moej  grudi,  i  ya uzhe  spokojnee
oglyadelsya  krugom.  YA zametil, chto na  bortu  net ni odnoj shlyupki. V kubrike
ohotnikov  moim glazam predstala ta  zhe kartina, chto i u matrosov. Ohotniki,
po-vidimomu, sobirali  svoi  veshchi v takoj zhe  speshke. "Prizrak" byl  broshen.
Teper' on prinadlezhal Mod i mne. YA podumal o sudovyh zapasah, o kladovoj pod
kayut-kompaniej,  i  u  menya yavilas' mysl' sdelat' Mod syurpriz  --  razdobyt'
chto-nibud' vkusnoe k zavtraku.


     The reaction from  my fear, and  the knowledge that the terrible deed I
had come to do was no longer necessary, made me boyish and eager.  I went up
the steerage companion-way two  steps at a time, with nothing distinct in my
mind  except joy and the hope that Maud  would sleep  on  until the surprise
breakfast  was  quite ready  for  her.  As  I  rounded  the  galley,  a  new
satisfaction  was  mine at  thought  of all  the  splendid  cooking utensils
inside. I sprang up the break of the poop, and saw - Wolf Larsen. What of my
impetus and the stunning surprise, I clattered three or four steps along the
deck before I could stop myself.  He was standing in the companion-way, only
his  head and  shoulders  visible, staring  straight at me.  His  arms  were
resting on the half-open slide. He made no movement whatever - simply  stood
there, staring at me.

     Posle perezhitogo volneniya ya oshchutil vdrug  neobychajnyj priлiv sil,
a pri  mysli  o tom,  chto strashnoe delo, kotoroe  privelo  menya  syuda, stalo
teper' nenuzhnym, razveselilsya, kak mal'chishka. Pereprygivaya  cherez stupen'ku,
ya podnyalsya  po  trapu,  dumaya tol'ko  o tom,  chto nuzhno  uspet'  prigotovit'
zavtrak,  poka Mod spit, esli  ya hochu,  chtoby moj syurpriz  udalsya na  slavu.
Ogibaya kambuz, ya s udovletvoreniem vspomnil o zamechatel'noj kuhonnoj posude,
kotoruyu  ya tam  najdu.  YA  vzbezhal  na yut  i  uvidel...  Volka  Larsena!  Ot
neozhidannosti ya  probezhal s  razgona eshche neskol'ko shagov, grohocha bashmakami,
prezhde  chem  smog ostanovit'sya.  Larsen stoyal na trape kayut-kompanii, -- nad
dvercej vozvyshalis' tol'ko ego golova i plechi, -- i  v upor smotrel na menya.
Obeimi  rukami  on  upiralsya   v  poluotkrytuyu  dvercu  i  stoyal  sovershenno
nepodvizhno. Stoyal i smotrel na menya.


     I began  to  tremble. The old stomach  sickness clutched me.  I put one
hand on the edge of the house  to steady myself. My lips seemed suddenly dry
and  I moistened  them against the need of speech. Nor did I  for an instant
take my  eyes off  him. Neither of us spoke. There was something  ominous in
his silence, his immobility. All my old fear of him returned and by new fear
was increased an  hundred- fold. And still we stood, the pair of us, staring
at each other.

     YA zadrozhal.  Snova, kak  prezhde,  tomitel'no  zasosalo pod  lozhechkoj. YA
uhvatilsya  rukoj za kraj rubki, ishcha opory. Guby u  menya srazu peresohli, i ya
neskol'ko raz provel po nim yazykom. YA ne svodil  glaz s Volka Larsena, i oba
my  ne  proiznosili ni  slova. CHto-to zloveshchee bylo v ego molchanii i  v etoj
polnoj  nepodvizhnosti.  Ves' moj prezhnij strah  pered nim vernulsya ko  mne s
udesyaterennoj siloj. I tak my stoyali i smotreli Drug na druga.


     I was aware of the  demand for action, and, my old  helplessness strong
upon me, I was waiting for him to take the initiative.  Then, as the moments
went by, it came to me that the situation was analogous to  the one in which
I  had approached the long-maned bull, my intention of clubbing  obscured by
fear until  it became a desire  to make him run. So it was at last impressed
upon me that I was there, not to have Wolf  Larsen  take the initiative, but
to take it myself.

     YA  chuvstvoval,  chto nado dejstvovat', no prezhnyaya bespomoshchnost' ovladela
mnoj, i  ya  zhdal, chto sdelaet on. Sekundy  leteli, i  vdrug vse proishodyashchee
napomnilo mne o tom, kak ya, podojdya k grivastomu sekachu, pozabyl ot  straha,
chto dolzhen ubit' ego, i tol'ko pomyshlyal, kak by  obratit'  ego v begstvo. No
ved' i  syuda ya prishel ne za  tem, chtoby zhdat', chto predprimet Volk Larsen, a
dejstvovat'.


     I cocked both  barrels and levelled the  shot-gun at him. Had he moved,
attempted to drop down the companion-way, I know I would have  shot him. But
he stood motionless and staring as before. And as I faced him, with levelled
gun shaking  in my hands, I had time to note the worn and haggard appearance
of his face. It was as if some strong anxiety had wasted it. The cheeks were
sunken,  and there  was a wearied, puckered expression  on the brow. And  it
seemed  to  me that his eyes were strange, not only the  expression, but the
physical seeming, as though  the  optic  nerves and  supporting  muscles had
suffered strain and slightly twisted the eyeballs.

     YA vzvel oba kurka dvustvolki  i vskinul ee k plechu. Esli b on popytalsya
spustit'sya vniz, esli by on tol'ko shelohnulsya, ya, bez somneniya, zastrelil by
ego. No  on stoyal sovershenno nepodvizhno i smotrel na menya.  Drozhashchimi rukami
szhimaya dvustvolku i celyas' v nego, ya uspel zametit', kak osunulos' ego lico.
Kakie-to tyazhelye  potryaseniya ostavili na nem  svoj  sled. SHCHeki vpali, na lbu
zalegli morshchiny,  a glaza  proizvodili  strannoe  vpechatlenie. Kazalos', ego
glaznye nervy i myshcy byli ne v poryadke i glaza smotreli napryazhenno i slegka
kosili. I vyrazhenie ih bylo tozhe kakoe-to strannoe.


     All this I saw, and my brain now  working rapidly, I thought a thousand
thoughts; and  yet  I could not pull  the  triggers. I  lowered the gun  and
stepped to the corner of the cabin, primarily  to  relieve the tension on my
nerves  and  to make a new  start,  and incidentally  to be closer.  Again I
raised the gun. He was almost  at arm's length. There was no hope for him. I
was resolved.  There was no  possible  chance of missing  him, no matter how
poor my marksmanship. And yet I wrestled with myself and could not pull  the
triggers.

     YA  glyadel  na nego,  i  mozg  moj  lihoradochno  rabotal.  Tysyachi myslej
pronosilis' u  menya v  golove,  no  ya ne mog  nazhat'  na spuskovoj kryuchok. YA
opustil  dvustvolku i  dvinulsya k  uglu  rubki, starayas' sobrat'sya s duhom i
snova --  s  bolee blizkogo rasstoyaniya --  popytat'sya  vystrelit'  v nego. YA
vskinul dvustvolku k plechu. YA nahodilsya teper' v kakih-nibud'  dvuh shagah ot
Volka Larsena.  Emu ne bylo spaseniya. YA bol'she ne kolebalsya. Promahnut'sya  ya
ne mog, kak  by  ploho ya ni  strelyal.  No ya ne mog  zastavit' sebya  spustit'
kurok.


     "Well?" he demanded impatiently.

     -- Nu? -- netoroplivo promolvil on.


     I strove vainly to force my fingers  down on the triggers, and vainly I
strove to say something.

     Tshchetno pytalsya ya nazhat' na spusk, tshchetno pytalsya chto-nibud' skazat'.


     "Why don't you shoot?" he asked.

     -- Pochemu vy ne strelyaete? -- sprosil on.


     I cleared my  throat  of a huskiness which prevented speech. "Hump," he
said slowly, "you can't do it. You are not exactly afraid. You are impotent.
Your  conventional morality is stronger than you. You are  the slave to  the
opinions which have credence among the people you  have known  and have read
about. Their code has been drummed into your head  from the time you lisped,
and in spite of your philosophy, and of what I have taught you, it won't let
you kill an unarmed, unresisting man."

     YA otkashlyalsya, no ne smog vygovorit' ni slova.
     --  Hemp, --  medlenno  proiznes Larsen, -- nichego u vas ne vyjdet!  Ne
potomu, chtoby  vy boyalis', no  vy  bessil'ny. Vasha naskvoz'  uslovnaya moral'
sil'nee vas. Vy -- rab predrassudkov, kotorymi napichkany lyudi vashego kruga i
vashi knigi. Vam vbivali ih v golovu chut' li ne  s kolybeli, i  vopreki  vsej
vashej filosofii  i  moim  urokam  oni  ne  pozvolyayut vam  ubit'  bezoruzhnogo
cheloveka, kotoryj ne okazyvaet vam soprotivleniya.


     "I know it," I said hoarsely.

     -- Znayu, -- hriplo otozvalsya ya.


     "And you know  that I would kill an unarmed man  as  readily as I would
smoke a cigar," he  went on. "You know  me for  what I am, - my worth in the
world by your standard. You have called me snake, tiger, shark, monster, and
Caliban.  And yet,  you little rag puppet, you little echoing mechanism, you
are unable to kill me as you would a snake or a shark, because I have hands,
feet, and a  body shaped somewhat like yours. Bah! I had hoped better things
of you, Hump."

     -- A mne, -- i eto vy tozhe znaete, --  ubit' bezoruzhnogo tak zhe prosto,
kak vykurit'  sigaru,  -- prodolzhal  on. -- Vy znaete menya i  znaete, chego ya
stoyu, esli podhodit' ko mne s  vashej merkoj. Vy nazyvali menya zmeej, tigrom,
akuloj, chudovishchem,  Kalibanom.  No  vy  --  zhalkaya  marionetka,  mehanicheski
povtoryayushchaya  chuzhie  slova, i  vy ne mozhete ubit' menya, kak ubili by zmeyu ili
akulu, ne mozhete tol'ko potomu, chto u menya est' ruki i nogi i telo moe imeet
nekotoroe shodstvo s vashim. |h! YA ozhidal ot vas bol'shego, Hemp!


     He stepped out of the companion-way and came up to me.

     On podnyalsya po trapu i podoshel ko mne.


     "Put down that gun. I want to ask  you some questions. I haven't  had a
chance to look around yet. What  place is this? How  is the Ghost lying? How
did you  get  wet? Where's  Maud?  - I beg  your pardon, Miss Brewster -  or
should I say, 'Mrs. Van Weyden'?"

     -- Opustite ruzh'e. YA hochu zadat' vam neskol'ko voprosov. YA eshche ne uspel
osmotret'sya. CHto  eto za mesto? Kak stoit "Prizrak"? Pochemu  vy tak vymokli?
Gde Mod?.. Vinovat, miss Brusger... Ili, byt' mozhet, sleduet sprosit' -- gde
missis Van-Vejden?


     I had backed away from  him,  almost weeping at  my inability  to shoot
him, but not fool enough to put down the gun. I hoped,  desperately, that he
might commit some hostile act, attempt to strike me or choke me; for in such
way only I knew I could be stirred to shoot.

     YA pyatilsya ot  nego, chut' ne placha ot svoego bessiliya, ottogo chto ne mog
zastrelit' ego, no  vse zhe byl ne  nastol'ko glup, chtoby opustit' ruzh'e. Mne
otchayanno  hotelos',  chtoby  on  sdelal popytku  napast' na menya -- popytalsya
udarit' menya  ili  shvatit'  za gorlo, --  togda  ya  nashel  by  v sebe  sily
vystrelit' v nego.


     "This is Endeavour Island," I said.

     -- |to Ostrov Usilij, -- otvetil ya na ego vopros.


     "Never heard of it," he broke in.

     -- Nikogda ne slyhal o takom ostrove.


     "At least, that's our name for it," I amended.

     -- Po krajnej mere my tak nazyvaem ego.


     "Our?" he queried. "Who's our?"

     -- My? -- peresprosil on. -- Kto eto my?


     "Miss Brewster and  myself. And the Ghost is lying, as you  can see for
yourself, bow on to the beach."

     -- Miss Bruster i ya. A "Prizrak", kak vy  sami vidite, lezhit, zaryvshis'
nosom v pesok.


     "There are seals here,"  he said. "They woke me up with their  barking,
or  I'd be sleeping yet. I heard  them when I drove in last night. They were
the first warning that I was  on a lee shore. It's a rookery, the kind  of a
thing I've hunted  for years.  Thanks to my brother Death, I've lighted on a
fortune. It's a mint. What's its bearings?"

     -- Zdes' est' kotiki, -- skazal on.  -- Oni razbudili menya svoim revom,
a  to  ya by eshche spal. YA  slyshal ih i vchera, kogda nas pribilo syuda.  YA srazu
ponyal togda, chto popal  na  podvetrennyj bereg. Zdes' lezhbishche -- kak raz to,
chto ya ishchu uzhe mnogo let. Spasibo moemu bratcu, blagodarya emu ya  natknulsya na
eto bogatstvo. |to zhe klad! Kakovy koordinaty ostrova?


     "Haven't the least idea," I said. "But you ought to know quite closely.
What were your last observations?"

     --  Ne  imeyu ni malejshego predstavleniya, --  otvetil ya. --  No vy  sami
dolzhny znat' ih dostatochno tochno. Kakie koordinaty vy opredelyali v poslednij
raz?


     He smiled inscrutably, but did not answer.

     On kak-to stranno ulybnulsya i nichego ne otvetil.


     "Well, where's all hands?"  I  asked.  "How does it come  that you  are
alone?"

     -- A gde  zhe  komanda?  --  sprosil ya. --  Kak eto  sluchilos',  chto  vy
ostalis' odin?


     I  was  prepared  for him  again  to set  aside  my  question, and  was
surprised at the readiness of his reply.

     YA ozhidal, chto on  otklonit  i etot  vopros, no, k  moemu udivleniyu,  on
srazu otvetil:


     "My brother got  me  inside forty-eight hours, and through  no fault of
mine. Boarded me in the night with only the watch on deck. Hunters went back
on me. He gave them a bigger lay. Heard him offering it. Did it right before
me. Of course the crew gave me the go-by. That was to be expected. All hands
went  over the  side,  and there I  was,  marooned on  my own vessel. It was
Death's turn, and it's all in the family anyway."

     --  Moj brat pojmal menya  men'she chem cherez dvoe  sutok,  vprochem, ne po
moej vine. Vzyal  menya na  abordazh,  kogda  na palube  ne bylo nikogo,  krome
vahtennyh.  Ohotniki  tut zhe predali menya.  On  predlozhil im  bol'shuyu dolyu v
dohodah  po okonchanii ohoty,  chem oni imeli na "Prizrake".  YA slyshal, kak on
predlagal im eto  -- pri mne, bez  malejshego  stesneniya. Slovom, vsya komanda
pereshla k  nemu, chego  i  sledovalo ozhidat'.  V odin mig  spustili shlyupki  i
mahnuli  za  bort,  a ya ostalsya  na  svoej shhune odin,  kak  na  neobitaemom
ostrove. Na etot raz Smert' Larsen vzyal verh, nu, da eto -- delo semejnoe.


     "But how did you lose the masts?" I asked.

     -- No kak zhe vy poteryali machty?


     "Walk over and examine those lanyards," he  said, pointing to where the
mizzen-rigging should have been.

     -- Podojdite i osmotrite von te  talrepy, -- skazal on, ukazyvaya  tuda,
gde dolzhny byli nahodit'sya grotvanty.


     "They have been cut with a knife!" I exclaimed.

     -- Pererezany nozhom! -- voskliknul ya.


     "Not quite," he laughed. "It was a neater job. Look again."

     -- No ne do  konca, -- usmehnulsya on. -- Tut tonkaya rabotaPosmotrite-ka
vnimatel'nee.


     I looked. The lanyards had been  almost severed, with just enough  left
to hold the shrouds till some severe strain should be put upon them

     YA osmotrel talrepy eshche raz. Oni byli nadrezany tak, chtoby derzhat' vanty
lish' do pervogo sil'nogo napryazheniya.


     "Cooky did that," he laughed again.  "I know, though I didn't  spot him
at it. Kind of evened up the score a bit."

     --  |to  delo  ruk  koka!  --  so smehom skazal Volk  Larsen.  --  Znayu
navernyaka, hotya i ne nakryl ego. Vsetaki  emu udalos' nemnogo pokvitat'sya so
mnoj.


     "Good for Mugridge!" I cried.

     -- Molodec Magridzh! -- voskliknul ya.


     "Yes, that's what I thought when everything went over the  side. Only I
said it on the other side of my mouth."

     -- Primerno to zhe samoe skazal i ya, kogda  machty poleteli za bort,  no,
razumeetsya, mne bylo ne tak veselo, kak vam.


     "But what were you doing while all this was going on?" I asked.

     -- CHto zhe vy predprinimali, kogda vse eto proishodilo? -- sprosil ya.


     "My best, you may be sure, which wasn't much under the circumstances."

     -- Vse,  chto ot menya zaviselo, mozhete byt'  uvereny. No pri slozhivshihsya
obstoyatel'stvah -- ne ochen'-to mnogo...


     I turned to re-examine Thomas Mugridge's work.

     YA snova stal rassmatrivat' rabotu Tomasa Magridzha.


     "I guess I'll  sit down  and  take  the sunshine,"  I heard Wolf Larsen
saying.

     -- YA, pozhaluj, prisyadu, pogreyus' na solnyshke, --  uslyshal ya golos Volka
Larsena.


     There was a hint, just  a  slight  hint,  of physical feebleness in his
voice,  and  it  was  so strange that I looked quickly at him. His hand  was
sweeping nervously across his face, as though he were brushing away cobwebs.
I was puzzled. The whole thing was so unlike the Wolf Larsen I had known.

     Edva ulovimaya notka fizicheskoj slabosti prozvuchala v etih slovah, i eto
bylo tak stranno, chto ya bystro obernulsya k nemu. On nervno provodil rukoj po
licu, slovno  smetaya  s  nego  pautinu. YA byl ozadachen.  Vse  eto  tak  malo
vyazalos' s ego oblikom.


     "How are your headaches?" I asked.

     -- Kak vashi golovnye boli? -- sprosil ya.


     "They still trouble  me," was his answer. "I think I have one coming on
now."

     -- Muchayut po vremenam, -- otvechal on. -- Kazhetsya, i sejchas nachinaetsya.


     He slipped  down from his sitting posture till he lay on the deck. Then
he rolled over on his side, his head resting on the biceps of the under arm,
the  forearm  shielding  his  eyes  from  the  sun.  I  stood regarding  him
wonderingly.

     On prileg na palubu. Povernuvshis' na  bok, on podlozhil ruku pod golovu,
a  drugoj rukoj prikryl glaza ot solnca. YA stoyal  i s nedoumeniem smotrel na
nego.


     "Now's your chance, Hump," he said.

     -- Vot vam udobnyj sluchaj, Hemp! -- skazal on.


     "I don't understand," I lied, for I thoroughly understood.

     -- Ne ponimayu, -- solgal ya, hotya prekrasno ponyal, chto on hotel skazat'.


     "Oh, nothing," he added softly,  as if he  were drowsing; "only  you've
got me where you want me."

     -- Nu ladno,  -- tiho, slovno skvoz'  dremotu, progovoril on. -- YA ved'
sejchas v vashih rukah, chto vam, sobstvenno, i nuzhno.


     "No, I haven't," I retorted; "for I want you a  few thousand miles away
from here."

     -- Nichego  podobnogo, -- vozrazil ya.  -- Mne nuzhno, chtoby vy  byli ne v
moih rukah, a za tysyachu mil' otsyuda.


     He chuckled, and thereafter spoke no more. He did not stir  as I passed
by him and went down into the cabin. I lifted the trap in the floor, but for
some moments gazed dubiously  into  the darkness of the lazarette beneath. I
hesitated to descend. What if his lying down were a ruse? Pretty, indeed, to
be caught there like a rat. I  crept softly up the companion-way  and peeped
at him.  He was lying as  I had left him. Again I  went below; but  before I
dropped into the lazarette I took the precaution of casting down the door in
advance.  At  least  there  would be  no  lid to the trap.  But  it was  all
needless. I  regained the cabin  with a store of  jams, sea-biscuits, canned
meats, and such things, - all I could carry, - and replaced the trap-door.

     Larsen usmehnulsya i bol'she ne pribavil ni slova. On dazhe ne shelohnulsya,
kogda ya proshel mimo nego i spustilsya v kayut-kompaniyu. Podnyav kryshku lyuka,  ya
ostanovilsya v nereshitel'nosti, glyadya v glub' temnoj kladovoj. YA kolebalsya --
spuskat'sya li?  A chto esli Larsen tol'ko pritvoryaetsya? Popadesh'sya zdes', kak
krysa v  lovushku! YA tihon'ko podnyalsya po trapu  i vyglyanul na palubu. Larsen
lezhal  vse  v  tom zhe polozhenii,  v kakom ya ego ostavil. YA snova spustilsya v
kayut-kompaniyu,  no,  prezhde  chem  sprygnut' v  kladovuyu, sbrosil tuda kryshku
lyuka.  Po  krajnej  mere  lovushka  ne  zahlopnetsya.  No  eto  byla  izlishnyaya
predostorozhnost'. Zahvativ s soboj dzhema, galet, myasnyh konservov -- slovom,
vse,  chto mozhno  bylo  srazu unesti, -- ya  vybralsya nazad v  kayut-kompaniyu i
zakryl za soboyu lyuk.


     A peep at Wolf Larsen showed me that he had not moved. A bright thought
struck  me.  I stole  into  his  state-room  and  possessed  myself  of  his
revolvers. There were  no  other weapons, though I thoroughly ransacked  the
three  remaining state-rooms. To  make sure, I returned and went through the
steerage and forecastle,  and in  the galley gathered up  all the sharp meat
and vegetable knives. Then I bethought me of  the great yachtsman's knife he
always carried, and I  came  to him and spoke  to him,  first  softly,  then
loudly. He did not move. I bent over and took it from his pocket. I breathed
more freely. He had no  arms with which to attack me from  a distance; while
I, armed,  could always  forestall him  should he attempt to grapple me with
his terrible gorilla arms.

     Vyjdya na  palubu, ya uvidel, chto Volk  Larsen tak  i  ne  poshevel'nulsya.
Vnezapno  menya  ozarila  novaya mysl'. YA prokralsya  v  kayutu  i  zavladel ego
revol'verami.  Drugogo  oruzhiya ya  nigde  ne nashel, hotya tshchatel'no obsharil  i
ostal'nye tri kayuty  i spustilsya eshche raz v kubrik ohotnikov i  v  matrosskij
kubrik.  YA  dazhe zabral  iz  kambuza vse kuhonnye nozhi. Potom  ya vspomnil  o
bol'shom  skladnom nozhe, kotoryj kapitan vsegda  nosil pri sebe. YA  podoshel k
Larsenu  i zagovoril  s  nim  --  sperva  vpolgolosa,  potom gromko.  On  ne
shelohnulsya. Togda  ya  ostorozhno vytashchil nozh u  nego  iz  karmana, posle chego
vzdohnul s oblegcheniem. U nego ne ostavalos' teper' nikakogo oruzhiya, i on ne
mog napast' na  menya s  rasstoyaniya,  ya  zhe  byl horosho  vooruzhen i sumel  by
okazat' emu  soprotivlenie,  esli by on  popytalsya shvatit'  menya  za  gorlo
svoimi strashnymi ruchishchami.


     Filling a coffee-pot and frying-pan with part of my plunder, and taking
some  chinaware from the cabin pantry, I  left Wolf Larsen lying  in the sun
and went ashore.

     Prisoediniv  k moej dobyche  kofejnik i skovorodu i  zahvativ  iz bufeta
kayut-kompanii koe-kakuyu  posudu, ya ostavil Volka  Larsena na zalitoj solncem
palube i spustilsya na bereg.


     Maud was still asleep.  I blew up the embers (we had not yet arranged a
winter kitchen), and quite feverishly cooked the breakfast. Toward the  end,
I heard her moving about within the hut,  making her toilet. Just as all was
ready and the coffee poured, the door opened and she came forth.

     Mod  eshche  spala. Kuhnyu na  zimu my  ne uspeli  postroit',  i ya pospeshil
razzhech'  koster  i prinyalsya gotovit' zavtrak. Delo u menya podhodilo k koncu,
kogda ya uslyshal, chto Mod vstala i hodit po hizhine, zanimayas' svoim tualetom.
Kogda zhe  ona poyavilas' na  poroge, u menya uzhe  vse bylo gotovo, i ya nalival
kofe v chashki.


     "It's not fair of you," was her  greeting. "You are usurping one of  my
prerogatives. You know you I agreed that the cooking should be mine, and - "

     -- |to nechestno! -- privetstvovala ona menya. -- My zhe dogovorilis', chto
stryapat' budu ya...


     "But just this once," I pleaded.

     -- Odin raz ne v schet, -- opravdyvalsya ya.


     "If  you promise not to  do it  again," she smiled. "Unless, of course,
you have grown tired of my poor efforts."

     -- No  obeshchajte, chto eto ne povtoritsya! --  ulybnulas' ona. -- Konechno,
esli vam ne nadoela moya zhalkaya stryapnya.


     To my delight she never once looked toward the  beach, and I maintained
the banter with  such success all  unconsciously she sipped coffee  from the
china  cup,  ate  fried  evaporated potatoes,  and spread marmalade  on  her
biscuit. But it could not last. I  saw  the surprise that came over her. She
had discovered  the china plate  from which  she was eating. She looked over
the breakfast, noting detail after detail. Then  she looked  at me, and  her
face turned slowly toward the beach.

     K moemu udovol'stviyu. Mod ni razu ne vzglyanula na bereg, a ya tak udachno
otvlekal  ee  vnimanie  svoej  boltovnej,  chto  ona mashinal'no  ela  sushenyj
kartofel', kotoryj ya razmochil i podzharil na skovorodke, prihlebyvala kofe iz
farforovoj chashki i namazyvala  dzhemom  galety. No  dolgo eto prodolzhat'sya ne
moglo. YA uvidel,  kak na lice ee vnezapno izobrazilos' udivlenie. Farforovaya
tarelka, s  kotoroj ona ela, brosilas' ej v glaza. Ona okinula vzglyadom vse,
chto bylo prigotovleno k zavtraku, glaza ee perebegali s predmeta na predmet.
Potom ona posmotrela na menya i medlenno obernulas' k beregu.


     "Humphrey!" she said.

     -- Hemfri! -- s trudom proiznesla ona.


     The old unnamable terror mounted into her eyes.

     Nevyrazimyj uzhas snova, kak prezhde, otrazilsya v ee glazah.


     "Is - he?" she quavered.

     -- Neuzheli... on?.. -- upavshim golosom progovorila ona.


     I nodded my head.

     YA kivnul golovoj.


        CHAPTER XXXIIII

        GLAVA XXXIIII


     We waited all day for Wolf Larsen to come ashore. It was an intolerable
period of anxiety. Each moment one or the other of us cast expectant glances
toward the Ghost. But he did not come. He did not even appear on deck.

     Ves'  den'  my  zhdali,  chto  Volk Larsen spustitsya na  bereg.  |to byli
trevozhnye, muchitel'nye  chasy. My s Mod  pominutno brosali vzglyady v  storonu
"Prizraka". No  Volka Larsena ne bylo vidno. On dazhe ni razu ne pokazalsya na
palube.


     "Perhaps it is his headache," I said. "I left him lying on the poop. He
may lie there all night. I think I'll go and see."

     -- Verno, u  nego opyat' pristup golovnoj boli, -- skazal  ya. -- Kogda ya
uhodil  ottuda,  on  lezhal na  yute. On  mozhet prolezhat' tak vsyu  noch'. Pojdu
vzglyanu.


     Maud looked entreaty at me.

     Ona umolyayushche posmotrela na menya.


     "It is all right," I assured her. "I shall take the revolvers. You know
I collected every weapon on board."

     -- Ne bojtes'  nichego, -- zaveril ya ee. -- YA voz'mu s soboj revol'very.
YA ved' govoril vam, chto zabral vse oruzhie, kakoe tol'ko bylo na bortu.


     "But there are his arms, his hands, his terrible, terrible hands!"  she
objected. And then she cried, "Oh, Humphrey, I am afraid  of him! Don't go -
please don't go!"

     -- A ego ruki! Ego strashnye, chudovishchnye ruki! O Hemfri, --  voskliknula
ona, -- ya tak boyus' ego! Ne hodite, pozhalujsta, ne hodite!


     She rested her hand appealingly on mine, and sent my pulse  fluttering.
My heart was surely in my eyes for a moment. The dear and lovely woman!  And
she was so much  the woman, clinging and appealing,  sunshine and  dew to my
manhood, rooting it deeper and sending through it the sap of a new strength.
I was for putting my arm around her, as when in  the midst of the seal herd;
but I considered, and refrained.

     Ona s mol'boj  polozhila  svoyu ruku na  moyu,  i serdce  u menya zabilos'.
Dumayu, chto  vse moi  chuvstva mozhno bylo v etot  mig  prochest' v moih glazah.
Milaya,  lyubimaya moyaKak  chisto  po-zhenski ugovarivala  ona  menya i  l'nula ko
mne!.. Ona byla dlya menya solnechnym luchom i zhivitel'noj rosoj, istochnikom, iz
kotorogo ya cherpal  muzhestvo i sily. Neuderzhimoe zhelanie obnyat'  ee, -- kak ya
uzhe sdelal odnazhdy posredi stada kotikov, -- ohvatilo menya, no ya sderzhalsya.


     "I shall not take  any  risks," I said. "I'll merely  peep over the bow
and see."

     -- YA ne budu riskovat',  --  skazal ya. --  Tol'ko  zaglyanu na palubu  i
posmotryu, chto on tam delaet.


     She pressed my hand  earnestly and let  me go.  But the  space  on deck
where I had left  him lying was  vacant. He had evidently  gone below.  That
night we  stood alternate watches, one of us sleeping at  a  time; for there
was no telling what  Wolf Larsen  might do.  He  was  certainly  capable  of
anything.

     Ona vzvolnovanno szhala moyu ruku i  otpustila menya. No na palube, gde  ya
ostavil  Volka Larsena, ego ne okazalos'.  On, ochevidno, spustilsya k  sebe v
kayutu.  V  etu noch'  my s  Mod  ustanovili  dezhurstva, tak kak  nel'zya  bylo
predvidet', chto mozhet vykinut' Volk Larsen. On byl sposoben na vse.


     The next day we waited, and the next, and still he made no sign.

     My prozhdali den' i drugoj, no Larsen ne pokazyvalsya.


     "These headaches of his, these attacks," Maud said, on the afternoon of
the fourth day; "Perhaps he is ill, very ill. He may be dead."

     -- |ti golovnye boli...  pripadki... -- skazala Mod na  chetvertyj den'.
-- Byt' mozhet, on bolen, tyazhelo bolen. Byt' mozhet, umer.


     "Or dying,"  was her afterthought  when she had waited some time for me
to speak.

     Ona zhdala ot menya otveta, no ya molchal, i ona dobavila:
     -- Ili umiraet...


     "Better so," I answered.

     -- Tem luchshe, -- skachal ya.


     "But think, Humphrey, a fellow-creature in his last lonely hour."

     -- No podumajte, Hemfri. Ved' on tozhe chelovek. I umiraet sovsem odin.


     "Perhaps," I suggested.

     -- Ochen' vozmozhno... -- provorchal ya.


     "Yes, even perhaps," she acknowledged. "But we do not know. It would be
terrible if he were. I could never forgive myself. We must do something."

     --  Da, vozmozhno,  -- prodolzhala ona.  --  Konechno, my nichego ne  znaem
navernoe. No  esli  on  dejstvitel'no umiraet, uzhasno  brosit' ego tak. YA by
nikogda etogo ne prostila sebe. My dolzhny chto-to sdelat'.


     "Perhaps," I suggested again.  I waited, smiling inwardly at the  woman
of her which compelled a solicitude for Wolf Larsen, of all creatures. Where
was her solicitude for  me, I thought, - for me whom she  had been afraid to
have merely peep aboard?

     -- Da, vozmozhno, -- povtoril ya. YA zhdal, ulybayas' pro sebya, i dumal: kak
eto po-zhenski -- proyavlyat' bespokojstvo dazhe o Volke LarseneKuda devalos' ee
bespokojstvo za menya! A ved' eshche nedavno ona  tak ispugalas', kogda  ya hotel
tol'ko zaglyanut' na palubu.


     She was  too subtle not to follow the trend of my silence. And  she was
as direct as she was subtle.

     Mod razgadala smysl moego molchaniya -- ona byla dostatochno umna i chutka.
A pryamota ee ravnyalas' ee umu.


     "You must  go  aboard, Humphrey, and find  out,"  she said. "And if you
want to laugh at me, you have my consent and forgiveness."

     -- Vy dolzhny podnyat'sya na  bort, Hemfri,  i uznat', v  chem tam delo, --
skazala ona. -- A esli vam hochetsya posmeyat'sya nado mnoj, chto zh, vy imeete na
eto pravo. YA zaranee proshchayu vas.


     I arose obediently and went down the beach.

     YA poslushno vstal i napravilsya k beregu.


     "Do be careful," she called after me.

     -- Tol'ko bud'te ostorozhny! -- kriknula ona mne vsled.


     I waved my arm from the forecastle head and dropped down  to  the deck.
Aft I  walked to the  cabin companion, where I contented myself with hailing
below. Wolf Larsen answered, and as he started to ascend the stairs I cocked
my revolver. I displayed it openly during our  conversation,  but he took no
notice of it. He  appeared the same, physically, as when last I saw him, but
he  was gloomy and  silent. In fact, the few words we spoke could hardly  be
called a conversation. I did not inquire why he had not been ashore, nor did
he ask why I had not come aboard. His head was all right again, he said, and
so, without further parley, I left him.

     YA pomahal  ej rukoj s polubaka i soskochil na palubu. Podojdya k trapu  v
kayut-kompaniyu, ya okliknul  Volka  Larsena. On otvetil mne.  Kogda  on  nachal
podnimat'sya  po  trapu,  ya  vzvel  kurok  revol'vera, i vse vremya,  poka  my
razgovarivali, otkryto derzhal  revol'ver v ruke, no Larsen ne obrashchal na eto
nikakogo vnimaniya.  Vneshne  on  ne  izmenilsya za eti dni,  no  byl  mrachen i
molchaliv. Vryad li mozhno nazvat'  besedoj  te  neskol'ko  slov,  kotorymi  my
obmenyalis'. YA ne sprosil ego, pochemu on ne shodit na bereg, i on ne sprosil,
pochemu  ya ne  pokazyvalsya  na  shhune.  On skazal, chto golovnaya  bol'  u nego
proshla, i ya, ne vstupaya v dal'nejshie razgovory, ushel.


     Maud received  my report with  obvious relief,  and the sight of  smoke
which  later rose  in the galley put  her in a more cheerful mood. The  next
day, and the  next, we saw the galley smoke rising, and  sometimes we caught
glimpses of him  on the poop. But that was  all. He made no attempt  to come
ashore.  This  we knew, for we still maintained our  night-watches.  We were
waiting  for  him to  do  something, to  show his  hand,  so to say, and his
inaction puzzled and worried us.

     Mod  vyslushala  moe soobshchenie  i  oblegchenno  vzdohnula,  a  kogda  nad
kambuzom  pokazalsya  dymok, eto,  vidimo,  okonchatel'no ee  uspokoilo. Dymok
vilsya nad kambuzom i posleduyushchie dni, a  poroj i  sam Volk  Larsen nenadolgo
poyavlyalsya na yute.  No eto bylo vse. On ne delal popytok spustit'sya na bereg,
-- nam eto bylo izvestno, tak kak my sledili za nim i prodolzhali dezhurit' po
nocham. My zhdali, chto on  chto-nibud'  predprimet,  otkroet, tak skazat', svoyu
igru. Ego bezdejstvie sbivalo nas s tolku i vyzyvalo trevogu.


     A week  of this passed by. We had  no  other interest than Wolf Larsen,
and  his  presence weighed us down  with an apprehension which prevented  us
from doing any of the little things we had planned.

     Tak  proshla nedelya. Vse nashi mysli byli  teper' sosredotocheny  na Volke
Larsene.  Ego  prisutstvie  ugnetalo  nas  i  meshalo nam  zanimat'sya  nashimi
obychnymi delami.


     But at the end of the week the smoke ceased rising from the galley, and
he no longer showed himself on the poop. I could see Maud's solicitude again
growing,  though  she timidly  -  and  even  proudly,  I think -  forbore  a
repetition of her  request.  After all, what censure could be put upon  her?
She  was  divinely altruistic, and she was a woman.  Besides,  I  was myself
aware of hurt  at thought of this man whom I had  tried to kill, dying alone
with his fellow- creatures  so near.  He was right. The code of my group was
stronger than I.  The  fact  that  he  had  hands, feet,  and a  body shaped
somewhat like mine, constituted a claim which I could not ignore.

     No k koncu nedeli  dymok perestal vit'sya  nad kambuzom, i  Volk  Larsen
bol'she ne poyavlyalsya na yute. YA videl, chto Mod snova nachinaet bespokoit'sya, no
iz robosti, a mozhet byt', i iz gordosti ne povtoryaet svoej pros'by. A v chem,
v  sushchnosti, mog  ya  upreknut'  ee?  Ona byla  zhenshchinoj i k tomu zhe  gluboko
al'truisticheskoj naturoj.  Priznat'sya, mne samomu bylo  kak-to  ne po  sebe,
kogda ya dumal o tom, chto etot chelovek, kotorogo ya pytalsya ubit', byt' mozhet,
umiraet zdes',  vozle nas, broshennyj  vsemi. On  okazalsya prav. Nravstvennye
pravila, privitye mne v  moem krugu, byli sil'nee menya. To, chto u nego takie
zhe ruki  i  nogi,  kak  u  menya, i  telo imeet  nekotoroe shodstvo  s  moim,
nakladyvalo na menya obyazatel'stva, kotorymi ya ne mog prenebrech'.


     So I did not wait  a second time for Maud to send me. I discovered that
we stood in need of  condensed milk and marmalade, and announced  that I was
going  aboard. I could see  that  she  wavered.  She  even went so far as to
murmur that they  were  non-essentials and that  my trip after them might be
inexpedient.  And as  she  had followed  the trend  of my  silence, she  now
followed  the  trend of my speech, and she knew that I was going aboard, not
because  of condensed milk and  marmalade,  but because of  her and  of  her
anxiety, which she knew she had failed to hide.

     Poetomu ya ne stal zhdat',  kogda Mod vtorichno poshlet menya  na shhunu.  "U
nas ostalos' malo sgushchennogo moloka i dzhema, -- zayavil ya,  -- nado podnyat'sya
na bort". YA videl, chto Mod kolebletsya. Ona dazhe probormotala, chto vse eto ne
tak uzh nam neobhodimo i  mne  nezachem  hodit' tuda. Odnako podobno tomu, kak
ran'she ona sumela razgadat', chto taitsya za moim molchaniem,  tak i teper' ona
srazu ponyala istinnyj smysl moih slov, ponyala,  chto ya idu tuda ne za molokom
i dzhemom, a radi nee, -- idu, chtoby izbavit' ee ot bespokojstva, kotoroe ona
ne sumela ot menya skryt'.


     I  took  off  my shoes when  I gained  the  forecastle  head,  and went
noiselessly aft  in  my stocking feet. Nor did I call this time from the top
of the companion-way. Cautiously descending, I found the cabin deserted. The
door to  his  state-room was closed. At  first I thought of knocking, then I
remembered  my ostensible errand  and resolved  to  carry  it out. Carefully
avoiding noise,  I lifted the trap-door in the floor and set it to one side.
The slop-chest, as well as the provisions, was stored in  the lazarette, and
I took advantage of the opportunity to lay in a stock of underclothing.

     Podnyavshis' na sudno, ya snyal bashmaki i v odnih noskah besshumno prokralsya
na  kormu.  Na  etot  raz  ya  ne  stal  oklikat'  Volka  Larsena.  Ostorozhno
spustivshis' po trapu, ya obnaruzhil, chto v  kayut-kompanii nikogo net.  Dver' v
kayutu kapitana byla zakryta. YA uzhe hotel bylo postuchat', no peredumal, reshiv
sperva  zanyat'sya  tem,  chto yakoby  i privelo menya  syuda.  Starayas'  pomen'she
shumet',  ya podnyal kryshku lyuka i otstavil ee v storonu. Tovary  sudovoj lavki
nahodilis' v toj zhe kladovoj, i mne zahotelos' zaodno zapastis' i bel'em.


     As  I  emerged  from  the  lazarette I  heard  sounds in Wolf  Larsen's
state-room. I crouched  and  listened.  The  door-knob  rattled.  Furtively,
instinctively,  I  slunk  back  behind  the  table and drew  and  cocked  my
revolver. The  door  swung  open  and he  came forth. Never  had I  seen  so
profound  a despair as  that which I saw  on his face, -  the  face  of Wolf
Larsen  the fighter, the strong man, the  indomitable one. For all the world
like  a woman wringing her hands, he raised his clenched fists and  groaned.
One  fist unclosed,  and the  open  palm swept  across  his  eyes as  though
brushing away cobwebs.

     Kogda ya  vybralsya iz kladovoj,  v kayute Volka Larsena  razdalsya  shum. YA
zamer i prislushalsya.  Zvyaknula  dvernaya  ruchka. YA  instinktivno  otpryanul  v
storonu. Pritaivshis' za  stolom, ya  vyhvatil revol'ver i vzvel kurok.  Dver'
raspahnulas', i pokazalsya Volk Larsen. Nekogda ne videl  ya takogo  otchayaniya,
kakoe bylo napisano na  ego lice  --  na lice  sil'nogo,  neukrotimogo Volka
Larsena. On  stonal, kak zhenshchina,  i potryasal  szhatymi kulakami nad golovoj.
Potom provel ladon'yu po glazam, slovno smetaya s nih nevidimuyu pautinu.


     "God! God!" he groaned, and the clenched fists were raised again to the
infinite despair with which his throat vibrated.

     -- Gospodi, gospodi! -- hriplo prostonal on i v bespredel'nom  otchayanii
snova potryas kulakami.


     It was horrible. I was trembling all over, and I could feel the shivers
running  up and  down my  spine  and the sweat  standing out on my forehead.
Surely  there can be little in this world more awful than the spectacle of a
strong man in the moment when he is utterly weak and broken.

     |to  bylo strashno.  YA  zadrozhal, po spine  u menya  probezhali murashki, i
holodnyj  pot vystupil na lbu.  Vryad li est' na svete zrelishche bolee uzhasnoe,
chem vid sil'nogo cheloveka v minutu krajnej slabosti i upadka duha.


     But  Wolf  Larsen regained control of  himself  by an  exertion  of his
remarkable will. And  it  was  exertion.  His  whole  frame  shook with  the
struggle.  He  resembled  a man on the  verge of a fit.  His face strove  to
compose  itself,  writhing and twisting in  the  effort  till  he broke down
again. Once more  the clenched  fists went upward and  he groaned. He caught
his breath once or twice  and  sobbed. Then he  was successful. I could have
thought him the old Wolf Larsen, and yet there  was in his movements a vague
suggestion of weakness and indecision. He started for the companion-way, and
stepped forward quite as I had been accustomed to see him do; and yet again,
in his very walk, there seemed that suggestion of weakness and indecision.

     No ogromnym usiliem  voli Volk Larsen vzyal sebya  v  ruki. Poistine  eto
stoilo emu kolossal'nogo usiliya. Vse telo  ego  sotryasalos'  ot  napryazheniya.
Kazalos',  ego  vot-vot hvatit  udar. Lico ego  strashno  iskazilos' -- vidno
bylo, kak on staraetsya  ovladet' soboj. Potom sily snova ostavili ego. Vnov'
szhatye kulaki  podnyalis' nad  golovoj, on zastonal, sudorozhno vzdohnul  raz,
drugoj,  i  iz grudi  ego vyrvalis'  rydaniya. Nakonec  emu udalos'  ovladet'
soboj.  YA  opyat' uvidel  prezhnego Volka  Larsena,  hotya kakaya-to slabost'  i
nereshitel'nost'  vse  eshche  proskal'zyvali v  ego  dvizheniyah.  |nergichno, kak
vsegda, on shagnul  k  trapu,  no  vse  zhe  v  ego pohodke  chuvstvovalas' eta
slabost' i nereshitel'nost'.


     I was now concerned with fear for myself. The open trap lay directly in
his  path, and his discovery of it would lead  instantly to his discovery of
me. I was  angry  with  myself for  being caught  in so cowardly a position,
crouching on the floor. There was yet time. I rose swiftly to my  feet, and,
I know, quite unconsciously assumed a defiant attitude. He took no notice of
me. Nor did he notice the open trap. Before I could grasp the  situation, or
act,  he had walked right into the  trap. One foot was descending  into  the
opening, while the other foot was just on the verge of beginning the uplift.
But when the  descending foot  missed the  solid  flooring and felt  vacancy
beneath, it was the  old Wolf Larsen and the  tiger  muscles  that made  the
falling body  spring across the opening, even  as it fell, so that he struck
on  his chest  and  stomach,  with arms  outstretched,  on the  floor of the
opposite side. The next instant he had drawn  up his  legs and rolled clear.
But he rolled into my marmalade and underclothes and against the trap- door.

     Priznat'sya,  tut uzh ya ispugalsya -- nezakrytyj lyuk  nahodilsya kak raz na
ego puti i vydaval moe prisutstvie. No vmeste  s tem mne  stalo dosadno, chto
on mozhet pojmat'  menya v takoj truslivoj poze  -- skorchivshimsya pozadi stola,
-- i  ya reshil, poka  ne pozdno,  poyavit'sya pered  nim, chto tut zhe i  sdelal,
bessoznatel'no prinyav vyzyvayushchuyu pozu. No Volk Larsen ne zamechal ni menya, ni
otkrytogo  lyuka.  Prezhde  chem  ya  uspel  ponyat',  v  chem  delo,  i  chto-libo
predprinyat', on uzhe  zanes  nogu  nad lyukom i  gotov  byl stupit' v pustotu.
Odnako, ne  oshchutiv  pod nogoj tverdoj opory, on  mgnovenno preobrazilsya. Da,
eto byl uzhe prezhnij Volk Larsen. Vtoraya noga ego eshche ne uspela otorvat'sya ot
pola, kak on  odnim moguchim pryzhkom perenes  svoe nachavshee padat' telo cherez
lyuk. SHiroko raskinuv  ruki, on plashmya  -- grud'yu i zhivotom -- upal na pol po
tu  storonu  lyuka i tut  zhe, podtyanuv  nogi,  otkatilsya  v  storonu, pryamo v
slozhennye mnoyu okolo kryshki lyuka produkty i bel'e.