Bertric went to our halliards and
lowered the sail as I luffed alongside, and then Dalfin had gripped
the rail between two of the shining shields. There was no sea
beyond a harmless ripple as yet, and we dropped aft to where a
cleat was set for the boats on her quarter, and made fast.
Then as we looked at one another, there came to me as it were a
breath from my lost home in far-off Caithness, for a whiff of peat
smoke hung round us and was gone so quickly that I thought it
almost fancy. But Dalfin had smelt it also.
"There is a fire alight on board," he said. "I smelt the smoke.
That means food, and someone on board after all."
With that he shouted, but there was no answer. It would have been a
relief to me if some ship's dog had flown out and barked at us; but
all was silent, and that was uncanny here in the open sea, and on
such a ship.
"Well," said Bertric, "crew or no, we must go on board. No use in
waiting."
He swung himself up from the boat over the high gunwale, and then
gave me a hand, and together we hauled up Dalfin, and so stood and
stared at all we saw in wonder.
Everything was in perfect trim, and the ship was fitted as if for a
long cruise. She had two handsome boats, with carven gunwales and
stem and stern posts set on their chocks side by side amidships,
with their sails and oars in them.
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