CHAPTER XX--A CAPTURE
Though the boys kept a vigilant watch all through the night, nothingoccurred to disturb the tranquility of Winnsocket Lodge. Truem sat onthe shore, hoping the smugglers would enter the secret passage, but nota boat of any description came near the island. He felt at times analmost uncontrollable desire to search for the passage anyway, as thatshore of the island was covered with rocks and trailing vines, any ofwhich might hide the entrance. But to successfully prosecute his searchhe would need a light, and this might arouse the suspicion of thesmugglers.
In the meantime, Tom, Pod and Fleet sat on the basement steps, waiting asignal from Truem that the men were in the passage, or another messagefrom Bert through the speaking tube. Bert, however, was being kept awayfrom the tube, they felt sure, and would find no way of communicatingwith his chums again.
Chot and Hoki sat on the broad verandah, ready to dash at a moment'snotice down to the river's edge, and enter Fleet's canoe.
In this way the night was passed. Hoki served breakfast at sun-up, andagain the boys took turns sleeping, with a cold plunge in the bath-tubon awaking. By night they were in fine fettle again, and felt no effectsfrom the loss of sleep the night before.
The same plan was followed again, the lights being extinguished early inthe evening, the boys assuming the same positions, except that Pod wasstationed at a small window in the back hall, looking out toward whereTruem was keeping watch on the shore, as well as toward the northisland.
About eleven-thirty Pod heard the soft splash of oars, mingled with thesound of voices, wafted indistinctly to him over the water.
"I think they're coming fellows!" he cried, dashing back to the stairwayon which sat Tom and Fleet.
"What makes you think so?" queried Tom.
"I can hear voices and the splash of oars."
"Well, tell Chot and Hoki, then come back here with us."
Pod sprang to obey, and a moment later Chot and the Jap were movingsilently down the slope toward the water's edge.
"We'll work silently around the end of the island, and may have anopportunity to help Truem," said Chot, in a whisper, and Hoki gave hishand a squeeze to signify that he understood.
In the meantime, let us see what Truem was doing. He had heard the firstfaint splash of oars, and he crouched low behind some shrubbery, tryingto make out the form of the boat, which he knew was heading straight forWinnsocket Lodge. The splash of oars became louder, and voices moredistinct, but as yet he could make out nothing in the darkness.
Finally, however, a dark object came indistinctly before his vision, andsoon he could make out the outline of a big rowboat, moving almostdirectly toward him. As near as he could judge the boat had threeoccupants, but this was merely guesswork on his part, because in theuncertainty of the darkness, he saw at times more, and at times less.
But a few minutes elapsed before the boat was drawn up against the bank.Then Truem saw the forms of four men leap out. One of them held apainter with which he made the boat fast to a stake.
The smugglers stood talking in low tones for the space of a minute,though to the excited Truem it seemed a great deal longer. Then theymoved up the shore a few yards, and disappeared, one after the other,behind two large rocks which were practically covered with shrubbery.
Just at this moment the canoe containing Chot and Hoki came softlyaround the end of the island. For a moment Truem was uncertain as towhether the new arrivals were friends or enemies. Then he recognized theoutlines of Fleet's canoe, and a feeling of relief swept over him.
"Sh!" he called, in a low tone, as the canoe came up to the bank."They've just entered the passage."
"Did you see where it was?" asked Chot.
"Yes."
"Did they leave a guard in their boat?"
"No."
"Wait a second, then. Hoki, you stay here. Sit still and hold the canoeto the bank, for I may come back in a hurry." Chot leaped ashore as hespoke. "Come on, Truem; show me where they went and perhaps I can helpyou bottle them up."
"This way," said Truem, as he moved silently up the shore to the pointwhere he had seen the men disappear.
"Wait, now," said Chot. "I've got a little pocket light that I found inthe lodge. I believe we'll be safe in using it."
But almost as he spoke both he and Truem observed something which causedthem to stare in silent amazement. A crack of yellow light was to beseen among the vines, and pushing them aside, they saw a long, straightpassage leading on a slight incline toward the lodge. On the ceiling wasa row of lights which made the passageway almost as light as day.
"Well, what do you think of that?" cried Truem.
"Another illustration of the ingenuity of our friend, Mr. Lawrence,"Chot replied.
"How are we going to block the passageway?" whispered Truem.
"I don't see any way to block it," said Chot; "there's no sign of adoor, and it would take all night to fill it with rocks--and even thenthey could easily work their way out. I don't see anything to do, Truem,but follow them up the passageway and place them between two fires, andif the smugglers go as far as the basement, they'll find themselvescovered by the revolvers of the boys. Coming in the nature of asurprise, that should accomplish the result we most desire. But shouldthey escape and come back down the passageway, another surprise will beawaiting them, and we'll cover them from this end."
"What about Hoki?"
"Let him stay in the canoe. I shall probably go to the north islandafter this fracas is over."
Silently Chot and Truem stole up the passageway toward the house,admiring the construction of the place as they went. It was at least sixfeet in height, made entirely of concrete, and about fifty feet inlength.
They could see the entire length of the passageway up to where it took asharp turn, as they judged, directly under the lodge. The smugglers werenowhere in sight.
"They must have gone into a room of some sort, either next to or underthe basement," whispered Chot.
This impression was confirmed a moment later when they came to a hugeoak door which effectually blocked the passage.
"Why, this is just what we're looking for," said Truem. "See here, Chot;we can fasten this from the outside, and the smugglers can never get outunless they batter it down, and they won't try that if we let them knowwe're waiting out here for them."
"A good idea," said Chot. "Can you fasten it?"
Truem nodded and fastened the door by means of a massive hook. Then theboys sat down on the stone floor of the tunnel to await developments.
In the meantime, the boys in the basement were waiting expectantly forthe coming of the smugglers. They had seen Chot and Hoki leave thelodge, and knew the time was approaching for the capture they hadplanned.
What bothered them greatly, was the way the smugglers would enter thebasement, and to guard against a surprise, they decided to separate; soPod was stationed on the steps leading above in easy reach of theelectric button, Fleet crouched in the corner near where the cannedfruit was stored, and Tom in another corner back of the stairway and afew feet beyond the speaking tube.
The boys pictured in their minds a plan of the cellar and the relativepositions of each other, then Tom gave the signal for lights out and Podturned the button which flooded the cellar with darkness. On the cry,"Lights!" from Tom, he was to turn the button again, when the boys wouldcover the smugglers with their revolvers and demand their surrender.
Their plan thoroughly mapped out in this fashion, they became silent.
Some minutes passed before they had any sign of the approach of thesmugglers. Then they heard the creaking of door hinges. Just where thisdoor was located they could not determine, but it seemed beneath thebasement. Then they could hear voices discussing something in low tones.
Then, suddenly, Tom heard a low, scraping sound almost at his side,where a large empty vinegar barrel had stood, and reaching out his handto touch the barrel, he felt it move slowly upward!
There was, then, an opening in the floor of t
he basement, not the walls,which the barrel had at least partly concealed. He drew back against thewall, so that the smugglers would not brush against him in making theirascent into the basement.
"It's dark as pitch," he heard a voice say. "But I'll get a light. Thekids are all asleep long ago. Bill, you make for the stairway and switchon the lights. We want to get out of this as soon as we can."
There was a grunted response to this, and the boys could hear the mancalled Bill tip-toeing toward the stairway. Pod and Fleet had heard theconversation, and knowing that they were prepared to act, when he heardthe footfalls of the man, Bill, on the bottom step, Tom called quickly:
"Lights!"
Pod snapped the button, and instantly the basement was flooded with ayellow glow.
"Hands up!" cried the three boys in unison, as they covered the threemen who appeared before them. The fourth man had been only partlythrough the trap-door when the lights came on, and he dropped quicklyback, pulling the trap shut behind him.
Pod found himself covering the burly Bill, who had paused with one footon the steps. Fleet took the man nearest him, evidently the leader ofthe little party, and Tom covered the other man who was near thetrap-door, and not more than four feet away from him.
For a few seconds, following the command of the boys, there was completesilence. It was broken by a laugh from the man whom Fleet was covering.
"Well, it looks like you'd made a good haul this time, kids," he said."Just what can we do for you?"
"Stand right still until we tell you to move," said Fleet.
"This is a nice mess!" growled the fellow called Bill.
"A bloomin' bad one, say I," said the man Tom was covering, speakingwith a slight accent that marked him at once for an Englishman.
"Sorry you gentlemen find yourselves in such a predicament," said Tom,"but there have been altogether too many mysteries about this lodge tosuit us."
"What you going to do with us?" queried Bill.
"Never mind; you'll learn that soon enough. How many more are there ofyou?"
"There's six in the room below and four more in the passageway," saidthe leader, lying glibly. "So you'd better let us go, and take a sneakwhile you can. We'll get the best of you in the end."
"There's only one more in your party," said Tom, making a shrewd guess,"and I guess we'll find a way to get him."
"Oh, you won't get any of the others," said Bill. "They're out on theriver by this time. Don't you s'pose we leave things clear for ourescape when we come over here?"
"You are no doubt deluding yourselves into believing that your friendbelow will get safely back to the other island," said Tom, "but ithappens that we have three of our boys at the other end of the tunnel,all heavily armed. Now, figure it out, if you can."
"And somebody's getting in his fine work," cried Fleet, as the dullsound of a revolver shot came to them from below.