Latitude 19 degree Part 22

I followed this new pa.s.sageway, striking my flint as I went, lighting up the dismal place for a moment, and finding myself in blacker darkness when my light was gone. The spirit of discovery was now rampant within me, and I could not hold my feet, they ran unchecked. The light increased, the darkness became a little less overpowering as I proceeded, and finally I found myself walking in a sort of semi-daylight, which prefaced my coming to what seemed real light after the utter darkness which had enveloped me. The pa.s.sage grew wider, there was better air, and all at once I came out upon a narrow gallery, with a wall of stone in front of me. A screen of vines like those before our cave hung from the n.o.ble arch overhead. They grew down from a nearly circular opening, and, trailing past the gallery, reached, some of them to the floor of the apartment on which the gallery looked. Thus they concealed the narrow shelf and its occupant. I did not discover this at first, but the knowledge of it came to me gradually as I pursued my investigations. The gallery reminded me of a box at a theatre in Barcelona, and I could not fail of being struck with the similarity. I pushed the vines aside and looked over the wall, which would have corresponded with the gallery rail nowadays. Below me was a grand interior, much larger than the room in which our little party were secluded. The first thing that I noticed was a raised stone receptacle of some kind which was planted squarely in the centre of the great hall.

"Those pirates are a cleanly set," I said almost aloud. "That must be their bath tub. Where, I wonder, do they get their water?"

The receptacle rested upon several large stones, and thus was raised from the floor of the cavern. About the tub, as I named it in my mind, were some larger rocks, which I thought must be seats. There were great blocks of stone about the walls, which I thought might be used as tables, and around the base of the wall were stone seats, shaped like divans, such as I had noticed in the room where I had left Cynthia.

There were some slight signs of previous occupation, such as, what at that distance seemed, candle ends, and upon what I took to be a table was a cimetar, such as I had seen in the belt of Mauresco. Directly opposite me, but on a level with the floor, was an opening like a doorway, through which a pale light shone, and I noticed now that a little of G.o.d's sunlight pierced its way in from overhead. It was now that I raised my eyes to the roof and found that there was a second opening, through which the vines hung in ma.s.ses, one or two long vines of ropelike appearance trailing upon the floor. Lying upon the stone floor was a large lamp of antique construction. In the ring at its top was wound the end of the hanging vine. This I understood later.

I now leaned over the gallery as far as I dared to see how high it was above the level of the floor. It seemed to me to be situated about thirty feet above the base of the wall, and I could discover no possible way by which it could be reached from below. I could almost touch the roof from where I stood as it curved over my head. As I raised myself up from this inspection I turned my head sidewise, when some strange objects met my view. At first I could not make out what manner of things these were. At the end of this great apartment there seemed to be several niches in the wall. They were upon my right, and I could not distinguish them distinctly from where I stood. So I moved to the left, my gallery curving slightly there, and, looking fixedly at them in the failing light, I comprehended what this grewsome sight meant.

There were six niches. Each niche, with the exception of one, had its occupant, and as I looked I perceived that they bore a resemblance to the human figure, some of them more strictly than others, but I knew now that these were some of the victims of those "handsome men" upon whose "mercy" Cynthia wished us to throw ourselves. They were, in fact, the remains of human beings, whose last living hours had been spent within those dreadful walls. There were five, I think, as nearly as I can remember. One appeared almost as if he were still in life and able to speak and ask for help. His clothes were well preserved, and his figure and head were almost erect, his bearing almost proud. But the others were in most instances fleshless skeletons. The skin had dropped from their bones, the clothes hung in tatters about their shrunken forms, their teeth glistened in the last light of day. There must have been a strong wind without, and upon the eastern side of the cave where this great hall was situated, for it would force itself into the pa.s.sages and through the crannies. The desolate figures were affected by its insistance. A head wobbled languidly here, a rag of cloth fluttered faintly there, then an entire body swayed as if weary only with its tiresome position for so long a time, and as if it would fain seat itself or lie down to rest.

I gazed awestruck. I put my hands over my eyes, and, removing them, I looked again. There was a fiercer gust of wind, which rattled the jaws of some of the skeletons, and their teeth seemed to be almost hissing out words of appeal or of warning to me. I turned and fled back through the pa.s.sageway, running as if for life, as if I, too, might be caught and left to die slowly in one of those empty niches. As I flew along I struck my light, but the flint fell from my fingers. I stooped and groped for it. I got myself confused and turned around, and in a second flight I found myself again in the hated gallery. Here I pulled myself together and started afresh. As luck would have it, in my second flight through the tunnel my foot struck against my flint and steel. I groped and picked up the little chain that held them together, and this time I got out of the tunnel, for I stumbled up against a blank wall and knew that it must lead to our refuge.

I struck a light, and found that my surmise was correct. The light also enabled me to see a bucket of water standing upon the floor of the pa.s.sageway, and in it floated Cynthia's silver cup. I must have dropped it in my haste to see where that pa.s.sage would lead. I felt ashamed, but I remember that I was hardly curious as to how the water got there. I had so much more serious and terrible things to occupy my mind.

When I reached the room with the lattice, as I shall call it now, to distinguish it from the others, I found that the Skipper, the Bo's'n, and the Minion were alone. The two men were lying down to get a little sleep. The Minion was hanging against the vines, still looking down at the men who had come ash.o.r.e from the schooner. I set down my bucket, which was almost at once surrounded by the three, and they were minded to drink from the very pail itself, as there was but one cup.

"We thought you would never come back. Gad! what a time you have been!

The Minion thought the pirates had gobbled you sure," said the Skipper.

"Where is Miss Archer?" said I.

At that moment Cynthia advanced with Lacelle from between the pillars at the back. She gave me a welcoming smile, with which some reproach was mingled, and then bent over the pail and dipped the cold water from it with her cup. She handed it to Lacelle. The girl pushed the cup away and made Cynthia drink first.

When all had finished, I took my share.

"You haven't had any?" exclaimed Cynthia. "How selfish we have all been!

I thought you would get some at the stream."

"How did you get our pail, Mr. Jones, sir?" asked the Bo's'n.

I did not wish to alarm Cynthia.

"Oh, that's my secret!" said I.

Cynthia looked kindly at me now.

"Come with me, Mr. Jones," she said, "and see the charming room that Lacelle has found for me."

I followed the two back between the pillars, and after one or two turnings we came to a small room where Cynthia was entirely secluded and quiet. Here a faint light trembled down from overhead. I looked up and could see the branches of trees moving in the high wind, and behind them the red sky of sunset. Along the wall ran one of those surprising benches of stone, and on this Cynthia, or Lacelle for her, had laid the blanket and placed the pillow.

"Who brought these up here?" I asked.

"I can not say," said Cynthia. "I found them here."

There was not a sound in this remote spot. I judged that it was bounded at the back or west by the new pa.s.sage through which I had gone on my voyage of discovery, by the entrance pa.s.sage on the north, and by part of the great hall upon which I had looked down on the south. I had no way of proving this, but my b.u.mp of locality has always been good, and I thought that I understood the situation. I saw that there was but one way of entering this room, and made up my mind that so long as I had life and strength no living creature should pa.s.s beyond those stone pillars.

"Are you not hungry?" asked I.

"Not very," said Cynthia. "We each took some hard bread when we left the camp. The Bo's'n told us to. I have been nibbling on mine. I am very tired. Perhaps we can all sleep for a while. I suppose when it is really sunset those men will go away, don't you? Then we can go down to the sh.o.r.e again."

I had my forebodings, but I answered nothing. When I returned to the outer room, the three whom I had left were standing close to the lattice and peering downward.

"Where can they be?" I heard the Skipper say as I entered.

"Round there," said the Minion, whose words were as rare if not as priceless as the pearls and rubies of speech in the fable.

He motioned with his hand to the side of the hill on the east, opposite where we had climbed the slope. I stood as near the lattice work as I dared and scanned the gra.s.sy plain below. The boats with their prisoners were still beached on the sh.o.r.e of the stream. The guards sat under the trees ash.o.r.e, keeping watch with pistols c.o.c.ked. But the rest of the sailors, the two Captains, the Admiral, and the young Englishman had disappeared as completely as if they had dropped into a bottomless pit.

I wondered if they had gone to some secluded place known only to themselves, where they could make way with the lad unknown to their companions, the guard, and the prisoners. As we stood and surmised over the fact of their disappearance, we heard the sound of many footsteps and the sudden loud ring of heels upon the stone floor in the chamber next our own. I had just time to motion to the others to hug the party wall, and to lie down myself with my length stretched along the base of the part.i.tion, when the voice of Captain Jonas rang out with baffled tone:

"Where are they?" he shouted. "Where are they? I thought they were here!"

"Lift me up! Lift me up, so that I may see!" squeaked the Admiral of the Red.

We lay as if we had been carved out of the very rock itself.

There were shouts and oaths and runnings here and there, and scuffling of feet upon the dusty footway. There was a flicker of light through the embrasures against our farther wall, and thence came an order--a roar, rather--from Captain Jonas:

"Search the whole place! Search every nook and corner! If it takes till midnight, the search must go on! They must be found!"

CHAPTER VII.

A VILLAIN MEETS HIS END AND A PRISONER ESCAPES.

We had been discovered, then! I lay close against the part.i.tion wall. My heart thumped loudly against my ribs, so that it seemed as if the strangers must hear it and find out our hiding place. I looked at the others. The Captain was crouched upon his knees, and the Bo's'n and Minion each were standing as near the part.i.tion wall as nature would permit.

What a sc.r.a.ping of feet was there! Lights flashed out, and there was a din of voices which threatened to conceal any specific expression which would be a guide to us. Then came a command in the musical voice of the handsome Mauresco.

"Silence!" he ordered. There was an attempt at quiet, but still the shuffling of feet and the low whispers were continued.

"Must the Captain speak twice?"

It was the high squeak of the Admiral of the Red. How that insignificant creature obtained control so great was to me an unsolvable mystery, but he certainly possessed it to an astounding degree over that lawless mob.

Suddenly the hush was so impressive that I feared to breathe.

"A thousand louis to the man who finds them!" he said, and in those words I felt that our doom was spoken.

We heard them beating the bush, as it were, searching for us, we felt sure. I expected every moment that they would rush away into the darkness, make a long _detour_ up over the crest of the hill, and descend to our entrance upon the other or western side. I rolled over and drew my knife from its ragged sheath, ready to sell my life dearly.

I thought of Cynthia as I lay there, and I wondered if we had better warn her. I hesitated to frighten her, and yet I felt that the time had come to put a knife into her hand and tell her to take her life with determination if need be. Our case seemed hopeless. We three looked at each other. No one spoke. The din in the next chamber was so overpowering that we might have shouted, but the rest felt as I did--there was nothing to say. I saw them each examine their pistols as I had mine, and the Bo's'n gave the Minion one of his, at which the boy grinned with delight and nodded his head violently, but remained, as usual, silent. We heard the buccaneers still racing about. It seemed to me that they searched in small excavations in the walls. Some seemed to run a little way inside a pa.s.sage and then return, for we constantly heard the inquiry "Found?" and the answer, "No, not yet." Then suddenly they all trooped out, and we were left in quiet. We arose and walked to the entrance to our cavern.

"They are coming over the hill," said the Captain. I nodded, and there we stood and waited.

I thought that I had discovered the secret of the great natural cave. It was evidently divided in an irregular fas.h.i.+on along its length, beginning at the water and running backward. There was an entrance upon the western side, which we had used, and one upon the eastern side, which the pirates had used. There was no connection between the two except from the gallery, where I had gone alone and had made the discovery of that dreadful hall of death. I hoped that as the pirates had not come up the western bank to our entrance, that they knew nothing of it. And I think now that the two or three who discovered it later did so by accident only, and for the first time.

"Why not meet them at the archway?" suggested I in a low tone. "It is narrow there. Only one can enter at a time. We could kill each one as he came."