“Another way into the treasure caves,” said Dinah. But she was wrong. Nobody could possibly enter the caves by way of the ledge. The ledge of rock jutted over a great precipice that fell sheer down many hundreds of feet. No one, not even a goat, could climb up or down to it. It was, as the old man said, a fine, sunny resting-place — but that was all.
Martha pecked about on the ledge of rock, though what she could find there the children couldn’t imagine. Kiki sat nearby and watched her. She had formed a firm friendship with Martha. The children rather liked Martha themselves. She was such a nice, plump little thing, friendly and natural, and as much of a pet to the old couple as Kiki was to them.
They all lay down in the sun. It was delicious to feel its warm rays after being so long underground. As they lay there they heard something rumbling in the distance.
“The waterfall,” said Lucy-Ann. “Fancy — we must be fairly near it, if we can hear it!”
They lay there sleepily. The old fellow sat on a rock nearby, smoking a pipe. He seemed very contented. Elsa had disappeared.
“Isn’t it queer to think we’ve found the treasure — and can’t do anything about it at all!” said Dinah. “We’re stuck here. No way of getting word to anyone. And never will have, as far as I can see, till the pass into the valley is unblocked — and that may not be for ages!”
“Oh dear — don’t say such gloomy things,” begged Lucy-Ann. “Anyway, the men are gone. That’s one good thing. I felt awfully afraid when they were in the valley too. Thank goodness they’ve gone!”
She spoke too soon. There came a familiar throbbing noise — and the children sat up at once.
“The plane’s back! Blow! Those men will be about again now — and maybe they’ve even got the real truth out of Otto — where the treasure really is!” said Jack. “We shall have to be jolly careful now.”
Chapter 24
JUAN FINDS THE CAVES
THE children held a council of war. What would be the best thing to do now? Suppose the men did know the way into the treasure caves now, and came to them? They would begin to take away the treasure, that was certain.
“And we can’t stop them,” said Philip. “They are jolly tough men. They wouldn’t let a pack of children and two old people prevent them from taking what they wanted. I can’t think why they’ve come back unless it is to search for the treasure again and find it this time.”
Everyone agreed with Jack. “If only we could escape and get news to Bill,” sighed Philip. “But there simply isn’t a way.”
The plane had not come into sight — they had only heard the sound of its engines. The old man did not seem to have heard anything at all. The children decided not to tell him, in case he got into a panic.
“What do you think it would be best for us to do?” said Philip. “Stay here with the old couple and see if the men do come and take anything away? We can hide somewhere quite easily. Or go back to our own fern-cave beyond the waterfall? I always felt safe there. And we’ve got plenty of food there too.”
“There’s plenty here,” said Dinah. “Let’s stay here. After all, if the men do come, we can hide in that stalactite cave — there are plenty of hiding-places there, behind those frozen columns. They won’t see us. One of us could always be on guard there, to see who comes in or out.”
“Perhaps you’re right,” said Jack. “We must just wait and see what happens. Once the men really do find the treasure caves, there will be a lot of coming and going — taking the treasure to the plane — taking off with it in the air — coming back again to fetch more — and so on.”
“Shouldn’t be surprised if they bring more planes here, as soon as they’ve discovered exactly where the treasure is,” said Philip. “It would be a slow business taking one or two crates at a time.”
“Lucy-Ann is asleep,” said Dinah. “I think I’ll snooze too. It’s so lovely here in the sun. Those men won’t be along yet, so nobody needs to be on guard in the caves.”
“It would be almost better to be on guard at the entrance,” said Philip thoughtfully. “Then we could spot anyone in plenty of time.”
“Yes, that’s a much better idea,” said Jack, settling down to snooze too. “I’m sure the men won’t be along today. The sun’s going down. They’ll wait till tomorrow.”
That night the children spent in the old couple’s “bedroom.” It was a smallish cave leading off from their “sitting-room,” where the children had had their meal. In the “bedroom” was a pile of rugs, spotlessly clean, and the old people insisted on giving up this room to the children.
“We can sleep in chairs,” said the old man. “That will be no hardship.”
The old woman covered Lucy-Ann up carefully and even kissed her good-night. “She really thinks I’m Greta, her lost grandchild,” said Lucy-Ann. “I just can’t stop her making a fuss of me, because I’m so sorry for her.”
In the morning, after another good meal, Jack said he was going to take first watch at the entrance to the passage that led to the caves. Philip was to take second watch, two hours later.
The boy settled himself down on the edge of the hole, under the big slab of rock that stuck out from the hillside. It was a fine sunny morning. The others thought they would go and examine some of the statues in the statue cave, and the old man said he would tell them their histories, and where they had come from.
Jack sat there, gazing out down the hillside. He could see a long way. He could see scores of high mountains around, one behind the other. The pine forests on them looked like short grass. He put his field-glasses to his eyes to watch the birds around.
It was a disappointing district for wild birds. There seemed to be very few. Jack swung his glasses from side to side of the hill, examining everything.
And then he suddenly got a tremendous shock. He had trained his glasses on to a bush, behind which he thought he had seen a quick movement. He had wondered if some bird or animal was hiding there.
He saw no bird. Instead, he saw the head and shoulders of Juan — and Juan was gazing steadily up at him through a pair of field-glasses, just as Jack was gazing down at him through field-glasses too!
Jack was simply petrified. He stared down through his glasses, and Juan stared up, each seeing the other quite clearly. So Juan had come once more to seek the treasure! Had he come to that cliff-side on chance — or had he got the same map from Otto that Jack had had?
“I’ve given the show away properly now,” thought Jack angrily. “I’ve only got to pop into this hole and he’ll know where the entrance is at once. But if I wander away on the hillside, he’ll be after me. What a fix I’m in!”
Juan did not take his eyes off Jack. He knelt there by the bush, his field-glasses fixed on the boy, watching his every movement.
“He can’t possibly see the hole that I’m sitting on the edge of,” thought jack. “I think perhaps it would be best if I left this place and began to climb up the hillside. If I do, and Juan follows, he may miss the hole altogether.”
He was about to do this, when Philip leapt up beside him. “My turn now, Freckles,” said Philip. “Hallo, what are you looking at?”
“Pity you came just then,” said Jack. “There is Juan down there, Philip — and he’s got his glasses trained on to me — and on you too now! I was just about to crawl up the hillside to make him chase me, and perhaps miss this hole, when you came. Now he’ll know there’s a cave here and he’ll be up in no time.”
“Golly!” said Philip, alarmed. “We’d better warn the others at once then.”
“Yes, it’s the only thing to do now,” said Jack, and he jumped back into the hole. “Come on. It won’t take Juan long to be up here. Blow! Why didn’t I think he might be about already?”
They made their way quickly along the passage and through the many caves. They came to the little cell-like room and found the others there. Jack hurriedly told them what had happened.
“We must hide,” he said. But the old couple did not seem to take this in. They would not hide.