A Hero for Leanda

?”
    “I know very well. Traitors and fainthearts have to be eliminated with the maximum of violence and terror and pain, so that others may profit by the lesson. In this case, the lesson was most effective.”
    “And you think that can lead to freedom and happiness !“
    “It can lead to victory!”
    There was a little silence. Kastella, looking pleased with himself , fingered his gun. Conway stared at the compass. Leanda said, after a moment, “At least I know now that I owe you no allegiance. I hate and loathe everything you stand for.... I came to Heureuse because I believed in you. I shall never cease to regret it.”
    “It’s a little late for second thoughts about that, isn’t it?” Kastella said. “What you should think of now is your own safety, your own future. If you talk unwisely, you will suffer, as the traitors of Meos suffered. You have been warned! But if you are discreet, and forget the unpleasantnesses of our trip, there may be great possibilities for you. In a little while the English will have left our country, and I shall take over supreme power.”
    “Then God help Spyros!” Leanda said. She stood looking out over the sea, her eyes brimming with tears. After a moment, she went below.

    Kastella said, “Well, Conway —you took no part in our little argument.”
    “No,” Conway said.
    “For an Irishman, you’re remarkably silent. You consider it a family matter, perhaps?”
    “Hardly!”
    “Then, as a realist, you must surely agree with me.”
    “As a realist,” Conway said, “I think it’s men like you, on all sides, who are turning the world into a hell.”
    “I see.... In that case, any more discussion might be rather arid. What about the practical question—getting to Africa , and your twenty thousand pounds?”
    “That’s another matter.... We’re still heading west, aren’t we?”
    “True—but it would be so much pleasanter if I felt I could count on your wholehearted co-operation.”
    “I’m thinking about it.”
    “Good! Well, now I shall go and get some sleep.” Kastella climbed cautiously down from the coach roof. “I shall lock my cabin door, of course, just to be on the safe side— and I always wake at the slightest sound. So don’t try anything foolish.”
    He glanced around the empty sea, looked at the compass, and gave a little nod. “Just keep her as she is!” he said.
    The sun blazed down all morning, grilling the deck. The only breath of air was the warm draft made by Thalia’s own passage. Conway , left alone in the cockpit, steered from under the awning. Every now and again he took a drink of tepid water from a jug beside him. He had to have it, though it almost choked him. The picture of the ketch was starkly vivid in his mind. The Negro family must be frying like eggs in their stationary craft.... He tried not to dwell on it, but the picture wouldn’t fade.
    Below, all was quiet. Leanda, he decided, must be sleeping. Lunchtime came, but no one made any move. Conway didn’t mind—he had never felt less hungry. He didn’t even mind Leanda not coming up for her watch. She was probably exhausted after that shattering talk with Kastella. Anyway, he was glad to be left alone. He had a great deal to think about, and a big decision to make....
    Soon after midday, a light breeze sprang up from the west, ruffling the sea. Conway hadn’t expected that. Presently he switched off the engine and hoisted sail, setting Thalia on a course to the southwest. The breeze persisted throughout the afternoon, bringing a few merciful clouds. A little of the tenseness began to go out of his face; a little hope began to creep in. If only the wind would keep on blowing gently from the same direction!
    Around four, Leanda came out. She looked strained, and very pale. There was something almost furtive about the way she closed the saloon door behind her before joining Conway in the cockpit.
    He said, “Have you had a good sleep?”
    “I haven’t been sleeping—I’ve been thinking....” She sat down beside him. “Mike, I’ve got to talk to you.”
    “Go ahead,” he said, “there’s no charge.”
    “It’s about Kastella ... She was keeping her voice very low. “You must have thought me extraordinarily naive, the way I behaved about him.”
    “Not extraordinarily.”
    “But I was.... After all, I scarcely knew him.”
    Conway shrugged. “You had bad luck. He might have turned out all right. Average for a politician, anyway!”
    “I was crazy