Biff’s uncle quickly started the motor and got away from the spot at full speed. He had seen the size of the sharks. They were big enough to overturn the dory if they struck.
By the time they reached the island camp, the boys had somewhat recovered. But Biff was still shaking as if he had a chill, and Derek’s face was drawn and white.
The narrow escape the boys had undergone was not without its reward, however.
All four of the pearl fishers—Crunch was now one of them—were shucking oysters after a rest and the noonday meal.
Biff, growing more and more bored with the tough job of opening and examining oysters, was about to discard a shell when he noticed a raised protuberance in the exact center on the shell. He took off his glove and dug at the raised part with a fingernail. His excitement grew. Seconds later he dug out an almost perfectly shaped white pearl.
“I’ve got one! I’ve got one!” he shouted.
The others crowded around him. Biff handed the pearl to his uncle.
“I’m no expert, Biff. But the color, and particularly the shape, of this pearl—I’d say you’ve found a really valuable one.”
“I couldn’t tell. Only an expert could. But it’s a white pearl—they’re the most valuable. And it’s almost perfectly round. It could be worth several thousands of dollars.”
“Whoopee!” Biff shouted. “Let me at more of those oysters!”
Interest quickened. The four worked in silence, but they worked fast. Oyster after oyster was opened, carefully inspected, then tossed aside.
Derek found the next one. It, too, was perfectly shaped, but slightly smaller than the one Biff had found.
It was Crunch who came through with the topper. A big grin on his face, Crunch came over to Biff and held our his huge hand. In the center of his palm was a pearl twice the size of those already found.
“This is it! This is it! Look at Crunch’s pearl!”
Again they all crowded around. This was a real beauty. It didn’t take an expert to know that Crunch had found a pearl of great value.
“Think we’ve found it, Uncle Charlie?” Biff asked. “I mean the fishery Derek’s father discovered?”
“It could be, Biff. It darn well could be.”
Biff looked at Derek. There was a smile on the Dutch boy’s face. Then the smile disappeared.
“My father found black pearls,” Derek replied.