As soon as Ben Gunn saw the flag, he suddenly stopped. He took my arm and sat down at once.
'Now,' he said, 'those are your friends, for sure.'
' Actually, I think they’re the pirates,' I replied.
' No way !' he cried. 'No, no. In a place like this, pirates like Long John Silver would show the black flag – the Jolly Roger. You can be certain of that. No, those are your friends. There’s been a battle, too, and I think your friends have won. And there they are, on land, in the old fort built ages ago by Captain Flint. Ah, Flint was a brilliant man! No one was like him. He was afraid of no one—well, maybe Silver.'
'Well,' I said, 'maybe you’re right. In that case, we should hurry up and join them.'
'No, mate,' said Ben. 'I won’t go there—not even for rum—until I see your gentleman and he promises me.'
And he looked at me and touched the side of his nose, smiling like he was very smart.
'And when they need Ben Gunn, they’ll know where to find me— right here. The man who comes must have something white in his hand, and he must come on his own. And say this: ‘Ben Gunn has reasons of his own.’'
'I think I understand,' I said. 'You want to speak to the squire or the doctor, and I should inform them of where you are. That’s all?'
'And when?' he added. 'From approximately midday till evening.'
'Good,' I said. 'Can I go now?'
'You won’t forget?' he asked. 'Reasons of his own—that’s important. Alright, you can go off now. And Jim—if you see Silver, you won’t tell him I’m here, will you? Not for anything?'
Suddenly, there was a loud bang! A cannonball crashed through the trees and landed in the sand not far from us. At once, we both ran away in different directions.
For an hour, the island shook. Cannonballs flew through the wood. I moved from one hiding place to another, always feeling they were behind me. But in the end, I began to feel braver, and I slowly made my way down to the trees by the shore.
The ship Hispaniola was still there—but now the black pirate flag – the Jolly Roger – was flying. As I watched, there was another another shot. Then silence. The attack was over.
I lay there, watching. A small boat kept going backwards and forwards between the ship and the shore. The men were shouting and laughing like children—but their voices sounded as though the had been drinking too much rum.
At last, I decided to make my way to the fort. I carefully went through the woods until I reached the back. I knocked on the wood of the fort wall and called out my name, and immediately the doctor opened the door and let me in. My friends welcomed me back warmly, and were glad I was safe.
My friends explained to me how they had left the ship in a small boat. They had brought guns and food with them. Fortunately, this fort would give us protection. But the pirates had guns too and there had been a battle.
Gray, a sailor who had joined us had a bandage on his face from the fight. And old Tom, another good sailor lay dead under a British flag. He had been killed in the battle.
Then I looked around. The house was made of rough wood. The floor was raised above the sand. There was a small entrance, and under it a small stream came up from the ground flowed into a big iron pot and back down into the ground – drinking water!
Inside, there was not much. No furniture - just a place for a fire.
The cold wind blew through holes in the wooden walls, and sand got everywhere—in our eyes, our food, even in the water. Smoke filled the room, making us cough.
If we had done nothing, we would have felt very depressed, but Captain Smollett kept us busy. He divided us into two groups. Some collected wood, others dug a grave. The doctor cooked. I watched at the door. The captain went around, helping everyone and telling jokes to keep us cheerful.
Then the doctor asked me, 'Is this Ben Gunn a real man?'
'I’m not sure,' I said. 'He may not be right in the head.'
'Three years on your own on an island changes a man. Did you say he likes cheese?'
'Yes,' I said.
'Well,' said the doctor, 'I have some Parmesan cheese. That’s for Ben Gunn!'
Before supper, we buried Tom and stood quietly around the grave. We had some food and drink, then the leaders got together to talk.
They were worried. We had little food. But their plan was to fight the pirates. The pirates were already fewer in number, and some were injured.
We could hear them singing late into the night.
'If they can’t kill us,' said the doctor, 'they’ll soon want to give up and leave.'
'First ship I ever lost,' said Captain Smollett.
I was very tired that evening, and very soon I fell asleep.
When I woke up, I heard voices.
'A white flag!' someone said.
Then another voice cried, 'It’s Long John Silver himself!'
At once, I jumped up, and ran to look outside.
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