The Caves of Fear: A Rick Brant Science-Adventure Story

  CHAPTER XVIII

  The Hostages

  A faint splashing warned Rick that the boats were approaching. In a fewmoments they were opposite his position. He swung the infrared lightaround toward them and snapped it on.

  There were two men in the lead boat, one rowing and the other taking hisease in the stern. Rick's heart leaped as he saw that the passenger wasof very slender build. Was it Long Shadow? He couldn't see his faceclearly. He looked at the second boat, and a sudden grin split his lips.

  Worthington Ko!

  The Chinese merchant was sitting at ease, and there was no mistaking hisportly figure. Besides, he twisted on the wooden seat, making himselfmore comfortable, and for an instant his face was toward Rick.

  "Good," Rick muttered to himself. If the slender man wasn't Long Shadow,at least he would have Ko to deal with. The Chinese with the glass eyecould, he knew, speak English, although it was probable that Long Shadowcould, too.

  He watched as the boats reached the barge. Ko and the slender man gotout. Rick studied the stranger, noting that he was taller than Ko, andso thin that, compared with the portly merchant, he looked like ananimated bean pole.

  "He surely must be Long Shadow," Rick told himself. As soon as theexcitement of their arrival had died down among the Tibetans, heintended to get into his boat and start toward the camp.

  Ko and the stranger talked together for a moment, then the lattergestured toward the Tibetans. The Tibetans ran toward the tents whilethe two newcomers waited.

  Rick watched the Tibetans, his brow furrowed. Surely they weren't goingto strike camp! He revised his plans hastily. If they did start to takedown the tents, he would dump his prisoner back in the boat. Then hewould follow wherever they went.

  The Tibetans vanished into the tents, and in a moment they came outagain.

  And they were leading Scotty, Zircon, and Chahda!

  Rick gasped.

  His friends had been in the camp all the time, prisoners! He groanedsoftly. If he had only known, he might have gotten to them while theboats were gone and the number of guards was temporarily reduced. He gotto his knees, determined to start for them right away. Then he paused ashis three friends were led before the two strangers. They were allerect, their hands tied behind them.

  Anyway, prisoners or not, they were evidently none the worse for theircaptivity. Again he started for the boat, and again he paused. What ifLong Shadow and Ko intended loading them in the boats? It might be wiserto wait. He sank down to a sitting position, caressing the cold metal ofhis rifle. The next few moments would tell the story.

  Worthington Ko stepped forward, confronting Zircon. The Chinese noddedhis head, then deliberately slapped the scientist across the face.

  Zircon couldn't strike back. But his legs were free. One massive legswung in a giant punt that caught the Chinese squarely in the stomach.Worthington Ko flew backward like a rag doll and slid along thelimestone floor. Rick watched the tableau, spellbound.

  The Tibetans ran forward.

  Rick put the camera down, light pointing at the group across the way.Then he raised his rifle and sighted in. He'd get some of them beforethey could harm his friends. His finger tightened slowly on the trigger.

  And then the Tibetans fell back as Long Shadow barked an order.

  Worthington Ko got to his feet, bent over, both hands on his stomach. Heweaved a little. The breath had been knocked right out of him, Rickthought.

  The Tibetans and Long Shadow watched as Ko straightened up, very slowly.He ran his hands gingerly over his big stomach. Then, walkingunsteadily, he moved back to within a few feet of Zircon. He called outsomething and one of the Tibetans ran forward.

  Rick's throat clogged as the torchlight reflected from a shiny blade. Kotook the blade and swished it through the air. Then, drawing it back, hestepped forward.

  The Chinese was squarely in Rick's sights. He squeezed the trigger andthe rifle recoiled against his shoulder. The shot thundered through theechoing cave.

  Ko staggered. He dropped the blade, took a couple of hesitant stepsbackward, and then sat down hard.

  There was sudden chaos in the camp across the way. The Tibetans ran backand forth aimlessly like sheep. Long Shadow bellowed orders. Then he ranto a torch, pulled it out of the socket, and heaved it into the water.The Tibetans got the idea. The torches flashed through the air and thenhissed out in the water.

  Long Shadow felt his way toward the three Spindrifters, calling outorders to the Tibetans. Rick suddenly realized that, of all in sight,only he could see! Long Shadow and his men thought they were safe in thedarkness.

  He watched, rifle at his shoulder, as Long Shadow collected theTibetans. Then he realized that the enemy intended herding Scotty,Zircon, and Chahda into the caves. Probably they were certain that inthe caves they would be safe from whoever had fired from the darkness.

  Ko was still sitting. He had one hand pressed to his side.

  The Tibetans were groping for their prisoners. Rick grinned. He aimed atthe stone under their feet and fired. There was a chorus of yells. Helevered another cartridge into the chamber and fired again.

  The Tibetans fled, charging blindly toward the cave openings beyond thetents.

  Long Shadow kept yelling orders, groping around in the blackness, butthe Tibetans paid no attention. They reached the back wall of the cave.Two of them went headlong into openings. Others crashed into the walls,fell, crawled sideways, scrambling until they found the openings they sofrantically sought.

  Long Shadow's voice could be heard screaming in fury for his men to comeback.

  He couldn't see, as Rick could, that they were all now in the cavesbehind their leader.

  Finally, giving up, Long Shadow started for safety himself.

  It would never do to allow the thin man to get away, Rick thought. Hewanted Long Shadow. He and his companions had questions to ask him, andthey needed him to get them out of the Caves of Fear. He sightedcarefully at the long legs that were feeling their way toward the backwall. He fired.

  Long Shadow stumbled headlong, then he started to crawl. Rick stood upand yelled. "Gang! Get Long Shadow!"

  His words echoed eerily through the cave.

  Zircon understood and bellowed. "Where is he?"

  Rick thought quickly. The three were still standing in a line. Heshouted orders.

  "Right face. Forward march!"

  Like a well-trained machine, his friends obeyed. They marched forwardsteadily. But they were slightly off. He remembered the correct command.

  "Left oblique! March!"

  Scotty swung a quarter left, bumped into Zircon. Chahda stood still, notunderstanding. Neither had Zircon comprehended the command. Rick yelled,"Scotty! Turn right just a fraction."

  Scotty did so. "Now," Rick called. "He's about ten feet in front ofyou."

  Scotty moved forward, feeling his way a step at a time. When he wasalmost on Long Shadow, Rick yelled, "You're there!"

  Long Shadow turned over on his back and clawed in his pockets.

  "Watch out!" Rick screamed. "He's got a gun!"

  Scotty jumped, feet first. He missed Long Shadow by a fraction, landingnext to his chest.

  "Fall to the left!" Rick yelled.

  Scotty crashed down across the man, calling to Zircon and Chahda. Guidedby their friend's voice, the two reached his side quickly. Rick couldn'thear what Scotty said, but the big scientist suddenly sat down, his backto Long Shadow. A moment later he writhed away, and he had the pistolbetween his bound hands.

  Rick sighed his relief. "Wait!" he yelled. "I'll be right there!"

  He didn't dare take his eyes off the scene long enough to pick up hisprisoner. Time enough for that later. He untied the boat and got in. Heknelt, placing the rifle on the seat in front of him next to theinfrared camera. Then, using the oar as a paddle once more, he startedstraight across to the camp.

  It wasn't a far journey. But as he reached the halfway mark, two of theTibetans looked cautiously out of their hiding place. Ric
k put the oaracross the gunwales, picked up his rifle, and sighted carefully.Fortunately, there wasn't so much as a ripple on the water. The boat wasperfectly steady.

  He squeezed the trigger, and the stalactite directly over their headsshattered into a thousand pieces, showering them with limestone. Theydidn't wait for a second shot. He could hear their yells even after theyhad ducked back into the caves. They weren't used to sharpshooting intotal darkness.

  Rick smiled as he resumed paddling. He could understand how they felt.He wasn't used to it, either.

  In a few moments he was at the barge. He tied the boat to one of the oddderrick affairs and scrambled out. Then, picking up the camera andrifle, he hurried to his friends.

  Scotty and Chahda were using Long Shadow as a bench. Zircon sat a littledistance apart, trying to peer toward Rick through the darkness.

  "Dark in here, isn't it?" Rick inquired pleasantly.

  "Rick! You old muttonhead!" Scotty exclaimed.

  "Thank God you're safe," Zircon said.

  Chahda grinned the widest grin ever and said, "Also giving much thanksthat friend Rick has eyes like cat which see in dark!" The Hindu boydidn't know about the infrared camera, unless the others had explainedit to him. There hadn't been time back at camp, and Rick hadn't thoughtof it, anyway.

  In a moment the three were untied, rubbing circulation back into theirwrists.

  "Let's get a light!" Zircon said. "I think we had better see to thewounded. I assume there are wounded? I know Ko was hit. And just as hewas about to carve my head from my shoulders, too."

  "He's sitting over there," Rick said.

  "Where's there?" Scotty asked.

  He kept forgetting that only he could see. "Where he dropped. LongShadow is hit, too. I don't know how badly."

  For the first time, they heard their enemy's voice. It was rather high,but cultured and pleasant. "Not badly. Although I believe my ankle maybe broken. I have felt, and I don't believe I am bleeding much."

  Rick knelt quickly and put the infrared light on the wound. Long Shadowwas right. It hadn't bled much, and Zircon, looking the wound over afterborrowing the glasses, told him, "I doubt that the ankle is broken. Thewound is clean."

  "Stay where you are," Rick warned him. "We'll bandage you after we lookat Ko."

  "I have no intention of going anywhere," Long Shadow said. "Not whensome magic I don't understand permits you to see in complete darkness."

  Rick took the glasses from Zircon's hand. In the interval during whichthe scientist was wearing them, he had understood how the others felt.The darkness was absolute. He put the glasses on again and walked overto Ko, talking so his friends could follow the sound of his voice.

  "Well, Mr. Ko," he said, "you got a little surprise, didn't you?"

  The Chinese with the glass eye groaned. "You have won," he complainedweakly. "Now have the kindness to let me go to my ancestors in peace."

  "Better let me take a look at him," Zircon said.

  Rick walked to the scientist's side and took one of his hands. Then hetook off the glasses and pressed them into the hand he was holding. Thatdone, he stood in the blackness and waited.

  "Lie flat," presently Zircon said.

  "Please go away," Ko groaned.

  "Lie flat," Zircon ordered.

  There was the sound of ripping cloth. Zircon grunted. "Hmmmm."

  Ko moaned. "I wish to go to my ancestors alone."

  "You're not going to your ancestors," Zircon replied scornfully. "Idoubt that they'd have you. In case you're interested, Rick's bulletmerely plowed a nice, round hole through some of the fat on your rightside. You haven't even lost enough blood to make the wound interesting."

  Ko's voice was suddenly animated. "Are you sure?"

  "Quite sure. No, don't try to get up. Stay where you are. If you try torun I'll order our seeing-eye marksman to finish the job." Zirconcontinued, "Rick, Scotty, Chahda. Stay where you are. I saw some torchesstacked in one of the tents. I'll get them and be right back."

  The three boys assured him that they wouldn't move. Rick, for one, hadno intention of prowling about in the blackness.

  While they waited, Scotty asked, "What happened to you, Rick?"

  Rick hesitated. He couldn't give an adequate account of what he hadexperienced during the recent hours. Or was it weeks? He summed it up."After we got separated, I couldn't find you again. I wandered around.Then I sat down in a big cave and fell asleep. When I woke, there was aTibetan with a candle. I followed him to a boat landing, slugged him,and rowed across the lake. He's waiting, tied up, across the lake at thespot from where I fired. How about you?"

  "We look for you," Chahda said. "We look a long time, and almost getlost ourself."

  "Finally we decided we'd better push on and find Long Shadow," Scottycontinued. "We tracked the drippings from the candles for hours. It wasslow work. Then, while we were resting, we got jumped from behind. Theydidn't even have to bother about lights, because one of our flashlightswas on, and it was getting so weak we couldn't see more than ten feet.They came out of the darkness with a rush and there we were. They madeus walk to the boat landing, called the boats from here, and brought usover. We've been sitting in one of those tents for hours. You know therest."

  How rapidly they could cover the tortured hours of travel in a fewwords, Rick thought. But he said only, "I'm glad we're all togetheragain."

  "How you see in dark?" Chahda asked.

  Rick explained briefly. The Hindu boy chuckled. "Plenty mystery for onewho not know, you bet! I scared myself, like the men who ran."

  Then Zircon came back. He brought out matches and in a moment torcheswere blazing again. They bandaged the two enemies as best they could,using clean handkerchiefs which Chahda and Scotty carried. And Rick gothis first good look at Long Shadow's face.

  The man was incredibly thin. His skin was stretched over the bones ofhis face like parchment, and it had a sallow ivory tinge even in theruddy torchlight. His eyes were black, with just the faintest hint of aMongoloid fold.

  "Are you a Eurasian?" Rick asked bluntly.

  "Yes." Long Shadow smiled. "I'm one quarter Burmese. The otherthree-quarters doesn't matter."

  "You know our names," Rick said. "I'm sure you do. But we don't knowyours."

  Long Shadow laughed. "You could never pronounce my Burmese name and theother name I use is of no importance."

  Zircon and the others had been listening. Now the scientist said, "We'llhave plenty of chance to talk, Rick. At the moment I'm concerned withgetting out of here. After a bit of exploration of course. It's almostcertain that the heavy water comes from here. Although I don't know thesource."

  Scotty motioned toward the Lake of Darkness. "Bradley said to bring aNansen bottle and a rubber boat. He must have known about this. Whywould he say to bring a Nansen bottle if not to take a sample from thelake?"

  Zircon flashed a look at Long Shadow. The Eurasian smiled gently."That's a good question Mr. Scott asked," he told them. "But don't lookto me for the answer."

  "Search the tents," Zircon ordered. "Chahda, keep an eye on our twofriends."

  The three Americans walked to the felt tents and began searching throughthem. Zircon used the infrared camera. Rick and Scotty took torches.

  Rick was feeling through a pile of furs when Zircon called, "Here arethe flashlights!"

  Zircon's had run down, but Scotty's, and Chahda's big lights were stilluseful. They made the search much easier. Rick went back to the pile ofskins and found that they were plastic-lined water bags, similar to theones they had found on the way to Korse Lenken. Then, stacked in acorner of the tent, he found some Nansen bottles!

  At the same moment, Scotty called from the next tent. "Look what Ifound!"

  He had located the ammunition supply. There was powder and ball for theold muskets the Tibetans used, two boxes of machine pistol cartridges,and a small case of grenades!

  "Now we know where Ko got the one he tried to use on us," Rick said."But where did they come from in
the first place?"

  "The war," Scotty guessed. "There must be tons of ammo and ordnance ofall kinds floating around China. What makes me wonder is why theTibetans don't have modern rifles."

  "I suspect the answer is their natural conservatism," Zircon suggested."They are slow to change. And such guns as they use are handed down fromfather to son. I don't doubt that modern rifles were offered them andthat they refused."

  Rick knew something of the Oriental mind, although not much, and herealized that Zircon was probably right. In a land of ancestor worship,change was resisted.

  Scotty stuffed grenades in each pocket. "Just in case we get into afight on the way out," he explained.

  Rick was glad to leave the deadly things to his friend. Scotty knewabout grenades from his tour of duty in the Marines; he had thrown morethan a few himself.

  "Nansen bottles in the next tent, professor," Rick said. "There must besomething to this business of getting stuff out of the lake. But golly,you don't get heavy water out of natural water, do you?"

  "I don't know," Zircon said. "There is only one precedent I can thinkof. Have you ever heard of Lake Baikal?"

  Neither boy had.

  "It's a very large lake in Siberia, just above Mongolia," the scientisttold them. "It is also very deep. A few years ago, before the IronCurtain closed down, word came out of Russia that some scientists hadsucceeded in getting heavy water samples out of Baikal. That is the onlyprecedent that I know.

  "It is true," he continued, "that heavy water has a tendency to sink.Naturally enough, since it is heavier. But for enough to form on thebottom of a body of water, there would have to be great depth andcomplete calm. Any current would stir the water up and the heavy waterwould merge with the normal once more."

  "In other words, you need a lake like this one," Rick concluded.

  "I must admit it fits the requirements," Zircon agreed. "And we've seenno sign of an industrial plant. These caverns certainly would be noplace for one."

  "We can soon tell," Scotty suggested. "Let's take a sample. When we getout, you can test it."

  "Quite right," Zircon said. "And let's be quick about it."

  It didn't take long to discover the reason for the odd little derrickson the barge. Each was equipped with a pulley and a reel of wire.Obviously, it was from here that the Nansen bottles were lowered.

  While Chahda and Scotty remained on shore, Zircon and Rick pushed thebarge out into the lake. Rick got a Nansen bottle ready.

  The bottle was made of metal, each end equipped with a spring cap. Thebottle was lowered on a wire with the ends open, permitting water toflow through it freely. When it reached the desired depth, a metalweight called a "messenger" was attached to the wire and dropped. Theweight of the messenger released devices that closed the caps, thustrapping the water sample inside. A brass spigot on the side permittedthe sample to be taken out easily when the bottle was hauled up again.

  They had brought four bottles from Long Shadow's stores. The first onewas lowered to the very bottom, and it took a long time getting there.The reel of wire with which the barge was equipped ran out and out untila full seven hundred feet of it had disappeared into the dark depths ofthe lake. Rick was glad the reel of wire had a geared handle. Pullingthat weight up would be no fun.

  Once the slackening of the wire told them that bottom had been reached,Zircon put the messenger on the wire and let it go. Seconds later, a tugon the wire told them it had struck and Rick reeled in.

  Other samples were taken at five, ten, and fifteen feet from the bottom.Zircon marked the bottles, then they paddled back to shore.

  Long Shadow spoke up. "Of course you have testing equipment?"

  "At our camp near Korse Lenken," Zircon assured him.

  "You'll find what you expect," the Eurasian said.

  "Thank you. And now, we'll also thank you to lead us out of here."

  "No," Long Shadow said.

  "You're beaten," Zircon said reasonably. "Why not admit it andco-operate? We've nothing against you even if there were law in Tibet.See us to the outside and open the barred gate and you're at liberty togo."

  Rick started to protest, then he realized Zircon was right. Law in thispart of the world was the law of the rifle. There was nothing they coulddo to Long Shadow or Ko.

  Long Shadow considered. "I suppose you're right. My little business dealis over, at least for the time being." He raised his voice and yelled inTibetan.

  The boys grabbed up their rifles as Tibetan heads showed from the caves,black eyes blinking in fear.

  "They will carry me and Ko," Long Shadow said calmly. "Now let us be onour way." He smiled. "I must admit I have a selfish interest in all thisworry about getting to the outside. This ankle is beginning to hurt, andI won't mind having one of the lamas with medical skill take a look atit."

  "How about letting a Hong Kong police doctor take a look at it?" Rickasked. Long Shadow's cheerfulness was getting on his nerves. The manacted more like a guest than a prisoner.

  "I don't think we need go that far," Long Shadow replied. "The lamas arequite capable."

  "I wasn't concerned about your ankle," Rick corrected. "I was thinkingthat the Hong Kong police might like to get their hands on the kind ofcitizen who goes around shooting up hotels with a Schmeisser machinepistol."

  Long Shadow stopped smiling abruptly. "You couldn't prove that," he saidswiftly.

  "Why not?" Scotty asked, "We'll let the police see if the slugs fromyour machine pistol don't match those in the hotel wall. By the way,where is the Schmeisser? I haven't seen it around."

  Long Shadow recovered his grin. "You'll never see it again. I took theprecaution of disposing of it, in case the police in the hotel area hadbeen alerted. Don't bother to ask me how I got rid of it."

  "We won't," Zircon replied. "Obviously, you wouldn't tell us. However,perhaps you will tell us how long it will take to get out of here?"

  "About ten minutes."

  At their evident surprise, Long Shadow added, "I should have said oncewe cross the lake it will take about ten minutes. You came a very longway around, you see. I realize you followed the candle droppings, butI'm afraid those were left some time ago, when I first explored thecave. The first entrance you tried was the correct one, even though youdidn't suspect the presence of a door. When you took the open way, youapproached by a very twisting path."

  "Just to satisfy my curiosity," Scotty asked, "why did your men captureus, then bundle us into the boats and bring us here? And where were youall that time?"

  Long Shadow shrugged. "I knew your guide and bearers were outside, atKorse Lenken, of course. My men have kept an eye on you. I also feltthey probably would start a search after you failed to return. It wasalmost certain they would find the entrance to the caverns behind theBlack Buddha, and, like you, they would probably follow the candledrippings. The drippings would lead them nowhere. Unless they found thesecret door, there would be no chance of them finding you here in ourpermanent camp. Hence, I had you brought here. Ko and I were waiting inthe cave I use for an office. When we thought time enough had elapsedfor my orders to be carried out, we came here. Meanwhile, we took a nap.Are you satisfied?"

  "You never intended that we should see daylight again," Rick stated. Hewinked at his friends. "Suppose we tie a few stalactites to your feet,and Ko's, and see how long it takes for you to get down to where theheavy water is?" He looked meaningly at the lake.

  Ko groaned, but Long Shadow only smiled. "If that's the way you wantit," he said, "it will at least be quick. Both of us are done for,whether you know it or not. Your Mr. Bradley will see to that."

  * * * * *

  As Long Shadow had said, it was little more than ten minutes aftercrossing the lake before the party reached the cave under the BlackBuddha. They had passed through the cave where Rick had found theTibetan. Again he realized how lucky he had been. Some good angel hadled him to the main route. Had he fallen asleep in some other cave, hemight still be wanderin
g through the labyrinth.

  The rifles taken from Scotty and Zircon by Long Shadow's men had beenfound in one of the tents. With Rick's rifle, they were insuranceagainst treachery. But Long Shadow seemed resigned, for some reason Rickcouldn't fathom, and Ko did nothing but curse the bearers who carriedhim.

  Before reaching the great cave they stopped at a blank wall. At a signalfrom Long Shadow, one of the Tibetans reached behind a stalagmite andpulled a lever. A section of the wall swung open, disclosing the passagethey had thought stopped in a dead end.

  In a few moments they were crossing the outer cave, and Rick saw at oncethat the bars across the entrance passage were gone.

  "When the inner door opens from the inside, the bars also open," LongShadow said. "There is another cave under this one where the mechanismis located. No, I am not responsible. The ancient ones who made theBlack Buddha also made the doors and the mechanism."

  Rick ran ahead through the passage. He found the leather thong thatcontrolled the door and pulled. The metal tongue came out of its slotpermitting the counterbalance to swing the trap door upward. The otherswere behind him with their lights, and Rick saw his shadow loom large onthe wall behind the Black Buddha. In the same way, the Long Shadow hadbeen projected upward, probably by the light from a candle in the handsof a Tibetan bearer. He experimented, backing down a few steps. Hisshadow seemed to fold downward into the oblong box of light cast by theflashlights. When he walked up the stairs again, the shadow grew out ofthe bottom of the projected oblong of light.

  As Rick reached floor level, he froze suddenly, his finger slipping thehammer of his rifle to full cock. There were lights in the cave! As heturned to call a warning, yellow-robed lamas, who had seen the reflectedlight on the rear wall, poured around the statue with wild yells, theirtorches held high.

  "Something's up," Rick called to the others. "Watch it!"

  Under the threat of Rick's rifle, then Scotty's and Zircon's, the lamasfell back until the group stood alongside the Black Buddha, looking intothe cave. There were torches everywhere! And cooking fires. Rick's firstthought was that they had returned in the midst of a religiouscelebration.

  And then he saw Sing. The Chinese guide ran to them, his face split by awide grin.

  "You came," he exclaimed happily. "We were about to tear the mountaindown, stone by stone! Where is the Indian boy?"

  Chahda came from behind the statue, herding the Tibetans who carriedLong Shadow, Ko, and the Nansen bottles. Sing turned and yelled.

  The lamas broke into cries of approval at the sight of Chahda. Severalof them ran to him and pressed his hand. He was a favorite, obviously.

  "They came to help when I told them the Indian boy was in danger," Singexplained. "We were ready to start digging holes to find the caverns,because we couldn't find the door." He eyed Long Shadow curiously andgrinned at the sight of Ko. "Should I get my frying pan again?" heasked.

  "Might be a good idea," Rick said.

  "My boss not come yet?" Chahda asked.

  Sing clapped hands to his head in a gesture of self-annoyance. "Iforgot. A letter came. One of the consulate guards, a Chinese who knowsthis part of the world, brought it from Chungking. It may be from Mr.Bradley, because it came originally from Hong Kong."

  Zircon took the envelope while Rick, Scotty, and Chahda looked over hisshoulder. The envelope was marked for delivery from Hong Kong toChungking via diplomatic pouch. It was addressed to Zircon, with thenote, "Urgent. Forward by messenger." Bradley's initials were signed toit.

  The scientist ripped the envelope open and, looking around to be sureLong Shadow and Ko were out of earshot, he read:

  "'Have all the answers except the source. When you find it, destroy itif possible. If you get Long Shadow or Worthington Ko, don't botherbringing them back to Hong Kong, if they're still alive. Leave them atKorse Lenken. Cable me from Chungking when you return.'"

  It was signed "Bradley."

  "I like his confidence in us," Zircon remarked. "Not 'if,' but 'when.'"

  "My boss does not know what it means to fail," Chahda said.

  "I can see one failure," Zircon remarked. "How does one destroy a bodyof water?"

  Scotty's forehead wrinkled thoughtfully. "Couldn't we stir it up? Theheavy water is all at the bottom. If we could give it a stir, the heavystuff would mix with the rest."

  "But would maybe settle right back," Chahda objected.

  "Not for a few thousand years," Zircon said. "A good idea, Scotty. Doyou happen to have a spoon seven hundred feet long?"

  Scotty grinned. "Yes. Mr. Ko supplied one." He reached into his pocketand pulled out a grenade. "These will do the best job of stirring thatblack cup of tea that you've ever seen."

  "Capital!" Zircon exclaimed. "They'll do perfectly, Scotty." He lookedat the boys. "Who wants to go back?"

  Sing spoke up. "I will go, and some of the lamas should, too. Themonastery should know all about these caves, in case something like thisever happens again." He spoke to the lamas in Tibetan. They consultedbriefly, then nodded assent. Five of them stepped forward.

  "And Scotty and I will go," Rick volunteered. "I want to see how thisspoon works." He looked at Long Shadow and Ko. "Maybe they ought to goback and see the end of their racket, whatever it is."

  "No need," Zircon said. "They know it's the end, and Bradley does too.Which is more than we know, I must say. But we'll find out from Bradleyvery soon."

  Rick hefted his rifle. "Incidentally, there's one thing I want to dobefore we go back."

  "And that is?"

  He grinned at the scientist. "I want to go hunting blue sheep."

  "Me, too," Scotty chimed in.

  Zircon chuckled. "Very well. One day for sheep before we hit the trail.Since Bradley prohibits our taking revenge on the enemy, we'll take itout on the local livestock. Now get going. And do a thorough job."