The Pirates of Shan Part 19

Chahda's hand on his arm stopped Rick. He saw that they had nearly completed their inspection of this particular street. The masts of vintas and the sheen of water among the pirate craft were visible directly ahead.

He put his lips close to Chahda's ear and whispered, "Let's cut west, through the houses."

Rick's idea was to go through the quadrant of town they were now traversing, until he saw the waterfront on the west. Then they could cross the street that he pictured as the stem of the "T" and turn back toward the mountain, going through the town on the other side. That way, if any trouble developed, they would be only a few yards from the cornfield, and could certainly lose themselves until Zircon and Scotty could come roaring in.

They pa.s.sed under a lighted house, and through the split bamboo floor laths they could see two men drinking _basi_, or some other native beverage, from sections of bamboo. Now and then the two men talked in casual, drowsy tones.

Nowhere was there a sign of guards until Rick and Chahda pa.s.sed completely through the village and emerged under the great branches of a mango tree. Ahead of them was a field of grain, probably millet, and beyond it was the western sh.o.r.e of the island. As they watched, two men walked along the sh.o.r.e toward each other, met, chatted for a moment, then turned and walked away from each other again.

"Guards," Rick said softly. "Walking their patrols along the beach."

It was as he suspected. The two guards, patrolling the beach, could see everything that offered danger by walking from where they had met to points roughly halfway around the island.

"Maybe they see us in the vinta," Chahda whispered. "But maybe they no think much about it."

Rick thought he might be right, but the greater probability was that they hadn't been seen at all, especially if they had approached the sh.o.r.e while the guards were walking toward each other near the western end of the island.

"We'll be a little more cautious on the way back," Rick returned softly.

"Is so," Chahda agreed. "What we do now?"

Rick motioned toward the street that led from the volcano to the western sh.o.r.e. "Cross that and look at the houses on the other side. Come on."

With a quick look around to be sure no one was watching, or showing any undue interest in them, he moved out from the shadow of the mango tree and headed past the irregularly placed houses to where the wide strip of yellow dust marked the street.

They reached the street's edge without incident, and paused for another quick look before crossing. As Rick glanced up the street a flicker of yellow high in the air caught his eye. He lifted his head and stared directly at it. A fire! It was high up on the face of the cliff behind the village, where they couldn't have seen it from the street under the cliff.

He wondered. Was it a beacon for pirates who might be out in the vintas?

Apparently it was on a shelf of some sort more than a hundred feet above the village.

Then, as he watched, a tall, thin figure pa.s.sed in front of the fire and was silhouetted briefly against the flames.

He grabbed for Chahda. That was no Moro, not with those long legs and arms! And no Moro on this island would wear thick gla.s.ses, from which the firelight had glinted momentarily.

That was Howard Shannon!

CHAPTER XV

Plan of Attack

The boys crossed the street, crept past several houses, and gained the safety of the cornfield. Slowly, so that rustling leaves and stalks would not give them away, they crossed the cornfield. To Rick, at least, it was a terribly long and slow journey. He wanted to give a yell of joy and triumph. He wanted to call Zircon immediately and pa.s.s on the good news. But he knew silence was important, and he kept his exultation locked inside.

As they reached the lava flow Chahda gave the now-faithful pirate dog the last of his hamburgers, and the boys climbed across the lava to the beach. Only then did Rick dare to stop long enough to call the _Swift Arrow_.

"We found Shannon," he said triumphantly. "Now we have to get out of here. We'll give you the details later."

The boys pushed off in the vinta and paddled toward the east in order to get farther away from the guards before putting up the sail. Then, because the slight breeze had s.h.i.+fted, it was necessary to tack the cranky craft until dawn was pale in the east before they reached the _Swift Arrow_.

As the MTB moved quietly south, out of danger, Rick reported. "We saw Shannon, as I told you on the radio. I'm sure it was he. They're on the cliff at the back of the village. I'd guess the shelf where we saw the fire is over a hundred feet up."

"No sign of Briotti?" Zircon asked.

"None at all. Of course we couldn't see onto the shelf. There wasn't enough light and it was too high."

Scotty rubbed his chin. "How did they get up there?"

"Must be ladder," Chahda answered.

"A pretty good prison," Zircon commented. "No danger of escape, once the ladder or steps were removed, and the whole village serves as guard. The big question is, how do we get them out of there?"

Rick had thought about it during the tedious trip back. He had turned over every possibility in his mind and eliminated all but one. What's more, he wasn't sure that would work.

"I have an idea," he explained, "but it depends on a daytime look at the island."

Zircon nodded. "All right. We'll take a look. Now, tell us about the village. Any trouble?"

The two boys gave Zircon and Scotty a quick account of their reconnaissance, and both chuckled at Chahda's trick of feeding the dog.

"He'll probably be standing on the beach waiting when you get back,"

Scotty said with a grin. "Bet it's the first hamburger the pooch ever had. That pirate you belted with the pistol bothers me, though. Won't he set off an alarm that will put the whole mob on the alert?"

"I hope not. There's a chance he might think it was someone in the village who has a grudge against him."

Zircon shrugged. "One way or another, there's nothing we can do about it now. We'll have to a.s.sume the whole place is alerted."

"How about some sleep?" Scotty suggested.

Rick shook his head. The first part of his plan had to be put into operation immediately. "It's only a little while to dawn. By sunrise we have to be east of the island."

He explained quickly. For a safe, undetected look at the areas of the island he wanted to see, they would have to depend on the sun for a s.h.i.+eld. They could proceed immediately on a roundabout course that would bring them to the east of the island just as the sun was rising. Hidden in the sun's glare, they would have a few minutes in which to examine the eastern slope of the volcano.

"I'm beginning to see your plan," Zircon said. "Then what?"

"Then we go into safe waters for the day. At sunset we hide in the sun again, while we look at the island from the west. We'll wait until the sun is low enough, so no one on the island will be looking into it, then we'll use it for a s.h.i.+eld and take a good look at Shannon's cliff dwelling through the long gla.s.s."

Scotty shook his head. "But we already know what's on the eastern and western sh.o.r.es. Why go to all this trouble?"

"We don't know much about the terrain. If it looks possible, you and I go climbing tonight. We land on the eastern sh.o.r.e, climb the volcano, go over the top and down the western side until we come out right above the shelf where the scientists are held prisoner. Then we haul them up on a rope."

Scotty stared at his pal. "Wow! We take them out by the back door, huh?"

Zircon held up his hand. "Not so fast. The plan is a good one, Rick. I won't mention my natural dislike of being dismissed from the scheme without being consulted, because you and Scotty are the logical ones to go for a reconnaissance of this kind. But I'll buy only this: You and Scotty will look over the terrain tonight. If possible, you will deliver a Megabuck radio unit to Shannon and Briotti. Then you will return without attracting attention. That will be time enough for us to plan the rescue, in conjunction with our friends on the cliff."

Rick had to admit Zircon's plan made better sense, even though he disliked the idea of another day's delay in rescuing their friends. He nodded.