“Know what I hear dis minute? Cop’in Cy hisself talkin’. Dot one determined mon.” Artemis paused, rubbing the hatband’s furrow. “But your papa wasn’t pighead determined. Had common sense. When it look like dot ship gwan to break her back, he told de crew to slip dem cables to get de hell off. Lissen to me, now. I’m feelin’ responsible for what you do. Got no idea why, but I do. You promise dis old eye-lond nigger dot you ain’t gwan to dive on dot wreck.”

“Promise. Honest.”

“Don’t know why dis is,” Artemis said, with a grin. “But dere somethin’ about the way you say dot word honest make me think the opposite. Dot dom wreck just plain old bad luck. De preacher shiverin’ hisself to death. Me, Jimmy, your papa losin’ his license …”

“But it brought you pretty good luck. Set you up.”

“Dot partways Cop’in Cy’s doin’. When you thinkin’ of shovin’ off?”

“We haven’t talked about it, but I reckon Sunday, after we finish up the week working for Pinder.” He looked again at Will, Eliot, and Andrew. “With your okay, shipmates.”

“Thanks for consulting us, Natters. You’re getting democratic in your old age. But all right. Sunday. How about it, my fellow peons?”

Eliot and Drew nodded.

“Now I’m figurin’ it dis way. You boys can make de seventy mile to de Tortugas easy enough.” He raised three fingers. “Calcalate ten, twelve hours dere, ten, twelve back, dot make one whole day.” One finger dropped. “Calcalate a day for you to play around out dere lookin’ at your wreck, dot make two whole days.” The second finger folded. “Calcalate another day in case you get becalmed or some other things hoppen you didn’t count on. Dot make t’ree.” The third finger. “Sundee, Mondee, Tuesdee. You back here Tuesdee night, Wed-nez-dee mornin’ de latest. You promise me dis, too. Dot you tell me when you leavin’ and you let me know when you get back. Den, if you not back, I can report you overdue, dot de proper way seafarin’ folks do things. I ain’t to home, you leave word with my Euphy. Our house over to Petronia Street. You ask any nigger in Africa Town where it is, he’ll tell you. You promise me dot?”

“We sure do, we’ll do it,” Eliot answered, before Nathaniel could utter a word; it had occurred to Eliot that this old West Indian, whom they barely knew, was showing more concern for their welfare than their father had.