He sat himself down on her again, and she groaned, half-asleep. Tim wagged his tail and thumped it hard against her ankles. Then George pulled him on to her own legs and lay there, feeling him breathe. She was very happy. She was spending the night on her island. They had almost found the ingots, she was sure. She had Tim with her, actually sleeping on her rugs. Perhaps everything would come right after all- somehow.
She fell asleep. The children felt perfectly safe with Tim on guard. They slept peacefully until the morning, when Tim saw a rabbit through the broken archway leading to the little room, and sped away to chase it. He awoke George as he got up from the rugs, and she sat up and rubbed her eyes.
"Wake up!" she cried to the others. "Wake up, all of you! It's morning! And we're on the island!"
They all awoke. It was really thrilling to sit up and remember everything. Julian thought of the big wooden door at once. He would soon smash it in with his axe, he felt sure. And then what would they find?
They had breakfast, and ate just as much as ever. Then Julian picked up the axe they had brought and took everyone to the flight of steps. Tim went too, wagging his tail, but not really feeling very pleased at the thought of going down into the queer places where other dogs seemed to bark, and yet were not to be found. Poor Tim would never understand echoes!
They all went down underground again. And then, of course, they couldn't find the way to the wooden door! It was most tiresome.
"We shall lose our way all over again," said George, desperately. "These dungeons are about the most rambling spread-out maze of underground caves I've ever known! We shall lose the entrance again too!"
Julian had a bright idea. He had a piece of white chalk in his pocket, and he took it out. He went back to the steps, and marked the wall there. Then he began to put chalk-marks along the passages as they walked in the musty darkness. They came to the well, and Julian was pleased.
"Now," he said, "whenever we come to the well we shall at least be able to find the way back to the steps, because we can follow my chalk-marks. Now the thing is- which is the way next? We'll try and find it and I'll put chalk-marks along the walls here and there- but if we go the wrong way and have to come back, we'll rub out the marks, and start again from the well another way."
This was really a very good idea. They did go the wrong way, and had to come back, rubbing out Julian's marks. They reached the well, and set off in the opposite direction. And this time they did find the wooden door!
There it was, stout and sturdy, its old iron nails rusty and red. The children stared at it in delight. Julian lifted his axe.
Crash! He drove it into the wood and round about the keyhole. But the wood was still strong, and the axe only went in an inch or two. Julian drove it in once more. The axe hit one of the big nails and slipped a little to one side. A big splinter of wood flew out- and struck poor Dick on the cheek!
He gave a yell of pain. Julian jumped in alarm, and turned to look at him. Dick's cheek was pouring with blood!
"Something flew out of the door and hit me," said poor Dick. "It's a splinter, or something."
"Golly!" said Julian, and he shone his torch on to Dick. "Can you bear it a moment if I pull the splinter out? It's a big one, and it's still sticking into your poor cheek."
But Dick pulled it out himself. He made a face with the pain, and then turned very white.
"You'd better get up into the open air for a bit," said Julian. "And we'll have to bathe your cheek and stop it bleeding somehow. Anne's got a clean hanky. We'll bathe it and dab it with that. We brought some water with us, luckily."
"I'll go with Dick," said Anne. "You stay here with George. There's no need for us all to go."
But Julian thought he would like to see Dick safely up into the open air first, and then he could leave him with Anne while he went back to George and went on with the smashing down of the door. He handed the axe to George.
"You can do a bit of chopping while I'm gone," he said. "It will take some time to smash that big door in. You get on with it- and I'll be down in a few minutes again. We can easily find the way to the entrance because we've only got to follow my chalk-marks."
"Right!" said George, and she took the axe. "Poor old Dick- you do look a sight."
Leaving George behind with Tim, valiantly attacking the big door, Julian took Dick and Anne up to the open air. Anne dipped her hanky into the kettle of water and dabbed Dick's cheek gently. It was bleeding very much, as cheeks do, but the wound was not really very bad. Dick's colour soon came back, and he wanted to go down into the dungeons again.
"No, you'd better lie down on your back for a little," said Julian. "I know that's good for nose-bleeding- and maybe it's good for cheek-bleeding too. What about Anne and you going out on the rocks over there, where you can see the wreck, and staying there for half an hour or so? Come on- I'll take you both there, and leave you for a bit. You'd better not get up till your cheek's stopped bleeding, old boy."
Julian took the two out of the castle yard and out on to the rocks on the side of the island that faced the open sea. The dark hulk of the old wreck was still there on the rocks. Dick lay down on his back and stared up into the sky, hoping that his cheek would soon stop bleeding. He didn't want to miss any of the fun!
Anne took his hand. She was very upset at the little accident, and although she didn't want to miss the fun either, she meant to stay with Dick till he felt better. Julian sat down beside them for a minute or two. Then he went back to the rocky steps and disappeared down them. He followed his chalk-marks, and soon came to where George was attacking the door.
She had smashed it well round the lock- but it simply would not give way. Julian took the axe from her and drove it hard into the wood.
After a blow or two something seemed to happen to the lock. It became loose, and hung a little sideways. Julian put down his axe.
"I think somehow that we can open the door now," he said, in an exited voice. "Get out of the way, Tim, old fellow. Now then, push, George!"
They both pushed- and the lock gave way with a grating noise. The big door opened creakingly, and the two children went inside, flashing their torches in excitement.
The room was not much more than a cave, hollowed out of the rock- but in it was something quite different from the old barrels and boxes the children had found before. At the back, in untidy piles, were curious, brick-shaped things of dull yellow-brown metal. Julian picked one up.
"George!" he cried. "The ingots! These are real gold! Oh, I know they don't look like it- but they are, all the same. George, oh George, there's a small fortune here in this cellar- and it's yours! We've found it at last!"
Chapter Fourteen. PRISONERS!
GEORGE couldn't say a word. She just stood there, staring at the pile of ingots, holding one in her hand. She could hardly believe that these strange brick-shaped things were really gold. Her heart thumped fast. What a wonderful, marvellous find!
Suddenly Tim began to bark loudly. He stood with his back to the children, his nose towards the door- and how he barked!
"Shut up, Tim!" said Julian. "What can you hear? Is it the others coming back?"
He went to the door and yelled down the passage outside. "Dick! Anne! Is it you? Come quickly, because we've found the ingots! WE'VE FOUND THEM! HURRY! HURRY!"
Tim stopped barking and began to growl. George looked puzzled. "Whatever can be the matter with Tim?" she said. "He surely can't be growling at Dick and Anne."
Then both children got a most tremendous shock- for a man's voice came booming down the dark passage, making queer echoes all around.
"Who is here? Who is down here?"