“Yes, and they are the wrong ones! They will get the ship on the rocks!” cried Jerry. “We must escape!”
Terror struck to the boys’ hearts. They had tried every means and failed. The plotters had outwitted them. They could do nothing. They beat upon the door with their fists as though by their feeble efforts they could break it down.
Ned stumbled aimlessly in the darkness, seeking for something with which to batter down the door. As he passed by a pile of boxes and barrels he uttered a cry.
“Have you found anything?” asked Jerry.
“Something, yes! A window in the wall! An open window!”
Bob and Jerry hurried to where they heard Ned’s voice. As they did so he had climbed up on a box. He pressed his face close against the wall. A cool wind fanned his cheek.
“There is an opening!” he exclaimed. “But it is too small for us to get out of. It’s only a ventilating window. But wait! Someone is coming!”
The boys almost held their breaths. Then Ned called in a loud whisper:
“Jess! Jess! Here we are! Let us out! Some bad men are in charge of the place and are going to change the lights! They are going to wreck a steamer!”