Gerry did manage to return to Jenny and Jessica unobserved. After Jessica had cried piteously in his arms on hearing about the death of her father, they waited until the men left then Gerry returned to the campsite and buried Peter Howard, Johannes, Angus and Tom. The convict dead he did not bury; merely dragging them into the nearby bushes so that Jessica would not have to look at their bodies when she came to say her final goodbyes.
Deciding that they would definitely be safer on the islands, there was no way of knowing if the convicts would eventually put two and two together and come hunting for them again, they swam the horses to the first island the next day, rested, then island-hopped until they reached one of the largest. On the western edge of this island the three of them made their base, tending to the mares. The pregnant duo were rounding out nicely and coming to terms with their losses.
When winter came in earnest, they were still there, snug and warm in a coastal cave, waiting for spring and an uncertain future.
Gerry was making private plans to return south, remembering well his conversation with his late captain concerning the trials and tribulations his wife and children were almost certainly experiencing in the hands of their captors. He felt deeply that he had to try but was torn two ways. He felt he could not leave Jenny and Jessica to fend for themselves on the island and spent many sleepless nights wondering what was the best option.
He was confident in his abilities to get back to Fort, although he could only guess at what he might find when he got there. A general plan was nonetheless forming in his mind. Perhaps he could slip in unnoticed and blend in with the convicts somehow, then bide his time waiting for the chance to spirit Anne, Ulla and the children away.
Of course, he could not do it at once, but in the spring, it might just be possible to leave Jenny and Jessica on the island for a while whilst he made the attempt. He said nothing to the two girls.
As the uneventful days passed, he became more and more resolved to get back to Fort and see if he could at least save the children, although at that point he did not know what one man could do against so many. He could and would however, give it his best shot.