"Never mind where you are," growled Del Mar, plainly worried. Then to the men, he added, "We can't stay any longer. The harbor is discovered. Get ready to leave immediately."
Murmurs of anger and anxiety rose from the men as Del Mar related briefly between orders what had just happened.
Immediately there was a general scramble to make ready for the escape.
In the corner of the office, Elaine, again in her skirt and shirtwaist which the diving-suit had protected, sat open-eyed watching the preparations of the men for the hasty departure. Some had been detailed to get the rifles which they handed around to those as yet unarmed. Del Mar took one as well as a cartridge belt.
"Guard her," he shouted to one man indicating Elaine, "and if she gets away this time, I'll shoot you."
Then he led the others down the ledge until he came to a submarine boat. The rest followed, still making preparations for a hasty flight.
. . . . . . .
Woodward along with Professor Arnold, in his disguise as a hermit, stood for a moment surrounded by the soldiers, after the disappearance of Elaine and Del Mar in the water.
"I see it all, now," cried the hermit, "the submarine, the strange disappearances, the messages in the water. They have a secret harbor under those cliffs, with an entrance beneath the water line."
Hastily he wrote a note on a piece of paper.