He spoke to the guard. “Tell him he won’t get anything to eat or drink till he tells us what we want to know,” he said.
The guard repeated this in some language that Jack could not make out. The prisoner said something and the guard struck him on the cheek. Jack watched in horror. Fancy hitting a man when his hands were tied! What cowards!
The man tried to dodge. He bent his head again and sat dismally there.
“He says you’ve got the map, what else do you want?” said the guard.
“We can’t read the map,” said Juan. “It’s all messed up. If he can’t explain it to us, he’ll have to show us the way tomorrow.”
The guard translated this to the prisoner. He shook his head. “He says he is too weak to walk so far,” said the guard.
“We’ll drag him all right,” said Pepi, and took another piece of tongue, making himself a thick sandwich. “Tell him he’s to take us tomorrow. If he won’t, he gets nothing to eat or drink. He’ll soon come round when he’s half starved.”
They finished their meal. Then Juan yawned. “Me for bed,” he said. “There’s a chair for you, Luis, in the hut. The floor’s good enough for the prisoner.”
The man begged to have his hands untied, but they would not allow him to. Jack felt very sorry for him. They stamped out the fire and went to the hut. Jack imagined Pepi and Juan on the mattress, and Luis in the only comfortable chair. The poor prisoner would have to lie on the cold, hard floor, with his hands still tied behind him.
Jack waited till he thought the coast was clear, then he slipped quietly down the tree. Kiki had been as good as gold all the time. Not even a whisper had come from her beak. Jack tiptoed to the hut. He peeped cautiously in at the window. A candle burned in the hut, and by its flickering light he could make out the four men. The prisoner was trying to make himself comfortable on the floor.
It was almost dark. Jack hoped he would be able to get back to the cave all right. He slipped his hand into his pocket and was relieved to find a small torch there. That was good!
He was very clever in the dark, for he had eyes like a cat. Once or twice he stopped, unable to think which way to go — but Kiki always knew. She simply flew a little way in front and called to him, or whistled.
“Good old Kiki!” said Jack. “I couldn’t have found my way without you, that’s certain.”
The others were very worried about him. When darkness fell and still no Jack had arrived, Lucy-Ann wanted to go and look for him.
“I’m sure he’s lost, I’m certain of it,” she said, almost in tears.
“Yes, and we’d all get lost too, if we went out on the mountainside in this darkness,” said Philip. “I expect he hunted about for that opener, saw that twilight was coming, and decided not to risk coming back in the dark. He’ll be back tomorrow morning early, for certain.”
It was too dark to do anything. Dinah had made the “bed” and they lay down on it, Lucy-Ann crying quietly. She was sure something had happened to Jack.
Then there came a scrambling noise up near the cave, and the fern was parted and pushed aside. All the children sat up, their hearts beating. Was it Jack — or had their hiding-place been discovered?
“Hallo, there!” came Jack’s familiar voice. “Where’s everybody?”
He switched on his torch and saw three delighted faces. Lucy-Ann almost fell on him.
“Jack! We thought you were lost. What have you been doing? And we’re so hungry, too. Have you brought the tin-opener?”
“Yes, I’ve brought that — and plenty of news too!” said Jack. “What about a meal whilst I tell you all about it?”
Chapter 15
A DISAPPOINTMENT FOR THE MEN
TINS were opened once more, and Kiki gave a delighted chortle at the sight of her favourite pineapple. Lucy-Ann pressed close to Jack.
“What happened to you? I can’t wait to hear. Tell me quickly.”
“Let me have a bite first,” said Jack irritatingly, knowing quite well that all the others were longing to hear his news. But as he was longing just as much to tell it as they were to hear it, he soon began his story.
“So the plane’s back!” exclaimed Philip, as Jack began to tell everything. “Both men back too?”
Jack told of the four men. Lucy-Ann was distressed to hear about the poor prisoner.
“I’m beginning to see daylight,” said Philip at last. “Somewhere in this valley is hidden treasure — maybe stuff belonging to the people whose houses have been burnt. Those two men heard about it, and somehow managed to get a map that showed them the hiding-place. But they can’t find it by that map, so they’ve got hold of somebody who knows the way.”
“That’s it,” said Jack. “He’s foreign. Maybe he once belonged to this valley, and even hid the things himself. They’ve captured him and mean to make him show them the hiding-place. They’re not giving him anything to eat or to drink till he shows them what they want to know.”
“Brutes!” said Dinah, and the others agreed with her.
“Do you think he will show them?” asked Lucy-Ann.
“I hope he will, for his own sake,” said Jack. “And I tell you what I propose. I propose that somehow or other one or more of us follow them, and see where this hiding-place is. The men can’t possibly take everything away at once. We might be able to get help, and save the rest of the stuff being stolen by the men. It can’t belong to them.”
“What do you think the stuff can be?” asked Lucy-Ann, visions of gold bars and beautiful jewels floating in her mind.
“Can’t tell you,” said Jack. “I think we’re somewhere in the depths of Europe, where war has been, and, as you know, plenty of treasure of all kinds was hidden in queer places by many, many people, good and bad. My guess is that it’s something of that kind these men are after. They speak English, but they’re not English. South American, perhaps. Goodness knows.”
The others sat silent, thinking over what Jack had said. They thought he was probably right. But Lucy-Ann didn’t at all like the idea of following the men. Suppose they discovered that they were being followed, and captured them?
“It might be best if Philip and I did the stalking tomorrow,” said Jack. “I don’t think I want you girls mixed up in it.”
This made Dinah angry, though Lucy-Ann was secretly relieved.
“You’re not going to keep all the excitement to yourselves,” said Dinah. “I’m coming too.”
“No you’re not, if we say you’re not,” said Jack. He switched on his torch and shone it at Dinah’s face. “I thought you’d be glaring,” he said. “Cheer up, Dinah. After all, you and Lucy-Ann had an adventure this afternoon, when you found the cave of echoes and the passage that leads to the waterfall. Give us boys a chance.”
“Well, it’s all very well,” grumbled Dinah, but she did not press the point any more, much to Lucy-Ann’s relief.
“Where’s Lizzie?” asked Dinah, not liking to settle down till she was quite sure of the lizard’s whereabouts.
“Don’t know,” said Philip annoyingly. “She might be anywhere. Under your pillow, perhaps.”
“She’s here,” said Jack. “Kiki’s one side of my neck and Lizzie’s the other, keeping me nice and warm.”
“What a pity!” said Kiki, and cackled loudly.
“Don’t!” said everybody at once. Nobody liked Kiki’s awful cackle. She put her head under her wing, offended.
All the children lay down. They were sleepy. “Our fourth night in this valley,” said Philip. “The valley of adventure. I wonder what will happen next.”
Soon they were all asleep. Lizzie ran across Lucy-Ann and cuddled down by Dinah, who would certainly have objected strongly if she had known. But she didn’t know. So she slept peacefully.
Everyone felt cheerful the next morning.
“Really,” said Dinah, reaching down some tins from the ledge, “I’m beginning to feel I’ve made this cave my home half my life. It’s extraordinary how soon we get used to anything new.”
“How are we going to find out when those men are starting, and what way they go?” said Philip.
“Well, if you remember, the two of them came in this direction, not the other, when they set out with the map before,” said Jack. “I think if we go to that big black rock we always pass on the way here, we may spot them. Then we can follow easily enough.”
So when they had finished their meal they set off cautiously to the big black rock. They crouched behind it, and Jack kept peeping out to see if there was anything to be seen.