by John Blaine
“Now what?” Rick asked himself.
It was certain that Long Shadow would come to the camp sooner or later. It was almost as certain that Scotty, Zircon, and Chahda, if they followed the trail of the wax candles carefully, would arrive sooner or later at the boat landing to which the Tibetan had led him. Always provided they hadn’t been ambushed. He shivered at die thought. The cave formations would make it easy for the enemy to lie in wait. Then, even with their old-fashioned muskets and lack of shooting ability, they could pick off the little party.
But they wouldn’t do it without costl Scotty was deadly with a rifle. Zircon was a better than average shot.
Rick debated. It was no good to make his presence known. Far better to lie in wait until Long Shadow came. Then, if he could take the camp by surprise, his rifle would do the rest for him.
But how to take it by surprise?
He scanned the shore around the camp. In several places between him and the camp shelf, the rock wall came right down to the lake’s edge. Unless he wanted to search for a way through the caves, he would have to swim. Or use a boat.
Beyond the last sheer place, the camp shelf started. Its edge curved and twisted for a little distance. If he could get to the starting point, he could keep undercover easily enough. Then, making his way along the wall, he could probably escape being seen until he was almost at the tents. With luck, a sudden dash would bring him right to the enemy without being seen first.
That was how he would do it. He would go back and get the boat, then lie in wait in this very place until the time came. He withdrew from the entrance, then paused suddenly. The men around the fire were getting to their feet and walking toward the water. He watched as they peered into the darkness in the direction he thought of as “down lake.” One of them ran to a torch, pulled it out of its holder, ran back to the water’s edge, and waved it.
A signal! To whom?
Two of the men were kneeling just beyond the barge, and a moment later they proceeded to get into the two flat-bottomed boats he had seen. What they had been doing was untying the boats. He watched as they rowed out onto the black lake.
They must be going after someone!
Rick hurried back the way he had come, following the path of torn cloth, then the broken cracker crumbs. He would have to hurry. The Tibetans might have gone after Long Shadow!
He retraced his steps at a pace that was half-walking, half-running. The trail he had left showed clearly in the infrared light. In a few moments he came out of the caves onto the lake shore once more, and he saw the signal that had summoned the boats. A red light was now clearly visible. He thought it was right at the point from which he had pushed off in the Tibetan’s boat.
A sudden thought struck him. Wouldn’t they miss the Tibetan and the boat? He hurried faster. Now and then he stopped to listen, and he could hear the sound of oars in the water.
It didn’t take long to reach his boat. When he leaned over the Tibetan, frightened black eyes peered up at him. He tested the man’s bonds. They were tight enough to be effective, but not so tight they cut off his circulation. He knew the gag was uncomfortable, but he didn’t dare remove it. As assurance that he meant no harm, he patted the man on the shoulder. Some of the wild fright went out of the beady eyes.
Working quietly, Rick pushed the boat out into the water. He wasn’t afraid of being seen. Candles or torches didn’t cast enough light to penetrate the blackness as the infrared beam did. But he might be heard. He had to be as quiet as possible.
He used only one oar, kneeling in the stern and paddling the flat-bottomed craft like a canoe. The infrared camera, placed on the seat with the beam directed ahead of him, gave him plenty of light to see. Once in a while he turned the beam around. The two boats were making good progress toward the red signal. The beam of the infrared camera didn’t penetrate far enough for him to see what or who was under the red light.
He rounded the corner that had blocked his way and paddled silently along the rocky wall. The two boats were out of sight now.
Rounding the corner gave him a clear view of the torches, but he knew the men around them couldn’t see him.
The way was longer than he had thought. He paddled in and out of coves, past grottoes in the rocky wall. Then, at last, he saw the little pile of torn cloth he had left on the shore at the end of his cave trail. He had put all the cloth not needed for marking trail in one place, not because he had been foresighted, but because he hadn’t needed it any more. He was glad now of the accident that marked the right place, otherwise he couldn’t have identified it from the rest of the openings in the wall.
He pulled the boat up to it and anchored it by the rope to a convenient stalagmite. Then he half-lifted, half-dragged the trussed Tibetan into the cave and out of sight of the lake.
Rick searched the water for some sign of the boats, and thought he heard them coming. He went back to the Tibetan, took his canteen, unscrewed the top, and placed it on the rock. Then, kneeling over his captive, he took the man’s throat in one hand. With the other he undid the rag that held the gag in place. Pressure of his fingers warned the Tibetan he would be strangled if he so much as squeaked. Then Rick pulled the torn rags he had used as a gag from the man’s mouth, lifted him to a sitting position, and held the canteen to his lips with his free hand.
The Tibetan drank greedily. Rick let him rest for a moment, then held the canteen again. The man drank his fill, then nodded his thanks. Rick quickly replaced the gag and bound it in place, then used another piece of cloth torn from the man’s clothing to lash one leg to a stalagmite. He didn’t want to risk having the man wriggle to the entrance at the wrong time, and sound an alarm.
Rick was exultant. High excitement was rising in him, because he thought it was only a matter of time now before Long Shadow would come, even if his enemy was not already in one of the boats that were making their way back to the camp.
He switched out the infrared light, placing the camera on the ground, pointing toward the boat landing. Then he lay down on his stomach, rifle thrust out in front of him and handy to his hand. He could wait. He could wait days, if necessary. Because once Long Shadow came, he would force him to show the way to the outside, and he would force him to locate the others.
If Long Shadow refused to co-operate . . . Rick’s lips tightened. Then at least he wouldn’t be lonesome in the Caves of Fear. His enemy would be his company until the end.
CHAPTER XVIII
The Hostages
A faint splashing warned Rick that the boats were approaching. In a few moments they were opposite his position. He swung the infrared light around toward them and snapped it on.
There were two men in the lead boat, one rowing and the other taking his ease in the stern. Rick’s heart leaped as he saw that the passenger was of very slender build. Was it Long Shadow? He couldn’t see his face clearly. He looked at the second boat, and a sudden grin split his lips.
Worthington Ko!
The Chinese merchant was sitting at ease, and there was no mistaking his portly figure. Besides, he twisted on the wooden seat, making himself more comfortable, and for an instant his face was toward Rick.
“Good,” Rick muttered to himself. If the slender man wasn’t Long Shadow, at least he would have Ko to deal with. The Chinese with the glass eye could, he knew, speak English, although it was probable that Long Shadow could, too.
He watched as the boats reached the barge. Ko and the slender man got out. Rick studied the stranger, noting that he was taller than Ko, and so thin that, compared with the portly merchant, he looked like an animated bean pole.
“He surely must be Long Shadow,” Rick told himself. As soon as the excitement of their arrival had died down among the Tibetans, he intended to get into his boat and start toward the camp.
Ko and the stranger talked together for a moment, then the latter gestured toward the Tibetans. The Tibetans ran toward the tents while the two newcomers waited.
Rick watched the T
ibetans, his brow furrowed. Surely they weren’t going to strike camp! He revised his plans nastily. If they did start to take down the tents, he would dump his prisoner back in the boat. Then he would follow wherever they went.
The Tibetans vanished into the tents, and in a moment they came out again.
And they were leading Scotty, Zircon, and Chahda
Rick gasped.
His friends had been in the camp all the time, prisoners! He groaned softly. If he had only known, he might have gotten to them while the boats were gone and the number of guards was temporarily reduced. He got to his knees, determined to start for them right away. Then he paused as his three friends were led before the two strangers. They were all erect, their hands tied behind them.
Anyway, prisoners or not, they were evidently none the worse for their captivity. Again he started for the boat, and again he paused. What if Long Shadow and Ko intended loading them in the boats? It might be wiser to wait. He sank down to a sitting position, caressing the cold metal of his rifle. The next few moments would tell the story.
Worthington Ko stepped forward, confronting Zircon. The Chinese nodded his head, then deliberately slapped the scientist across the face.
Zircon couldn’t strike back. But his legs were free. One massive leg swung in a giant punt that caught the Chinese squarely in the stomach. Worthington Ko flew backward like a rag doll and slid along the limestone floor. Rick watched the tableau, spellbound.
The Tibetans ran forward.
Rick put the camera down, light pointing at the group across the way. Then he raised his rifle and sighted in. He’d get some of them before they could harm his friends. His finger tightened slowly on the trigger.
And then the Tibetans fell back as Long Shadow barked an order.
Worthington Ko got to his feet, bent over, both hands on his stomach. He weaved a little. The breath had been knocked right out of him, Rick thought.
The Tibetans and Long Shadow watched as Ko straightened up, very slowly. He ran his hands gingerly over his big stomach. Then, walking unsteadily, he moved back to within a few feet of Zircon. He called out something and one of the Tibetans ran forward.
Rick’s throat clogged as the torchlight reflected from a shiny blade. Ko took the blade and swished it through the air. Then, drawing it back, he stepped forward.
The Chinese was squarely in Rick’s sights. He squeezed the trigger and the rifle recoiled against his shoulder. The shot thundered through the echoing cave.
Ko staggered. He dropped the blade, took a couple of hesitant steps backward, and then sat down hard.
There was sudden chaos in the camp across the way. The Tibetans ran back and forth aimlessly like sheep. Long Shadow bellowed orders. Then he ran to a torch, pulled it out of the socket, and heaved it into the water. The Tibetans got the idea. The torches flashed through the air and then hissed out in the water.
Long Shadow felt his way toward the three Spin-drifters, calling out orders to the Tibetans. Rick suddenly realized that, of all in sight, only he could see! Long Shadow and his men thought they were safe in the darkness.
He watched, rifle at his shoulder, as Long Shadow collected the Tibetans. Then he realized that the enemy intended herding Scotty, Zircon, and Chahda into the caves. Probably they were certain that in the caves they would be safe from whoever had fired from the darkness.
Ko was still sitting. He had one hand pressed to his side.
The Tibetans were groping for their prisoners. Rick grinned. He aimed at the stone under their feet and fired. There was a chorus of yells. He levered another cartridge into the chamber and fired again.
The Tibetans fled, charging blindly toward the cave openings beyond the tents.
Long Shadow kept yelling orders, groping around in the blackness, but the Tibetans paid no attention. They reached the back wall of the cave. Two of them went headlong into openings. Others crashed into the walls, fell, crawled sideways, scrambling until they found the openings they so frantically sought.
Long Shadow’s voice could be heard screaming in fury for his men to come back.
He couldn’t see, as Rick could, that they were all now in the caves behind their leader.
Finally, giving up, Long Shadow started for safety himself.
It would never do to allow the thin man to get away, Rick thought. He wanted Long Shadow. He and his companions had questions to ask him, and they needed him to get them out of the Caves of Fear. He sighted carefully at the long legs that were feeling their way toward the back wall. He fired.
Long Shadow stumbled headlong, then he started to crawl. Rick stood up and yelled. “Gang! Get Long Shadow!”
His words echoed eerily through the cave.
Zircon understood and bellowed. “Where is he?”
Rick thought quickly. The three were still standing in a line. He shouted orders.
“Right face. Forward march!”
Like a well-trained machine, his friends obeyed. They marched forward steadily. But they were slightly off. He remembered the correct command.
“Left oblique! March!”
Scotty swung a quarter left, bumped into Zircon. Chahda stood still, not understanding. Neither had Zircon comprehended the command. Rick yelled, “Scotty, Turn right just a fraction.”
Scotty did so. “Now,” Rick called. “He’s about ten feet in front of you.”
Scotty moved forward, feeling his way a step at a time. When he was almost on Long Shadow, Rick yelled, “You’re there!”
Long Shadow turned over on his back and clawed in his pockets.
“Watch out!” Rick screamed. “He’s got a gun!”
Scotty jumped, feet first. He missed Long Shadow by a fraction, landing next to his chest.
“Fall to the left!” Rick yelled.
Scotty crashed down across the man, calling to Zircon and Chahda. Guided by their friend’s voice, the two reached his side quickly. Rick couldn’t hear what Scotty said, but the big scientist suddenly sat down, his back to Long Shadow. A moment later he writhed away, and he had the pistol between his bound hands.
Rick sighed his relief. “Wait!” he yelled. I’ll be right there!”
He didn’t dare take his eyes off the scene long enough to pick up his prisoner. Time enough for that later. He untied the boat and got in. He knelt, placing the rifle on the seat in front of him next to the infrared camera. Then, using the oar as a paddle once more, he started straight across to the camp.
It wasn’t a far journey. But as he reached the halfway mark, two of the Tibetans looked cautiously out of their hiding place. Rick put the oar across the gunwales, picked up his rifle, and sighted carefully. Fortunately, there wasn’t so much as a ripple on the water. The boat was perfectly steady.
He squeezed the trigger, and the stalactite directly over their heads shattered into a thousand pieces, showering them with limestone. They didn’t wait for a second shot. He could hear their yells even after they had ducked back into the caves. They weren’t used to sharpshooting in total darkness.
Rick smiled as he resumed paddling. He could understand how they felt. He wasn’t used to it, either.
In a few moments he was at the barge. He tied the boat to one of the odd derrick affairs and scrambled out. Then, picking up the camera and rifle, he hurried to his friends.
Scotty and Chahda were using Long Shadow as a bench. Zircon sat a little distance apart, trying to peer toward Rick through the darkness.
“Dark in here, isn’t it?” Rick inquired pleasantly.
“Rick! You old muttonhead!” Scotty exclaimed.
“Thank God you’re safe,” Zircon said.
Chahda grinned the widest grin ever and said, “Also giving much thanks that friend Rick has eyes like cat which see in dark!” The Hindu boy didn’t know about the infrared camera, unless the others had explained it to him. There hadn’t been time back at camp, and Rick hadn’t thought of it, anyway.
In a moment the three were untied, rubbing circulation back into
their wrists.
“Let’s get a light!” Zircon said. “I think we had better see to the wounded. I assume there are wounded? I know Ko was hit. And just as he was about to carve my head from my shoulders, too.”
“He’s sitting over there,” Rick said.
“Where’s there?” Scotty asked.
He kept forgetting that only he could see. “Where he dropped. Long Shadow is hit, too. I don’t know how badly.”
For the first time, they heard their enemy’s voice. It was rather high, but cultured and pleasant. “Not badly. Although I believe my ankle may be broken. I have felt, and I don’t believe I am bleeding much.”
Rick knelt quickly and put the infrared light on the wound. Long Shadow was right. It hadn’t bled much, and Zircon, looking the wound over after borrowing the glasses, told him, “I doubt that the ankle is broken. The wound is clean.”
“Stay where you are,” Rick warned him. “We’ll bandage you after we look at Ko.”
“I have no intention of going anywhere,” Long Shadow said. “Not when some magic I don’t understand permits you to see in complete darkness.”
Rick took the glasses from Zircon’s hand. In the interval during which the scientist was wearing them, he had understood how the others felt. The darkness was absolute. He put the glasses on again and walked over to Ko, talking so his friends could follow the sound of his voice.
“Well, Mr. Ko,” he said, “you got a little surprise, didn’t you?”
The Chinese with the glass eye groaned. “You have won,” he complained weakly. “Now have the kindness to let me go to my ancestors in peace.”
“Better let me take a look at him,” Zircon said.
Rick walked to the scientist’s side and took one of his hands. Then he took off the glasses and pressed them into the hand he was holding. That done, he stood in the blackness and waited.
“Lie flat,” presently Zircon said.
“Please go away,” Ko groaned.
“Lie flat,” Zircon ordered.
There was the sound of ripping cloth. Zircon grunted. “Hmmmm.”
Ko moaned. “I wish to go to my ancestors alone.”