The shouts for the doctor had attracted Butler’s own attention and it was with incredulity that he had watched as the dead man sat up and climbed, somewhat drunkenly, to his feet. The men closest to the prisoner yelped in surprise and crossed themselves as they retreated back across the deck. The doctor arrived on deck and went white as he saw the prisoner stagger towards him. Butler had seen the doctor stumble over rigging coiled on the deck and fall heavily. The prisoner drew nearer and Butler had shouted for the marines.

The doctor had continued to scramble back away from the prisoner on his hands and knees, too frightened to take the time to regain his footing. The prisoner had remained silent the whole time and seemed to move awkwardly, the pitch of the frigate sending him to and fro as if he had lost his sea legs.

The marines had arrived, three of them armed with muskets, and a volley of shots struck the prisoner and sent him crashing back against the main mast. Captain Purcell, the captain of the small compliment of Marines had turned to help the doctor to his feet when a cry of warning snapped every head on the ship back to the main deck.

The crumpled figure of the prisoner had begun to move again. First his head lifted from his chin and then his arms moved to the deck. The whole ship had looked on in shock as the Frenchman regained his feet and approached Perkins, who still lay whimpering on the deck with his arm held to his chest.

Purcell bellowed an order and his men reloaded and took aim again. Two rounds drove deeply into the Frenchman’s chest and he staggered but didn’t fall. The third man took an extra second to aim and the round shot took the Frenchman between the eyes. The man crumpled and fell unmoving to the deck. It had been at least a half-hour before anyone approached the still form, and even then the men wore thick coats when they lifted the body and threw it overboard.

The shock and fear had gripped the ship for the rest of the day but what they had learned later provided more than enough resolve to catch and destroy the enemy ahead of them.

Perkin’s death, the bite had festered and fever had killed him yesterday, only served to fuel the hatred and disgust the men felt towards the frigate ahead of them. Nobody had wanted to wait and see if Perkins, too, would get up and attack his former shipmates so they had beheaded his body and buried him with a quick service.

Butler watched the activity on deck.

“Do you think it will be enough, Captain?” Fowler came up beside his Captain and spoke in a low whisper.

“I pray it is, Mister Fowler. I pray it is.”