Part 19 (1/2)

The boys h the swamp to the runabout in alhts

Orvil Harris was crabbing as though nothing had happened, while the night watchers stood in plain sight on the opposite shore Orvil must have seen the shots fired, Rick was certain Even if he had been looking the other way, the first shot would have caught his attention

Or, Rick wondered, had Orvil tipped off the two guards that divers were below? If so, the game was up Once Merlin and company knew the payload had fallen into the cove, they would be diving for it theuns Merlin undoubtedly knew that the launching the evening of the squall had gone wrong, but he couldn't kno, or where

But somehow, Rick didn't think Orvil had been a party to the shooting

Maybe it was stubbornness, refusing to think the crabber was involved just because they liked him OrMerlin and his gang; at least Harris had no reason known to Rick and Scotty

They reached the boat and conferred in whispers that were inaudible six feet away

”Could Orvil have put the finger on us?” Scotty questioned

Rick shrugged ”I don't want to think so, and I don't But I have to admit it's possible”

”If he's in with theht”

Rick glanced at the eastern sky It was beginning to gloith the first hint of daylight ”That's not long froain Rick shrugged ”There's only one way Go in and get it”

”Under those guns?”

”A diver on the bottoain without going into the shallows That's what ets before, because we took the easy way to locate the fish line by going into the shallows near where I tied the line”

”Let's see your tank,” Scotty whispered

Rick unsnapped his harness release and swung the tank around Their probing fingers soon identified where the bullet had glanced off There was a dent, coated with silvery ”

”Good thing it didn't rupture the tank”

Rick shuddered ”If it had, I'd have been out of air suddenly and would've had to come up Listen, Scotty My plan is a simple one I'll take your tank, since you have the ht into the cove, find the 'what's-it' and swiain If it's too heavy to tow far, I can at least wrestle it part of the way, and then bury it in the et the boat out where it's clear and be ready to pick me up”

”They'll see your bubbles, but they can't do anything about it with rifles,” Scotty pointed out ”One thing they can do, though, is juood swi wouldn't improve your chances by much”

”Too true,” Rick observed ”But what else can we try?”

Scotty thought it over ”Listen, we'll take the boat out right now

You'll have to do the diving, because you know about where the thing is, and I don't When we get out, you go over the side I'll run around to the river, opposite where the guards are standing, and raise a little fuss That ht draw their attention away from the cove”

”Okay” It made sense to Rick ”They'll see both of us in the boat, but they won't see et out Only you'd better plan our course I have no aching desire to collect a rifle slug where it hurts”

”They ,” Scotty pointed out

”Uh-huh And theyfast, and I'll swing that boat fro We don't want too ht”

Scotty unsnapped his harness and Rick took his pal's tank and regulator