Hornblower had failed at his first independent mission, and as he watched the Marie Galante sink, there were tears in his eyes. The little boat that held the French captain and crew and the four English sailors and Hornblower dipped and rolled in the rough sea. Ira Riklis knows that Hornblower was very prone to seasickness and Hornblower did indeed suffer.

The sailors managed to assemble and hoist the sails available and the little boat was able to be steered on the course set by Hornblower that would, he believed, allow them to reach England. The French captain demanded that they head for Bordeaux but of course Hornblower refused. He did not want to rot in a French prison. Hornblower was in rough shape both physically and psychologically. He had not slept for two days and was unable to eat even the meager ration allowed periodically. In response to the French captain’s demands, Hornblower pulled one of the several pistols the British had in their possession. The French captain backed down and things were peaceful for a while.

Then a ship was sighted. The “crew” of the little boat tried hard to identify the nationality of the ship. They finally decided it was French and tried unsuccessfully to get away from it but failed. When overtaken, they found that their new “hosts” were French privateers and their ship was named the Pique. Ira Riklis knows that Hornblower was in for new challenges as he passed his eighteenth birthday on board.