Long John Silver disappeared into the woods. Captain Smollett looked at his men. Only Abraham Gray was at his place. All the other men were away from their positions. Captain Smollett was very angry.
"Go to your places!" Captain Smollett shouted. The men moved quickly. Captain Smollett spoke to Abraham Gray. "I will write your name in the ship's book. You did your duty like a good sailor," he said.
Then Captain Smollett spoke to Mr. Trelawney and Dr. Livesey. He was surprised because they were not ready. Everyone went back to the loopholes (small holes in the wall to shoot through). They loaded the muskets (old, long guns).
The men felt bad and their faces were red. Captain Smollett was silent for a minute. Then he spoke to the men. "Long John Silver will attack us soon," he said.
"There are more pirates than us," the Captain continued. "But we have a house for protection. We can win if you fight well." Then Captain Smollett walked around the house to check everything.
There were two holes on the east side and two on the west side. There were two holes on the south side and five on the north side. There were twenty muskets for the seven men.
The men put the guns on piles of wood. These piles were like tables. There were four guns on each table. The cutlasses (short, heavy swords with a curved blade) were in the middle of the room.
"Put out the fire," Captain Smollett said. "The smoke is bad for our eyes." Mr. Trelawney carried the fire outside. He put sand on the fire to stop it.
Captain Smollett told Jim Hawkins to eat breakfast quickly. Hunter gave a small drink to everyone. Captain Smollett made a plan for the defense.
"Dr. Livesey, you stay at the door," Captain Smollett said. "Stay inside and shoot from there. Hunter, you take the east side. Joyce, you take the west side."
"Mr. Trelawney and Abraham Gray, take the north side," the Captain continued. "There are five holes there. It is the most dangerous place. Jim Hawkins and I are not good at shooting. We will load the guns for the others."
The sun was now very hot. It shone on the trees and the sand. The house became very warm. The men took off their coats and rolled up their sleeves.
They waited at their places. They felt hot and worried. One hour passed and nothing happened. The Captain said the waiting was very boring.
Suddenly, Joyce spoke. "Sir, if I see someone, can I shoot?" Captain Smollett said yes. Everyone listened carefully. Joyce moved his gun and fired.
Then many shots came from the woods. Many bullets hit the house. But the bullets did not come inside. The smoke went away and the woods looked empty again.
"Did you hit your man?" Captain Smollett asked. "No, sir," Joyce answered. Captain Smollett told Jim Hawkins to load the gun again.
Captain Smollett asked about the pirates. Dr. Livesey saw three pirates on his side. Mr. Trelawney and Abraham Gray saw eight or nine on the north side.
The pirates only fired one shot from the east and west. Captain Smollett knew the main attack was from the north. He did not change his plan.
If the pirates climbed the stockade (a high fence made of wooden posts), they could shoot into the house. The men did not have much time to think.
Suddenly, the pirates shouted. A group of pirates ran out of the woods toward the fence. They fired their guns again. A bullet hit Dr. Livesey’s gun and broke it.
The pirates climbed over the fence like monkeys. Mr. Trelawney and Abraham Gray fired their guns. Three pirates fell down. One pirate ran back into the trees.
But four pirates were now inside the fence. Seven or eight other pirates stayed in the trees. They kept shooting at the house. The four pirates inside the fence ran to the house.
The pirates climbed the hill and reached the house. Job Anderson was the boatswain (an officer on a ship). His head appeared at a hole in the wall.
"Attack them!" Job Anderson roared. At the same moment, another pirate grabbed Hunter’s gun. He pulled it away and hit Hunter very hard. Hunter fell to the floor and was unconscious.
A third pirate ran to the door. He attacked Dr. Livesey with a cutlass. Now the pirates were very close. There was a lot of smoke and noise.
"Go outside and fight in the open!" Captain Smollett cried. "Use your cutlasses!" Jim Hawkins grabbed a sword from the pile.
Jim Hawkins ran out of the door into the sunlight. Dr. Livesey was chasing a pirate down the hill. Dr. Livesey hit the pirate with his sword and the pirate fell down.
"Go around the house!" Captain Smollett shouted. Jim Hawkins obeyed the Captain. He ran around the corner with his sword.
Jim Hawkins saw Job Anderson. Job Anderson was very big and strong. He lifted his sword above his head. Jim Hawkins was not afraid.
Jim Hawkins jumped to the side to avoid the blow. He tripped on the soft sand and fell down. He rolled down the hill.
Jim Hawkins stood up quickly. He saw that the fight was over. Abraham Gray killed Job Anderson with a sword. Another pirate was dead near a hole in the wall.
Dr. Livesey killed the third pirate. The last pirate climbed back over the fence. He was very afraid and ran into the woods. The attack was over.
"Go back into the house!" Dr. Livesey shouted. Jim Hawkins, Abraham Gray, and Dr. Livesey ran for safety. They needed to get away from the pirates in the trees.
The smoke inside the house was gone. Jim Hawkins saw the results of the fight. Hunter was on the floor and could not move. Joyce was dead because a bullet hit his head.
Mr. Trelawney held Captain Smollett. Both men looked very pale. "Captain Smollett is wounded," Mr. Trelawney said.
"Did the pirates run away?" Captain Smollett asked. "Yes," Dr. Livesey answered. "Five pirates are dead."
"Five!" Captain Smollett said. "That is good. Now there are four of us and nine of them. Those are better numbers than before."