouth so fiercely that the fragile stem crunched like straw between my teeth, and so reached the quiet lagoon side, where I paced to and fro upon the dry mud trying to collect my thoughts and to decide what I should do in these new and surprising circumstances.