CHAPTER XXXV FOLDED ARMS
"Amadale is going to be tamer for us, than a sick rabbit," volunteeredNicky. He and Tom and Cliff were once more in the couch swing on AuntLucy's porch.
But this time no mysterious Spaniard, no queer Indian faced them.Instead, a tall, lanky, lean-jawed man with a likeable grin squatted onthe floor, idly whittling to a satiny finish a long piece of wood. Hadthe chums looked through the living room window they could have seen Mr.Gray, Cliff's father, entirely restored to health, showing hiscollection of Inca treasures to three scholars. Mr. Whitley, tilted backcomfortably in a chair, its back against the porch rail, smiled atNicky.
"First class in History--and ancient history at that!--begins tomorrow,"he chuckled. "Thomas, please tell me what Inca is the most famous."
"Whackey!" grinned Tom. "He gave America back its citizens."
"And now, Nicholas, what was the empire of the Incas most famed for?"
"Adventure!" promptly replied Nicky.
"Cliff," continued the instructor, carrying on his joke, "You next. Whatfact will you remember most about the Incas?"
"My father's rescue," said Cliff seriously.
That rather ended the joke for they all became sober as they recalledhow much danger they had faced to save him.
"I told you we'd come out all right if we all thought we could!" Nickysaid.
"We came out better than all right!" declared Tom, fondling the brighttan colored and brand new bank pass book in which his share of thetreasure showed as a sizeable deposit.
The treasure they had managed to get to Cuzco had been so cleverlypacked in among their old dunnage that the sleepy officials who had noidea that these men had been among fabulous treasures did not evenbother to examine their old packs, and so, although there would havebeen a large part of the beautifully wrought objects claimed by thePeruvian government, none was noted and they got it all through. InAmerica, because of its value as art objects and because they did notintend to dispose of any of it for profit, there was no duty charged.
Their share of the revenue came from the purse of Cliff's father. Whilehe did not buy the gold directly from them, to each he gave asubstantial sum for deposit. Mr. Whitley had been reimbursed for hisexpenditures and had refused to take a cent more. Bill, though, hadaccepted a good amount with which to buy the ranch for which he yearned.For Mr. Gray, scholar and writer of many books, found on his return toAmerica that his volumes already written had brought in a steady royaltyand for a series of articles on the life and customs of the Incas hereceived a large cash payment.
They had agreed not to disclose to the world the actual adventures theyhad experienced: also, each was bound by the most solemn oath of theMystery Boys not to divulge the fact that the Incas still lived in theirvalley.
To do so, Mr. Gray urged, would send a host of adventurers--or worse--toinvade the hills and to rob and harm the Incas. Instead they let it beunderstood that the scholar had been on an expedition, had found somevaluable old things in the hills and had secured them for the gift whichhe made of them to a National museum.
Bill was visiting the four comrades who, with Cliff's father, hadendeared themselves to him. Soon he would go further West to pick out agood ranch location.
"I wonder if Bill will find it as much excitement chasing steers andbranding them as he found it rescuing my father?" Cliff said.
"Nope!" answered Bill. "But don't forget--I'm one of the Mystery Boysstill. One of these days I expect there will be a letter coming byairmail to my ranch--'Dear Bill, come a-riding! We're going to try tofind Tom's sister and discover what that cipher is that Nicky's got.'"
"Why must we wait?" urged Nicky. "We're all here now!"
"There is school!" reminded Mr. Whitley.
"Yes," agreed Nicky. "But it will be tame after the Incas."
"But we can do one thing," Tom broke in. "We can decide how to go aboutfinding out what's in Nicky's cipher, can't we?"
"I think it will be wiser to wait until our heads are free fromlessons," smiled Mr. Whitley. "I, for one, cannot go on any furtherquest for treasure until I have fulfilled my contract with the AmadaleAcademy."
"Well," said Nicky, the irrepressible, glancing at his friends as, outof the corner of his eye he saw Aunt Lucy within the living room,approaching the window with a big plateful of cakes and a pitcher oflemonade. "Well, I know one thing we can decide on, right now."
"What?" they all asked him.
Nicky grinned. Gently he began stroking his left ear with the middlefinger of that hand. It was the call for a council.
Promptly, and somewhat curiously, Tom, Cliff, Bill and Mr. Whitley satwith folded arms--the sign that they were in readiness.
The Mystery Boys were again in council.
"You'll promise on the oath, 'Seeing All, I see nothing: Knowing All, Iknow nothing: Telling All, I tell nothing'----?"
"Certainly we'll promise!" said Tom impatiently. "What is it, Nicky?"
"I know!" cried Cliff, as Aunt Lucy stood, smiling, at the window,"We've got to decide a great question!"
"What?" asked Bill.
Grinning from ear to ear Nicky pointed to his watch, then jammed afinger toward his open mouth--and grabbed a cookie!
"When do we eat?" he shouted.
They all laughed and each elevated his right hand to rub his stomach.
"Now!" they replied.
And the council of the Mystery Boys was dissolved!
THE END
Transcriber's Notes
--Copyright notice provided as in the original--this e-text is public domain in the country of publication.
--Silently corrected palpable typos; left non-standard spellings and dialect unchanged.
--In the text versions, delimited italics text in _underscores_ (the HTML version reproduces the font form of the printed book.)
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