As he could speak nothing but Spanish I soon left him alone, and fell to pacing the deck, immersed in my own thoughts.

These were far from pleasant ones, as I reviewed again the strange situation in which I found myself.

Circumstances had played me a sorry trick.

Without plan, almost without effort, I had drifted into a position of utmost delicacy.

Any accident or mistake might lead to disastrous results.
Not only my own life, but the life of the young woman below, could be endangered by a single careless word, or act.