CHAPTER XX.
"FROM THE HANDS OF MY KINSFOLK."
"What on earth has become of that duffer?" said Tom Holtum, when the_Laulie_ arrived at the geo and no Yaspard appeared either on land orsea.
"We are a little before our time," Harry remarked; "but I don't see hisboat anywhere along the voe--that is, as far as one can see in the Dimand along such a twisting twirligig of a voe as this."
"I vote we land and have a nap," said Bill; but no one seconded him, asthey expected the Viking and his followers to appear at any moment.
These did not put in an appearance, however; and after waiting a longhour Tom said, "Look here, boys, something unforeseen has stoppedhim--and it's something serious too. I expect the old man has smelt arat, or Yaspard has had qualms of conscience."
"He'd have come and told us if _that_ were it," said Harry promptly.
"Anyway," Tom replied, "he hasn't come; and it does not look as if hewere coming, and we can't sit here all night doing nothing. So I votewe proceed without Sir Viking."
"He would not like it; and it is his quest, you know," Harry laughinglymade answer.
"_His_ quest, but remember it is also _my_ what-you-call-am--littlegame. Mind you I discovered the seal for myself, and I meant the jobof taking her to be our job. Father said it might have been better ifYaspard had less to do with it. On the whole, boys, I don't think wecan do better than start and reconnoitre, and take whatever chancecomes our way."
The others agreed, and, thinking it best not to venture up the voe,they decided to moor their boat at some safe place on the other side ofBoden and nearer Trullyabister. "So said so done" was the way of thoselads, and about the time when Yaspard and Fred were falling asleep,thoroughly tired out, the Mitchells, Tom, and Gloy were stealthilycreeping up the hill to the old Ha'-hoose.
"We must be careful and spry," quoth Tom, "for the ogre 'walks' like aghost o' nights, as I know to my cost." Yaspard had described theruins to them, and they knew all about the passage leading to thehaunted room. _His_ plan for liberating the captives had been theirplan, since no better could be; but they were not provided with thetools he meant to bring, and could not therefore carry out theprogramme as at first arranged.
But those boys were not often at their wits' end, and whateversubstitutes for sacks, saws, and shovels suggested themselves asavailable were carried with them from the boat. These substitutesconsisted of a piece of sail-cloth and some bits of hard wood, anowzkerry[1] and the boat-hook. They also brought away some stout rope,and a knife which had helped to end the career of many an aspiringfish. They were not without hope of finding a spade lying "handy"somewhere in the vicinity of the house; so that, on the whole, theyoung marauders were not so badly off for the sinews of war.
They met with no adventure by the way, nor saw they the least sign toindicate that either of the night-roving inhabitants of Trullyabisterwere awake. Near the peat-stack they found a spade and a large stoutkeschie, which they appropriated, as Harry suggested it would make ahandy cradle for the baby seal. They stole into the ruined androofless apartment as Yaspard and the Harrisons had done, and listenedfor sounds from the prisoners; but all was quiet. There was plenty ofdaylight by that time, so that they did not have to grope their wayabout.
"Of course the first thing," whispered Harry, "is to make sure they are_there_, so I'll mount as the Viking did."
He clambered up to the window and took a good look in. It was a pityhe did not take as good a look _out_, and then he might havenoticed--at a window close by, the window of Mr. Neeven's study--theeyes of that ogre himself watching the boys with grave intentness. ButHarry, all unaware of such espionage, came down from the window, andreported Mrs. Sealkie asleep beside her baby in a corner madecomfortable with straw and bits of carpet. To work then went the lads,one with a spade, another with a knife; and when these two were tired,the others took their place, so that the job was rapidly accomplished.
Their plan was to remove the lowest board which blocked the way to thepassage, and to dig from under it a sufficient amount of earth toenable a boy to enter--or a seal to come out.
They meant, _after_ capturing the captive, to hack the board and scrapethe earth, so that any one would suppose that the seal had gnawed andclawed her own way to freedom; and they thought it a very clever planindeed, saying that Yaspard, with whom it originated, was the greatinventor and general of the age.
The seal did not sleep while this was going on so near her; but she hadpartaken of a late and large supper, and did not "fash" beyond now andthen whining in a melancholy voice, which stimulated the young heroesto further efforts, and helped to cover the noise they made.
Before long they were satisfied that the opening was wide enough toallow them to enter crawling. "The first one that goes in will have towatch his head," said Bill, "for I've heard that seals are very fiercewhen they have young ones around."
"_This_ seal is Trullya, and she will know us. Anyway, she never was acrosspatch, and I'll go first," replied Harry the wise and brave. "AndI don't see," he added, "that any one else need go in there. I'll tryand persuade her ladyship to inspect this aperture, and take a'constitutional' down the passage."
But Tom wasn't going to let another eclipse him in valour, particularlyas this quest was his, so, before Harry had done speaking, Tom duckedand soon wriggled himself through the opening. Harry followed, aftercautioning Bill and Gloy to go out of the passage and keep watch, togive the alarm in case Mr. Neeven or fule-Tammy should come upon thescene.
The sealkie was neither alarmed nor disturbed by her visitors. She hadevidently returned to her tame confiding ways, and allowed the boys tocome close to her. When Harry spoke to her by name, using also somesoft notes which Fred had taught Trullya to understand as a call tomeals, she responded in her plaintive voice, which left no doubt of heridentity; but when Tom attempted to touch the baby she uttered a sharpbark and glared at him in a manner that showed she was by no meansprepared to allow their overtures to go a step further.
"What shall we do if she won't come out?" asked Tom; "we couldn'tmuffle her _here_, could we?"
"You go along, and leave madame to me," replied Harry; and Tom made hisexit.
Harry had "a way" with animals, and he soon managed to persuade Trullyato leave her couch. Then the baby, restless and curious as smallpersons are, crept to the opening and peeped out. The mother followed,and finding the barriers against which she had daily fretted removed,waddled slowly into the passage, followed by her young one.
Harry hastily tumbled the earth and broken bits of wood about theopening, and followed the sealkie into the large room, where he foundher looking amazedly at the three boys stationed at spots where theythought she might escape.
Tom had taken up the piece of sail-cloth, and he was preparing to throwit over the seal when all were startled by the sound of a loud coughnot far away.
"Gracious!" one exclaimed in a horrified whisper.
"He's coming!" said another.
The cough was repeated, and the person who coughed was nearer.Moreover, footsteps were heard! These sounds proceeded from the northside of the house, and the four boys promptly and silently evacuatedthe ruin over the south wall.
"Run for the peat-stack," Harry whispered; and when they were crouchingbehind it he said briefly, "It's all up. That was Mr. Neeven. We mustcreep round to the knowes, and then make tracks for our boat."
Setting the example, he started for the knowes, crawling over theground like a Red Indian on the war-trail, and followed by hiscompanions. If they reached the knowes unobserved they might hope toget off in safety, for those little hillocks intercepted the view fromTrullyabister, preventing any one there from seeing across the hillwhich the Lunda boys had to cross.
But when they reached the knowes Mr. Neeven suddenly appeared frombehind them, saying sternly, "What is this? What! Tom Holtum, whocalls himself a gentleman!"
They were beautifully caught, and rose from their reptile position
shamefaced and discomfited. Tom, whose audacity frequently stood themin better stead than Harry's self-possession, was the first to face thevery awkward situation.
"We didn't mean any harm, sir," he said. "We only came to take FredGarson's pet sealkie."
"Indeed! and where may Fred Garson's pet sealkie be?"
"She was in the haunted room--goodness knows where she may be by thistime," was the very cool answer of Master Tom.
"Are you aware, young gentleman, that breaking into a house is aburglarious offence, for which you are liable to imprisonment with hardlabour during a term of years?"
That was a terrible speech; but a sudden break in the speaker's voice,and a mirthful look which he could not repress, were noted by Harry,who took them as hopeful signs; so, plucking up courage, he replied--
"You know what is fair and right as well as we do, sir; and I put it toyou--were we doing a bad thing in trying to recover our friend'sproperty in a quiet way? He might have sued Mr. Adiesen in the lawcourts, and made no end of a row."
"Always supposing, my lad," Mr. Neeven interrupted, "that the sealcould be proved to be his."
"I can prove it easily," Harry answered confidently. "She answered tothe old call Fred used; and besides that, Isabel made a sketch of her.Every mark on her skin is in the picture."
"And more," said Tom; "the sealkie was caught on Fred's property, whereno person had business to be without _his_ leave."
"That, too, is a point open to question. But what _I_ have to do withis this disgraceful burglary. I believe it is admitted that you hadless business in Trullyabister than Mr. Adiesen had in Havnholme."
There was no denying that truth, and the boys hung their heads.
"Follow me," said the ogre. "First you shall show _me_ if the animalrecognises your call, and after that I'll tell you what I mean to dowith you."
The whole party returned to the ruins; but when they got there theywere just in time to see Trullya and her baby flopping over some cragsnear the back of the house, which was situated only a little way fromthe sea on _both_ sides.
The boys were about to start in pursuit, but Mr. Neeven stopped them.
"Let her go to her own," he said almost gently. And in a few minutesthe seal reached the ocean and was free once more.
[1] "Owzkerry," scoop for baling water.