My curiosity was stronger than my fear. I could not stay hidden where I was, so I slowly crawled back toward the roadside.
I hid my head behind a broom bush, from where I could watch the road in front of the inn without being seen.
I had barely found my hiding place when my enemies appeared.
Seven or eight men came running toward the Admiral Benbow. Their footsteps pounded wildly on the road, and the man carrying the lantern ran several steps ahead of the others.
Three men were running together, holding hands.
Even through the thick mist, I recognized the man in the middle.
It was the blind beggar.
A moment later, his voice confirmed it.
“Break down the door!” Pew shouted.
“Yes, sir!” several men answered.
They rushed toward the inn, with the lantern-bearer following behind.
Then they suddenly stopped.
I heard them whispering to each other, clearly surprised that the door was already open.
But their hesitation did not last long.
Pew shouted again. His voice grew louder and sharper, filled with anger and impatience.
“Get inside! Inside, you fools!”
He cursed them for wasting time.
Four or five men immediately rushed into the inn.
Two stayed outside with Pew.
For a moment, everything was quiet.
Then a sudden cry of surprise came from inside.
“Bill’s dead!”
But Pew only became more furious.
“Search him, you lazy dogs! The rest of you go upstairs and get the chest!”
I heard their heavy footsteps shaking our old wooden stairs.
A few moments later, more shocked voices came from above.
The captain’s bedroom window was thrown open with a loud crash, and broken glass fell everywhere.
A man leaned out into the moonlight and shouted down to Pew.
“Pew! Someone got here before us. The chest has been emptied completely.”
“Is it still there?” Pew roared.
“The money is still here.”
The blind man cursed.
“I mean Flint’s papers! The thing that belonged to Flint!”
“We can’t find it anywhere,” the man replied.
Pew shouted again.
“Check Bill! Is it on him?”
Another man, probably the one who had stayed below to search the captain’s body, came to the inn door.
“Bill’s already been searched,” he said. “There’s nothing left.”
“It was the inn people! It was that boy!” Pew screamed.
“I wish I had blinded him when I had the chance! They must have taken it. They had the door locked when I came earlier. Spread out, lads! Find them!”
The man at the window called down:
“They left their lantern here.”
“Search everywhere!” Pew shouted again. “Turn the whole place upside down!”
He struck his stick against the road in anger.
Then the entire inn exploded into chaos.
Heavy boots rushed everywhere.
Furniture was thrown aside.
Doors were kicked open.
The old walls seemed to shake from the noise.
But after searching every corner, the pirates came back outside one by one.
“We can’t find them anywhere,” they said.
At that moment, the same whistle that had frightened my mother and me earlier sounded again in the darkness.
This time it came twice.
Before, I had thought it was some kind of signal from Pew calling his men to attack.
Now I realized it was a warning from the hillside near the village.
The pirates understood it immediately.
“There’s Dirk again,” one man said.
“Twice! We need to leave, mates.”
“Leave?” Pew shouted angrily.
“Dirk was always a coward. Don’t listen to him! They must still be nearby. You’ve almost got what you want. Search for them!”
He waved his stick desperately.
“Spread out and find them, you fools!”
His men hesitated.
Two of them slowly searched around the yard, but they looked nervous and kept watching the road.
The others stood there uncertainly.
“You idiots!” Pew screamed.
“You have thousands of pounds right in your hands, and you’re standing there like frightened children!”
“You would be rich like kings if you found it!”
“You know the treasure is here, but you’re too scared to look!”
“None of you dared face Bill. I did it, and I’m blind!”
“And now I’m supposed to go back to begging for rum, crawling around like a poor beggar, when I could have been riding in a carriage!”
“If you had even a little courage, you would catch them!”
“Forget it, Pew,” one pirate muttered.
“We already have the gold coins.”
“They might have hidden the papers,” another said.
“Take what we have and leave.”
That only made Pew angrier.
His rage completely took over.
He swung his stick wildly in every direction, hitting several of the men.
The pirates cursed him back.
They threatened him and tried to grab the stick from his hand.
Their argument saved our lives.
While they were fighting, another sound came from the top of the hill.
The sound of horses running closer and closer.
At almost the same moment, a gunshot exploded from near the hedge.
A flash lit up the darkness.
That was the final warning.
The pirates immediately panicked.
They ran in every direction.
One fled toward the sea.
Another ran across the hillside.
Within seconds, they had all disappeared.
All except Pew.
They had abandoned him.
Whether they left him because they were terrified or because they hated his insults and attacks, I never knew.
Pew stood alone on the road, tapping his stick wildly and calling for his companions.
“Johnny! Black Dog! Dirk!”
“You won’t leave old Pew behind!”
“Not old Pew, mates!”
But then the sound of horses reached the top of the hill.
Four or five riders appeared in the moonlight and rushed down the slope.
Pew suddenly realized his mistake.
With a scream, he turned and ran toward the ditch.
He fell into it, but quickly climbed out again.
Completely confused, he ran straight into the path of the nearest horse.
The rider tried to stop.
But it was too late.
Pew fell beneath the horse’s feet with a terrible cry.
The horses passed over him.
He rolled onto his side, slowly fell forward, and never moved again.
I jumped up and called out to the riders.
They stopped at once, horrified by what had happened.
Soon I recognized them.
One was a boy from the village who had gone to find Dr. Livesey.
The others were revenue officers he had met on the way.
The boy had wisely brought them back with him.
News about the ship hiding at Kitt’s Hole had reached Supervisor Dance, and he had immediately brought his men toward our inn.
My mother and I owed our lives to that accident.
Pew was completely dead.
As for my mother, after we carried her to the village, some cold water and smelling salts soon brought her around.
She recovered quickly, although she still worried about the money we had lost.
Meanwhile, Supervisor Dance hurried toward Kitt’s Hole.
His men had to leave their horses behind and carefully move through the narrow valley on foot.
They were constantly afraid of another ambush.
So it was not surprising that when they finally reached the place, the ship was already moving away.
It was still close enough for Dance to call out.
A voice answered from the ship:
“Stay out of the moonlight, or you’ll get a bullet!”
At the same moment, a shot rang out.
A bullet passed close by his arm.
Soon after that, the ship turned around the point and disappeared.
Mr. Dance later said he stood there “like a fish out of water.”
There was nothing he could do except send a man to the nearby town to warn another ship.
“They escaped completely,” he said.
“But at least I’m glad I stepped on Master Pew’s toes.”
By then, he had already heard my story.
I returned with him to the Admiral Benbow.
The sight of the inn shocked me.
The pirates had destroyed everything while searching for us.
The clock had even been knocked off the wall.
Although they had only taken the captain’s money pouch and some silver coins from the cash box, I knew immediately that we were ruined.
Mr. Dance looked around in confusion.
“They took the money, you say?”
“Then what were they searching for, Hawkins?”
“More money, I suppose?”
“No, sir,” I replied.
“I don’t think they wanted money.”
“Actually, I believe I have the thing they were looking for in my coat pocket.”
“And to be honest, I would like to put it somewhere safe.”
“You’re right, boy,” Mr. Dance said.
“I’ll keep it for you, if you wish.”
“I was thinking perhaps Dr. Livesey—” I began.
“Exactly right,” he interrupted cheerfully.
“Dr. Livesey is a gentleman and a magistrate. That would be a safe place.”
“Now that I think about it, I should go there myself and report everything.”
“Pew is dead, after all. I don’t regret it, but people may try to blame a King’s officer for his death.”
“If you like, Hawkins, I’ll take you with me.”
I thanked him warmly.
We walked back to the village where the horses were waiting.
By the time I had explained my plan to my mother, everyone was already mounted.
“Dogger,” Mr. Dance said, “you have a strong horse. Take this boy behind you.”
I climbed onto the horse and held tightly to Dogger’s belt.
Then the supervisor gave the order.
The group set off at a fast trot along the road toward Dr. Livesey’s house.