Biff pulled back his hand just in time, as the log came alive with a snarl. Biff realized that he had encountered some prowling beast of prey. He raised the alarm with a loud shout:
“Dad! There’s something here by the fire—”
Before Biff could complete the sentence, he saw that the creature was a huge jungle cat, its tawny yellow coat spotted black. Already, it was poising for a spring. Biff, caught unarmed, was confronted by an attacking jaguar, one of the jungle’s most ferocious killers.
Biff heard an answering call from his father. Then, before Mr. Brewster could have possibly found time to grab his gun, the jaguar sprang!
CHAPTER VI
Into the Quicksand
Biff flung his arms upward, as he tried to duck away. It was a hopeless effort, for nothing could have saved him from those fierce claws, once the jaguar reached him. What stopped the springing jungle cat was another figure, small but chunky, that came flying out of the darkness, feet first.
It was Kamuka. The Indian boy had grabbed a long liana vine hanging like a rope from a tree beside his high hammock. All in one motion, he had swung himself across the jaguar’s path just in time to ram the creature’s shoulder in mid-air and veer the big cat toward the fire.
That gave Biff time enough to roll the other way, and Kamuka, as he struck the ground, promptly squirmed about to dive off into the darkness. The scene was momentarily illuminated by a shower of sparks raised by the jaguar when it struck the fringe of the embers. With more of a yowl than a snarl, the big cat cleared the fire at a single bound and took off into the jungle.
Mr. Brewster had his gun by then, but with so many figures bouncing in the vague firelight, he couldn’t risk a shot. By the time Biff and Kamuka were out of the way, Jacome had come on the scene, swinging a big club. Mr. Brewster had to wait until he was out of the path of aim, before firing into the jungle.
By then, Mr. Brewster might as well have fired blank shots. The jaguar had vanished completely in darkness. Jacome threw some logs on the fire, and as the flames took hold, he commented: