The four of them went to the motor-boat and curled themselves up in the two bunks there. They lighted the lamp too, and soon it looked quite cosy.
“Did anything much happen after we had gone?” asked Andy.
“Well, Mary and I didn’t hear you leave the cave when you went to follow the trail of shells,” said Jill. “We didnt wake up till morning. We remembered where you had gone, of course, and we hoped you wouldn’t be too long. We had breakfast, and then we squeezed out of the cave to wait for you.”
“You didn’t come, and you didn’t come,” said Mary. “So we thought we would follow the trail of shells ourselves, and see if we could find you! We followed them and came to where they stopped
.”
“I bet you didn’t know where to go next!” interrupted Tom.
“We didn’t,” said Jill. “We couldn’t imagine why the shells ended at a blank wall of rock. And then suddenly the rock opened!”
“Golly!” said Tom. “That must have scared you!”
“It did,” said Jill. “It scared us terribly. We ran awaybut that bandy-legged man tracked us back to our cave and yelled to us to come out.”
“We had to come out in the end,” said Mary, “because he threatened to smoke us out again. He thought you two boys were in there and he yelled and yelled to you to come out too. When you didn’t, he crawled inand found the cave empty!”
“What did he do then?” asked Andy, with great interest.
“He raved at us, and tried to make us say where you were,” said Mary. “He was horrid. Then he hunted about all over the place and still couldn’t find you. Then some other men came, and they had a sort of meeting. We couldn’t hear what they said.”
“They sent Bandy into our cave and he brought out everything,” said Jill. “Then we were taken, blindfolded as before, back to that high-up cave in Smuggler’s Rockthe one we were all put in before. We didn’t have any food or drink for ages, and then Bandy came with some.”
“And we think that what we drank must have had sleeping-medicine in it,” said Mary, “because when we had drunk it, we simply couldn’t keep our eyes open!”
“Yes. They must have given you sleeping-draughts,” said Andy. “Beasts! Then they meant to bring you here and lock you into the Andy, keeping you as hostages in case Tom and I had escaped, and could report the whole affair to someone. What a bit of luck we happened to be here too!”
“Yes! Now tell us how you came to be here!” begged Jill. “Go on, Andy, tell every single thing.”
So Andy and Tom told their tale tooand when they had finished, the dawn was coming up, and it was tune to get to work again. With luck they should be home that dayand what a surprising lot of news they had for the grown-ups so anxiously looking for them!
CHAPTER 25.
Running for Home.
AND now the four children began to be very busy indeed! The daylight filtered into the narrow, hidden creek and gave them just enough light to see by. The boys clambered on board the motor-boat, and tried once more to start up the engine. But for some reason or other again they could not get the boat to go.
“Let’s untie her and give her a jolly good push!” said Andy. “She’ll perhaps float away then, and give us room to get out the Andy.”
So they untied the rope that held the motor-boat moored to a post-like rock. Then, all together, the children shoved and pushed. The boat slid away from the ledge they stood on and floated away down the creek.
“She’s going!” cried Jill. “She’s going down to the sea all by herself!”
“Now she’s stuck,” said Andy, as the boat seemed to get herself wedged against a rock. “I’ll get an oar from the Andy, and climb into the motor-boat, and push her along by the oa*.”
Tom fetched him an oar from the Andy. Andy ran down the ledge, jumped to a rock, and from there to the deck of the motor-boat. He shoved the oar against the rock and pushed the boat out of her corner. She bobbed there, not seeming to know which way to go. Andy shoved with the oar again.
“Mind you don’t break it!” yelled Tom, seeing the oar-blade bending a little. “Ohthere she goes, down the creek. Come on out, Andy, or you’ll go with her!”
But Andy did not get out of the motor-boat till she was right out of the little channel. Then, when she was safely bobbing about in a patch of water outside, he clambered over the side, slithered down to a rock that was under water, and began to wade back to the rocky ledge that ran beside the creek. An enormous wave nearly sent him flying, but he managed to keep his balance.
He went back to the others, grinning. “Well, the motor-boat’s out of our way all right!” he said. “That’s good. Now to get the Andy out. We’ll have to use the oars again. We’D put up the safl when we get the wind.”
A great noise began again down in the cabin of the Andy, Bandy and Stumpy evidently knew that something was up! How they crashed and banged against the bolted hatch. But it was good and strong, and they couldn’t make it budge.
“Make all the noise you like!” Andy called to the men cheerfully. “We don’t mind! By the way, your motor-boat’s been turned loose. I hope it won’t smash to pieces on the rocks. There’s a pretty good tide running, with this strong wind!”
All kinds of terrible threats came up from the cabin, but the children only laughed at them. They were feeling very happy now. They had the Andy back, they were all together again, they had two fine prisoners and a wonderful secretand they were going to run home before the wind. Hurrah!
Tom, of course, wanted to finish the rest of the food in the tins that he and Andy had brought down the cliff. Andy looked at his watch, and decided they might have ten minutes for a meal. It was a very merry meal. Jill and Mary were hungry, for both girls felt perfectly all right again by now.
Then they set off. The boys worked away with the oars, getting the Andy carefully down the little creek of water. Big waves splashed up it now, but they managed very cleverly. The boat gradually went down the little channel, and was at last bobbing on the open sea.
“We have to follow that sea-path there between the rocks,” said Andy. “Then we round the point and find ourselves opposite the shallow bay where we anchored the Andy before. Then we turn into the channel of water between the two long ridges of rock and run for home!”
The boat bobbed violently on the surging water. The tide was running very high indeed. The wind whipped by them, sending their hair straight up.
“Tom, take the oars and keep her off the rocks there,” said Andy. “I’ll put up the sail. Jill, take the tiller for a minute. That’s right. Keep her headed the way she is.”
Andy was just about to put up the sail when he heard a cry from Mary. “Oh lookthe motor-boat is going on the rocks! Look at her!”
The children looked. Mary was right. The motor-boat was indeed on the rocks! With no one to guide her or control her she was quite at the mercy of the waves, and they had taken her right on to the wicked rocks that dotted the sea just there.
There was a smashing, grinding noise. The children’s faces grew grave and solemn. It wasn’t nice to see a boat smashed to pieces like that.
“Don’t let’s watch any more,” said Tom. “It’s awful to see the waves smashing it uppoor thing, it’s on its side nowand look at that great hole there! When next it’s swept off the rocks, it will fill with water and sink.”
“One less boat for the smugglers,” said Andy, and put up the red sail deftly.
The wind filled it gleefully, and the sail flapped eagerly. Andy slid down to the seat by the tiller and took it from Jill. “Put the oars in, Tom,” he said. “We’re all right now. Off we go with the wind!”
It was glorious to feel the little boat leaping along. “If she could sing, she would!” said Mary. “Even as it is I sometimes think her sail flaps out a kind of song!”
There came a noise from below. The children listened, trying to make out the voice against the sound of wind and waves.
“It’s only Bandy saying that they feel sick down there and want some fresh air,” said Tom, with a grin.