Chapter Ten

Chapter Ten.

 

 

Cabin Boy finds the first mate glowering down at Rob and Riddles on the forecastle. He is glad he is not one of the older boys, for the first mate looks to be in a foul mood. Cabin Boy remains unsure of how to pose his question. For that matter, he is unsure of how to address the first mate. He has heard the crew call him Manners, but never to his face, and he is not at all sure whether that is the man’s name, or whether they use it in jest, as you would call a fat man Slim.

“Excuse me, Mr First Mate,” he says timidly.

“Manners. Me name be Manners,” the first mate says gruffly. “That be Mr Manners to ye.”

“Excuse me, Mr Manners, sir. Something is missing, and others have said you know of everything that goes on aboard The Belching Barfsniffer, sir.”

Mr Manners snorts. “Don’t be flattering me, boy. I know what most of the crew think of me, but they can be jimmied. What’s gone missing?”

“Annie’s Undies, sir. They’ve gone missing from the captain’s cabin.”

The man’s eyes narrow. “They go missing from the captain’s cabin and ye think I took them? Do ye think me a thief, boy?”

“No, sir. I just thought you might have seen them or have some clue as to where they might be. I need to have them in their proper place by sundown.”

Mr Manners stares at Cabin Boy from under a thunderous brow. “If ye be wanting them so bad, and ye be wanting me help, then ye won’t mind bringing me a kill-devil flip.”

“A kill-devil flip, sir?” Cabin Boy had heard the crew refer to rum as kill-devil before, but had never heard of a kill-devil flip.

“Aye, that be four parts kill-devil, and one part dark beer. I be wanting the fire in the belly that ye can only get from a kill-devil flip.”

“I’ll bring you your kill-devil flip, Mr Manners, sir,” Cabin Boy says. At this point, a kill-devil flip seems a small price to pay to learn the whereabouts of Annie’s Undies.

As he walks away, Mr Manners calls after him, “Mind it well, boy! Exactly four parts rum to one part dark beer!”