Part 19 (1/2)

Still no one but Tortue heard. This time, however, he rose from his knees and came to me. Glen looked up for an instant.

”See that he is fast!” he said, and so looked back into the grave.

”What is it?” asked Tortue.

”The plan has gone. Loose my hands!”

I could no longer see Roper; he had stooped down below the lip of the trench.

”Gone!” said Tortue. ”How?”

”Some one has been here before you, but within this last week, I'll swear. Loose my hands.”

”Some one!” he exclaimed savagely. ”Who? who?” and he shook me by the arms.

”I do not know.”

”Swear it.”

”I do. Loose my hands.”

”Remember it is I who save you.”

His knife was already out of his pocket; he had already m.u.f.fled it in his coat and opened it; he was making a pretence to see whether the end was still fast. I could feel the cold blade between the rope and my wrist, when, with a shout. Roper stood erect, the stick in one hand, a sheet of paper flouris.h.i.+ng in the other.

He drew himself out of the trench and spread the paper out on a pile of clay at the graveside. Glen held his lantern close to it. There were four streaming faces bent over that paper. I felt a tug at my wrists and the cord slacken as the knife cut through it.

”Take the rope with you,” whispered Tortue.

The next moment there were five faces bent over that paper.

”On St. Helen's Island,” cried Glen.

”Let me see!” exclaimed Tortue, leaning over his shoulder.

”Three--what's that?--chains. Three chains east by the compa.s.s of the east window in the south aisle of the church.”

And that was the last I heard. I stepped softly back into the darkness for a few paces, and then I ran at the top of my speed westwards towards New Grimsby, freeing my arms from the rope as I ran. Once I turned to look back. They were still gathered about that plan; their faces, now grown small, were cl.u.s.tered under the light of the lantern, and Tortue, with his flas.h.i.+ng knife-blade, was pointing out upon the paper the position of the treasure. Ten minutes later I was well up the top of the hill. I saw a lugger steal round the point from New Grimsby and creep up in the shadow towards the Abbey grounds.

I spent that night in the gorse high up on the Castle Down. I had no mind to be caught in a trap at the Palace Inn.

From the top of the down, about an hour later, I saw the lugger come round the Lizard Point of Tresco and beat across to St. Helen's. As the day broke she pushed out from St. Helen's, and reaching past the Golden Ball into the open sea, put her tiller up and ran by the islands to the south.

There was no longer any need for me to hide among the gorse. I went down to the Palace Inn. No one was as yet astir, and the door, of course, was unlocked. I crept quietly up to my room and went to bed.

CHAPTER XIV

IN WHICH PETER TORTUE EXPLAINS HIS INTERVENTION ON MY BEHALF