CHAPTER XIV
Below the Dark Coral
The sky was overcast, ceiling about two thousand feet, visibility abouttwo miles. The wind was moderate and steady. Rick examined the water infront of the cottage and told his friends, "I can take off all right.But I don't want to leave without a weather report or we might findourselves with no place to land."
"I'm going to swap this radio for a newspaper," Scotty grumbled. He hadbeen trying without success to get a weather report.
Tony Briotti looked at the Sky Wagon, brows furrowed, then asked, "Rick,couldn't you turn on the radio in the plane and get a weather reportfrom the airport at Charlotte Amalie?"
Rick was climbing into the Sky Wagon before Tony finished. Of course hecould! He called, "I'm a chump!"
The set warmed and Rick called the airport, then held the phones to hisears to hear the reply through heavy static. When the airport answeredhe asked for a weather report for the area between St. Thomas andClipper Cay. He got it, and climbed out, his face thoughtful.
"The storm is having a pup," he told the others. "We're in a lull at themoment. The main storm swung off to the north, but there's another oneright on its tail. We have just about time to get to Charlotte Amalieand back before the second one closes us in."
The group went into action fast. All four pushed the plane into thewater. Zircon ran to pack a bag, and Tony went to get the film Rick hadtaken for Zircon to carry to Steve. Scotty and Rick went through thecheck list, inspecting the plane for possible storm damage. Then Rickstarted the engine and warmed it up. By the time they were ready, Zirconwas climbing aboard.
Scotty yelled, "Tony and I will keep the home fires burning. Don't wasteany time, Rick!"
"I won't."
Zircon closed the cabin door and Rick taxied out. In a few moments hewas air-borne, swinging seaward over the north end of the island. Helooked down and saw two of the frogmen. They were in front of the house,watching the plane.
"Be sure to tell Steve everything," Rick reminded the big scientist,"and don't forget to give him the film. I won't have time to see him,unless he meets the plane. But it doesn't matter, because you knoweverything Scotty and I do."
"I'll be glad to get actively to work on this confounded business,"Zircon stated. "I'm so curious about that brass ball the frogmen had inthe cave that I'm about to burst."
Rick set a compass course for St. Thomas, flying just under the clouds.When they were a half hour out he contacted the airport again and askedfor the weather. The report hadn't changed. He told the airportoperator, "The doctor is coming. Please notify the patient." He couldalmost see the operator jerk to attention as the headphones gave out acrisp "Roger."
He sat down on a heavy chop at Charlotte Amalie, and the Sky Wagon gavethem a rough ride as he taxied to the pier. Lieutenant Jimmy Kelly waswaiting in a Navy sedan with an armed guard in attendance.
Rick supervised the refueling of his plane at the pier gasoline depot, atask he would not delegate to anyone else. The presence of attendantsmade it impossible to talk to the Navy lieutenant.
As Rick tightened the gas cap, Jimmy Kelly said, "Hop into your greatmechanical bird and shove off, birdman. You'll just about beat theweather home as it is. Don't stop to fish on the way."
"I won't. Professor Zircon will tell you an interesting story. And we'llbe monitoring the command channel at six for any advice you can giveus."
"Okay. Don't get your feet wet."
Rick waved good-by to Jimmy and Zircon, then taxied out to the cleararea and took off. The ceiling was lower than on the trip in, and healmost missed Clipper Cay because of strong winds and low visibility. Hespotted the southern tip of the island just in time to avoid going righton by. He landed with beads of perspiration on his forehead. If he hadmissed, with luck he might have hit Puerto Rico, but more likely hewould have had to make a landing in the open ocean.
Scotty and Tony came to greet him.
"We were worried," Tony said. "It's closing in fast."
"I got a little worried myself," Rick admitted. "Anything new here?"
Scotty gestured toward the northern end of the island. "Our pals havebeen busy, diving. They got the brass ball, or whatever it is, andstowed it aboard their boat. I kept an eye on 'em through thebinoculars. Also, I suspect they're going to do some more diving,because they left their equipment on the boat."
Rick didn't particularly care at that moment. The flight back had beensomething of a strain. "Let 'em go," he said. "We can't do anythingabout it, anyway--not in broad daylight. Maybe tonight we can take alook."
They spent the afternoon indoors, napping or reading, unable to swim orfish because the second storm had arrived on schedule. Then, a fewminutes before six, Rick turned on the radio to the Navy commandchannel.
At six on the nose, the radio emitted: "_A message for the blue-sheephunters. The blue sheep seen by the big hunter and the little hunter isimportant. Obtain more information if possible. But remember that theowners of the sheep are also mighty hunters. The snapshots of the sheepwere fine._"
The message was repeated. When they were sure there was no more, Rickswitched the set off. "Well, we're in it, and with Steve's blessing. Nowwhat?"
Scotty shrugged. "Now we steal the brass ball. Didn't Steve's messagesay to get more information?"
"Apparently the pictures turned out well, if I understood that referenceto snapshots correctly," Tony said. "Be serious, Scotty. What can we donext?"
"Keep an eye on the frogmen, I guess, and play it by ear. I can't seeanything else to be done. We probably could steal their brass ball, allright, but they'd know at once who had done it because we're the onlyother people on the island."
"Have you looked recently to see what they're doing?" Tony asked.
Neither boy had. Both went to the front porch, but the frogmen's cottagewas invisible through the driving rain. "We'll have to go see," Ricksaid.
"After dark," Scotty added. "In about an hour. It will be pretty darkthen."
"Do you suppose the brass ball is still on the boat?" Rick inquiredthoughtfully. "We might be able to sneak aboard after dark and get apicture of it from close up, and we could examine it and have somethingdefinite to report to Steve."
"That's a possibility," Scotty admitted. "Anyway, we can get ready."
Rick rechecked the camera and infrared unit. He loaded the camera with afresh roll of film. Then the three sat in the living room over coffeeand listened to the storm batter at the front of the house until it wasnearly dark outside.
"What now?" Tony inquired. "Do we all go? Or just one of us?"
"No point in all of us getting soaked," Scotty said. "Have you had anyexperience in this kind of spying, Tony?"
The archaeologist had not. He grinned. "Until I came to Spindrift, I leda rather quiet, academic sort of life. Except for the war, of course."
"Then Scotty or I had better go," Rick said. "Or both of us."
Scotty shook his head. "No need for both. It's only a reconnaissance,anyway. Toss you for it."
Rick produced a coin. "All right. Call it." He flipped it as Scottyclaimed heads. It was a tail.
"Best two out of three?" Scotty invited.
Rick grinned. "And after that, best three out of five?"
Scotty growled, "All right. I'll go." He got ready by taking off shoesand socks. He could change his shirt and shorts when he returned. Heslipped through the back door and was gone.
Rick turned on the radio, tried for a weather report, and settled for aMiami disk jockey who was playing some good records. The static was bad,but the station came through clearly enough to make listening worthwhile.
Scotty was back before a half dozen records had been played. He satdown, ignoring the water that dripped from him. "Listen, our friendsjust rounded the northern tip of the island in the boat and they'reheading south just inside the eastern reef. What do you make of that?"
Rick pictured the movements of the enemy boat from Scotty's description."They can't be putting out
to sea, otherwise they'd be outside the reef.And they're not interested in anything on the island or they'd havewalked. I'd say they're planning to do some night diving on the easternside of the island."
"In this kind of weather?" Tony asked incredulously.
"Sure. It's stormy on top, but once you're below the wave motion it'squiet as ever. They could dive."
Scotty stood up. "If they can, so can we."
There was no denial to that. They made a trip to the _Water Witch_ andcollected their equipment, then planned what they would do.
"We'll all use lungs," Tony said. "We have three regulators and thereare plenty of full tanks, enough for two dives each. However, we haveonly two pairs of glasses for the dark-light camera. I'll yield toScotty as the more experienced diver, so you and he use the glasses,Rick. I'll stay on top, or near the top, with a single float, and a gun.If I use the lung I can stay submerged most of the time and not have tofight waves."
"Lash yourself to the float," Scotty cautioned.
"And we'll use a buddy line," Rick added. "The same one the professorand I used. Scotty, you take a gun, and I'll take the camera."
"If I see any trouble in the making, I'll bang on my air tank," Tonysaid. "You should be able to hear that for quite a distance."
There was nothing else to be planned in advance. They picked up theirequipment and went out the back door into the storm, crossing the islandthrough the palms. As they emerged onto the eastern shore, Scottycalled, "Look--about five hundred yards north."
The lights of the frogmen's boat, visible as bright halos through therain, were tossing violently just inside the eastern reef. Apparentlythe boat was anchored. The rain was too thick for them to see anymovement aboard, or to see details of the boat itself.
"Move carefully," Rick cautioned. He had to raise his voice to be heardabove the storm. "We haven't explored this shore. It may be full ofcoral heads."
"I doubt it," Scotty returned. "It would be too dangerous for the boatin this kind of weather, even if they knew a channel."
"Rick's right about careful movement, nevertheless," Tony replied. "Wemust move with care, especially near the reef." He indicated his float."I'll never be able to tow this through that water, so I'll leave it inthe palm grove. We can pick it up on the way back. We shouldn't need itwith lungs, anyway. Do you boys have rescue packs?"
The packs were plastic floats compressed into packages no larger than acigarette pack. They contained a carbon-dioxide cartridge and could beinflated simply by squeezing them, which punctured the cartridge. Theboys had carried them on their weight belts for so long that they tookthem for granted.
They donned their equipment, then walked down to the beach. The surf wasnot heavy, since the wind was blowing from the opposite side of theisland. Nevertheless, there was enough water motion to lift a finescreen of sand and dust.
"The camera will be useless until we get into deeper water," Rickcalled. "Let's rope together and swim straight out."
They waded in, awkward in the fins, until they were deep enough forswimming. Then all adjusted mouthpieces and started out. Rick tried theinfrared light intermittently, but not until they were in about twentyfeet of water did the roiled bottom allow its use. He led the way to thereef, the others following in file.
The reef was closer to the surface than on the western side. Rick had toswim along it until he found a place where they could cross withoutbeing buffeted by breakers. Once across, he swam down the face of thereef, knowing that the trip was hard on Tony, because the underwaterworld was completely dark to one without light, or glasses with which tosee the infrared illumination.
Rick found a fairly level shelf at about thirty feet and swam along it,keeping close to the reef wall, until he thought they were in thevicinity of the frogmen. Then he pulled twice on the tie rope in asignal to surface, knowing that Scotty would pass the signal along toTony.
He emerged in a rough sea, only yards from the point on the reefopposite the anchored boat. He was in time to see two frogmen climb downthe boat's ladder. They got into the water and the third man, on deck,lowered the brass object to them.
Rick had no fear that they would be seen from the boat. Their headswould be hidden by the breaking waves, and their bubbles would mergewith the natural foam.
He saw at once what their tactics should be. He pulled Scotty and Tonyto him, then let his mouthpiece drop. Putting his lips close to theirears, he said softly, "If it's like last time, they won't be down long.Scotty and I will track them to find out where they go, and watch whatthey're doing. Then, after they leave, we'll see if they left anythingbehind."
Scotty and Tony nodded. Tony untied the line that had held him toScotty. Rick replaced his mouthpiece, cleared a little mist from hisface mask, and led the way down.
This time the infrared light operated continuously. Now and then Rickworked the toggle switch through its loose plastic covering and shut theunit off while he searched for visible light. He found it, far down theface of the reef.
The camera made it easy, and his mind was at rest because this timenature had made it impossible for their bubbles to give them away tosurface watchers.
There were heavy swells on the surface. He knew it because of thepressure surges on his ears. But otherwise there was no sign of thestorm. He grinned because he suddenly realized that he felt dry. On thesurface, with the rain beating at him, he had felt like a drownedkitten.
Moving with the confidence gained in his first experience, he led theway seaward, then went to the level of the light. Soon they were closeenough to see the frogmen working over something on a coral ledge on thereef face. They hovered motionless, watching, and as one of the frogmenmoved they saw that it was the brass ball.
Rick started his camera. He had an advantage, because the frogmen wereconcentrating on what they were doing, their backs to him. He moved incautiously, camera grinding, then backed away again when he thought hehad enough long shots.
One frogman moved away a few feet, and Rick's breathing stopped as theman's belt light flashed toward him. Had the frogman been looking, hecould have seen the boys, but he was too interested in the secondfrogman's actions.
The second frogman crouched over the brass object, hand moving.
Rick recoiled as a wail lanced through his head with painful impact. Hefelt the rope tighten as Scotty involuntarily drew away.
It was not the octopus, then! It was the brass ball that wailed. Butwhy? For what possible reason?
The frogmen were apparently satisfied. One of them picked up thepowerful light they had been using and turned it off. Then, with onlybelt lights, they started back up the reef.
Rick waited until the lights were no longer visible. He glanced at hisdepth gauge and wrist watch. They were at eighty feet, and they hadplenty of air left. He swam to the brass ball, camera grinding.
He had never seen anything quite like it. The brass sphere was mountedon a box about twelve inches square and six inches high. From thesphere, two rounded projections thrust out. He identified a waterproofswitch on the box, and two small knobs mounted on calibrated plates.These were obviously controls, but he had no idea what they controlled.
Steve would want a few close-ups. Rick worked his camera focus and tookshots from every angle. When he had enough, he pulled twice on the ropein a signal to surface. Scotty motioned to him to lead the way.
As Rick started up, four metallic clangs, irregularly spaced, rangfaintly in his ears.
Tony, banging his tank in the signal for trouble! Rick instantly changedcourse and followed the bottom, watching the water overhead for any signof the frogmen. When he had reached a spot below the point on the reefwhere Tony should be waiting, he turned toward the surface, movingslowly, searching for any sign of activity. There was no sign ofwhatever had alarmed Tony.
He paused a few inches under the surface, then carefully put his faceinto the air. Scotty surfaced beside him.
There was no sign of Tony. Rick peered through his mask and saw that theboa
t was still anchored in the same place. There were figures on itsdeck. Four of them--Four! He ripped his mask off for a clearer look, andhis heart skipped a beat. The frogmen had Tony!