Jupiter shook his head. “I think we can use my plank. Not for pulling him out directly — we’d never get enough leverage on this sandy ground. But the plank is just long enough to reach across the pit and wedge into the sides.”
“Then what good is that?” Pete asked. “Bob can’t reach that high.”
“Yes he can, if we can place it at the right angle,” Jupiter said. “I think we can wedge it in from the opposite side.”
Pete looked at the thin plank Jupiter held. He nodded, wetting his lips. “It’s worth a try. If it will hold his weight.”
Jupiter leaned over the ledge. “We’ll be trying to reach over your head, Bob,” he explained. “It will be up to you to see that the plank is wedged in firmly enough to sustain your weight.
“Because if it slips,” he added, “we’ll not only lose the plank, but you.”
“Thanks a lot,” Bob answered. “Only hurry it up. I think I’ve sunk another couple of inches.”
Jupiter left Pete and hurried to the far side. He leaned over the edge and extended the plank.
“I’m pushing it out now,” he told his friends. “I don’t know if you can see it, Bob. But in a moment it should be passing over your head.”
Lying on his stomach, he shoved the plank out foot by foot. Finally he heard a shout from below.
“I can see it now,” Bob called. Then, on a higher despairing note, “I can’t reach it. It’s too high.”
“It’s coming down now,” Jupiter said. “I’m trying to get the precise angle where it will fit.”
He extended the plank a few more inches.
“You’re doing fine, Jupe,” Bob called. “It’s coming in all right. Just another couple of inches,”
He waited for Jupiter’s next move. Then he heard a scuffling sound. “Come on, Jupe. What’s holding you up?”
Jupiter’s voice was hoarse. “I’m out too far. I–I’m beginning to fall in myself!”
“Oh, no!” Pete groaned. He leaped to his feet and dashed for the other side.
Jupiter’s feet were clawing wildly for purchase on the slippery ground. The rest of him was already tilted downwards over the dark pit. Bits of earth crumbled under his weight and rolled away.
Pete threw himself forward and landed on Jupiter’s legs, pinning him there. Then, grabbing Jupiter’s belt, he threw his weight backwards.
“Easy, Jupe,” he said, panting. “I’ve got you.”
In another moment, he had enough of Jupiter back for the stocky boy to recover his balance.
“Thanks, Pete,” Jupiter said breathlessly: “Now if you would just remain over me another few seconds until I get this plank extended all the way — ”
They both heard Bob’s joyous shout.
“You got it, Jupe!”
“Okay, Bob. Pete and I will now wedge it into the pit at this side. Then it will be up to you to come up it, hand over hand. Can you reach it?”
There was a second’s pause. Then, “I got it!”
“All right, Bob,” Jupiter said. “Come on, then.”
“Roger!” Bob said.
They heard a warning creak. The plank shook under their hands.
“Here he comes!” Pete yelled.
As the plank swayed and shivered under Bob’s advancing weight, Jupiter leaned on his end with all his strength.
“It may still break,” he whispered to Pete. “Get ready to grab him.”
They heard Bob breathing heavily.
“Okay,” he panted. “Here I am. Now what?”
Pete leaned over. “Grab my hand, Bob.”
Bob’s hand shot up quickly. For a brief moment, their grips held together. Then Bob’s hand slipped away. He moved frantically to grab the wet plank again.
“He’s harder to hold than a greased pig. Jupe,” Pete complained. “You want to try it?”
Jupiter shook his head. “I doubt that I’d do it any better than you. We’ll have to grab him together.”
Bob glared at them from below, as he dangled from the swaying plank. “For Pete’s sake, will you guys stop holding these conferences and get me out of here? I’m weighed down with so much mud, I can hardly hold myself up. And my hands are slipping, too — ”
Jupe’s eyes darted round the interior of the cave. “What we need is a rope,” he said. “Something we can throw and loop over him — ”
“There’s no rope,” Pete muttered. “And no time. We’re only a couple of inches short. There must be something — ”
Suddenly Jupiter’s eyes brightened. “I have it!”
His hands went for his belt buckle. Swiftly, he opened it and drew the belt off his waist. Pete watched open-mouthed as Jupiter inserted the end of his belt through the buckle. It made a small loop.
Jupiter let the other end dangle and leaned over the pit again. “I’ve made a small loop out of my belt, Bob.” he said. “When I lower it, let it go over your hand. Your weight will tighten it. Then Pete and I can pull you out.”
He slowly let the belt out, lowering it into the pit. Then he braced himself for a tug from below.
“I got it!” Bob yelled. “Pull!”
Jupiter sighed with relief. Pete grinned and reached for his share of the belt. Together, they leaned back and pulled.
Something dark and wet, covered with ooze and slime, slowly came up out of the pit.
8
A Forced Retreat
The wet figure dropped beside them, panting heavily.
“Thanks, fellows.”
“It was Jupe’s idea,” Pete said. He glanced down ruefully at his own belt. “I’m wearing a belt, too. I just never thought of using it.”
“Perhaps that’s because you’re not as weight conscious as I am,” Jupiter said, smiling. “Besides, since my waist is wider than yours, my belt is longer.”
Bob wiped mud from his face. “It worked fine, Jupe. I’ll never kid you about being overweight again.” He glanced down into the pit and drew back, shuddering. “Otherwise I might still be down there.”
“All’s well that ends well,” Pete said. “Now what do we do?”
“We go home,” Jupiter said firmly. “Bob’s wet and needs a change of clothing. I’m sorry. It was my fault for insisting we investigate the cave without our torches handy.”
“It would have been a good idea,” Bob agreed. “But I guess it was dumb of me to dash ahead without looking where I was going.”
Jupiter stood up, frowning.
“Odd that such a dangerous pit should be so close to the entrance to the cave. I imagine that would keep a lot of curious people out.”
“Not if they do things my way,” Bob said, grinning weakly. “That would keep a lot of those curious people in!”
“Golly,” Pete said, a serious note in his voice. “Maybe that’s what happened to Mr. Allen’s dog, and the other missing ones. They might have fallen into that pit, too, and been sucked down.”
Jupiter nodded. “It’s a possibility. But we were looking for evidence of their tracks before Bob cried for help, and didn’t find any.”
“Oh?” Pete exclaimed. “Is that what we were doing?” He took a quick look behind him. “Well, let’s get out of here while we still can. This place is scary.”
In complete agreement, they walked quickly out of the cave.
Jupiter looked back. There were giant boulders on the other side of the cave opening.
“I wonder how far back that cave goes,” he said, thoughtfully. “We were told it had been used by smugglers and rum-runners in the past.”
“That’s right,” Pete said. “What about it?”
“The part we were in didn’t seem ideal for hiding things. It was too open and easy to get into.”
“Maybe there are other passages,” Bob said. “Sometimes water erosion wears away the softer rocks. It takes millions of years sometimes. Maybe this area was under water a long time ago. If so, there would be a lot of natural passages.”