“He’s around here somewhere,” said Dick. “There’s no mistaking that
melodious voice, but where?”
Suddenly another strange sound broke upon the air; half scream, half
roar, and then a tremendous splash was heard over in the direction of
the next cove.
The boys and Doctor Dan, seizing their rifles, ran that way, but before
they got to the bend of the rocks they were able to see what was going
on.
It was such a combat as probably no man on earth ever witnessed before.
There was old P. D. and a monster precisely similar to the one the boys
had seen on the other side of the lake hard at it, and a bellowing and
roaring broke upon the air that was fairly deafening.
The Plesiosaurus would rear its ugly head far above the water and
strike with lightning rapidity at its antagonist, which would dodge and
then dart forward, squirting up two vast streams of water out of holes
in each side of its huge snout, snapping its crocodile-like jaws and
displaying its terrible teeth.
For about twenty seconds the boys were treated to this wonderful
exhibition and then, with a fearful splash, monster No. 2 leaped half
its length out of the water, caught old P. D. by the neck and dragged
him down out of sight.
“By gracious!” cried Charley. “That’s great!”
“Tremendous!” echoed Dick. “Who on earth ever saw the like?”
“I’ll bet on old P. D. every time,” chuckled Doctor Dan, relaxing his
gravity for once and indulging in a hearty laugh. “It don’t seem to
strike you as comical as it does me, boys. It’s one of the funniest
things I ever saw.”
Dick failed to see where the laugh came in, but he said nothing and for
some time they stood watching for the reappearance of the monsters, but
the moments passed and they did not come to the surface again.
“There must be more than one Plesiosaurus,” remarked Dick, as they
sat at supper; “by the way, Doctor, you were going to tell us of your
discovery and how we could capture old P. D.”
“Why, there is a cove around on the western shore that has a very
narrow entrance,” replied Doctor Dan. “There are great stones scattered
all around there and there is one that I am sure would choke up the
entrance if it was dropped between the ledges. Now if we could rig up
some sort of a snare in the cove with the ropes we have brought and
then pry the boulder over into the break and choke it up we would have
our friend P. D. hard and fast.”
“Always providing he is obliging enough to go into the cove and run
into our snare,” said Dick. “Well, we will take a look at it in the
morning and see what we can make out of it. I’m dead tired now and I’m
going to turn in.”
The tents had been moved further up the bank and as Doctor Dan had
agreed to watch until morning Dick and Charley now wrapped themselves
up in their blankets and put in a good night undisturbed.
Doctor Dan had no news to report in the morning and after breakfast
he went up on the ledges, wrapped himself in his blankets and went to
sleep there, telling the boys that they need not trouble their heads
about him, but just do whatever they pleased.
“Let’s try the underground passage, Dick,” said Charley. “I’m wild to
know if my theory is correct.”
“If I knew where we could dive and strike it I’d say yes in a minute,”
replied Dick, “but I could never locate the place and I don’t care
about running the horses around to the other trail without Doctor Dan.”
“I suppose that means we are to go across the lake again and see what
we can find of the girl?”
“That’s what we ought to do.”
“Then by all means let’s do it. Duty first and pleasure afterward. How
long do you intend to stop up here, anyhow?”
“Oh, a day or two. If we fail entirely I think I shall try to persuade
Doctor Dan to take me on to Mr. Eglinton’s mine and see if Clara is
safe there.”
“That means time lost. How about telegraphing Professor Poynter?”
“We can do that from the mine just as well as from Node Ranch. No doubt
there is a line through to there.”
“The girl is a nuisance,” declared Charley. “I really believe you are
ready to fall in love with her, Dick.”
“I’m ready to help her if she needs help and to save her from that
scoundrel Mudd,” declared Dick, “but don’t let’s do any more talking
until we have made a start.”
The boat was soon stretched and the seats placed and the boys then
carried it down to the lake and got in.
It was not a pleasant craft to navigate, but Charley had become quite
skillful with the paddle and they were soon making good headway across
the lake.
“If we happen to run into old P. D. or his enemy there’s going to be
an interesting time of it,” observed Dick. “You don’t say a word about
that, Charley, but I know you are thinking about it all the same.”
“And why not?” replied Charley. “Of course I’m thinking about it, but
what’s the use talking? We have just got to take our chances. When I’m
out on an expedition like this I don’t believe in showing the white
feather. It isn’t my style nor yours, either, Dick.”
“If it was mine you bet I wouldn’t be here,” said Dick, “but the danger
is real just the same.”
Charley paddled on until at last they reached the other side of the
lake and pulled up their boat on the shore close to the hut.
It still wore the same air of desertion. Dick had left the door partly
open and had placed a small pebble on top of it in such a manner that
if the door was touched the stone would be sure to fall.
He seized hold of the door and pulled it open, but no pebble fell.
“There’s been some one here!” he exclaimed. “Look, Charley, the floor
is all tracked over with alkali since we were here.”
“That’s what, Dick. If it was mud, now, we might guess it was your
friend.”
“Ten to one it was Mudd,” replied Dick. “Hello, what’s this?”
In the middle of the long table which occupied the centre of the room
lay a paper upon which some words were written, fastened to the table
by a rusty old bowie knife which had been driven deep into the wood.
“That’s yours, Dick,” cried Charley. “Don’t you see what it says?”
“For you, Dick Darrell,” were the words scrawled over the paper in
letters at least six inches long.