“How can we hide it, though?” asked Tom, looking at the heavy raft. “We really can’t toss it lightly into the heather as we could do with planks!”
Andy grinned. “Well hide it in a very easy place,” he said. “We’ll simply rig up the tent above it, and pile heather on the raft, which will then make the floor I don’t think anyone is likely to think that our tent hides a raft!”
In three days the raft was quite complete, and was very sound and solid. Andy had decided to take all the food in the big wooden box in which the man had brought the tins and jars on his last visit.
“We can nail the box to the floor of the raft,” said Andy, “and our food will stay there quite safely I If we put it loose on the deck of the raft, everything would get thrown off in a rough sea, even though we’ve put a kind of rail to the edge of the raft.”
There came a warning cry from Jill not long after that. She had seen a boat coming round the cliff on the far side of the cave-beach. Hastily the boys put up the tent over the raft, and Mary strewed the heather and bracken over the deck. She could not hide the box of. food in the middle of the raft, however.
“Never mind about that,” said Andy. “Put a rug over it, and it will look like a seat or something.”
There were two men this time, and one of them was the one who spoke English.
The boat drew up in the cove where the raft was, and one man got out. It was not the man who had seen the fallen-down shack, but the one who spoke English.
Andy went down to meet him. “Please, sir, won’t you give us a boat to go home in?” asked Andy, knowing perfectly well that the man would say no.
“No,” said the man at once. “You will stay here for as long as we wish. But soon the winter will come, and a tent will be no good to you. Is mere any building here that can be mended?”
“No,” said Andy, who did not wish the man to examine the buildings, and perhaps ask where the tumbledown shack was. This had almost disappeared by now, for the children had taken all the planks for their raft!
“Let me see your tent,” said the man. Andy’s heart sank. It would be too bad if the raft was found just as it was finished. He took the man to the tent in silence.
The man looked inside. He saw the box in the middle covered with a rug. “What’s that?” he asked.
“It’s the box of food the man brought us the other day,” said Andy, and he pulled off the rug. The man saw at once that it way only a box of food and he nodded. He did not go insidelhe tent, luckily, or his nailed boot might have gone through the heathery covering and struck against the wooden raft below. Then he would certainly have pulled aside the heather and seen the children’s secret.
Jill and Mary watched, very pale and scared. Tom sat nearby and whistled. The man still stood looking into the tent, and all the children felt very anxious indeed—and then a great seaplane roared over the island, making a terrific noise.
“Look! Look!” yelled Tom, jumping up. “Isn’t it a big one!”
The man looked up, at Tom’s yell, and followed the seaplane with his eyes. “I must go,” he said, and he went down the beach to the boat. “I will send men to put you up a rough hut for the winter. Be sensible children and you will be looked after—but if not, you will be,very sorry for yourselves.”
The children were very thankful indeed when they saw the boat go off over the water. They heaved deep sighs of relief and looked at one another.
“Thank goodness, that seaplane came when it did and Tom let out that yell,” said Jill. “It just took the man’s attention away! I really thought he was going to go inside the tent and look at everything!”
“Well, I think we’re safe to make our escape soon now,” said Andy. “I don’t expect any men will be sent for a while. We’ll drag the raft down to the shore early tomorrow morning, and I’ll set up the mast and rig the sail as best I can. Then Tom and I will start off.”
The girls said nothing. They did not like being left alone on the island—and yet they knew that Andy was right, Somehow he must get home and tell the people there the secrets they had discovered. The raft would not really take four—and the girls were not strong enough to stand days and nights of tossing about on the sea.
“Well, Andy, it’s very important that you should get back and tell the secret of these islands,” said Jill at last. “So, for the sake of our country, Mary and I will stay behind here without any fuss and do the best we can, whilst you and Tom set off for home. But do rescue us as soon as possible!”
“Of course we shall,” said Andy, glad to see that the girls were going to be brave and not malce any fuss. “You are good sports, you two girls—I really do feel proud of you both—don’t you, Tom?”
“Very proud,” said Tom. And the girls went red with pleasure.
“We’ll wish you luck tomorrow!” said Jill. “Oh, how I hope you’ll soon get back home, Andy! Mary and I will watch every day till you come back.”
They all went to bed early that night, for tomorrow was to be an important day! They did not sleep very well, for they were too excited.
And in the morning, early, they took down their tent, dragged off the heather that covered the raft, and tied ropes to it, to pull it down to the beach.
“Now we’re off on another adventure!” said Andy, dragging the raft. “Heave-ho! Heave-ho! Down to the sea we go!”
CHAPTER 22
Away on the Sea
THE raft was dragged right down to the sea. In the middle of it Andy fixed the post that was to be the mast. He rigged up the old sail very cleverly. The box of food was firm below the mast—they had enough to last them for some days. They took a big tin of water with them too, but expected to use the juice of the tins of fruit to quench their thirst after they had drunk all the water.
Andy had made two rough paddles to help the boat along and to guide it. The girls handed the boys the two warmest rugs to wrap themselves in at night, though Andy said they wouldn’t be any use—they would get wet with the very first wave that splashed over the raft! But to please the girls he took the rugs.
“Andy, you can dry them in the sun in the daytime,” said Jill, “and you might be glad of them. Mary and I have got plenty here.”
The raft was ready to float off at last. The boys gave the girls a hug and said good-bye.
“Now don’t worry,” said Andy, jumping on to the raft. “You won’t hear for days and days, because we’ve got to get back home, and then tell our tale and then ships have got to find their way here. So you’ll have to wait a long time.”
“What shall we say if the enemy want to know where you are?” asked Jill anxiously.
“Just say we have disappeared,” said Andy. “And if you like to do another bit of pretending and make a fuss—well, doit!”
“All right,” said Jill. “Anyway, you may be quite sure we shan’t tell them you’ve gone off on a raft “
“No—we don’t want their seaplanes hunting the sea for us!” said Andy, letting the sail unfurl. “Now—good-bye, Jill! Good-bye, Mary! See you soon!”
“Good-bye, Andy! Good-bye, Tom!” cried the girls, trying to smile cheerfully, though they felt very miserable and lonely to see the boys setting off together. “Good luck!”
Tom pushed out the raft and jumped up on it. He took a paddle and guided it. Andy let the sail billow out. The wind caught it and the little raft leapt along over the waves like a live thing f
“I say! It can get along, can’t it!” cried Jill, jumping up and down in excitement. “Look how it bobs over the waves!”
The boys waved wildly to the girls. Little waves splashed over the deck of the raft and wetted the boys’ legs. If they ran into a stormy sea they would soon be wet through—but at the moment they cared nothing for what might happen! They were very excited and very anxious to guide their little raft on the right course.