Though the boys kept a vigilant watch all through the night, nothing
occurred to disturb the tranquility of Winnsocket Lodge. Truem sat on
the shore, hoping the smugglers would enter the secret passage, but not
a boat of any description came near the island. He felt at times an
almost uncontrollable desire to search for the passage anyway, as that
shore of the island was covered with rocks and trailing vines, any of
which might hide the entrance. But to successfully prosecute his search
he would need a light, and this might arouse the suspicion of the
smugglers.
In the meantime, Tom, Pod and Fleet sat on the basement steps, waiting a
signal from Truem that the men were in the passage, or another message
from Bert through the speaking tube. Bert, however, was being kept away
from the tube, they felt sure, and would find no way of communicating
with his chums again.
Chot and Hoki sat on the broad verandah, ready to dash at a moment's
notice down to the river's edge, and enter Fleet's canoe.
In this way the night was passed. Hoki served breakfast at sun-up, and
again the boys took turns sleeping, with a cold plunge in the bath-tub
on awaking. By night they were in fine fettle again, and felt no effects
from the loss of sleep the night before.
The same plan was followed again, the lights being extinguished early in
the evening, the boys assuming the same positions, except that Pod was
stationed at a small window in the back hall, looking out toward where
Truem was keeping watch on the shore, as well as toward the north
island.
About eleven-thirty Pod heard the soft splash of oars, mingled with the
sound of voices, wafted indistinctly to him over the water.
"I think they're coming fellows!" he cried, dashing back to the stairway
on 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 moving
silently down the slope toward the water's edge.
"We'll work silently around the end of the island, and may have an
opportunity to help Truem," said Chot, in a whisper, and Hoki gave his
hand a squeeze to signify that he understood.
In the meantime, let us see what Truem was doing. He had heard the first
faint splash of oars, and he crouched low behind some shrubbery, trying
to make out the form of the boat, which he knew was heading straight for
Winnsocket Lodge. The splash of oars became louder, and voices more
distinct, but as yet he could make out nothing in the darkness.
Finally, however, a dark object came indistinctly before his vision, and
soon he could make out the outline of a big rowboat, moving almost
directly toward him. As near as he could judge the boat had three
occupants, but this was merely guesswork on his part, because in the
uncertainty 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 a
painter 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 they
moved 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 softly
around the end of the island. For a moment Truem was uncertain as to
whether the new arrivals were friends or enemies. Then he recognized the
outlines 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 canoe
to the bank, for I may come back in a hurry." Chot leaped ashore as he
spoke. "Come on, Truem; show me where they went and perhaps I can help
you bottle them up."
"This way," said Truem, as he moved silently up the shore to the point
where he had seen the men disappear.
"Wait, now," said Chot. "I've got a little pocket light that I found in
the lodge. I believe we'll be safe in using it."
But almost as he spoke both he and Truem observed something which caused
them to stare in silent amazement. A crack of yellow light was to be
seen among the vines, and pushing them aside, they saw a long, straight
passage leading on a slight incline toward the lodge. On the ceiling was
a 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 a
door, and it would take all night to fill it with rocks--and even then
they 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, and
if the smugglers go as far as the basement, they'll find themselves
covered by the revolvers of the boys. Coming in the nature of a
surprise, that should accomplish the result we most desire. But should
they escape and come back down the passageway, another surprise will be
awaiting 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 island
after 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 six
feet in height, made entirely of concrete, and about fifty feet in
length.
They could see the entire length of the passageway up to where it took a
sharp turn, as they judged, directly under the lodge. The smugglers were
nowhere in sight.
"They must have gone into a room of some sort, either next to or under
the basement," whispered Chot.
This impression was confirmed a moment later when they came to a huge
oak 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 out
unless they batter it down, and they won't try that if we let them know
we'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 the
boys sat down on the stone floor of the tunnel to await developments.
In the meantime, the boys in the basement were waiting expectantly for
the coming of the smugglers. They had seen Chot and Hoki leave the
lodge, and knew the time was approaching for the capture they had
planned.
What bothered them greatly, was the way the smugglers would enter the
basement, and to guard against a surprise, they decided to separate; so
Pod was stationed on the steps leading above in easy reach of the
electric button, Fleet crouched in the corner near where the canned
fruit was stored, and Tom in another corner back of the stairway and a
few feet beyond the speaking tube.
The boys pictured in their minds a plan of the cellar and the relative
positions of each other, then Tom gave the signal for lights out and Pod
turned the button which flooded the cellar with darkness. On the cry,
"Lights!" from Tom, he was to turn the button again, when the boys would
cover 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 the
smugglers. Then they heard the creaking of door hinges. Just where this
door was located they could not determine, but it seemed beneath the
basement. 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 hand
to touch the barrel, he felt it move slowly upward!
There was, then, an opening in the floor of the basement, not the walls,
which the barrel had at least partly concealed. He drew back against the
wall, so that the smugglers would not brush against him in making their
ascent into the basement.
"It's dark as pitch," he heard a voice say. "But I'll get a light. The
kids are all asleep long ago. Bill, you make for the stairway and switch
on 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 man
called Bill tip-toeing toward the stairway. Pod and Fleet had heard the
conversation, and knowing that they were prepared to act, when he heard
the footfalls of the man, Bill, on the bottom step, Tom called quickly:
"Lights!"
Pod snapped the button, and instantly the basement was flooded with a
yellow glow.
"Hands up!" cried the three boys in unison, as they covered the three
men who appeared before them. The fourth man had been only partly
through the trap-door when the lights came on, and he dropped quickly
back, pulling the trap shut behind him.
Pod found himself covering the burly Bill, who had paused with one foot
on the steps. Fleet took the man nearest him, evidently the leader of
the little party, and Tom covered the other man who was near the
trap-door, and not more than four feet away from him.
For a few seconds, following the command of the boys, there was complete
silence. 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, speaking
with 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 to
suit us."
"What you going to do with us?" queried Bill.
"Never mind; you'll learn that soon enough. How many more are there of
you?"
"There's six in the room below and four more in the passageway," said
the leader, lying glibly. "So you'd better let us go, and take a sneak
while 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 the
river by this time. Don't you s'pose we leave things clear for our
escape when we come over here?"
"You are no doubt deluding yourselves into believing that your friend
below will get safely back to the other island," said Tom, "but it
happens 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 dull
sound of a revolver shot came to them from below.