“But you must. I can’t go, and we must have the gold. Will you decide? I thought you had offered to help Mr. Tursio.”
When he heard that, Pinocchio finally made up his mind. He opened the door and went down a few steps. Then he stopped.
“Must I really go?” he asked.
Marsovino began to lose his patience.
“If you do not make haste getting into that ship, I shall return without you,” he could not help saying.
“Very well. Here I go.”
“You remember Tursio’s instructions, don’t you? At the bottom of the stairs there is a large room. At one end a door leads into the captain’s room. In a corner of the captain’s room, you will find two boxes. They contain the treasure. Good-by and good luck.”
Very slowly Pinocchio went down. Luckily for him a few sunfishes were floating around, giving some light.
When he reached the bottom of the stairs, he saw in front of him a large square room. In the walls were long narrow holes, like the shelves of a pantry. These had probably been the sailors’ bunks. But to Pinocchio they were puzzles.
The roof, which was very high, was of glass. This made the room lighter than the stairs, and so Pinocchio took courage.