The Valiant Runaways [44]
shall touch it but myself."
"But if we promise never to return, and to tell no man of what we know,"
interposed Rafael, feebly.
The priest laughed. "With the glitter of gold in your brains? You could
not keep an oath on the cross." He turned swiftly and strode down the
passage.
"What will he do?" gasped Adan.
"Roll a stone over the entrance and secure it with others," said Roldan.
"There are plenty nigh. If we follow, he will beat us back with those
fists, and one blow would crack our skulls in two."
"Then what shall we do? Rot here? Starve to death? Madre de dios!"
"We have been between the teeth of death before, have we not? We shall
have many more adventures, my friends."
But although he spoke confidently he was profoundly disturbed. This was
no ordinary predicament. He knew that unless the priest relented they
stood small chance of seeing sun and stars again. Would he relent?
Roldan's own indomitable will and growing ambitions responded to the
awful forces in the man, overgrown and abnormal as they had become. That
the priest had some great end in view to which this gold was the means,
and that the gold itself had roused in him a controlling passion, he
could not doubt. The priest himself had told him something, the gold the
rest. With a sudden impulse of hatred Roldan emptied his pockets of the
metal and stamped upon it. He quieted suddenly, then stamped again, with
added vigour. Then he dropped and laid his ear to the ground.
"Stamp, Adan," he said, "and hard."
Adan shook his blood through his veins, and obeyed. Roldan sprang to his
feet. "We are above the tunnel of the Mission," he said. "And we have a
pickaxe. All we have to do is to dig."
XIX
It was three hours later that a mass of loosened earth caved suddenly,
carrying Adan with it. A wild yell came back. It stopped abruptly, the
tag end of it shot forth like the quick last blast from a trumpet.
"Hi, Adan!" called Roldan, excitedly, peering down into the dark. "Are
you hurt?"
"I know not! I know not! It is darker than a dungeon of a Mission." The
voice was quite distinct. It came from no great depth.
"Get out of the way," called Roldan. "I am coming." He waited a moment,
then dropped, falling on a mass of soft earth. Adan had prudently
retreated a few steps. He ran forward and helped Roldan to his feet,
just as Rafael came flying down.
"Now for the other end," said Roldan. "This air is not too good. And
that devil may return any moment."
They ran down the tunnel. It was wide and high, built for flying
priests, should the Mission be besieged and captured by savage tribes.
The air was close and heavy, but free from noxious gases. Bats whirred
past and rats scampered before them. Roldan paused after a moment and
lit his lantern. Its thin ray leaped but a few feet ahead, but would
frighten away any wild beast of the forest that might have wandered in.
The tunnel was straight. It also appeared to be endless.
"We have walked twenty leagues," groaned Adan, at the end of an hour.
"Two," said Roldan. "Without doubt this tunnel ends at the mountains,
and they are four leagues from the Mission. But you have taken longer
walks than this, my friend. Do you remember that night in the
mountains?"
"I had forgotten it for one blessed week. Rafael, to what have we
brought you? Your poor muscles are soft, where ours are now as hard as a
deserter's from an American barque--ay, yi!"
"If they have but the chance to become soft once more after they too are
hard!" muttered Rafael, who was panting and lagging. "That priest! that
priest!"
"It is true," said Roldan, pausing abruptly. "You will not dare to
return home at present--nor we. It is flight once more--to Los Angeles.
We will stay there--where he would not dare touch us if he came--until
he repents or makes sure that we will have told if we intend to tell.
Will you come?"
"Will I? I would go to Mexico if I could. I feel that there is not room
in the Californias for those hands and myself."
"I will take care
"But if we promise never to return, and to tell no man of what we know,"
interposed Rafael, feebly.
The priest laughed. "With the glitter of gold in your brains? You could
not keep an oath on the cross." He turned swiftly and strode down the
passage.
"What will he do?" gasped Adan.
"Roll a stone over the entrance and secure it with others," said Roldan.
"There are plenty nigh. If we follow, he will beat us back with those
fists, and one blow would crack our skulls in two."
"Then what shall we do? Rot here? Starve to death? Madre de dios!"
"We have been between the teeth of death before, have we not? We shall
have many more adventures, my friends."
But although he spoke confidently he was profoundly disturbed. This was
no ordinary predicament. He knew that unless the priest relented they
stood small chance of seeing sun and stars again. Would he relent?
Roldan's own indomitable will and growing ambitions responded to the
awful forces in the man, overgrown and abnormal as they had become. That
the priest had some great end in view to which this gold was the means,
and that the gold itself had roused in him a controlling passion, he
could not doubt. The priest himself had told him something, the gold the
rest. With a sudden impulse of hatred Roldan emptied his pockets of the
metal and stamped upon it. He quieted suddenly, then stamped again, with
added vigour. Then he dropped and laid his ear to the ground.
"Stamp, Adan," he said, "and hard."
Adan shook his blood through his veins, and obeyed. Roldan sprang to his
feet. "We are above the tunnel of the Mission," he said. "And we have a
pickaxe. All we have to do is to dig."
XIX
It was three hours later that a mass of loosened earth caved suddenly,
carrying Adan with it. A wild yell came back. It stopped abruptly, the
tag end of it shot forth like the quick last blast from a trumpet.
"Hi, Adan!" called Roldan, excitedly, peering down into the dark. "Are
you hurt?"
"I know not! I know not! It is darker than a dungeon of a Mission." The
voice was quite distinct. It came from no great depth.
"Get out of the way," called Roldan. "I am coming." He waited a moment,
then dropped, falling on a mass of soft earth. Adan had prudently
retreated a few steps. He ran forward and helped Roldan to his feet,
just as Rafael came flying down.
"Now for the other end," said Roldan. "This air is not too good. And
that devil may return any moment."
They ran down the tunnel. It was wide and high, built for flying
priests, should the Mission be besieged and captured by savage tribes.
The air was close and heavy, but free from noxious gases. Bats whirred
past and rats scampered before them. Roldan paused after a moment and
lit his lantern. Its thin ray leaped but a few feet ahead, but would
frighten away any wild beast of the forest that might have wandered in.
The tunnel was straight. It also appeared to be endless.
"We have walked twenty leagues," groaned Adan, at the end of an hour.
"Two," said Roldan. "Without doubt this tunnel ends at the mountains,
and they are four leagues from the Mission. But you have taken longer
walks than this, my friend. Do you remember that night in the
mountains?"
"I had forgotten it for one blessed week. Rafael, to what have we
brought you? Your poor muscles are soft, where ours are now as hard as a
deserter's from an American barque--ay, yi!"
"If they have but the chance to become soft once more after they too are
hard!" muttered Rafael, who was panting and lagging. "That priest! that
priest!"
"It is true," said Roldan, pausing abruptly. "You will not dare to
return home at present--nor we. It is flight once more--to Los Angeles.
We will stay there--where he would not dare touch us if he came--until
he repents or makes sure that we will have told if we intend to tell.
Will you come?"
"Will I? I would go to Mexico if I could. I feel that there is not room
in the Californias for those hands and myself."
"I will take care