th my heartbeating so heavily that I mistook it at moments for the foreign sound, Ilistened and listened, all ears.
It was as I had suspected; the sound came from the tunnel beneath me. Ihardly knew whether to stay or go. If I waited I could see who came fromthe opening; but on the other hand I should at once be known to havediscovered the secret. Still as the stone might roll back at any moment,it was necessary that I should make up my mind; I should either go orstay. I decided that I would stay and make discovery at once. In anycase should I succeed in capturing a blackmailer, or even in discoveringor partially discovering his identity, I should be aiding in Marjory'ssafety. So I got my revolver ready; and standing back so that I couldnot be seen at once by any one emerging, waited.
No one came; but I could still hear a slight sound. Filled with agrowing unrest, I determined to take the initiative, and began to moveclose to the stone. As I looked, it began to quiver, and then to moveslowly. As it rolled softly back I kept behind it so that I might not beseen; and waited with revolver ready and what patience I could.
There was dead silence; and then a hand holding a revolver rested amoment on the edge of the opening.
I knew the hand, and I knew the revolver, and I knew the quickness ofboth. I did not say a word or make a sound, till Marjory with an alertmovement seemed to sweep up out of the opening and whirled round withready pistol, as though suspecting an enemy on every side.
Marjory, all covered with dust, her cheeks as white as snow, so that thesmears of dust lay on them like soot; and eyes with pupils distendedas in coming from the dark. For a few seconds she seemed hardly torecognise me; but when she did she sprang gladly into my arms.
"Oh! Archie, I am glad to see you. It was so terrible and lonely in thedark. I began to fear I might never find my way out!" In the dark! Ibegan to fear, and asked her:
"But, dear one, how did you come; and why? Hadn't you got a light withyou? Surely you didn't come unprepared, if you did venture into thecave!" Then in a rush she told me the whole story. How before dawn shehad been waked by the dropping of the book and had hurried to the castleroof to watch the stone. With her field glass she had presently seen itmove. She was then satisfied that the watchers had gone home; and haddetermined on a little adventure on her own account.
"I put on a grey tweed dress, and taking my revolver and bicycle lamp,stole out of the castle and reached the old chapel. Having lit my lamp,I rolled back the stone and set out to explore the tunnel. I followedfrom your description, the passage to its bifurcating, and determined toexplore the other arm to the reservoir. I easily found it, a deep, darktank cut in the rock and seemingly fed by springs which bubbled up frompatches of fine sand, the accumulation of years of wasting rock. WhilstI was trying to look into the depth of the reservoir, holding my bicyclelamp so as to throw its light downwards, I saw something white at thebottom. Just then the lamp from its inverted position began to smoke,but as I looked in that last moment through the crystal pure water Irecognised that the white object was a skull. In the sudden shock of thediscovery, the lamp dropped from my hand and disappeared hissing andbubbling in the last flicker of light." As she told me this, I took herhand for I feared that the memory of such an appalling moment must haveunnerved her; but to my surprise her nerves were as firm as my own. Shelet her hand remain in mine; but she had evidently understood my thoughtfor she said:
"Oh! it's all right now, Archie. For a moment or two I do believe I wasfrightened. You can have the laugh on me there if you like! But thencommon sense came to my aid. I was in a tight place, and it would needall I knew to get out. I thought the matter over as coolly as I could;and do you know that coolness seemed to grow with the effort! I was inthe dark, in a cave, deep underground, the entrance to which was secret;I had no means of getting a light even for an instant, for though I hadtaken plenty of wax matches they were all in my lamp. The only thing Icould do was to try to grope my way out. I had noted the passage asI came along, but I found so soon as I had felt my way out of thereservoir chamber, how little use an abstract recollection is when everysecond there is a new detail. I found, too, the astonishing differencebetween sight and touch; what I had remembered had been with my eyes andnot with my fingers. I had to guard all round me, my head, my feet, mysides. I am amazed, now when I think of it, how many different kinds ofmistakes and calculations I made in a few yards. It seemed a terriblylong time till I came to the place where the passage forks. There Iweighed up the matter of whether it would be better to go back by theway I had come to the old chapel, or to go up the other passage to themonument of which you told me. Somehow the latter seemed to me the morefeasible. I think it must have been that I trusted you more than myself.You had not shrunk from going into that passage; and I would not shrinkfrom going out."
I squeezed her hands hard, I had got both by this time. She blushed alittle and looked at me fondly and went on:
"There was something cheering in the mere fact of going up instead ofdown. It was like coming towards the air and light again; and the timedid not seem so long till I came to the end of the passage, for so faras I could feel there was nothing but solid rock all round me. For alittle bit my heart sank again; but I soon bucked up. I knew that thismust be the way out; and I felt around for the iron handles of which youhad told me. And then, Thank God for His goodness! when the stone beganto turn I saw the light, and breathed fresh air again. They seemed togive me back all my courage and caution. Up to this I had not troubledabout kidnappers; there was quite enough to think of in getting alongthe passage. But now I was my own woman again, and I determined to takeno chances. When I saw it was your gun that was aimed at me I wasglad!"
CHAPTER XXXII
THE LOST SCRIPT
After a little consideration of ways and means, we decided that the bestthing we could do was to pass through the passage to the old chapel.It was still very early, so early that in all probability none of thehousehold were yet awake; if Marjory could regain her room beforebeing seen, it would avoid curiosity. She was certainly in a shockingcondition of dust and dishevelment. Her groping in the dark through thatlong rugged passage had not been accomplished without many hardships.Her dress was torn in several places, and her hat was simply knocked topieces; even her hair was tumbled about, and had been put up again andagain with dusty fingers. She saw me smiling; I think it pained her alittle for she suddenly said:
"Come along quick; it's simply awful standing here in the light of dayin this filthy state. It won't feel half so bad in the dark passage!"Without more ado I lit my lamp, and having, of course, closed theentrance behind us, we went back into the cavern.
The tramp back through the tunnel did not seem nearly so long or sodifficult as at first. It may have been that comparative familiaritymade it easier; it certainly eased its terrors. Or it is possible thatour companionship, each to the other, made the bearing of fears anddifficulties lighter.
Anyhow, it was something of a surprise to both of us to find ourselvesso quickly in the rude chamber whence the steps led up to the oldchapel. Before we left this, we made a rough examination of it, turningthe lantern over walls and floor and ceiling; for I had an idea that thepassage from the castle, which I was satisfied must exist, made its exithere. We could not, however, see any external sign of an opening; thewalls were built up of massive unmortared stones, and were seemingly assolid as the rock itself.
When we got into the chapel we found the utility of Marjory's foresight.In a corner was her little basket with soap and towel, water and clothesbrush; and together we restored her to some semblance of decency. Thenshe went back to the castle and got in unobserved, as I, watching fromthe shelter of the trees, could see. I took my way back through thepassage; and so to the wood where my bicycle was hidden. I washed myhands in the stream and lay down in the shelter of a thick grove ofhazel, where I slept till breakfast time. When I rode up to the castle,I found Marjory with her kodak on the sweep outside, taking views of itsvarious points.
The morning was intensely hot; and here, in the shelter of the littlevalley and the enclosing wood, the air was sultry, and the sun beat downpitilessly. We had a table set out under the shelter of the trees andbreakfasted _al fresco_.
When we were alone in her boudoir I settled with Marjory that we wouldon that evening attempt to find the treasure, as the tide would be outat midnight. So we went down to the library and got out Don de Escoban'snarrative and began to read it afresh, noting as we went every word andsign of the secret writing, in the hope that we might in thus doingstumble on some new secret or hidden meaning.
Whilst we were thus engaged a servant came looking for Mrs. Jack, forwhom a stranger had brought a letter. Marjory told where she might befound, and for some time we went on with our work.
Suddenly the door opened, and Mrs. Jack entered, speaking over hershoulder as she came to a high-bred looking, dark man who followed her.As she saw us she stopped and said to Marjory:
"Oh! my dear, I didn't know you were here. I thought you were in theladies' room." This was what they usually called the big room at the topof the castle. We both rose, seeing a stranger. For my own part therewas something in his face which set me thinking; as to Marjory I couldnot help noticing that she drew herself up to her full height, and heldherself at tension in that haughty way which now and again marked herhigh spirit and breeding. There seemed so little cause for this attitudethat my own thinking of the new-comer was lost in the contemplationof hers. Mrs. Jack noticed that there was some awkwardness, and spokehurriedly:
"This is the gentleman, my dear, that the agent wrote about; and ashe wanted to look over the house I brought him myself." The strangerprobably taking his cue from her apologetic tone spoke:
"I trust I have not disturbed the Senora; if I have, pardon! I have butcome to renew my memory of a place, dear to me in my youth, and whichthrough the passing of time and of some who were, is now my ownheritage." Marjory smiled, and swept him a curtsey as she said, butstill in her distant arm's-length manner:
"Then you are the owner of the castle, sir. I hope that we do notdisturb you. Should you wish to be anywhere alone we shall gladlywithdraw and wait your pleasure." He raised a hand of eloquent protest,a well-kept, gentleman's hand, as he said in tones sweet and deferent:
"Oh! I pray you, do not stir. May I say that when my house is gracedwith the presence of so much loveliness I am all too full of gratitudeto wish for any change. I shall but look around me, for I have a certainduty to do. Alas! this my heritage comes not only as a joy, but withgrave duties which I must fulfill. Well I know this room. Many a time asa boy I have sat here with my kinsman, then so old and distant from mein my race; and yet I am his next successor. Here has he told me of oldtimes, and of my race of which we who have the name are so proud; and ofthe solemn duty which might some day come to me. Could I but tell...."Here he stopped suddenly.
His eyes had been wandering all over the room, up and down thebookshelves, and at the few pictures which the walls contained. Whenthey rested on the table, a strange look came into them. Here laythe type-script which we had been reading, and the secret writing ofthe dotted printing. It was on the latter that his eyes were fixedabsorbingly.
"Where did you get that?" he said suddenly, pointing to it. The questionin its bald simplicity was in word rude, but his manner of asking it wasso sweet and deferential that to me it robbed it of all offence. I wasjust about to answer when my eye caught that of Marjory, and I paused.There was such meaning in her eyes that my own began roving to find thecause of it. As I looked she put her hands on the table before her, andher fingers seemed to drum nervously. To me, however, it was no nervoustrifling; she was speaking to me in our own cipher.