Free Death in the Andamans by M. M. Kaye Page A

the direction of her pointing finger to where H.M.S. Sapphire, no longer at her moorings, steamed slowly out of the harbour, her bows set to the open sea. ‘They’ve gone!’ said Copper blankly.
    â€˜No, he hasn’t,’ said Valerie, correctly translating the thought: ‘There hasn’t been nearly time for the dinghies to do more than get clear of Hopetown jetty. That is, if they’ve even started yet, which I doubt — what with Ruby insisting on helping to get the sail up!’
    Copper’s strained attitude relaxed and she laughed a little unsteadily as Charles said: ‘Let’s ask Dan,’ and turned about to hail Dan Harcourt, who was strolling towards them across the lawn. ‘Come and take a last, lingering look at your departing home, Doc. Were you by any chance aware that your mess-mates were proposing to light out and leave you marooned?’
    Dan Harcourt glanced along Valerie’s pointing finger and his jaw dropped. ‘Great Scott! Why — what on earth ____ ?’
    â€˜We don’t know,’ said Copper. ‘Don’t you know anything about it either?’
    â€˜No. There must be something up: someone staging a riot in some insalubrious coastal spot, and the Navy ordered to show the flag for moral effect.’
    He grinned suddenly and largely: ‘I say, what a bit of luck for me getting left behind! Sickening for all the other poor types having to spend Christmas striking warlike attitudes. I bet they’re cursing! Nick will have missed it too: pretty lucky for both of ____ ’ The sentence broke off in a little shiver that made his teeth chatter.
    Copper swung round sharply and he laughed and said: ‘Sorry. Goose walked over my grave. Hadn’t we better get going if we’re going to catch the ferry?’
    They piled into the three cars and left Mount Harriet behind them. And at no point during the drive down the steep hill road did one of them think to look back to where, behind them, that ominous belt of tawny darkness grew and broadened with uncanny swiftness, blotting out the brightness of the quiet evening sky.
    Barely had the last car passed through the gates and rounded the first bend of the jungle road when the new-found silence of the deserted house was again disturbed. This time by the bell in the small telephone box in the corner of the verandah by the dining-room door. The phone rang shrilly, its urgent metallic cry echoing eerily through the silent house.
    It rang for perhaps five minutes, and then ceased. And silence flowed back and closed over Mount Harriet like a quiet cloud.

6
    â€˜It’s getting very dark,’ said Copper. ‘Are we going to miss the ferry?’
    Valerie leant forward and peered at the dashboard clock. ‘No, we’re all right. We’ve got nearly half an hour yet and it shouldn’t take us more than twenty minutes from here.’
    â€˜Um,’ said Copper dubiously. ‘I’ve never yet been on a picnic with you and Charles when we haven’t missed the ferry.’
    Charles said: ‘Pessimist!’ but applied his foot with more force to the accelerator and took the next bend at fifty.
    â€˜Why is everything such a queer yellow colour?’ persisted Copper restlessly. ‘You ought to switch on the headlights, Charles. You’ll run off the road in a minute — it squiggles so.’
    â€˜Look, who’s driving this car?’ demanded Charles. ‘You or me?’
    Copper apologized hastily and leant out to look back at the sky between the double wall of trees behind them. They heard her catch her breath in a harsh gasp, and Dan Harcourt, who was returning with them in place of John Shilto, leant out in turn and whistled expressively. ‘Great Caesar’s Ghost ____ ! Here, step on it, Charles, or inside another five minutes we’re going to be overhauled by the father and mother of a storm!’
    Above and ahead of them the